Intros and Intrigue
Donnie Ashford had never been in a play before. After working to the courage he had his big break. A senior project was posted on the college bulletin board: “Help wanted: Anyone interested in a modern day play. No experience necessary, just a willingness to participate and have a good time.”
Donnie clutched the ad in his hands. “No more hiding. I want to take the stage. I will be an actor!”
He clutches the ad in his grip as tight as he can while shaking it into the air as a declaration, but not never getting jabbed in the back by one of the on campus theatre guild members. “Hey, you big bully! I spent all night making that flyer!”
Donnie blushed when he slowly pulled the ad down and looked at the now wadded up mess in his hands. He let out a nervous laugh as he flattened it out on a nearby table and gave it back to them. “Sorry about that…”
The guild member took the misshapen paper and stormed off in a huff, grumbling under their breath. “Big…dumb…no respect!”
Brushing off the awkward moment with the guild member Donnie makes his way to the campus stage where the student director, Michelle Denning, was scribbling notes on her pad furiously. “It needs…more action! No…romance? Hmm…maybe a splash of comedy…oh yes! Dad jokes! Lots of Dad jokes!”
Confused by Michelle’s conversation with herself, Donnie carefully approaches her.
“Excuse me,” He greeted calmly.
Michelle unintentionally throws her work into the air after appearing spooked. “It was just an idea! Don’t fire me!” She stands awkwardly staring as a couple papers slowly drift to the floor. “Oh, my apologies. I thought you were the Theatre professor again telling me to quit wasting department funding on nonsense.”
Donnie attempts to say something, but is still quite perplexed by her unusual behavior. “Um…right. Would uh, you like some help getting your papers back together?”
Michelle gives a defeated looked and sighs. “Yes…again, sorry about the reaction. I am running off of 2 hours of sleep and 5 cups of coffee. I’m a bit, ah!” She randomly screams, scaring Donnie and causing her papers to fall back to the floor. “Sorry again, nervous twitch when I get into my emotions. Let me start over.” She takes a moment to perform a breathing exercise to calm her nerves before striking an overdramatic pose. “Greetings, New Comer! I am Michelle Denning! This is my Senior Project! Would you be interested in joining a wonderfully constructed cavalcade of students from various backgrounds as we dive into the unknown of a fresh script with off the wall ideas!?”
Subscribe to continue reading
Become a paid subscriber to get access to the rest of this post and other exclusive content.
