KEEP OR BIN by Rosa Bowden #TinyPlayChallenge

Keep your creativity flowing with Fishamble's #TinyPlayChallenge
In these challenging times, Fishamble - along with many of our colleagues in the wider Irish artistic community - is working hard to keep imaginations lively, communities engaged - and most of all offer people the opportunity of creative expression. We asked our audiences: Would you welcome the challenge of exploring your thoughts and feelings through drama? Do you have a dramatic story that you feel the urge to work out for yourself, and maybe share with your fellow citizens?
​Below is one of the chosen plays from our weekly submissions.

A bedroom, surrounded by storage boxes and black bin bags. A woman, mid twenties sits centre stage, packing a box. She is flicking through old photographs when she stumbles on one, and examines it before putting it back in the box.
 
She moves upstage and starts rifling through old clothes.
Keep or bin.
She picks up a black hoodie. She smells it, lost in a memory.
 
She picks up her phone and dials.
 
A male voice answers. He’s not expecting the call.
 
Hi Brian. It’s Esther.
 
Right yeah, of course you have my number saved- I thought you might have a new phone or- anyway it’s me. Hi.
 
Sorry to ring you, but I’m packing up my room and I’m after finding a load of your stuff-
 
Eh well I found a hoodies.
 
It’s black, from H&M, and actually quite nice quality if you still- sure, yeah I’ll just throw it out with the rest of my stuff.
 
I’m moving out- finally. Found a room in Cabra with some relatively sound people and its only 60% of my pay check each month so you know a steal really.
 
Cabra’s not too far from Stoneybatter, might run into you in the shops sometime- or maybe for a coffee or- Oh I didn’t realise you’d moved. Wow, look at you property ladder- I’ve heard great things about Clongriffen. It’s like the new…. Swords. Congratulations you and- Kate, right, I was going to say Lorna, I don’t know where I got Lorna- home owners!
 
Painful pause. Why did she call him? She’s contemplating hanging up when-
 
You’re right, it is the end of an era. I’m being forced out really- Mam sold the house.  After dad the house just had too many- you know- and Conor’s in Canada so it was just a bit big for- Ah don’t worry about it, I wouldn’t have expected you to- what with the house and everything.
 
Things were just so crazy when it happened. No one had a clue how to handle to it- I didn’t. We facetimed him from ICU the night he died. It wasn’t really him though. He was hooked up to a ventilator and was barely conscious. You remember we’d be up in my room and we’d hear him down the back of the garden, roaring his head off at something funny he’d heard or thought of, we never knew what but we’d be in bits just listening to him. It was strange to see him breathless, for once.
There were only 10 of us allowed at the funeral- my mam and Conor, few of the aunties and uncles and a couple of cousin’s. I kept thinking it was all a big joke and any minute the doors would fling open and the church would fill with all of the people who knew and loved him, just as dad would jump up in the coffin and say “April Fools”.
 
It would have been nice to have you there. Dad was always asking how you were getting on.
 
A year. Yeah. I feel I’ve seen more of the inside of this room in the past year than I have all my friends together. Even after the restrictions lifted- I just came seem to find the energy. Things won’t be the same.
 
Pause.
 
Sure of course, sorry for unloading- I’ll let you get on with your evening.
 
Bye Brian- tell Lorna I said hi.
 
Hangs up.
 
She flings the hoody she’s still holding into the binbag.
 
She sits down, picks up the photo from the box and holds it close.
 
Blackout.




​Rosa Bowden is an actor, director and theatre maker from Dublin, usually based in London (but currently locked down in Glasnevin). Rosa has an MA in Theatre Practice from the Gaiety School of Acting and UCD. My theatre credits include Free EU Roaming at DFF/ Bewley's Cafe Theatre (director) Bump at Smock Alley/ Tara Theatre London (co-writer and director) and Get RREEL at Summerhall/ The Vaults (co-director). Most recently, Rosa wrote and performed in Frigid at the Smock Alley Scene and Heard Festival and is looking forward to developing it further this year. Find Rosa on twitter @rosabow_ and on instagram @rosabow.

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