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SHORT STORY --Actually,
a play this month by the eminent playwright and journalist, Sherwood Ross. The Chickasaw Plum
appreciates his contributions including “Kremlin Wife” below.
Sherwood Ross
KREMLIN
WIFE
© 2006 by Sherwood Ross
Time: Winter, 1950
Place:
CAST
Ludmilla, an attractive Baltic region blond,
early Thirties
Sonia, Ludmilla’s
friend, a psychologist, mannish , same age
Nikita, Politbureau
member, very powerful, late Fifties
Ivan, Ludmilla’s
husband, high official in secret police, late Fifties
The playwright is indebted to Simon Sebag Montefiore for his history, “Stalin: The Court of The Red
Tsar”(Alfred A. Knopf).
ACT ONE
Set:
Plush living room crowded with overstuffed furniture, Russian 17th
century religious paintings on the wall beside which small, obligatory
photographs of Lenin and Stalin appear tacky. There is a writing table in the
middle of this mess with a photograph of Ludmilla on
it. Door at left opens and Ludmilla flounces in,
spills half a dozen packages onto a sofa, and removes her fur cap, brushes the
snow off it and tosses it aside. She shakes her straight blond hair, peels off
a winter overcoat and drops it on a sofa.
Ludmilla
As you see, Soviet stores are not
completely empty --- especially the shops for us. You see how lucky your Ludmilla is to
be born under the sign of Aries, the water carrier. Astrology is not practiced
here, at least not officially, but there is a woman in the university district
who forecasts for me now and then. She says Aries means being strong willed and
good with money (laughs) ---good at spending it! Well, why not? As I say to
myself, “Ludmilla, to drive the Soviet economy, you
must shop!” Just like a rich American housewife, what?
(Musical doorbell rings out the theme of Tchaikovsky’s Pathetique symphony. Ludmilla
goes to door at left. Sonia stands excitedly in the doorway, waiting to be
invited in.)
Sonia! You’re an hour early! No,
come in! Don’t be foolish, darling. It’s fine! Fine! I just got home myself
this minute! No, you’re not interrupting. Come in! Come in! I was out shopping.
I’ll heat the samovar.
(Sonia enters. She is a brunette dressed in a man’s coat. She wears
horn-rimmed glasses and her hair is drawn up in a bun. Handing her coat to Ludmilla, we see she wears a pin-striped business suit. She
carries a parcel in a brown paper bag in her left land and holds it as she
wraps her left arm around Ludmilla’s back. Ludmilla steps forward and there is a protracted embrace
that is warm and loving. Sonia kisses Ludmilla two or
three times on the cheek and Ludmilla backs away
smiling, so that her arms are extended their full length.)
Oh, let me look at you! How trim you look!
Sonia
And you, darling. You have your girlish waist.
Ludmilla
Shameless flatterer!
Sonia
I can tell you’re wonderful. You
look wonderful.
Ludmilla
Oh, sit down! Sit down!
Sonia
I’m too excited. I got here early
and was walking around the block until I couldn’t stand not ringing your bell.
Ludmilla
(Grabbing a box of
chocolates.)
Here, have a candy. Swiss chocolate. Take two, eat
them all! (Sonia takes a couple and a few spill out of the box. They laugh and Ludmilla embraces her impulsively.)
Sonia
M-m-m! Chocolate ecstasy! You mean
you feast on these and you don’t gain?
Ludmilla
I walk it off..
to the shops, the symphony, lectures, even to the
Kremlin when they deign to invite the wives.
Sonia
I see! Where did these two years go,
huh? It’s been too long and you know it.
Ludmilla
My apologies…
Sonia
And you’re the one responsible for these separations. Of course, I can
see why you would want to hibernate in here. You’ve really fixed it up since
last time! Is that a Livitskii I see on the wall? (Ludmilla nods) Am I ever impressed! Ivan Ivanovich must be doing very well. (Beat) So, ah, how is dear old Ivan?
Ludmilla
The same: long hours. They don’t
finish most nights until
Sonia
They say he has a very sweet voice,
almost like “sap” from a maple tree.
Ludmilla
I’ve heard him sing. I’ve heard better. I’ve
heard worse. Anyway, nobody dares to excuse themselves before he’s ready to go
to bed. So when Ivan finally comes home it’s
Sonia
Sounds like not much fun for either
of you.
Ludmilla
I manage to keep myself entertained.
Sonia
So, ah, who is he riding in with
these days?
Ludmilla
Sometimes Molotov, sometimes Mikoyan. Once in awhile Kaganovich. Oh, and last week Nikita. He came
storming in here angry as a bull, his face…practically purple….Ivan was on the
pot but Nikita goes right up to the toilet door and rattles it. He’s yelling,
“Ivan Ivanovich: do you know how long I’ve been
waiting downstairs for you?” (Laughs) So
I ordered him, “Nikita, sit!” and poured him coffee and fixed him a true
peasant breakfast, and pretty soon they are both gorging themselves on my
famous stuffed eggs with pepper and the bread, you know how I make it with the
cracklings. And Nikita says, “I, who come from the bread basket of
Sonia
Ludmillitchka, watch your tongue!
Ludmilla
Oh, bother!
Sonia
We need to end this kind of talk.
You heard me warn you. Take it to heart.
Ludmilla
Are you trying to tell me in your
roundabout way they are bugging Ivan’s apartment?
