Monday, July 1, 2013

THE DARWINS cont'd

                                                Scene Nine
Lights rise. The port of Falmouth, England, October 2, 1836. Behind Emma stands Elizabeth and two men, Charles Lyell, age 39, and Richard Owen, age 32.
                                                CHARLES
                                    Emma!
He runs to her, hugs her.

                                                CHARLES
                                    I’m home.
                                                EMMA
                                    Praise God.
                                                CHARLES
                                    I’m so giddy I don’t even
                                    know what I’m thinking.
                                                (releases his embrae, looks at her)
                                    How grand you look.
Elizabeth opens her arms for a hug. Charles leaves Emma to oblige.
                                                CHARLES
                                    And you also, Elizabeth.
                                                ELIZABETH
                                    Thank you. You look better for being thinner,
                                    Charles.
                                                CHARLES
                                    You are most kind, Elizabeth. Where’s
                                    my father?
                                                ELIZABETH
                                    Speaking with the dockmaster about
                                    transporting your things.
                                                CHARLES
                                                (turns back to Emma)
                                    Emma... I can’t believe it.
                                                LYELL
                                    Mr. Darwin? I am Sir Charles Lyell.
Charles immediately forgets Emma and turns to Lyell.
                                                CHARLES
                                    Lyell? Sir, your fine book on geology is one
                                    of the few I brought on my journey.
                                    This is an honor.
                                                LYELL
                                    The honor is mine, sir.
                                                CHARLES
                                    Really? Why?
                                                LYELL
                                                (laughs)
                                    Your reputation proceeds you.
                                                CHARLES
                                    I was unaware I had a reputation.
                                                OWEN
                                    Not you, Mr. Darwin, but your specimens from
                                    South America.
                                                LYELL
                                    This is Dr. Richard Owen.
                                                CHARLES
                                    Yes, I think I’ve heard that name.
                                                OWEN
                                    I’m certain you have.  I am the Hunterian
                                    Professor for the College of Surgeons
                                    at Lincoln’s Inn Fields.
                                                LYELL
                                                (beat)
                                    He dissects the dead zoo animals.
                                                CHARLES
                                    Ah!
                                                OWEN
                                    Mr. Lyell assumed you would like to ask me
                                    to catalogue and study some of
                                    your ancient fossils.
                                                CHARLES
                                    By all means!
                                                OWEN
                                    Your voyage was an amazing success, it seems.
                                                CHARLES
                                                (hesitantly)
                                    It was.
                                                EMMA
                                    Did you meet any cannibals?
                                                CHARLES
                                    Yes. But we were fine. The Fuegans only eat
                                    their old women and the Maori find Englishmen
                                    too salty.
Lyell laughs.
                                                CHARLES
                                    Truly. Maori flesh is sweeter they say.
Lyell stops laughing.
                                                ELIZABETH
                                    Did you not try to bring them to Jesus?
                                                CHARLES
                                    Bringing them to not wanting to eat us
                                    was mission enough.
                                                LYELL
                                    What a story.
                                                OWEN
                                    Yes, perhaps you should write a travel book!
                                                (he chuckles)
                                                CHARLES
                                    I thought I might.
                                                LYELL
                                    I could help with that endeavor.
                                                EMMA
                                    How wonderful!
                                                CHARLES
                                    You are very kind.
                                                EMMA
                                    You said in your last letter that you
                                    felt changed, Charley.
                                                CHARLES
                                    Yes.
                                                EMMA
                                    You seem very much the same to me.
Emma smiles, he smiles back.
                                                CHARLES
                                    Do I?
                                                ELIZABETH
                                    Our sister died, you know.
                                                CHARLES
                                    Yes.
                                                (to Emma)
                                    I’m sorry, I should have said something
                                    immediately.
                                                EMMA
                                    Thank you.
                                                ELIZABETH
                                    Our fathers had hoped you two would marry.
                                                (Emma and Charles look to her)
                                    You and Fanny Wedgewood.
                                                (tearfully)
                                    We thought she would make a perfect
                                    Parson’s wife, owing to her plainness.
                                               
                                                EMMA
                                    Yes. We all miss Fanny deeply. But here we are.
                                                CHARLES
                                    I would have only disappointed, Elizabeth.
                                    For I have no interest in marriage at present.
                                                ELIZABETH
                                    I see.
                                                (looks at Emma)
                                                CHARLES
                                    For the present, the amount of cataloguing
                                    and verifying will keep me quite overwhelmed
                                    with work.
                                                EMMA
                                    Well... regardless, I hope we will still see
                                    you often at Maer Hall.
                                                CHARLES
                                    Oh, yes, Emma. As soon as possible. I plan to spend
                                    the next year warm and comfortable in the country.
                                                LYELL
                                    But Mr. Darwin, London is where you must
                                    be to advance your projects.
                                                EMMA
                                    Charley hasn’t finished up at Christ’s College.
                                                LYELL
                                    You are a clergymen?
                                                CHARLES
                                    Oh. Well. I don’t know.
                                                LYELL
                                    Still, no reason not to live in London,
                                    is there?
                                                CHARLES
                                    I do have my brother, Erasmus,
                                    in the city.
                                                LYELL
                                    Excellent.
                                                OWEN
                                    Come! Lyell and I are keen to hear more about
                                    your speculations on rising continents.
                                                CHARLES
                                    Of course! Thank you.
The two men lead Charles off.
                                                EMMA
                                    Don’t worry, Charley, we can wait.
                                                CHARLES
                                                (exiting)
                                    After an earthquake in Chile, I
                                    noticed a bed of dead shellfish well above
                                    high tide, which suggested, as you
                                    theorized, Lyell, that mountains were
                                    not thrown up in one cataclysmic event,
                                    but created a few inches at a time--
Emma can’t hide feeling a little hurt which Elizabeth picks up on.

                                                ELIZABETH

                                    Shall we go find Uncle Robert and the dockmaster?

                                                (Emma nods, distracted)

                                    The poor woman who ends up with cousin Charles.


                                                EMMA

                                    Yes.


                                                ELIZABETH

                                    Sometimes I feel quite fortunate to be

                                    contentedly single... Don’t you, Emma?


                                                EMMA

                                    Sometimes, I suppose.


                                                ELIZABETH

                                    I just don’t think Charles shares your

                                    feelings.


                                                EMMA

                                    My feelings?


                                                ELIZABETH

                                    I’m the only one to notice. Don’t worry,

                                    you have not made yourself look foolish, yet.


                                                EMMA

                                    You don’t feel he loves me?


                                                ELIZABETH

                                    As a childhood friend, always.

                                    As he does me.

                                                (Emma bows her head)

                                    Oh, dear Emma... I will stay

                                    with you. We will never be alone,

                                    I promise.


Emma gives Elizabeth a harsh look and exits hurriedly in the opposite direction.


No comments:

Post a Comment