DRAMATIC COMEDY PLAY INSPIRED > <META NAME="Keywords" CONTENT="Humanism, atheism, television, media studies, vampires, cthulhu, comics, graphic novels, battle, Moston, goths, night clubs, food, drink, religion, sects, guru, brainwashing, meditation, fun, philosophy, literature, time, Judge Dredd, Dr. Who, flash fiction, fantasy, comedy, beer, pubs, travel, art, history, Civil War Re-enactment, humour, erotica, short stories, links, quicksand, science fiction, SF, trivia, abstracts, haiku, poetry slams, poetry, blogging, myspace, belief, doubt, cynicism, free will, Eastercon, costuming, photographs, scepticism, existentialism, biography, autobiography, books, films, cinema, scripts, Manchester, links to other sites, Arthur Chappell"> <META NAME="Description" CONTENT="Atheism, Religious cults, erotica, humour, Civil War Re-enactment, history, Manchester England, humour, philosophy, book and film reviews."> <script language="JavaScript1.2" src="http://www.altavista.com/static/scripts/translate_engl.js"></script> <meta http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; charset=windows-1252"> <meta name=ProgId content=Word.Document> <meta name=Generator content="Microsoft Word 9"> <meta name=Originator content="Microsoft Word 9"> <link rel=File-List href="./play-inspired_files/filelist.xml"> <title>“Bill, about the Hamlet show

INSPIRATION

ACT ONE – SCENE ONE

Shakespeare sits backstage at a table at the Globe writing, and looking perplexed. He has a beer and a bottle of ink on the table.

BARD (writing and talking to himself) What brick through yonder window breaks?

(Dissatisfied, he crosses the words out)

BARD – Is this Dagenham I see before me?

(He crumples the paper and throws it to the floor. He starts writing again on the sheet under it.

BARD – Out damn zit… Oh, God no.

He reaches for the beer but drinks the ink instead by accident.

BARD - Pha! A pox on this accursed writer’s block.

(Enter ACTOR)

ACTOR - Bill, Bill. About Hamlet

BARD - What of it?

ACTOR Horatio rhymes with fellatio. Could your Sweet Prince not take such pleasure from his friend on stage to show how close they are?

BARD Gadzooks! You are truly for such a course. You do not jest! I must forbid it. The Globe attracts family audiences. We must make such merriment only in private.

ACTOR Bill, I beg of you. Is it to be?

BARD (standing up, pen & paper in hand) It is not to be, but you give me ideas…. Be. Not be…. Odds-Bodkins! I believe I can work on that… To be or not to be. That is the question!

(Exit Shakespeare stage left)

First performance – Freed Up poetry event – The Green Room, Whitworth Street, Manchester September 10^th 2009

CAST

BARD - Arthur Chappell

ACTOR - Andy Nicholson.