The Scarlet Ibis Opera in thirteen scenes Music by Stefan Weisman Libretto by David Cote Based on the story by James Hurst LIBRETTO CHARACTERS Brother (mezzo): Six years old at beginning of story; thirteen at the end Doodle (countertenor): Younger brother; grows to nearly seven Mother (soprano): A woman in her thirties Father (baritone): A man in his late thirties or forties Auntie (alto): A woman in her forties; Father’s older sister The Scarlet Ibis (puppet): A tropical bird blown off course TIME 1912–1918 PLACE In and around the Armstrong home in northeast North Carolina, a three-­‐story house with a broad front lawn and a red-­‐gum tree out back (“the bleeding tree”). There’s a barn nearby, attached to a carpentry shed. The house is not far from the sea, and a short walk through the woods to a local swamp. The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 2 Scene 1: The Caul October 1912. Night. Brother sits on the living room floor playing with toy soldiers and cannon. Mother, Father and Auntie are upstairs in the bedroom. Mother, ready to give birth, is in tremendous pain and distress. BROTHER Sun up on Gettysburg: Wake up, soldiers! (Sings reveille) Ba, bum, ba, da, bum, bum! Ba, bum, ba, da, bum! Ba, bum, ba, da, bum, ba, bam, ba, bum, ba, bum, baaah! MOTHER (Overlapping, in labor pains) Uff! Uff! Uff! Ahhhh! BROTHER Soldiers wake up! MOTHER Oh… Ah! Uh, uh! BROTHER (Arranging his toy soldiers in battle lines) Billy Yank and Johnny Reb raise their rifles. Bayonets shine in the light. “Chaaaarge!” MOTHER (Overlapping) Ahhhhh! BROTHER “Fire cannon!” Boom! MOTHER Iiieeeeee! Ohhh! BROTHER “Ugh!” “Gah!” “I’m hit!” The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 3 Breathe. Breathe, Sister, breathe! Pow! Pow-­‐pow! Pow! AUNTIE BROTHER MOTHER Where’s the doctor? I need a doctor! BROTHER “I’ll get you Billy Yank!” FATHER I called him, dear. He’s coming. BROTHER Shot between the eyes! MOTHER Oh! God help me! BROTHER “Cannon took his head clean off!” AUNTIE Short breaths, Sister. BROTHER “I’ll get you, Johnny Reb!” FATHER The doctor should be here, dammit! MOTHER Oh, ah—Ahh! AUNTIE Might have to do without. Keep breathing. (Auntie rushes downstairs to the kitchen, gathering basin, towels, a bottle of grain alcohol and knife.) The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 4 BROTHER (Still lost in his game) Look at all them blood and guts! (Auntie bustles into the living room.) AUNTIE You got a brother on the way. BROTHER A brother? AUNTIE She’s carrying low, low, low! Portents indisputable: A boy is on the way! MOTHER (Offstage) Oh! Sister!! (She takes a swig from the bottle.) AUNTIE That will do. MOTHER (Offstage) Ah… AUNTIE She’s carrying so low, she may give birth in China! (Auntie rushes back upstairs.) BROTHER A brother. I’m gonna get a brother! We can run together, swim and race and fight and explore every corner of the swamp. I’ll teach him how to climb the vines. We’ll swing like Tarzan. I’ll be Tarzan. He can be my chimpanzee. We can play Pirates. King Arthur and his Knights. Well, King Arthur and his one Knight. I’ll be King Arthur! We can play Wild West and Civil War— MOTHER Oh! Oh! Oh! The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 5 BROTHER Maybe I’ll take just a little peek. (Brother tiptoes up the stairs. He cracks open the bedroom door and peeks in. Mother is on the bed, writhing in pain. Auntie tends to her. Father paces.) MOTHER Eeeeeah! FATHER She should not suffer so! AUNTIE Brother, I’ve seen worse. MOTHER Oh! FATHER That’s my brave girl! Take my hand. AUNTIE Breathe and push, push and breathe! MOTHER Aaaaaaarrrgh! FATHER That’s right, my dear. Push. AUNTIE Push! I can see his head, Sister! Push. FATHER Push! It will soon be over! Push. Push. (Brother, caught up in what’s happening, barges in.) BROTHER Push it, Mama, push! Push! Push! (The voices swell until Mother gives one last cry.) The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 6 Oh! Now! Holy moly. I told you to stay below. But I only— You listen, boy. Go! MOTHER (The baby comes out. Silence. Everyone stares at the newborn. Auntie gathers up a tiny bundle of tissue, blood and hair. The baby is covered in a milky membrane. Auntie makes holes for the nose so the baby can breathe. Brother, shocked, breaks the silence.) BROTHER (Father realizes Brother is there, and he turns on him.) FATHER BROTHER FATHER BROTHER Whatever that is, it ain’t no brother of mine! (Brother turns and runs out of the bedroom.) The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 7 Scene 2: The Coffin (A short time after. Brother sits in the kitchen, moping. Auntie enters with basin to wash her hands.) AUNTIE Didn’t I tell you he was a boy? And a caul baby, too. Caul babies are special. BROTHER It looked weird. Like an egg. AUNTIE Nature is a wondrous thing. (Father enters, shaken and somber.) FATHER Sister. We need your help with the baby. (Auntie exits to go upstairs to bedroom.) FATHER Your brother has come out...small, son. He’s tired. Small and tired. (Father starts to leave.) BROTHER Where are you going, Daddy? FATHER Out to the shop. I’ve got something to build. BROTHER I’ll help. FATHER No, son, no. BROTHER Please! (Unable to answer, Father leaves. Brother follows.) The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 8 (Upstairs, Auntie enters Mother’s bedroom. Mother sits up in bed holding her newborn, humming, worried.) MOTHER I can’t tell whether he’s asleep, or awake, or in between. AUNTIE Give him time. So what’s my nephew’s name? MOTHER Oh. We never discussed it. Names are so important, don’t you think? AUNTIE He’s special. A caul baby. (Mother and Auntie hum over the