Sonia
No! No! No! Nothing
of the sort. (Raising her voice)
They are too ethical to do anything like that. I’m just taking exception
to, ah, the use of your word “pretense.”
Ludmilla
Oh, come on!
(Sonia puts a finger over her lips and points to the telephone.)
Really? You think so? (Ludmilla approaches Sonia, all smiles, puts
her arms around her waist.) Well, let them record this! (Ludmilla kisses Sonia warmly on the mouth.) It’s
so good to see you.
Sonia
Now that’s the kiss I’ve been longing for. (Sonia kisses her back hard and after a moment Ludmilla
has to break it off.) Just like when we were at camp.
Ludmilla
Happiest three weeks of my life. How
time flies. Here I am, thirty years old today. (beat) I’m entitled to a few kisses.
Sonia
And a spanking,
too. I’ll bet
you’ve been a wee bit naughty, right? Anyway, here’s a present.
(Sonia
hands Ludmilla a thin, rectangular package in brown wrapping
paper.)
Ludmilla
How sweet of you to remember! (Feeling it.) I can’t wait to open it.
Sonia
So here you are, all settled into
your luxurious home, happily married, the envy of all
Ludmilla
(Evasive)
I’ll bring us some tea. Oh, and I have fresh Viennese
strudel smothered in whipped cream.
(Ludmilla exits right, into kitchen, leaving
Sonia alone. Sonia ambles about the room examining bric-a-brac, gazes at the
pictures of Stalin and Lenin briefly, then goes over to a telephone on a
writing table and picks up handset and examines it, turning it around and
upside down. She is looking at the base of the handset holding it above her eye
level when Ludmilla enters with pastry tray. She
stops in the doorway, surprised. They make eye contact.)
Sonia
Oh! I was thinking of making a phone
call. (Ludmilla enters)
Ludmilla
(Laughs) Of
course you were. I’m sure you aren’t
looking for bugs.
Sonia
Everyone knows,
all the bugs have fled
Ludmilla
Now who’s talking out of turn!
Sonia
I’m sorry. We live in difficult
times… a great patriotic war…so many dead…and now enemies of the state
everywhere within the state…
Ludmilla
Don’t worry so much. Ivan’s too high
up to be bugged. They wouldn’t dare.
(Ludmilla sets the pastries down on a coffee table in the center of a
sofa-and-chairs arrangement. Sonia sits and Ludmilla
goes to the samovar and pours two cups and gives one to Sonia.) So, what is that wonderful birthday surprise
you have for me?
Sonia
Open it! (Ludmilla removes brown paper, revealing
record album, “Anything Goes”)
Ludmilla
It’s printed in English. (Slowly,
tracing her hand over the album cover)
Sonia
Cole Porter.
Ludmilla
Porter, right.
Sonia
Music from one of his operettas,
“Anything Goes.”
Ludmilla
(Puts it on phonograph; music starts. They listen appreciatively for
about a minute. Ludmilla turns to Sonia.) I love it. C’mon. Let’s dance. (They
dance; Sonia sings)
Sonia
The world has gone mad today
And good’s bad today
And black’s white today
And day’s night today,
When most guys today
That women prize today
Are just silly gigolos
And though I’m not a great romancer
I know that I’m bound to answer
When you propose,
Anything goes.
(The music stops and they stop, laughing, hug briefly.)
Ludmilla
It’s swell. Isn’t that the American word for it, swell? Wherever did you buy it?
Sonia
A comrade who works in graphic
design near my desk got it in
Ludmilla
(Waving her arm around the room.) I think
Sonia
Here, we can buy only what they want
us to buy. One man makes the decision on gramophones. Another makes the
decision on records. Over there, anybody can make and sell anything they want.
Nobody tells them what music to play. That’s how I got this.
Ludmilla
What is it with our men that they
must be in control, you know? Ivan (shaking her head) must be in total
control, even of intimate moments, you understand me? He never relaxes, not for
a second. It’s as though he must be vigilant for enemies…that idea creeps out
of his work, from what he does…and it comes crawling in here after work with
him like some kind of slimy reptile on a rope he drags behind him. (Shudders)
Sonia
(Changing the subject) Say, I’ll be you bought yourself something grand for your
birthday.
Ludmilla
(Picks
up muff from a sofa, displays it, drops it back, picks
up hat.) A hat, a muff, Ivan spoils me like you-know-who’s spoiled
daughter.
Sonia
Looks like a dress box, too.
Ludmilla
Oh, that’s nothing.
Sonia
I’ll bet it’s
Cleopatra’s own slinky gown. Come on! Model it for your Sonia. (Ludmilla suddenly
puts her tea cup down and her mood changes visibly.) I’ll open it for you.
What? (Ludmilla
looks away and twists a napkin in her hands. Sonia, with one eye on Ludmilla, opens the box. She removes some tissue paper
followed by a red jumper a teen-age girl would wear. Next, she pulls out a
peasant blouse adorned with red roses. Ludmilla
blushes.) What? What? Who is this girl’s dress for? …You? Is it for you? Oh, my god!
(Ludmilla nods her head and tries to fight
back tears. Sonia puts blouse down and moves to sit close to Ludmilla and puts her arm around Ludmilla’s
shoulder.) Sh-h-h! It’ll be okay. (Ludmilla breaks down. Sonia produces a handkerchief.)
