GARAGE Presents: A Cakewalk
"Night comes & the Meek inherit the Earth."
Stills from A Cakewalk (2020)
For GARAGE Issue 19, we asked playwright Jeremy O. Harris to assemble graduates from the country’s leading theatre programs—after COVID-19 cancelled their senior showcases—to put on a play. Using Gucci’s Fall 2020 collection as a jumping-off point, they wrote, directed, and starred in a production that captured their current state of mind. Now presenting: A Cakewalk.
PLAYERS
ONE, Black
TWO, Black
THREE, Black
FOUR, Black
FIVE, Black
SIX, white
i.
A Processional, a Parade, a Funeral, a Carnival, a Ball, a Ritual
The Players enter in a line
The Players enter with rhythm and with a slow hum
The Players form a circle and begin to dress
ONE, at the end of the line, who is the last to enter, goes into the center
& speaks to us
ONE
You
Watcher
Watching
Watched
Watching Us
All the World’s a Stage
& all the N*ggas are Her Players
The Watcher doesn’t see
The Watcher doesn’t know
The Watcher is watched
The Looked look back
From behind the Veil
The Looked look back
You
Watcher
Walk
& your Shadow stalks with soft steps
Waiting for the right time to strike
When the Sun retreats
When Night takes the Earth
Shadows run wild
With no Master to tug at their leash
Night comes
& the Meek inherit the Earth
Whoever is the first to be dressed becomes TWO
TWO jumps into the center of the circle, replaces ONE, and dances
The Other Players clap and shout around TWO
TWO leaps into the air, death drops, and stays there
TWO doesn’t wake up
The Others exit, slowly, still clapping, still shouting
THREE stays behind and picks up the lifeless body
THREE becomes a Puppeteer and TWO becomes a Puppet
The Puppeteer molds the puppet into a ballet dancer,
straightening the spine
lowering the shoulders
correcting the posture
PUPPETEER
“Where tireless striving stretches its arms toward perfection.”
PUPPET
“You taught me language…”
PUPPETEER
“Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way.”
PUPPET
“You taught me language, and my profit on’t is I know how to curse.”
PUPPETEER
“Into that heaven of freedom, My Father, let my country awake.”
PUPPET
“I know how to curse.”
THREE spins TWO around
FOUR enters
FOUR speaks
FOUR
The Man
The Master
The Maker is dead
The Man
The Master
The Maker is dead
& Everybody is the Color of the Earth
Like Saint-Domingue after Toussaint & Dessalines
The Man
The Master
The Maker
Left his tools
Left his house
Left his empty bed
He left his tongue
Am I to stick the muscle in my mouth?
Or choke?
PUPPET
“I know how to curse.”
FOUR
Or choke?
PUPPET
“I know how to curse.”
FOUR
Or choke?