baby.) MOTHER He’s so quiet. So still. (She sings a lullaby.) Rest, my dear one, rest, But don’t forget to wake. Sleep, my baby, sleep, Then come back to me. Dream yourself to distant shores, But sailors must return to port, Turn your ship back home. Every night must end, And every day begin. Home. (Auntie leaves mother and child. She goes outside and heads to the carpentry shed. She stops outside the door, listening. In the shop, Father is selecting tools and wood. Brother stands off to the side and watches.) FATHER Choose the boards, Strong straight grain, No knot no rot. It’s good wood. (He gets out a measuring stick and saw.) The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 9 Cut the boards, Fourteen inch, Six inch, four; It’s good wood. What’s he making? I don’t know. It’s too late for work. Plane the boards, Sand them smooth, Brush the dust. Mahogany wood. Ah! Brother, no! FATHER (As Father measures and saws the boards to fit, Auntie enters. Brother goes over to her and whispers.) AUNTIE BROTHER AUNTIE FATHER (Auntie sees what he is building: a small coffin.) AUNTIE BROTHER What’s he making? Auntie? (Father angrily hammers nails into the coffin sides.) FATHER Then hammer, hammer, hammer, hammer! Hammer home the nails. Hammer, hammer, hammer, hammer! AUNTIE It’s wrong, Brother. Stop, no! It’s wrong, Brother. FATHER Hammer home the nails! The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 10 (In the bedroom, Mother continues her lullaby.) Dream yourself to distant shores… You’re going home, my boy. But sailors must return to port. You’re going home. MOTHER FATHER MOTHER FATHER BROTHER Can I see, Daddy? Is it… a toy? (Father holds up the coffin.) BROTHER What is it? FATHER It’s for your brother. BROTHER It’s a box. (Pause) But what are you gonna put in it? (Pause) Daddy, he can have my windup leapfrog. It’s broken but he won’t know no better. FATHER This is not a toy, son. It’s for your brother. (Father, overcome with emotion, leaves the shed and goes back to the house, carrying the tiny coffin under one arm. Brother starts to run after him, but stops. Brother turns to Auntie.) BROTHER (Low, scared) Is my brother dead? The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 11 AUNTIE You mark me, boy: He will live. He’s a caul baby. Do you know what a caul is? It’s a second skin, and that means second sight. Cauls are cut from Jesus’ nightgown. God wraps the baby to keep it warm. Mark me, child: your brother will have second sight. He’s gonna see—straight through you, straight through me. Signs of wonder, signs of God. Proof indisputable! Proof divine! Mark me, boy, he’ll make it through the night, And he will live. Live! (Auntie hugs Brother tightly.) The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 12 Scene 3: The Nickname (Months later. Father stows the coffin in the hayloft. Inside the house, a smiling Mother carries the swaddled infant to the guest bedroom. Brother is there, too, watching as she lays the baby on the bed and unwraps him. The baby is a tiny pink creature that seems all head. It moves weakly, pushing itself backward with its hands. Still, Mother is visibly hopeful.) MOTHER (Gingerly, testing the name out) William Theodore Armstrong. BROTHER (Mockingly) “William Theodore Armstrong.” That sounds like tying a long tail on a little kite. MOTHER (Tolerantly) Do you have a better idea? BROTHER (Sheepish) No, ma’am. (Impatiently) Mama, when will he be able to play with me? Go down to the swamp and swing on vines? MOTHER I don’t know. BROTHER Climb trees? MOTHER I don’t know. BROTHER Race me across the field? The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 13 I don’t know. MOTHER (Upset, but trying to explain gently) There’s a different size to every life. (Fearful realization, losing her calm) Oh, God. My God. Oh… (Recovering her composure) He may not be all there, son, he may not be all there. He cannot play, cannot play. The size of his life is this bed, this room, today. (Mother, crying, leaves. Brother leans over the infant.) BROTHER You made Mama cry. What are you good for, huh? William? Stupid name. You sure are weird looking. Teensy and weensy and weak and ugly. (Brother takes the baby by the arm and flips him on his stomach. The baby pushes itself backwards, away.) Can’t even move right, only crawl backward like…like… Like a doodle-­‐bug! That’s right: doodle-­‐bug. You’re more bug than brother. (Auntie enters, having met Mother in the hallway. She stands in the doorway, watching Brother with concern and some disapproval.) Doodle, Doodle, Doodle, Doodle! That’s what I’m gonna call you! Doodle. (Auntie gathers the infant in its swaddling clothes and leaves. Brother follows.) The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 14 Scene 4: Do’s and Don’ts (Father is on the telephone. Mother is with him, holding a small pad and pencil.) FATHER Yes. Mm-­‐hm. Yes. Yes, doctor. Just a moment, doctor. Let me write it down. (He repeats the words to Mother, who writes down the doctor’s instructions. Meanwhile, Brother enters carrying a cradle—which is rather heavy—and sets it down on the floor. Auntie follows, carrying the swaddled baby, whom she places in the cradle.) FATHER William must stay warm, he must not get a chill. MOTHER (Writing) Must stay warm, mustn’t get a chill. AUNTIE Keep cozy, no chill. BROTHER Stick the little critter in the icebox, with the Easter ham! FATHER Twice a day, crush and dissolve one blue pill. AUNTIE Blue pill with breakfast and one with lunch. MOTHER (Writing) Blue at eight, blue at two. BROTHER And wash ‘em down with moonshine! FATHER William must not be shaken; he must lie