Ludmilla
(Laughing
through her tears) Ivan bought me the dress and blouse. Oh, and he got me a
brown bear, too.
Sonia
Does it dance?
Ludmilla
He practically does the kazatsky. (Beat)
I suppose you’ve guessed why he bought these. (Beat) Look, I wouldn’t want it spread around Ivan makes me wear
girl’s clothes.
Sonia
I have never divulged one word of
what my patients tell me. You…should feel…free…based on our friendship…you can
to speak to me in confidence, it’s all right darling.
Ludmilla
Eat your strudel and I’ll tell you.
You know, when I first met Ivan, a famous revolutionary, I was jelly in his
hands. Mother warned me about the age difference, but, of course, I knew better
than her.
Sonia
Well, he did fall hard for you. He
once told me, and I thought there was a lot of truth to it, that you were his
“woodland sprite,” like a fairy. I wouldn’t be surprised myself if you had
invisible wings on your back.
Ludmilla
Oh, eat!
Sonia
I’ve never had one with so much
whipped cream before. It’s decadent.
Ludmilla
They’re called Himmalayas.
Sonia
And so…well, perhaps you enjoy it
just a little to dress up this way for him? (Ludmilla doesn’t answer.) A little love game, perhaps? (Ludmilla wipes her eyes.) Sweetheart, if
this is too painful, let’s just forget it, forget I asked. My profession is to
ask questions.
Ludmilla
(Resignedly) No!
No! It’s time I talked to someone. (Beat)
You know, before we married, Ivan had a lot of endearing names for me, my
little princess, my
little angel. He always used the diminutive, my little this, my little that,
and I didn’t think anything of it. For a long time after the wedding, maybe a
year, everything was normal man and woman stuff. Then, he gradually began to
reveal his secret needs.
(As Ludmilla makes this confession, Sonia
holds her cup to her lips, hardly sipping, hanging on
each word.)
Sonia
Well, I wonder if we all don’t have
some fantasy back in our skulls, some hidden, suppressed desire…
Ludmilla
One night he brings home this box
full of big diapers. He pulls one out and wants me to put it on him. (Sonia does not betray her astonishment.) He
likes me to rub warm baby oil on him. Then I have to pat him dry with towels
and sprinkle him with baby powder.
Sonia
I see…
Ludmilla
And then…I, well, diaper him… (beat,
rationalizing) It’s his fantasy, you know? He asks me to recite nursery
rhymes and read him old Russian fairy tales as if I
were his mother. (beat)
I know all of them. (Reciting) Old Mother
Goose when she wanted to wander, would fly through the
air on a very fine gander. Other times, he switches entirely. He wants me
to play the little girl and he plays the experienced seducer.
Sonia
That, too? I must say I’ve never had a case
like this, professionally. But the diaper boys are well known in the
profession…infantalists.
Ludmilla
(Snapping her fingers.) That’s it!
That’s what they are! Ivan can’t be the only one. There have got to be lots of
men out there like him, right? It’s not that odd, is it?
Sonia
No, it’s not that odd. Yet, it isn’t
exactly normal, either. So what about your man and woman stuff now?
Ludmilla
Oh, I suppose I wish it was that way
again, you know? You must promise me, though, Sonia, if any of this gets out,
you know how that inner circle is…they would use it against Ivan. Beria has the ears of a fox. (Sonia nods) All right…here goes… he lies on the bed and makes
cooing noises. I have to bring him a bottle of warm milk and he makes me splash
some on my forearm the way mothers do to make sure it isn’t too hot for baby,
and while he drinks it he likes me to sing him a lullabye,
you know, lullabye, and goodnight…that kind of song. Then
I give him his pacifier and he sucks on that. (Ludmilla stops)
Sonia
I’ll ask you again? Do you have
relations? (Ludmilla shakes her head.)
Ludmilla
When he gets amorous, I have to do my little girl act. Huh! I’ve got a whole closet full of
clothes like this.
Sonia
And?
Ludmilla
This is very hard for me, you
understand? (Sonia nods her head) Then
he says, “What’s your name, little girl?” and each time I have to make up a new
name for him. (Beat) This is very
hard for me to say but I will finish. Okay.
Who better than you to tell?
Sonia
Take all the time you need. By the
way, this is excellent strudel. Next time we get together I’ll make one from my
grandmother’s cook book….
Ludmilla
So, then I pull up a chair next to
the bed…then, well, I expose myself to him. Then I unpin his diaper…and then I
put my lipstick on…very slowly…
Sonia
I think I know where this is going,
so you don’t have to say any more. What I want to know is do you ever get
anything in return?
Ludmilla
I get to love him…in the larger meaning
of the word, with a capital L. He’s an important man. I suppose I have to
settle for this as my portion of life. (Tears
spill down her cheeks.)
Sonia
How I hate to see tears from such
beautiful eyes.
Ludmilla
It’s okay. I’m going to be okay.
Besides, I get to shop!
Sonia
Acquiring is not living. What…if you
can tell it… you used to talk to me about having children. Is this out of the
question?
Ludmilla
Your memory is good. I love children. I helped my Mother raise
three younger brothers and sisters. I’m completely prepared for the job. But
it’s useless. One night when he was sucking from his bottle I removed my blouse
and pushed my nipple against his cheek. I said, “Wouldn’t baby love to drink
some real milk squirting out of this?” He smiled and sucked my nipple for a
while and then I whispered in a low, sexy voice, you could have a son of your own. Think of it. You’re very own son!
