Isn’t this weather a bit peculiar? Dressing up has become a daily puzzle. Are we on the upswing or in for a downward spiral? Does bothering with outfits even make sense anymore? They call it “seasonal weather,” but does it warrant a chat? Regardless, we’ve got places to be, conversations to have, come rain or shine. If only we’d trust our instincts more often. We’d prefer lounging at home, snuggled up in bed, daydreaming about sunshine and rainfall. Yet, they claim we spend a good thirty years of our lives asleep. So just imagine. If we slept in. In any case, in life, we spend quite a few years talking to ourselves. And talking to oneself. When we’re children, we talk to people who should have existed. When we’re old, we talk to people who no longer exist. In between, as adults, we’d rather listen to ourselves talk. The other person is only there to echo back. We talk to walls that have no ears. We talk to dogs that can’t speak. We shout at the deaf, and we talk to the blind in sign language. Everyone talks at the same time. And when there’s nothing left to say, everyone listens to themselves at the same time. We talk to ourselves because we’re afraid of the dark. We also talk into the void, trying to fill it. If we’re lucky enough to have something to say to ourselves, we can talk to ourselves. Lend a sympathetic ear to ourselves. Listening to what we have to say is just as important as listening to what others have to say. So we talk to ourselves, and we listen to ourselves talk. But we don’t tell ourselves everything; we lie to ourselves. And when we’re very convincing, we even end up believing we’re someone… Thirty years sleeping. Life is a dream, at least half of it. The other half is a lie. With a few moments of truth that aren’t always good to tell. It looks like it’s clearing up, doesn’t it? It’s going to be a beautiful night. Look, we can see the stars. It’s like they’re talking to us. I’m sure there’s someone up there. People who talk to each other. People who talk to themselves. People who tell stories to themselves and end up believing them. People who also talk into the void. At night, sometimes, I listen to these celestial inhabitants. Do you think that one day we’ll be able to talk to them? Talk about the weather and talk about the rain?

All the texts available on this website can be downloaded for free. However, performance rights, which constitute fair compensation for the author’s work, are a legal obligation. Whether you are an amateur or a professional, you must request authorization to perform the play and pay the corresponding royalties for the production.

To get in touch with Jean-Pierre Martinez and ask an authorization to represent one of his works: CONTACT FORM.

A sketch from the collection Like a fish in the air
Link to the collection for free download (PDF)

Find all of Jean-Pierre Martinez’s plays on his website:
https://jeanpierremartinez.net

L’article Talking About the Weather est apparu en premier sur La Sketchothèque.

Do you remember? Ah, the good old days… or so they say. It’s what we’ve come to believe. Was it really as good as they say it was before? Anyway, it was the beginning. The start of it all. The first of the Mohicans. Religion is the ritualisation of an imaginary memory. We begin by daydreaming in front of the windows of fancy restaurants, the places forbidden to those under eighteen, and when we finally get the chance to go there, it’s the hunger of the beginning that we miss. The good old days when we still had an appetite. When curiosity wasn’t yet a nasty flaw. Ataraxia is not a childhood disease; it’s the excuse that helps the elderly come to terms with things. To escape this fate, we would need to reverse the order of the courses that history serves us. Sit at the table with empty pockets. Let the appetite come while eating. And stay hungry. Unfortunately, here and there, it’s the small streams that make the big rivers. The small vessels, the big arteries. We spend our entire lives waiting for the fortuitous twist that will change our trajectory. And when this event happens, the heart is no longer in it. When it’s not a heart attack… Old age is a shipwreck that doesn’t always end well. Save our souls. Or find them a deserted island to wash up on the beach. And start all over again from the beginning. Where did we go wrong? Even today, I ask myself this question: is this gigantic mess the result of a distant misunderstanding that a frank explanation, even belated, might have clarified, or is it ultimately just the logical consequence of an endless dialogue of the deaf? Come on, upon closer reflection, if we’re a bit clever, maybe we can remember being a monkey. Or even a vine. Sometimes, in this jungle, I remember the time when I was as flexible as a vine. When that sheer exultation was enough to turn my desire into fulfilment.

All the texts available on this website can be downloaded for free. However, performance rights, which constitute fair compensation for the author’s work, are a legal obligation. Whether you are an amateur or a professional, you must request authorization to perform the play and pay the corresponding royalties for the production.

To get in touch with Jean-Pierre Martinez and ask an authorization to represent one of his works: CONTACT FORM.

A sketch from the collection Like a fish in the air
Link to the collection for free download (PDF)

Find all of Jean-Pierre Martinez’s plays on his website:
https://jeanpierremartinez.net

L’article As Before est apparu en premier sur La Sketchothèque.

A bar. Two women stare off into the distance. The second is wearing a hat, with no hair visible beneath it.
One – Did you see that tree? Isn’t it beautiful?
Two – Yes.
One – It’s so much a part of the landscape… that we end up not seeing it anymore.
Two – Mmm…
One – It’s an oak. It was already here before we were even born.
Two – How do you know? Since we weren’t born…
One – We hung a swing from one of its branches when we were kids. It was already that big. Don’t you remember?
Two – No.
One – I do. I broke my arm falling off that damn swing.
Two – You’ve broken so many things. How do you expect me to remember them all…? Once time, you even broke your ass.
One – My coccyx.
Two – Falling off a chair. Incredible. I wonder which bone you haven’t broken. (A pause) The coccyx… I didn’t even know it existed back then. And even now, I’m not sure how to spell it.
One – All I know is that it scores a lot of points in Scrabble…
Two – When I picture you as a kid, you always have a cast. Even in school photos, you’ve got an arm in a sling, crutches, or a big bandage. I wonder how you even made it to adulthood in one piece.
One – You never broke anything. Like that tree over there…
Two – And yet, I did just as many stupid things as you… I lived dangerously too. I’ve even shucked oysters at Christmas. And I never stabbed myself with the knife…
One – You’ve always had more luck than me. I kind of resented you for that…
Two – Do you really think I’ve been lucky…?
One – Yeah, go ahead, call me clumsy.
Two – Where are you going with your tree?
One – It’s weathered every storm. Not a single broken branch. Just like you. In a hundred years, it’ll still be standing.
Two – Even if it’s standing, it might be hollow inside by now. Look, it doesn’t even have a leaf left on its head. Just like me, actually.
One – That’s normal. It’s autumn…
Two – Ah, yes, that’s true. I didn’t realise summer had passed… From my hospital window, all I could see was the hypermarket parking lot.
One – The leaves will grow back in spring. You’ll see.
A moment passes.
Two – And my hair? Do you think it’ll grow back in spring too?
One – I’d bet my arm on it…
Black.

All the texts available on this website can be downloaded for free. However, performance rights, which constitute fair compensation for the author’s work, are a legal obligation. Whether you are an amateur or a professional, you must request authorization to perform the play and pay the corresponding royalties for the production.

To get in touch with Jean-Pierre Martinez and ask an authorization to represent one of his works: CONTACT FORM.

A sketch from the collection At the Bar Counter
Link to the collection for free download (PDF)

Find all of Jean-Pierre Martinez’s plays on his website:
https://jeanpierremartinez.net

L’article The Coccyx est apparu en premier sur La Sketchothèque.