still. The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 15 He must lie still. Go easy with him. MOTHER (Brother mischievously rocks the cradle too hard and too fast. Auntie makes him stop.) AUNTIE BROTHER Toss him high, catch him by the heels, and swing the little bug around! (Father hangs up the phone.) FATHER (Sharp, annoyed) Son! We need your help taking care of William. BROTHER (Sheepishly) Doodle. FATHER Excuse me? BROTHER I call him Doodle cuz he can only crawl backward, like a doodle-­‐bug. MOTHER Doodle? FATHER Doodle? AUNTIE (Emphatically) Caul babies should be shown respect. (Seeing that Father and Mother find it charming rather than disrespectful, Auntie throws up her hands.) FATHER It’s alright, I suppose. Don’t let…Doodle crawl too far. Don’t hold him too tight. The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 16 Don’t kiss him too hard. MOTHER FATHER Don’t give Doodle food he cannot chew. AUNTIE Don’t shake him or pinch him. FATHER Don’t leave him in the sun. MOTHER Don’t leave him in the shade. FATHER, MOTHER AND AUNTIE Don’t— BROTHER Don’t don’t don’t don’t DON’T! What can I do?! FATHER Do help him. AUNTIE Do watch him. MOTHER Do love him. AUNTIE Do wait. BROTHER Wait? For what? AUNTIE You’ll see… (Mother and Father leave. Auntie stays, watching Brother with affection but also suspicion.) The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 17 Scene 5: The Smile (Brother stares at Doodle in his cradle. He leans over and takes a good long look. Auntie watches. Brother is slyly aware that he’s being watched.) BROTHER I’m waiting. (Pause) I’m still waiting. (Auntie shakes her head and leaves Brother alone. Brother takes a pillow from inside the cradle. He raises it over Doodle’s head. Playfully—or maliciously?—he presses the pillow on the baby’s face. After a second, he pulls it away. Then, suddenly, the pillow goes down again, harder, this time for several seconds. Brother lifts the pillow. He stares at Doodle.) BROTHER Oh! He’s smiling. Smiling. He’s all there! (Brother throws the pillow down and calls to the rest of the family as he runs through the hall.) BROTHER Mama! Daddy! Auntie! He’s smiling! He’s all there! Doodle is all there! Guess I have a brother! A real brother! We can play!
Play! The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 18 Scene 6: The Red Wagon (Four years later. A Saturday afternoon in September. The living room. Mother, Father and Aunt Auntie are seated facing an antique toy theater built by Father and temporarily set up in the parlor. It has a proscenium that reads “ARMSTRONG,” with red curtains and all. Brother enters blowing a kazoo.) BROTHER (Like a carnival barker) Hey, everybody in Vaudeville Land! What do ya say, how do ya do? (He reveals a handmade sign that hangs beside the proscenium and reads: FAMILY VARIETY HOUR) Welcome to the Armstrong Family Variety Hour! Tonight we have a red-­‐hot talent from North Carolina. He ain’t much to look at, but he sure sings pretty. Without further ado I give you: Doodle! (The curtain parts to reveal Doodle in a chair.) DOODLE Hey everybody in Vaudeville Land! What do ya do, how do ya say? BROTHER Back atcha, Doodle. Why don’t you tell the folks a little bit about yourself? DOODLE Sure thing, Brother. (Quickly and breathlessly) My name is Doodle I’m four years eleven months and you know what? (Brother takes a little bumblebee puppet made of cloth and “buzzes” around Doodle’s head) I counted seventeen bumblebees ’round that magnolia through yonder window I bet that magnolia smells sweet. (Stops, gasping a breath, sweetly:) I like flowers. (Brother brings out a small bouquet of flowers starts to offer it to Doodle then comically tosses it to Auntie. In the next section Brother floats a series of small toy books around Doodle’s head.) The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 19 DOODLE I read picture books, nature books, Mama’s backyard bird book, Auntie’s gospel book, Daddy’s Sears and Roebuck catalog book, even cookbooks, Yes, any old book will do. And I remember everything I read. BROTHER (Interrupting) Okay! Okay! Doodle! Now how about you sing us one of them sappy church tunes? AUNTIE (Disapprovingly) Oh. FATHER Son! BROTHER I mean, one of them bee-­‐yootiful hymns. Sing it, Doodle. DOODLE Heal me, sweet savior. Wash my wounds with your tears. (Brother takes a dove puppet on a stick and makes it fly past Doodle as he sings.) Heal me, sweet savior. Soothe my heart, calm my fears. For thy gentle touch Is God’s medicine And thy kiss is such It purges my sin. Life is long as we journey through a vale of pain, But then we pray and we dream to see you again. (The family joins in; Brother blows his kazoo) ALL Heal me, sweet savior. Help me walk, make me whole. Repair this broken body And save my dear soul. Heal me, sweet savior. Wash my wounds with your tears. Heal me, sweet savior. Soothe my heart, calm my fears. The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 20 Amen. DOODLE (The family applauds. Brother takes a halo on a stick and places it over Doodle’s head. Doodle notices and bats it away with one hand.) AUNTIE (To Mother) He sings just like the heavenly host. FATHER (To Doodle) Well done, son. BROTHER I can sing that high, too. See? (He tries and fails to hit a high note) “Heal me, sweet Jesus!” Oooh… MOTHER Doodle, you’ll be five soon. What do you want for your birthday? BROTHER Ask for a bike! Ask for a bike! FATHER Son, it’s your brother’s birthday. BROTHER I know. But he can ride it, too. FATHER No he can’t. MOTHER What do you want, Doodle? DOODLE Hm. Daddy told me about the Wright Brothers. Orville and… and… The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 21 And