FOUR exits
Both Puppet and Puppeteer wave
FIVE enters
FIVE is wearing a long gown
TWO, the puppet, bends to kiss the hand
FIVE curtsies
TWO and THREE exit
FIVE snaps and summons SIX, a servant
SIX ties FIVE’s corset
It’s reminiscent of Mammy and Scarlett O’Hara
With each pull of string, FIVE releases a sharp breath
It’s unclear whether FIVE is in pain or ecstasy
With the last pull of string,
FIVE falls to their knees
FIVE collapses their face into their palms
SIX stands over FIVE with a smile
ONE enters
ONE stands across from SIX
ONE and SIX mirror each other
ONE and SIX begin to circle each other
ONE and SIX mimic each other
ONE and SIX make faces
ONE and SIX stick out their tongues
It’s flirtatious
It’s fun
It’s play
It’s clownish
ONE and SIX whisper under their breath
ONE and SIX whisper behind wide smiles
ONE and SIX
to kill a rooster
you twist the neck
when you twist the neck
you break the bone
when you break the bone
you bring the blood
when you bring the blood
it gets on you
when it gets on you
it stains
It grows more grotesque, tense, and violent
The Other Players whisper in chorus
CHORUS
to kill a rooster
you twist the neck
when you twist the neck
you break the bone
when you break the bone
you bring the blood
when you bring the blood
it gets on you
when it gets on you
it stains
It reaches a boiling point
ONE and SIX are about to charge at each other
It’s interrupted by the sound of a voice singing
ONE and SIX scatter
FIVE still sits with their face in their palms
FIVE
tangled roots
tight knots
split hairs
split ends
split tongue
TWO enters
TWO sings
TWO kneels behind FIVE
TWO begins to twist, braid, and care for FIVE’s hair
FOUR enters
FOUR is humming the same tune
FOUR kneels behind TWO and begins to twist, braid, and care for TWO’s hair
THREE enters
THREE hums
THREE kneels behind FOUR and begins to care for FOUR’s hair
TWO, THREE, FOUR, and FIVE hum
FIVE exits
TWO exits
FOUR exits
THREE watches the Others go, one by one, like a Mother watching Children THREE had no one behind them to care for their hair
THREE stays behind
THREE speaks
ONE and TWO enter
ONE and TWO dance
It begins very stiff, very old world, but slowly transforms. . .
THREE
You became scattered
You became stretched
You became a broken vase
You became shards of glass
You became nameless
You became Black
You became an exaggeration
You became a shadow
You became a symbol
You became grateful
You became a token
You became Queen’s English
You became fucked
You became fucked up
You became mismatched
You became mixed up
You became doubled
You became blood red
You became deep blues
You became
You became
You became
You became
You became
You became
You became
You became
You became
FOUR, FIVE, and SIX enter
All the players are present
Some dance
Some shout
Some sing
It feels like Church
It feels like a Celebration
It feels like an Exorcism
Something is being expelled
By the end of it, everyone is exhausted
By the end of it, everyone is out of their clothes
The Players exit in a line with a slow hum
ONE, at the end of the line, who is the last to exit, goes into the center
& speaks to us
ONE
You
Watcher
Watching
Watched
The Sun chases the Moon
Light comes with the Day
ONE leans in with a secret
ONE
When I’m alone in my room
I close all the windows
Shut the blinds
Lock the door
Turn off all the lights
& in that dark
I dance
With wide smile & swinging hips
I dance
I dance
& all you can see are the whites of my eyes
Directors MIRANDA HAYMON and THUAN TRAN, Playwright AUDLEY PUGLISI, Photographer ASHLEY PENA, Fashion Director GABRIELLA KAREFA-JOHNSON, Costumer STEPHANIE BAHNIUK, Actors SEKAI ABENÌ, BRANDON E. BURTON, BIANCA CRUDO, GREGORY GEORGES, ZOE MANN, JARVIS D. MATTHEWS, ILIA ISORELÝS PAULINO, JACOB DANIEL SMITH, JASMINE MICHELLE SMITH, PAOLA ALEXANDRA SOTO, ADRIENNE WELLS, TRENT WILLIAMS, Hair Stylist LATISHA CHONG, Makeup Artist RAISA FLOWERS, Assistant Fashion Editor JARED ELLNER, Photo Assistant CARLOS HERNANDEZ, Director of Photography JABARI CANADA, 1st AC GRAYSON KOHS, Sound Tech TYSON DAI, Film Editor KAT YI, Lighting Designer ZACK LOBEL, Lighting Consultant CHA SEE, Dramaturg AMAUTA M. FIRMINO, Producers MIRANDA HAYMON and ROSE BETH JOHNSON-BROWN at the Hodgepodge Group, Production Manager ZACHRY J. BAILEY, Pre-Production Assistant JARVIS D. MATTHEWS, Production WEI-LI WANG at Hudson Hill Production, Production Coordinator CJ SOMAVIA, Production Assistants MAX THEUMLER and ALEX POWELL, Location THE IRONDALE
