Title of the work: ” From my Window”
Author: Manuel Martínez
5 characters:
- JULIO.- 15 years old, spends the summer at home alone with his parents and the visit of his aunt. All his friends are at camp.
- AUNT CANDIDA.- 45 years old, a single woman who spends a few days of summer with her nephew Julio and his parents.
- BRUNO.- 55 years old, Julio’s neighbor who lives across the street from Julio’s house. Serious and discreet man.
- JULIO’S MOTHER: 47 years old, Julio’s mother.
- POLICEMAN.- 35 year old man.
ACT I
(Characters that intervene in this act: Julio, Julio’s mother and Aunt Candida)
Julio is sitting on his bed. He looks out of the window. His mother knocks at the door.
JULIO’S MOTHER: May I?
JULIO: What´s up, Mom?
Julio’s mother opens the door, enters the room with Aunt Candida behind.
JULIO’S MOTHER: Your aunt has arrived.
JULIO: Hello Dida.
AUNT CANDIDA: Hello my boy.
Julio and his Aunt Candida embrace.
AUNT CANDIDA: Look, I brought you a little something.
Aunt Candida gives Julio a small bag. He opens it and takes out some binoculars.
JULIO: How cool, auntie. Thank you very much.
AUNT CANDIDA: So you can have fun in the countryside when you go hiking and see animals.
JULIO’S MOTHER: And you can also spy on the neighbor, hahaha.
.
AUNT CANDIDA: (smiling) What did I miss?
JULIO’S MOTHER: Julito here is convinced that the neighbor is hiding something. He says he can’t be trusted.
JULIO: That’s how it is, I don’t trust him and I know he’s hiding something.
JULIO’S MOTHER: Well, let’s go, your Aunt will want to get comfortable.
Julio’s mother and Aunt Candida leave the room, Julio looks at his binoculars and then looks at the window.
ACT II
(Characters intervening in this act: Julio, Bruno)
Julio with the lights off, is lying on his bed. It is nighttime. A storm lashes the night with lightning.
JULIO: With this rain there’s no one who can sleep, uff.
Julio gets up and sits on his bed.
JULIO: What a fucking bore.
Julio picks up his binoculars from the floor.
JULIO: Let’s see if we can see anything from here.
Julio focuses the binoculars on the window.
JULIO: Look at him in the kitchen, I’ve never seen anyone with so many knives. It looks like someone has knocked on his door.
Lightning flashes across the sky, startling Julio.
JULIO: What a thunder, what a scare.
Julio looks out the window with his binoculars.
JULIO: Wait a minute, there’s a woman with him. Who is she? That woman looks very familiar. Now he’s gone back to the kitchen, what an obsession with sharpening the knives, now he’s back with her with the knife in his hand, where’s he going…wait a minute, that woman… she’s my AUNT Candida.
A clap of thunder lights up the whole room, after the lightning, a woman’s scream is heard in the distance, the lights in the window disappear and everything is in darkness.
JULIO: My Aunt, my aunt, Mom, Mom!
Julio gets out of bed quickly. He opens the door to his room and exits in the dark.
ACT III
(Characters intervening in this act: Julio, Mother, Police, Bruno and Aunt Candida)
Julio’s living room, sitting on the sofa, very nervous, he tells what happened to his mother and the policeman.
JULIO: As I have told my mother 3 times already, our neighbor has murdered my Aunt Candida. I don’t know what are you doing here and not in there stopping him.
POLICE: Let’s see boy, we have called your neighbor, but there is no indication that what you say has happened, besides it is a very serious accusation.
MOTHER: Let’s see Julio, what have you seen?
JULIO: I’ve already said it, I saw Dida at the neighbor’s house, he was sharpening a knife, she screamed and they disappeared, it’s clear: he killed her.
POLICE: Let’s see, ma’am, where is your sister?
MOTHER: Well, I don’t know, officer, she’s not in the house. But maybe she hasn’t come to sleep.
JULIO: She’s at the neighbor’s house, I told you.
Bruno enters the room.
JULIO: He, he’s the murderer.
BRUNO: Excuse me?
POLICE: I’m sorry to have disturbed you, sir. Can you tell me if you were at home tonight.
BRUNO: Sure, but what’s going on, why did you call me?
POLICE: Excuse me for asking, but was Candida with you?
BRUNO: Well, yes, but why are you asking these questions?
JULIO: You see, I told you, it was him, I saw him from my window.
BRUNO: Well, is this boy spying on me?
POLICE: Excuse me, do you know where she is?
BRUNO: Sure, she was behind me.
JULIO: What do you mean, behind him?
Candida enters the room.
CANDIDA: Well, what’s all this commotion about?
JULIO: Dida!
CANDIDA: Oh, Julio, how sweet of you, what happened? I was supposed to meet Bruno for dinner tonight, you really missed me.
POLICE: Well, I see it was all a misunderstanding.
BRUNO: At least Julio doesn´t lack imagination.
THE END.