Wilbur. God rest his soul. AUNTIE BROTHER They flew at Kitty Hawk! That’s only fifty miles east of here! DOODLE Do you think the Wright Brothers would make me a flying machine? Specially built for someone like me? I could fly to China. And Russia. I could fly around the world. Brother, fetch me the world atlas. Please. BROTHER Daddy, are we really gonna get a flying machine? (Brother gets a big heavy book for Doodle from the bookshelf. He holds it so Doodle can read.) FATHER Well, the boy should see more of the world than the bedroom, parlor and porch. (Has an idea; to Brother) Come along and help me in the shed. (Father exits. Brother watches him go, still holding the world atlas for Doodle to read.) DOODLE Hey Brother: We’re gonna fly. We’re gonna fly everywhere! (He reads the atlas, running his finger along the lines. Brother joins him inside the toy theater, reading along.) Tim… Tim… Tim… Book… Two. Timbuktu. MOTHER Sister, look how Doodle eats up the pages with his eyes. DOODLE (Overlapping) Bo… Bo… Hee… Me… Ah… Bohemia and Timbuktu. AUNTIE That boy is blessed. Grace undeniable! Nobody thought he’d live but he lived. MOTHER Nobody thought he’d crawl, but he crawled. The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 22 Nobody thought he’d talk— But now you can’t shut him up! AUNTIE BROTHER DOODLE Ottawa. Mongolia. Persia. All the way to the North Pole! BROTHER I’m gonna go help Daddy. DOODLE (Still reading) Lichtenstein. Hawaii. Bombay! Guam. (Brother goes outside to the carpentry shed. Father builds a wagon, speaking to Brother as he works.) FATHER Choose the boards: Something light. Not too dense. Good pine wood. Cut to fit: Clean design. Plane the edge. Fresh pine wood. Fix the wheels: Two, three, four, Lined up right, So it runs smooth. A handle you pull, Up the hill, Down the road, Across the field, Through the swamp, Away and then back home again. Son, you’re coming home. The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 23 Oh. A wagon. BROTHER (Disappointed; he wanted a flying machine) (Father carries Doodle to the wagon, where he sits regally, like a king. Brother resentfully and slowly drags the wagon across the yard.) DOODLE I wanna go faster. (Pause) I said, I would like to go faster! Please. BROTHER And I would like a brother who ain’t no cripplerunt. Puh-­‐leeze. DOODLE What’s that mean? BROTHER It means what you are. I have to pull you around like I’m a goat or an ox. (Doodle catches sight of a red gum tree in the yard.) DOODLE Hmm. What’s that big red tree? BROTHER We call that the bleeding tree. It bleeds because there’s an Injun stuck in the trunk. When the white man come to the New World, all the Injuns run off screaming: Ay-­‐yi-­‐yi-­‐yi!! Some hid up in the branches. Some hid inside the trees and got trapped. It’s real tight in there. They get splinters and cuts, so blood oozes through the bark. (Brother runs his finger along the sap-­‐covered bark.) See? DOODLE Is that real blood? BROTHER Sure it is. Feel it. DOODLE It’s thick. And sticky. The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 24 Injun blood. It’s like molasses. Hmm. What else is there? The swamp. What’s that like? BROTHER DOODLE BROTHER DOODLE BROTHER It’s my fav’rit place. Fish and fern and vines and birds and frogs and snakes and bugs and mud. And ghosts. Ghosts! Sometimes it’s got a sulfur smell like Hell. Like Hell! DOODLE Hmm. I wanna see. I wanna see! BROTHER Let’s go see. DOODLE Let’s go see! I wanna see! (Blowing his kazoo, Brother pulls Doodle across the cotton field towards the swamp. Doodle waves a little flag in the back of the wagon. (After they’ve gone, Auntie comes out of the house, looking up at the sky, her palm upwards.) AUNTIE Boys! Boys! It’s starting to rain. Boys! Boys! Where are you? (She goes around the side of the house, looking.) (Brother and Doodle are down in the swamp. They stop by a pine tree near a stream. Brother takes Doodle out of the wagon and sets him on the bank.) The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 25 Oh. Smell that. Hear that. Feel that. Oh… Ah... DOODLE (Breathes deeply) (Birds sing) (He brushes the grass with his hands) (He starts to cry) BROTHER For Pete’s sake, Doodle, why are you crying? DOODLE It’s so pretty. So pretty, pretty, pretty. (Back at the house, Auntie calls for the boys.) AUNTIE Boys! Where are you? Probably down in that nasty, stinking swamp. Getting into Lord knows what trouble. Chasing snakes, catching toads, killing crows. (She finds a couple of flower wreaths in her rose garden.) Bringing filthy swamp flowers into the house and twisting them into crowns! Into crowns! That boy calls himself King of the Swamp. The Devil is in the swamp. Dirt, disease and wild beasts. The Devil is in the swamp. Where runaway slaves went to die. And jail breakers. Child-­‐takers. Snakes and ghosts behind every tree. The Devil is in the swamp. Ghosts and snakes behind every tree. Boys! Boys! You listen to me! Come home now! Boys! Boys! Where are you? The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 26 Scene 7: The Coffin and the Owl (Weeks later. Summertime. Brother pulls Doodle in the red wagon around the house.) DOODLE What should we do, Brother? (Brother stops.) BROTHER What do you mean “we?” You can’t do much. DOODLE I can whistle. (Doodle whistles a little.) BROTHER Eh. (Brother gets an idea.) Hey! I know what we can do. (Humming, Brother lifts Doodle and, holding him, climbs the ladder to the hayloft.) DOODLE Hey, Brother: what is all this green stuff? BROTHER That? That’s mint candy. DOODLE (He touches it with his hand) Oooh! Really?! BROTHER Naw, dummy. It’s poison. Daddy puts it here to kill rats. DOODLE (Wiping it on his overalls and denim pants.) Oh. The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 27 (Brother takes Doodle to a corner and sets him down. He brushes away hay to reveal the baby coffin.) BROTHER Look here, Doodle. Do you know what this is? DOODLE No. BROTHER After you were born, Daddy built it for you. You know what it is. DOODLE It’s not mine. That’s not mine. BROTHER Yes, it is. And before I take you down from here, you’re gonna touch it. DOODLE I won’t touch it. BROTHER Yes you will! You will touch it. You’ll touch it and open it. DOODLE I won’t touch it. BROTHER Touch the coffin, Doodle! Open the coffin, Doodle! (Doodle crosses his arms and shakes his head stubbornly; he won’t do it.) Fine, then I’ll leave you here all by yourself. Bye-­‐bye! (Brother pretends to leave.) DOODLE No! Don’t leave me, brother. (Doodle, hand shaking, slowly reaches out to the coffin. As he opens the lid, an owl flies out, screeching terribly and flies off. Doodle screams and recoils, falling and sprawling on the floor.) The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 28 Ah! An owl! An owl! DOODLE (He holds his arms out to Brother.) Take me down, take me down. Don’t leave me, Brother. Don’t leave me. BROTHER Ha! Sissy! Sissy! Sissy! It’s one thing you’re a cripplerunt. But do you have to be a sissy, too? DOODLE I touched the coffin like you said. It felt cold. Don’t leave me, Brother! Don’t leave me, don’t leave me. (Doodle cries. Brother stares at him with disgust.) The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 29 Scene 8: A Doctor in Chicago (Months later. The carpentry shed. Brother sits in the corner, whittling a piece of wood. Father enters, clearly having an argument with Mother. She follows closely behind, a newspaper in her hand. Brother listens.) MOTHER (Quickly, excitedly) There’s a doctor in Chicago… (Reading) “A visionary physician,” who works miracles with children in need. He has a patented contraption— See?—steel rods and leather straps, wires and wheels. Says it can “make the lame walk!” (She hands him the newspaper. He scans it dubiously for a second before tossing it on a table. Mother picks it up.) This doctor in Chicago… (Reading) “A clinical magician,” his specialty is children in need. For a pair of Siamese twins, He tried “a pioneering procedure” One hundred steel sutures… “One of the babies survived.” (Holding on to this slim but possible hope) There’s a doctor in Chicago… FATHER (Angrily) This doctor! This doctor! He’s hundreds of miles away. Where’s the ticket, where’s the money? (Father holds his hands out to Mother, plaintively) These hands. These hands are here: steady, strong. Yours. What can I build for you? (Mother takes his hands, tenderly; but he jerks them away, tensely. Then, bitterly:) From a withered tree I cannot make a strong table. From a rotted, fallen trunk no chair will stand. The bad wood warps, cracks, splits, can’t be fixed, can’t be saved. The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 30 FATHER Chicago is very far away, And Doodle is too weak to go. (Brother leaves the room; Mother notices his leaving.) FATHER This load we must carry alone. MOTHER (Grimly) Alone. (Father leaves. After a moment, Mother takes the newspaper and follows.) The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 31 Scene 9: Learning to Walk (Six months later. June. Brother and Doodle are in the swamp. It’s hot. Doodle lazes in the red wagon, Brother sits near. They hum and yawn and stare, watching the flies, the birds, everything. Brother sits up.) BROTHER Okay! Listen up! I’m gonna teach you how to walk, Doodle! DOODLE (Lazily) Why? BROTHER So I won’t have to lug you around anymore! DOODLE I can’t walk, Brother. BROTHER Oh, you will walk, Doodle. Rest of the summer, you’re my special project. Like Frankenstein and his mad doctor. Or how Jesus done for Lizarus. First you’re gonna stand. Then you’re gonna walk. And Doodle, you’re gonna run. Give me your hands. Your hands, your hands. (Brother takes Doodle by the arms and stands him up. Doodle cries out in pain and collapses each time.) DOODLE Oh. Oh. Ow! Oh. Oh. Ow! Oh. Oh. Ow! (Doodle cries out and collapses in a heap.) I can’t walk, Brother. I just can’t do it. Let’s make honeysuckle wreaths. (Brother regards Doodle with disgust.) BROTHER All you got to do is try harder. (Brother sulks by the wagon. Doodle looks around the swamp: the birds, the insects and at his legs.) The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 32 DOODLE Brother, I’m broken. My legs are no good. Brother, I’m thin, and my skin, you can see straight to the veins. And my blood is so weak, Brother. I can feel it pumping like mud from my heart. It knocks against my ribs and bones. My bones… My bones are bent, Brother. When I breathe, they creak like the cellar door. My body broke in Mama’s belly. Go easy with me, Brother. BROTHER Easy? Easy? No one ever got nowhere from easy, brother. If you don’t start now, you’ll never learn. And do you know how ridiculous we’ll look? Just see us at eighty. You sitting in that go-­‐cart, old as sin, White beard down to your knees. And everyone pointing, laughing, saying: Look at those two old fools. Is that how you want to spend the rest of your days, brother? (Brother angrily shoves the wagon; Doodle slides and steadies himself by holding onto the sides.) Is that how you want to spend your days? Carted around like a baby? (Brother shoves it again, hard) Baby with a three-­‐foot beard? (Doodle considers this.) DOODLE All right. Let’s try again! (Doodle gives his hands to Brother, who pulls him slowly, painfully, to his feet. Doodle’s legs shake and his