And he sat up and shouted, “Stop it! You’re ruining everything!” and the way he
said it frightened me.
Sonia
Aye! Aye! Actually, if you did have
a baby, he might come to adore it. I think narcissistic men, especially, make
good fathers because a man like Ivan, he would see himself reborn in his son.
That’s how boys get spoiled, and girls, too. Look at Stalin’s son. Look at how
the Molotovs’ spoil their daughter.
Ludmilla
Frankly, Sonia, I’d love to have a
child but I don’t think I want his child,
you know. I would tell him it’s his….but I’d like the son of a really virile
man, you know.
Sonia
How…?
Ludmilla
I’ll think of something….
Sonia
Yes, of course you will. But if you
are going to shop around, keep an eye over your shoulder. A lot of the top guys
have their wives followed.
Ludmilla
While I’m still attractive, I could
find somebody else. Don’t repeat this but Nikita couldn’t take his eyes off my
chest. To love again, with a real man…. I’d love to have a boy with a wide,
happy smile on his face…a daughter I could take to ballet lessons and watch her
dance. If only Ivan would let me go.
Sonia
Ludmilla, I hear some things about Ivan that
are unpleasant. (Ludmilla
pours Sonia more tea.) What I heard may clarify what’s happening in your
life. I admit these are rumors…
Ludmilla
(Coldly) I don’t credit rumors.
Sonia
In
Ludmilla
I won’t believe you, Sonia.
Sonia
Well, which did you believe when the
Kremlin put out an official story saying Stalin’s wife died of a heart attack,
and the rumor was Nadiya committed suicide? Nobody
believed the heart attack story, including you.
Ludmilla
Get on with it. (Stands) I’m going to pour myself a
little serious. Care to join me? (Sonia
nods. Ludmilla goes to a sideboard,
pours two small tumblers. For about a minute her back is to Sonia, making it
easier for Sonia to say what she has come to say. When she returns with the
vodka, she hands one to Sonia, the two raise them in a toast to each other,
without clinking, and take a swallow. Ludmilla
resumes her seat.)
Sonia
The rumor is….Ivan …and some of his
aides…they abduct teenage girls…girls that have not reached the age of consent.
Ludmilla
Who exactly is spreading this rumor?
I’ve heard this one before. Last December I was approached on the street rudely
by a man who bumped into me and growled in my face, “If your husband puts his
hand on my daughter, I’ll kill him…and you as well.” And then he was lost in
the crowd. I was in shock.
Sonia
I can tell you this much: one of my
patients runs in Ivan’s pack.
Ludmilla
Maybe he was that man on the
street…about forty years old with thick black hair…very handsome.
Sonia
I can’t tell you for professional
reasons. You understand.
Ludmilla
(Flatly) Just
get on with it. You know, there are some girls, more like young woman, who are
sexually precocious at fifteen or sixteen. They look like they’re twenty-five.
These girls don’t exactly have to be abducted, you know?
Sonia
Maybe those kind,
too. What I’ve
heard… they grab them as young as thirteen off the streets and take them to
their dachas, keeping them for days or weeks. And if the parents complain, (she snaps her fingers), like that, to
the Gulag, and the girls to an orphanage when they’re done with them.
Ludmilla
And…so…please explain to me, in your
capacity as a professional, what is the dynamic behind this behavior?
Sonia
I’m not entirely certain. Maybe…oh,
this is such a simplification…but men who are insecure…ah, unsure of themselves with a real woman, they turn to girls, some
even abduct children.
Ludmilla
Insecure, now that’s ludicrous pertaining to Ivan. He’s right up at the top of
state security. Beria can’t get along without him.
Sonia
Yes, and it’s
terrifying being up there. They are like mad dogs waiting for the opportunity
to tear at each other’s throats. Stalin suspects every member of the Politbureau of disloyalty. Any one of them can denounce you
to him and if Stalin believes it, your life is gone, over, kaput. (Ludmilla puts her hands over her
ears.) I’m sorry.
Ludmilla
What?
Sonia
Listen to me carefully. You can’t
hide in department stores all your life.
Ludmilla
It’s my birthday, Sonia. You’re
presuming on our friendship.
Sonia
There’s more.
Ludmilla
(Standing.) I don’t think I care to hear any
more, thank you.
Sonia
Sit, please. Please sit down. (Ludmilla sits,
drinks from vodka glass.) The hopeful part is coming. (Sonia pushes her chair a bit closer to the couch.) I am here to
tell you, you may be in danger.
Ludmilla
That’s the hopeful part?
Sonia
This is
Ludmilla
Well, as long as you’re determined
to ruin my birthday, would you mind braiding my hair?
Sonia
Not at all.
One tail or two.
Ludmilla
Two. Later on tonight, I’ll be
pretending it’s my tenth birthday party.
(Ludmilla drags a straight back chair to stage
center facing audience and sits down. Sonia follows her and leans forward,
kisses her lightly on the cheek, wraps her arms around Ludmilla’s
chest and squeezes briefly, straightens up, and begins to comb Ludmilla’s hair out.)
Sonia
(Sniffing) Your
hair smells so clean.
Ludmilla
Yes, I reek of purity. By the way,
did Nikita just happen to give you a message for me?
