| 3-14 GAY/STRAIGHT ALLIANCE (page 2) Written by: Winnie Holzman and Maggie Friedman Directed by: Patrick Norris 3) Mr. Dimitri posts GSA meeting flyers, then invites Grace to join class. (Grace is wearing a partially buttoned lavender sweater with a white top underneath. Mr. Dimitri is in brown.) Grace stops Jessie in the hallway and tells Jessie that she has to go to the Gay/Straight Alliance meeting with her that night if she wants a ride to therapy. Grace is standing in front of a bulletin board located right next to Mr. Dimitri’s open doorway. Jessie leaves and Grace turns to look at the bulletin board. Posted is a flier that reads: GAY-STRAIGHT ALLIANCE MEETING, TONIGHT 7:00 PM, MR. DIMITRI’S HOUSE, 451 ELMDALE AVE., SNACKS AND DRINKS WILL BE SERVED. Hearing Grace’s voice, Mr. Dimitri walks to the doorway and says “Hello” while leaning against the doorjamb. Grace spins around to see him. Mr. Dimitri grins and tells her “So, I was thinking about doing some teaching. Whadd’ya say?” Grace smiles shyly and they enter class together. “All right, where were we?” 4) GSA meeting at Mr. Dimitri’s house 5) GRACE GLOWING ABOUT POETRY IN CLASS Katie starts to follow Jessie in the hallway after Jessie gives her the brush-off. Katie stops outside Mr. Dimitri’s classroom. Grace walks past her, noticing her forlorn expression, then unknowingly brushes against Mr. Dimitr’s jacket as she goes into class. Mr. Dimitri, having stepped into the hallway, asks “Miss Singer, would you care to join us?” Katie trudges into the classroom, head down. She pulls out her notebook and starts writing. “Alright, John Donne” Mr. Dimitri says, grabbing a chair and rolling it toward his desk. “Are his poems…pretty straightforward? Easily grasped?” Students stare at him with bored expressions. “Come on, people, it’s a yes or no question.” Grace answers “No.” “Thank you” Dimitri smiles. “No, they are not.” He shifts his gum. “So why do we bother to read them?” Time passes. Katie scribbles furiously, not paying attention. Mr. Dimitri walks around the room. “Okay, let’s recap. John Donne explores the paradox of human existence. So what does that mean?” Silence. “Anyone?” Grace raises her hand. Mr. Dimitri, leaning against his desk, turns to call on Grace. “Um, when something doesn’t make sense but it’s still true?” “That’s exactly right,” he says. Mr. Dimitri straightens up and takes a breath to address the rest of the class. Grace speaks up. “Look, can I just say something?” Mr. Dimitri looks back at her. Grace picks up her book and says, “Because he writes all these love poems but he just seems so detached!” “Exactly, that’s what it meant to be a poet back then. It, it was like being kind of a…scientist of the human heart” Dimitri explains animatedly to the bored class. “And a scientist must remain detached, you see, in order to uncover the—“ “Wait, that’s not—“ Grace interrupts, putting her hands up. “I mean I don’t think that that’s what poems should be.” She puts her hand over her heart. Dimitri opens his mouth as if to respond, but says nothing. “See, I just read these poems by this other person.” Grace looks down briefly, glowing. “And they just showed you like his entire life. How he thought and felt about everything. And it made you realize how you felt about everything.” Grace is entirely focused on Dimitri. Dimitri is frozen. The alarm sounds. Dimitri moves, shifting his gaze away. The students start chatting. Grace’s spell ends and she looks down. She stands up to gather her things. Mr. Dimitri stares at nothing, then looks slightly in Grace’s direction. “That was an interesting point you made.” Grace turns her head toward him. “Well, I guess I just have strong feelings…about poetry.” She turns away to finish filling out her backpack. Mr. Dimitri solemnly replies “We’ll continue this some other time” while turning around to face his desk. Katie is standing in front of Grace, holding a note. Grace turns toward her, looks back at Mr. Dimitri, then back to Katie as she asks Grace to give a note to Jessie for her. Katie leaves. Grace leaves next, the last to go. (continue to page 3) Home GSA Page 1 |
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