whole body quivers. He howls in pain and Brother, perhaps to share the pain or muffle the noise, hollers along. Their screams and howls fill the swamp and scatter the birds as Doodle stands, for a heart-­‐stopping second, and Brother embraces him.) The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 33 Scene 10: The Surprise (A morning weeks later. The dining room. Father, Mother and Auntie face away, hands covering eyes. Brother sticks his head into the room.) BROTHER No one peek. Say cross your hearts and hope to die. MOTHER What in heaven’s name is all this fuss? FATHER Maybe the boys dug up gold in the swamp. AUNTIE They’ve been hinting so long about some miraculous manifestation, unless it’s the Blessed Resurrection, I intend to be sore disappointed. BROTHER Quiet, everyone! All will be revealed. (Brother pulls Doodle into the room in the red wagon. He helps Doodle out of the wagon and puts a walking stick in his hand. Doodle slowly stands.) BROTHER All right. You can look. (The adults turn and look. Using a stick, Doodle walks slowly to the table. The adults gape and gasp.) MOTHER Oh—! FATHER What—! AUNTIE Ah—! FATHER What—? I—?! The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 34 He…?! How? Oh! MOTHER AUNTIE (Doodle sits down at his place. The family is shocked and speechless, almost scared to make noise.) DOODLE I would like pancakes and strawberry jam. Please. MOTHER Oh, my sweet baby—! (All gather around Doodle, laughing and crying.) DOODLE Hey! Come watch me walk from the house to the bleeding tree! (All but Brother leave the dining room. Father takes the wagon with him. Brother smiles proudly, but puts a hand up to his cheek. He feels tears.) BROTHER What am I crying for? I did right. He was a cripplerunt. Now he ain’t. He’s normal. Well, more normal. So… What am I crying for? He can walk. Because of me. (Out in the yard, the adults marvel at Doodle’s slow but sure steps. As the lights change, Father exits with the red wagon and returns with a small crutch, custom built for Doodle. He hands it to Doodle.) The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 35 Scene 11: Lying, Running, Climbing and Fighting Let’s rest a spell, Brother. (The boys stroll near the house. Brother kicks at the dirt and pebbles. Doodle walks with difficulty, using the crutch. He breathes heavily, and stops often to rest.) DOODLE BROTHER Okay. Let’s count the worms under this rock. DOODLE Or we could lie. BROTHER Lie? (Brother stretches himself out on the grass. Doodle sits down and leans against him.) DOODLE Yeah. Lying is fun. It’s like exercise for your brain. Here’s my lie: I have wings to fly wherever I please. (In the background, we see shadow puppetry or video that illustrates Doodle’s lie. First, far off in the distance, a bird flies slowly from left to right.) On one of my journeys I meet the most curious boy. He has very blonde hair, so yellow that it’s white, But his eyes are as dark as deep soil. And he has a pet peacock with a ten-­‐foot tail. (We see a wondrous castle and a peacock. The colors are bright and beautiful.) And he walks about the palace with the peacock with the ten-­‐foot tail. And he wears a golden robe that shines so bright that the sunflowers turn away from the sun to face him. And when he goes to bed at night, the peacock spreads its tail to cover him. So before he falls asleep, he sees a thousand colors. The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 36 (The peacock’s tail unfurls.) DOODLE But the peacock doesn’t sleep. It does not dream. It only shines. But look how late it is. That old moon, it fills the sky. Bye-­‐bye. Bye-­‐bye. Bye-­‐bye! (The castle and peacock disappear. The colors fade.) DOODLE I have wings to fly wherever I please. I have wings. Ah. BROTHER (Enchanted, lost in the fantasy) Ah. Yes. Yes. DOODLE Okay. Now it’s your turn. Lie. BROTHER (Unsure, worried) Okay. Let’s see… Once, uh, long ago I guess… (Doodle shakes his head with disappointment) It was nighttime and…well… Maybe it was day? (Doodle plants palm on face with mock embarrassment) —aw, shucks, Doodle! I don’t have no stupid lie! (Doodle gets up and walks a few steps away) DOODLE Too bad. Lies can be beautiful. BROTHER Anyway, we’ve rested enough. I got a new program for you. Running. Climbing. Fighting. DOODLE (A little scared) The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 37 A new program? Yes. Running. Climbing. Fighting. Running. Climbing. Fighting. BROTHER DOODLE BROTHER Didn’t I teach you how to walk, Doodle? Come September, you’re starting first grade. I don’t want the kids to laugh at you and point at you and call you cripplerunt. (Brother grasps Doodle’s crutch and holds it fast, not letting him move it.) When you got a toy that’s busted, what do ya do? What do you do? Throw it away? Keep it hid? Or try and fix it? I’m gonna give you a second life, Doodle. I’m gonna make you normal, just like me. DOODLE (Sad and annoyed) Oh, Brother. You’re always saying I should be more this or that. But what about you? BROTHER What about me? DOODLE I wish I had a sister. Instead of you. BROTHER (Hurt and angry, menacing) Well, you don’t got no sister, cripplerunt. Just me. So start running. (A series of scenes. Brother counts out while Doodle struggles to keep up. First: Running.) BROTHER You should be able to race between the porch and the bleeding tree in ten seconds. Go! One. Two. Three. Four. Faster, Doodle, faster! DOODLE I’m trying, Brother! (Next: Doodle dangles from a vine in the swamp.) The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 38 BROTHER You’ve got to haul yourself up that vine. I’ll give you to the count of