Sonia
How do you know that? I’m not
denying it.
Ludmilla
I know because I know you know him
pretty well. I know your father, may he rest in peace, served with Nikita at
Sonia
And may your father rest in peace.
Ludmilla
(Squeezing
Sonia
You made
quite an impression on him.
Ludmilla
Well, I may still be attractive to a
real man, you know? (Beat, reflectively.)
Sonia, how I wish I lived with a respected man who is not feared. When the
clerk in a department store asks me where to send the package and I tell him my
name, his hands tremble writing the address and he looks down at the paper.
Ouch, you hit a knot.
Sonia
I’m done with the combing. Now we
start braiding. (Beat) So, how much
do you really know about the terror?
Ludmilla
I can’t help overhear Ivan on the
phone. Beria brings a list of names to Stalin. Stalin
puts his initials on the list and hands it to Molotov. Molotov signs it and
hands it back to Beria, and Beria
returns to the office and hands the list to Ivan. Sometimes the list has just
one name. Sometimes five or ten. Sometimes hundreds or thousands of names…all of
them going to be pulled from their homes and families and some will never see
their children again.
Sonia
So you do know.
Ludmilla
Of course, everybody knows. They want everybody to know. Some people they
torture and release to go home and tell their neighbors how awful it is. Some
nights Ivan comes home with blood on his shoes. (looking over her shoulder) By the way,
now that we are speaking freely aren’t you worried about the phone being
bugged?
Sonia
Hold your head still. I think…it’s
just, well, the fear wears you down. After a while I just don’t care any more.
Let them take me and do what they want with me. Anyway, I’ve got a couple of
things to tell you. Nikita says he can’t think of anything lovelier than waking
up in the morning and having you fix his breakfast. He says it was a dream.
Ludmilla
(Excited) He
didn’t.
Sonia
Yes, he did, and he wants to work
out a safe arrangement.
Ludmilla
(Hugging herself) Wonderful!
Sonia
There’s something else he wants you
to know….
Ludmilla
Another bad part?
Sonia
I’m afraid so. You-know-who has
found a new way to test the loyalty of the members of the Politbureau.
Ludmilla
They’re all terrified of him now.
Sonia
Even so, he’s so suspicious he has
devised a new tactic.
Ludmilla
Get to the point.
Sonia
First, a little story first. (Beat) The other day the comrade in
charge of the manufacture of limousines stops President Kalinin
on the street.
Ludmilla
That jellyfish.
Sonia
Zylchenko his name is. The man is in tears.
He pulls at
Ludmilla
I didn’t know…
Sonia
There’s a rumor Molotov’s own wife
is next on the list. After that…anyway, your name has been mentioned…
Ludmilla
I am no enemy of the state!
Sonia
It has nothing to do with reality.
You-know-who is going to hold all the wives of his inner circle hostage. That
way they won’t dare assassinate him.
Ludmilla
Ivan’s bureau is the one that makes
the arrests. You don’t believe they would ask him to arrest me, do you?
Sonia
They revel in such ironies! What a drama! Beautiful wife of top secret
police officer, a woman thought to be an ardent Party member, dragged off to
the Lubiyanka for spying.
Ludmilla
I don’t even know an American. It’s
hard to believe they’re going after Paulina.
Sonia
Molotov has applied for a divorce.
If she’s tainted, it’s the only way he can save himself!
Ludmilla
How is Paulina tainted?
Sonia
When Golda Meier came here to the
synagogue, Paulina was there to greet her. That’s all
it takes. Go to a synagogue and shake hands with a foreign head of state.
Ludmilla
So what do you propose for me…and
where does the bull fit in?
Sonia
Sometimes a divorce is helpful. If
Ivan thinks he’s in trouble because of you, he might divorce you to clear his
name.
Ludmilla
(Laughs) You
want me to convert to Judaism and attend synagogue!
Sonia
No, but we need to find some way to
make Ivan divorce you.
Ludmilla
Divorce his pleasure princess? I do
the dance of the seven veils for him. Who else is dumb enough to clean his
diapers? Yes, that’s part of it. He makes poop in his diapers and I have to
scrape it off into the toilet and wash them. For all his wealth, he won’t let
me send them out to a laundry. There’s a big pot on the stove especially for
boiling his fucking diapers.
Sonia
I believe they mean to arrest you to
guarantee Ivan’s loyalty.
Ludmilla
All this makes no sense, absolutely no sense! What is this, a
lunatic asylum run by the crazies? I only want to live my life in peace. As for
Ivan, his loyalty is unquestioned. He grovels at the great man’s feet. I only
scrape his diapers but if Stalin pooped in his pants and told Ivan to eat the
contents, Ivan would ask for a fork.
Sonia
Anyway, you are suspected of
subversion.
Ludmilla
Ha! They just want to get their
hands between my legs. I love Communism. (Points
in the direction of the audience to a window) Look out there! One of the best views in the city. I sit here and watch the
sun drop behind the spires of the old churches. I see them silhouetted against
the twilight sky. As the darkness descends, I can see all the lights of
Sonia
I’m done braiding.
Ludmilla
How do I look? (Sonia nods approving.) Well, you’ve given me a good birthday spanking , haven’t you?
Sonia
I’m sorry, darling, believe me. I
had to tell you. Nikita wants you to know of the danger.
