OREOS AND NOSE RINGS
Characters: 4
Situation: A four person exchange at a table.
Purpose: Learning to work with cross conversations. 1 and 2 have one thing in mind
while 3 and 4 are somewhat off on their own. Giving the audience a sense of what they
are looking at even though the audience does not see it. The most important part of this
exercise is quick pacing. Lines should almost overlap at times. The scene should
recreate four students at lunch each off on their own train of thought. To help
understanding, the teacher may wish to bracket off the connected conversations. The
effect comes into focus only when the students are memorized and can achieve the
double conversation without hesitation. This exercise also prepares students for
contemporary works such as Ionesco’s The Bald Soprano.
(Four students are sitting at lunch. They have brown bags and they take out items sandwiches etc. as they speak. Number 3 always talks with food in the mouth. The
conversation begins in a “stage” whisper.)
1. Look at her.
2. Who?
1. Her - the girl with the chain and padlock around her neck.
2. Yeh, so?
3. She’s new here.
1. Look at her.
2. I am looking. What do you want me to see?
1. The ring.
3. What ring?
4. I can’t see her hands. She’s got her sleeves pulled down.
1. Not her hands - her nose!
2. Her nose?
1. In her nose.
4. Oh, I didn’t notice.
2. Yeh, so? You never saw a ring in somebody’s nose before?
3. (pensively) Pretty big ring.
1. Yeh, but watch what she’s doin’.
2. What she doin?
1. With the Oreo.
3. I wonder if it’s real silver?
4. It has to be silver.
2. The oreo?
3. Why?
4. (to 2) No, not the oreo. The ring. The ring has to be silver.
3. Why does it have to be silver?
4. ‘Cause it would tarnish if it wasn’t.
3. Really? I didn’t know that.
2. Me neither.
1. Silver does tarnish.. It’s gold that doesn’t.
4. Oh.
1. Check out the oreo.
3. (Looks in lunch bag.) I don’t have any Oreos. My mom gave me an orange. (Pulls out
the orange.)
4. (Look in lunch bag) I have a Ring Ding. (pulls out the Ring Ding.)
3. (To 4) Wanna swap?
4. Ok.
1. Do you see what I’m tellin’ you guys? (Looks off at the other table) - Ah! Ya missed
it again.
2, Missed what?
1. The oreo.
2. (frustrated) What are you talkin’ about ,-- oreo?
1. Watch when she licks the oreo.
2. Licks it?
1. You know, – how you lick an oreo.
3. I hate peeling oranges.
1. Yeh, watch how the edge of the cookie kind a’ tiggles the ring.
3. You get your finger all sticky. ( in the meantime licking the Ring Ding from his/her
fingers.)
2. “tiggles” the ring?
4. I like oranges. They’re better for you. (Being very neat with the orange.)
1. You know what I mean.
3. Yeh, it’s like when the juice gets all over your fingers and you gotta lick it off. (
Continues to make a mess with the Ring Ding.)
1. See how she takes ‘em apart. Her tongue gets the bottom of the cookie but her nose
ring hits the top.
4. Not if you’re neat about it.
2. Don’t you eat oreos like that?
1. I don’t have a four inch ring sticken’ outta my nose!
3.Oranges give me canker sores.
4. I like the way oranges come in pieces. (Breaks the orange in segments.)
3. What? (To 2) Taking them apart?
2. Yeh, don’t you take them apart? (To 4)
3. What pieces! You get all those little ikky strings all over that stick to your fingers.
4. Sometimes.
1. I never munch down an oreo whole.
2. Sometimes I do.
3. You can’t even peal an orange. You gotta poke your thumb in the top. ( licking
fingers loudly and with chocolate all over the face.)
1. I suppose I do too, once in a while.
4. I cut the skin with a knife.
3. (Continuing to lick his/her fingers.) And then you get that orange gunk in your
fingernail.
2. But when you split ‘em, what part do you eat first?
1. Whadda ya mean ‘what part do I eat first?’?
2. ( impatiently) Do you eat the cookie part first or do you lick the cream off the cream
half?
1. I dunno, .... maybe the cream.
2. I like to eat the cookie first.
3. (Taken by the word “cream” joins the oreo conversation.)
You don’t go for the cream?
I get the cream with my finger.
2. No, the cookie first. I get it out of the way.
3. ...... scrape it off. You know ( demonstrates)
4. You could use a spoon.
2. A spoon?
4. I use a spoon.
1. I usually lick off the cream.
2. Then you’re left with two cookies and no cream.
3. And it hurts your tongue after a while.
1. What does?
3. All the licking. It hurts the back of my jaw and kinda kills my tongue.
So use your finger - it works better. ( loud lick and slurping smack , or finger pop in the
cheek.)
4. Ya know, if you eat the cookie side first, then the cream, you only have one dead
cookie side left to eat. If you eat the cream first, then you
have two dead cookie sides to get rid of.
3. Besides, you have to eat the cookie first or you’d have disembodied oreo cream
floating in the air.
2. How spiritual!
1. Does it matter?
2. Well, everything matters. Some people don’t even like Oreos.
1. Who doesn’t like Oreos.
2. My sister. She like Hydrox better.
1. It’s the same thing.
3. No, it’s not. They’re different.
(Aside to 4 - returning to the empty Ring Ding wrapper.)
You got another one of these?
4. Nope that’s it.
3.(Returning to the others.) Besides, Oreos come with double cream.
1. But they’re more expensive that way.
3. So! I’d pay the extra dollar for the extra cream
2. Yeh, but Hydrox have more cream right off the bat.
1. You know, I don’t see why they don’t sell them with double stuff all the time.
2. That would be gross.
4. Not as gross as those Christmas Oreos.
1. Oh yeh, I’ve seen them. Red and green stuff inside for Christmas.
3. Yeh, they’re great with a glass of milk - right before you go to bed.
4. Oh man, they make the milk gross.
1.. Why would they make the milk gross.
4. ‘Cause the color gets in the milk.
2. Wadda ya mean?
4. (singing) A little red .... a little green ... together they make....
1. Ugh! Not a pretty picture.
3. It won’t kill ya.
2. No one but you could be that gross.
3. Gee, thanks.
2. No, I take that back. Look.
1. What I tell ya? Take a look.
3. ( With delight) Check it out!
1. Watch the nose ring!
4. She’s gettin the cream stuff all over it !
2. Oh man! .
1. Do you believe it?
2. There it goes again.
4. She’s stickin’ out her tongue to lick it off the nose ring!
3. I love it. ( Makes another “pop” sound with finger in cheek)