fifteen. Go! One. Two. Three. Four. Five. C’mon, Doodle! Pull—pull! DOODLE I’m trying, Brother! (Next: Fighting. They square off to box.) BROTHER Alright, Doodle. Just do it like I showed you in the magazine. I’ll give you one clean punch. Let’s see your right hook. DOODLE What’s that? BROTHER You’re right arm, dummy. Bend it like a hook, see? Now hit me. DOODLE I don’t want to hit you, Brother. BROTHER But you gotta learn self-­‐defense. DOODLE What for? BROTHER For this. (Brother lightly punches Doodle on the shoulder.) DOODLE Ow! Don’t hurt me, Brother. (Brother punctuates his taunting with jabs) BROTHER Then. Put. Up. Your. Fists. You’re ugly. You’re a sissy. And you’re a cripplerunt freak. The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 39 That’s not nice. Ow! Blood! The Scarlet Ibis DOODLE (Doodle punches, lightning-­‐fast. Brother touches his finger to his upper lip.) BROTHER (More pleased than hurt) © David Cote 2015 40 Scene 12: The Scarlet Ibis (The dining room. Weeks later. Late August. Doodle is six going on seven, and Brother is twelve. The family says grace before lunch.) MOTHER Lord give strength to the Wilsons, whose boy Natty was lost in a forest called Belleau. ALL Amen. FATHER (Picks up the newspaper he was reading) That boy never went three miles past his daddy’s farm. And he died in a place he couldn’t pronounce. AUNTIE Nobody has been able to explain to me why we’re in this wicked war. FATHER Dead in a place he couldn’t pronounce. AUNTIE People move around too much. BROTHER I want to climb Mount Kilimanjaro! (Father gives Doodle the humor section of the newspaper. Doodle reads it eagerly, and Brother reads over his shoulder.) MOTHER Will you take Doodle with you? BROTHER Maybe. If he learns to climb. The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 41 (A pause as the family eats in silence. At that moment, a scarlet ibis flies in, swooping low in the background, unseen by the family. It circles slowly, then perches in the bleeding tree.) FATHER It’s so calm, I wouldn’t be surprised if we had a storm this afternoon. MOTHER I haven’t heard a rain frog. DOODLE I did. Down in the swamp. BROTHER He did not. DOODLE Yes I did. FATHER You did, eh? DOODLE Whatever it was, it sounded like this: Brap! Brap! Brap! Aap! Brap! (There is a noise out in the yard, a strange croaking noise. And another.) DOODLE What’s that? (Doodle gets up and walks outside, using his crutch. He follows the sound to the bleeding tree out back.) DOODLE (Calling to the others) A great big red bird! Come and see! Come and see! (On a high branch of the tree sits the scarlet ibis. As it shifts its weight, a red feather flutters down. The rest of the family comes out and stares.) The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 42 It’s not even frightened of us. It looks tired. Or maybe sick. I don’t like that bird one bit. MOTHER FATHER AUNTIE DOODLE We could feed it. Brother, go run back. I have some biscuit left. BROTHER You run back. Mama, you know birds. What is it? MOTHER (To Brother) Get me my bird book. Hurst’s Birds of America. (Brother runs back into the house.) DOODLE Aren't you pretty? So pretty. AUNTIE Red birds are bad luck. (Brother returns with a large book: Hurst’s Birds of America. Hands it to Mother, who pages through it.) DOODLE (As if in a trance, but also very focused) It’s a scarlet ibis. MOTHER (Finding the page) Oh. A scarlet ibis. DOODLE Its red fades to pink in captivity. FATHER Doodle: Have you memorized that book? The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 43 BROTHER (Reading over Mother’s arm) “Eek Dock Uh Mouse Rubber.” What’s that? MOTHER That’s its Latin name. (Reading) “The ibis is prominent in Egyptian mythology.” DOODLE It lives in the tropics. MOTHER Trinidad to Florida. FATHER A storm must have blown him here. BROTHER Storm! AUNTIE Or it got lost, wandering on its own. MOTHER In any case, he’s far away from home. DOODLE (Doodle stares at the ibis, fascinated) Very far away. I know what he went through. One thousand miles he flew. I saw it all ‘cause I got second sight. Come down here, you pretty thing. MOTHER Well, that’s not in the book. (The bird squawks, weakly. Everyone stares.) BROTHER “Eek Dock Uh Mouse Rubber.” What a weird-­‐looking bird. The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 44 MOTHER Looks almost dead, poor thing. FATHER Wonder if there’s more around? Bad omen, that bird roosting here. AUNTIE DOODLE Come down here, you pretty thing. You pretty, pretty, pretty thing. (Whether it means to fly away or just move, the bird wobbles, then it loses its footing, falling, bumping on branches, until it thumps down on the ground. It lands before the family. Its rapid breathing stops.) MOTHER Oh! It’s dead. (Doodle reaches out.) MOTHER (Alarmed) Don’t touch it! It might have a disease. FATHER (Gently, trying to protect the boys’ feelings) Let’s finish our lunch. DOODLE I’m not hungry. AUNTIE Your mama baked a cherry pie. DOODLE I’m gonna bury him. MOTHER (Even more alarmed and stern) Don’t you dare touch it. Lord knows what disease it might have. The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 45 DOODLE I won’t touch him, ma’am, I promise. But I will bury him. (Father puts his arm around Mother’s shoulders and leads her gently back to the house. Auntie frowns.) AUNTIE Red birds are bad luck. Especially dead red birds. (Auntie also goes back inside. Brother watches.) DOODLE What did you see? The sky, the clouds, The mountains, Oceans, The curve of earth. (Doodle uses his crutch to drag the body of the ibis to the far end of the yard.) What did you see? Our lawn, our house, Our garden full of roses. (He gets a shovel and digs