Ludmilla
Can this life we are living be real?
How many women are married to a man who comes home drunk most nights after
partying with the ruler of the country…a ruler who…makes him do unspeakable
things. You know, next to some names on those lists they give Ivan, Stalin
himself writes the words, “Beat! Beat!”
And Ivan does it. Yet, I marvel at how peacefully he sleeps at night.
Sonia
You know everything, don’t you?
Ludmilla
I know more. People hate Ivan. When I am introduced at a party, guests
look for ways to excuse themselves from my company, as if my body is covered
with scales.
Sonia
Nikita says he can get you out of
the country…through the
Ludmilla
And?
Sonia
He’s got a lovely dacha waiting for
you across the frontier, set back from a country road, three miles from a
darling little village. He’s not even asking for exclusive rights. He’s quite
the man of the world. Now and then, he drops in to pay you a visit.
Ludmilla
And just how does a fancy kept woman
pass her time with no department stores and theatres?
Sonia
(Reaching
into her pocket and producing an envelope.) He also told me to give you
this.
(Ludmilla feels the envelope, opens it
delicately from the top, peers inside, closes it, and hands it back.)
Ludmilla
No, no, you keep it.
Sonia
(Pressing the envelope back on Ludmilla) He wants you to have it. He says it
doesn’t matter if you accept his invitation. It’s for your shopping. Go ahead!
Ludmilla
My birthday
present to you.
I know you can use it.
Sonia
Oh….I couldn’t…
Ludmilla
Do you want me to go through with
this or not?
Sonia
Well… (She
takes envelope)
Ludmilla
Count it so I know how much I was
supposed to receive.
Sonia
(Counting the bills) My god! …. It’s ten thousand
rubles.
Ludmilla
Good! Happy birthday from your Ludmilla to you! (They hug.) Now, what did he tell you about the
arrangements?
Sonia
He says he’ll contact you.
Ludmilla
I do want to see him but I need time
to get to know him better. I’m not ready to leave the country just like that.
Sonia
You’ll consider it, though. It’s for
your own safety.
Ludmilla
I’ll consider it, sure. But there’s
something you had better consider.
Sonia
Oh?
Ludmilla
If Ivan wanted to know where I went,
who do you think is the first person he would pick up to ask a few questions? (Sonia turns pale.) My dear Sonia: I am
here to tell you that you may be in danger.
Sonia
Perhaps I should go now.
Ludmilla
And find a Swiss bank for your
money. (Sonia stands and Ludmilla helps her on with her coat.) To see you again
is the best birthday gift of all. (Sonia
lifts her vodka glass, as does Ludmilla, they toast.)
Sonia
Our love forever, what we swore as
girls.
Ludmilla
Our love forever!
Blackout
ACT TWO
Set: The same.
Time: Three hours later.
(There is an interval of darkness for thirty seconds. A key is heard to
turn in a lock. A floor lamp comes on illuminating the set. Ludmilla,
asleep in the same arm chair, is startled awake. She wears a peasant dress with
blue flowers. Ivan stands in the doorway
but does not enter. He is a short, bald, barrel-chested man tending to fatness.
His horn-rimmed glasses accentuate his moonish face.
His workers’ cap is pushed back on his head. A red-and-black tie is loose at
the neck of his blue denim shirt. His black trousers are rumpled.)
Ludmilla
(Startled awake.) M-m-f! Huh? (She sits
up with a start, rubs her eyes, bewildered.)
Ivan
(Calling from the doorway) Oh, little girl!
Ludmilla
(Still sleepy.) What?
Ivan
Little girl!
Ludmilla
Yes? (Recognizes Ivan and stands up.) May I help you, sir?
Ivan
Please, may I come in?
Ludmilla
(Pretending surprise and shock.) Oh!
Ivan
I said, may I come in?
Ludmilla
Oh, sir. My mother is not at home.
Ivan
What about your father?
Ludmilla
He lives far far
away, in
Ivan
It’s
Ludmilla
She sweeps the streets at night.
Ivan
So, who is watching you?
Ludmilla
I’m a big girl. Mother says I must
watch myself while she’s at work.
Ivan
I see. How old are you?
Ludmilla
I am ten years old today.
Ivan
Did you have a birthday party?
Ludmilla
Oh, no. We are very poor. Mother
cannot afford a cake.
Ivan
So, ah, what do they call you?
Ludmilla
Alexandra.
Ivan
Ah, that’s my own dear Mother’s
name, too. I say, it’s warm in your house. May I come in from the cold?
Ludmilla
Mother says for me not to allow
strangers to enter.
Ivan
But I am your own Mother’s brother,
your very own uncle, Boris. She is expecting me today.
Ludmilla
I have never seen you before, Uncle
Boris.
Ivan
This is my first trip to
Ludmilla
What brings you to our house?
Ivan
Why, your mother said she plans to
make you a surprise party tomorrow and told me I am to be the guest of honor. (Beat) Now may I come in?
Ludmilla
Oh, well, please come in and take
off your coat. (Ivan enters, looking
around as if visiting for the first time.) Did you bring me a present,
Uncle Boris? (Ivan removes coat and sets it down.)
Ivan
I did indeed. (Holds up package tied in red ribbon.)
Ludmilla
May I?
Ivan
Sure! Sure! Go ahead! (Ludmilla removes the paper and holds up a story book.)