a grave.) What did you see? Our bleeding tree, A branch where you could land. (He looks around to make sure no one is watching, then picks up the ibis, tenderly. He puts it in the grave.) You flew. You fell. What else did you see, Way up in that tree? (Doodle pats down the earth on the fresh grave. Brother watches. Doodle stands, looking at the grave. He notices a single red feather on the ground. He stoops and picks it up. As Doodle holds the feather up to the light, thunder rumbles in the distance.) The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 46 Scene 13: The Storm (Later. In the swamp, on the river. Brother and Doodle sit in a small wooden rowboat. Doodle pulls weakly at the oars as Brother, hunched and facing him, counts off the strokes. Doodle wears the scarlet ibis’s feather on a string around his neck. Clouds gather in the sky.) BROTHER One-­‐and-­‐two, and one-­‐and-­‐two, and row, row, row. Row, row, row…. DOODLE (Overlapping, but faintly) Row, row, row… BROTHER Pull the oars at the same time. Get your back into it. DOODLE (Overlapping) Row, row, row. Row, row, row… BROTHER I’ll give you till a hundred to row us back to shore! Row one, row two, row three, row four. Row, row, row. DOODLE Row, row, row, row, row— (He stops.) I’m so tired! So tired, so tired. BROTHER Okay, Doodle: Get your breath. (The paddles sit idle in the oarlocks. Doodle looks around, strangely alert yet in a dream.) DOODLE What do you call this season? The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 47 Summer. I don’t think so. Well it ain’t fall. BROTHER DOODLE BROTHER DOODLE (Faint, entranced) It’s in between. Like a baby chick half come out of its shell. Should be a special name for this season. It only lasts a day. (Pause) I don’t care what they call me at school. They don’t know my secret name. BROTHER Your secret name? DOODLE Very secret. BROTHER Tell me. DOODLE (Touching the feather) Only the scarlet ibis knows my secret name. BROTHER Eh. Fine. Just row. DOODLE (Firmly, with rising intensity) No. I won’t. This is me: broken and all. I won’t take orders anymore. I won’t be normal no more. I won’t row. Anyway, there’s nowhere to go. I want to drift. (Doodle listens intently.) Listen: It’s alive. The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 48 What is? (Brother gets three or four mason jars with attached wire hangers out of the bottom of the boat. He hangs some of the jars off the side of the boat; some have lengths of twine tied to the hangers.) BROTHER (As Doodle speaks, Brother lowers a mason jar into the water, catching objects, which he pulls up.) The swamp. It’s alive. Hear it sigh. Look at the river. It’s a mirror. Can you see yourself? I see… An eggshell. A twig. A feather. A leaf. A tadpole. A flower petal. An eggshell. DOODLE BROTHER (Inspecting the contents of his jar) DOODLE BROTHER DOODLE DOODLE AND BROTHER (Brother puts his hand in the jar and flicks drops) Raindrops. More raindrops. Drop, drop, drop. (Doodle also flicks drops of water at Brother) More raindrops. Plop, plop, plop. BROTHER I see a shadow in the water. I see a shadow way down there. BROTHER & DOODLE What is it? What is it? The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 49 It’s the devil in the swamp. Oh. Is it me? It is me. BROTHER DOODLE Last week that elderberry tree was bent low. Today it’s broken. BROTHER Tomorrow it will sink to the bottom and rot. DOODLE AND BROTHER Last week that elderberry tree was bent low. Today it’s broken. Tomorrow it will sink to the bottom and… BROTHER …rot. DOODLE Oh, where did the scarlet ibis go? Is he only in the ground? Ah! BROTHER Why are you crying? DOODLE Because life is so big. And the world is so small. Brother? I’m not afraid— BROTHER (Interrupting) Stop talking crazy… DOODLE —of pain. BROTHER …and row. The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 50 Row! Row! A storm, and a big one. Where are the boys? (Lightning flashes. The brothers look up and realize that a storm is nearly upon them.) BROTHER (Thunder. Back at the house, Mother, Father and Auntie come out to the yard, looking up.) FATHER MOTHER AUNTIE They’re always down in that devil swamp. FATHER MOTHER AND AUNTIE Boys! Boys! Boys! Come back home! Boys! Boys! Come back home! Come back home, boys! Boys! (In the swamp. Brother takes over the rowing and gets them back to the dock. Thunder rumbles. They get out of the boat. Rain starts to fall. They walk quickly, Brother in front, Doodle behind. Doodle can’t keep up with Brother. He catches hold of Brother’s sleeve.) DOODLE Slow down! Slow down! Slow down. (Brother shrugs Doodle’s hand off. He starts running. Doodle can’t keep up.) DOODLE Don’t leave me, Brother! Don’t leave me. Don’t leave me. (Now it’s raining hard. Wind howling. Brother runs and runs. Doodle disappears. Brother stops and shelters under a tree. Finally the rain slows.) The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 51 BROTHER Hey, Doodle! Where are you? (The rest of the family calls.) FATHER MOTHER AND AUNTIE Boys! Boys! Where are you? (Brother peers into the woods. Calls to Doodle.) BROTHER Where are you, Doodle? Stop fooling. Let’s go home. FATHER MOTHER AND AUNTIE Come on home. Come on home. (Brother retraces his steps, calling out.) BROTHER Doodle! (He finds Doodle sitting by the path near a red bush, his knees drawn up to his chin, arms folded around head.) BROTHER Doodle? (Brother shakes Doodle by the shoulder.) Doodle. Doodle. (Doodle falls over. He has been bleeding from the mouth and his neck is streaked red. Brother stares. He picks up Doodle’s limp body and carries it home to the family.) THE END The Scarlet Ibis © David Cote 2015 52