Ludmilla
Oh, Uncle Boris, it’s “Celeste and
The Elephant.” (He turns his cheek so she
can kiss him.) Oh, read it to me, please, won’t you?
Ivan
Of course! I’ll just sit in this
chair by the lamp. Now, I’ll take the book and here, you, ah, just settle
yourself on my lap while I read to you.
Ludmilla
Oh, I don’t know…
Ivan
Come! Come! I am your Uncle Boris after all. When your mother
returns from work she’ll tell you so herself. (Beat) Now, give me a sweet little kiss on the mouth, you’ll see,
everything will be okay. (Ludmilla smiles and kisses him. Ivan slaps his hand on his
leg a couple of times.) Now hop up here and I’ll read to you all about
Celeste. (Ludmilla
sits on his lap. Ivan holds the story book in front of her with one hand.) Say,
Alexandra, has anyone ever told you you have just
beautiful hair?
Ludmilla
(Ignoring this.) I have two other Celeste books,
“Celeste and The Queen of the Night,” and “Celeste Against
The Witches.” That’s my favorite.
Ivan
My father used to read those very
same “Celeste” books to me when I was a boy. I’m glad you like them.
Ludmilla
I love them. I think there was a man once,
he looked very much like you, who read me a story once in the long ago.
Ivan
That would be me, when I visited
here and you were hardly more than a baby.
Ludmilla
I can’t wait for you to begin.
Ivan
And so I shall. (He strokes her head with one hand.) I
must say, what lovely braids.
Ludmilla
Please, Uncle Boris, read the story.
Ivan
Once upon a time, in a land far
away, there lived a lovely girl by the name of Celeste. (Ivan’s hand drops to Ludmilla’s bosom and
rests on it.) She lived by the seashore in a country called India, so far
away that to get there you would have to cross mountains and deserts and rivers
and pass through a hundred shining cities. Celeste’s father was very poor and
Celeste had no toys, only a doll made from rags. She was very content with her rag doll except
for one thing: she longed to ride on a real elephant.
(Ivan’s hand goes to Ludmilla’s shoulder strap
and unbuckles it. It falls down.)
Blackout
ACT THREE
Six months later. Springtime,
(Empty bench in a park along the river. Ludmilla enters slowly left, as if her every
step is painful. She seats herself on a bench. She wears a leather jacket over
a pair of workman’s pants. Nikita enters a moment later. He wears denims with a
flaming red tie. His step is brisk, he almost runs across the stage to her.)
Nikita
Ah, Ludmilla,
how bad is it?
Ludmilla
(She rises painfully. He presses her to sit back on the bench.) I endure, but what am I to do?
Nikita
Let me look at that eye! Oo-u-f! What about the rest?
Ludmilla
Oh, he’s an expert, all right. My
legs are all purple and yellow. I am heavily sedated.
Nikita
When did this happen?
Ludmilla
Day before
yesterday. After I was dropped off.
Nikita
What did he say?
Ludmilla
Oh, the usual. He called me a whore
and a tramp. He punched me in the face. The dentist said I am lucky to save my
teeth on the left side.
Nikita
(Shaking his head.) I heard rumors he gives beatings
personally.
Ludmilla
Not rumors! When you see my body you
may not want your Ludmilla any longer. He flies into
an absolute rage….his eyes bulge…he becomes, I don’t know what. I am very very
frightened of him now.
Nikita
If you can, try not to show your
fear.
Ludmilla
I’m further away from him than ever.
We don’t play our intimate games any more. He just forces me to do his bidding
and pushes me away when he’s done his business.
Nikita
We must make an end of this.
Ludmilla
Oh, easy for you to say. I am living
with a twisted mind, yet I can’t run to the police or a judge for relief, and
he won’t divorce.
Nikita
You sounded him out?
Ludmilla
He beat me for bringing it up.
Nikita
Time to get out.
Ludmilla
(Stamps her foot.) No! No! Don’t you speak of it to me. I will never set foot outside
Nikita
I’m truly sorry about that.
Ludmilla
Sorry isn’t good enough.
Nikita
I’ve talked to Stalin.
Ludmilla
And?
Nikita
He has given orders to go easy on
her.
Ludmilla
There is no easy down there and you know it. Did you demand her release?
Nikita
No one can make demands on him. He
says he’s spoken to Beria and Beria
has told Ivan not to be rough with her. Have you… reminded Ivan of her case?
Ludmilla
What case? Her crime is she spoke with me in your behalf, and don’t you
ever forget who asked her. Ivan has no
boundaries. The last time I brought it up, he took
that rubber tool of his and struck me on the back with it. I screamed at him,
“Go ahead! Do to me what you are doing to her. Go ahead! Spare nothing! Give me
measure for measure!”
Nikita
Across the border, our little dacha
has got a rose garden. Just this time of year they are planting.
Ludmilla
(Sadly) Nikita,
are you mad as well? Am I supposed to plant roses with Sonia fifty meters under
Nikita
You must be resolved to hang on.
Certain changes are coming. Stalin
hasn’t got much longer to go.
Ludmilla
Oh, fine! So all
of suffering
Nikita
Shush! Shush! If I could kill him
today, I would. Only he is heavily guarded and they would kill me first and all
my dreams of reform would die with me. I know how you feel. So many of my comrades who
fought valiantly against Hitler, have been brutalized.
Ludmilla
Ivan is squeezing the life out of
Sonia down there.
Nikita
I need only a little more time…a few
months. I promise you. I will stop the executions. I will empty the Gulags. I
will tear down the Lubiyanka stone by stone.
Ludmilla
(Sadly) Tomorrow
will be too late for Sonia. I feel it
in my heart. I feel she is calling me, she is telling me, “Ludmilla,
I don’t have long to go. They are doing the unspeakable.” (Beat) Why don’t you arrange for me to meet Stalin privately? I’ll
give him anything he wants. I’ll make him forget that masseuse he’s got, what’s
her name, the girl from
Nikita
Go home and pack.
Ludmilla
Get Sonia out and we all leave
together. I’ll pack but I don’t leave until then.
Nikita
I will get her out.
Ludmilla
You have a plan…now?
Nikita
This is the last time Ivan Ivanovich is going to beat you.
Ludmilla
Your plan.
Nikita
Shortly after he arrives home
tonight I’ll pay you a visit.
Ludmilla
So…we confront him together?
Nikita
Let me handle him. Ah, do you know
for a fact if he keeps a gun in the house?
Ludmilla
Yes, in his top dresser drawer
there’s a revolver under a pile of socks. It’s loaded, too. I opened the
chamber and saw the bullets.(Beat) I’m so
hypocritical, aren’t I? (Nikita looks
puzzled)
Nikita
Wha-?
Ludmilla
Here I ask why not one of you has
the courage to kill Stalin when all I have to do is take the revolver and push
it in his fat face and squeeze the trigger.
Nikita
Don’t you involve yourself.
When you get home, carefully remove the bullets from the chamber and leave the
gun where it is. (Ludmilla nods) Can I give you a ride
home?
Ludmilla
I’d like to walk on the boulevard.
It’s restful. (She turns her cheek so he
can kiss it. He understands she won’t let him kiss her on the mouth. Still, he
tries to make it more than a perfunctory kiss. She doesn’t let him.)
Nikita
Until tonight.
(Ludmilla just nods, turns, and walks off.
Nikita watches her leave, then turns to the audience.)
Up until now, she has never faced
true misery in her life. Living with that jackal she had to participate in his
perversions but nothing more. The beatings elevate matters to another level.
She only suspects it but, in fact, Ivan has killed thousands, personally, and he is quite capable of
killing Ludmilla.
In a country where the laws are enforced, a man like Ivan is compelled to
control himself. But we have sunk so low in our time the laws are mere pieces
of paper men like Ivan use to wipe their ass. That’s why they can beat the life
out of Sonia down there. Ludmilla can’t even begin to
guess at it.
(Nikita
turns and walks out.)
Blackout
ACT FOUR
Set: Living room, same as Act One.
Time: Late in the evening of the same day.
(Ludmilla sit in an armchair reading a
magazine. Ivan emerges from a bedroom.)
Ivan
So, I come home from a hard day’s work at-
Ludmilla
The abatoir—
Ivan
The office—
Ludmilla
The insane asylum-
Ivan
The office…and what do I find?
Ludmilla
Not a single dead body in the whole
apartment. Fancy that!
Ivan
What I find is you have a bag packed for a trip. Look at me!
Ludmilla
After what you’ve been dealing with
all day, my packed suitcase is hardly a crime.
A wife is going to leave her husband. It happens a thousand times a day.
It’s not murder, and yet you’re angry as if it was. Have a drink!
Ivan
I will. Will you join me?
Ludmilla
Sure,
(Ivan fills two glasses from a vodka bottle, hands one to Ludmilla.)
Ivan
Let’s toast: to each other.
Ludmilla
All right. (They
drink.)
Ivan
You have a flimsy nightgown in your bag, and (withdrawing
it from his pocket) a diaphragm.
Ludmilla
(Caustic)
Ivan! I never dreamed you, of all people, would look through your own
wife’s valise.
Ivan
Who fitted this? Tell me.
Ludmilla
Why, so you can arrest her? She is a
friendly Soviet doctor. By the way, she says she has an open marriage. She has
her friends, her husband has his. Relaxed, happy. It’s
fairly common.
Ivan
Such boldness
tonight. I may
have to teach you another lesson.
Ludmilla
Why is it, when a lunatic wants to
punish somebody, he calls it “teaching them a lesson,” as if he was opening a
school for wayward boys?
Ivan
I could lock you up right now.
Ludmilla
Then who will give baby his bottle
and his massage? I still have rather attractive hands, don’t you think? In
Ivan
Do you ever listen to your own crazy
talk? There’s no place you can hide from us.
(Door chime.)
Ah, you’re all set to run off with
Nikita.
Ludmilla
I’ve been reading this article (holds up magazine) all about what he did
at
Ivan
Two thousand,
actually. (Door
chimes again)
Ludmilla
Oh, let him in. All he wants is some man-to-man talk.
(Ivan goes to the door. With a toss of his head, yet not looking Nikita
directly in the face, Ivan motions for him to enter.)
Nikita
Thank you, Ivan. (Nods) Ludmilla. (Nikita and Ivan start to shake hands, then
stop.)
Ludmilla
Hello, Nikita.
Nikita
So, Ivan, are you going to offer me
a drink?
Ivan
You need one, eh?
(Ivan pours out three glasses and passes them around.)
Nikita
Yes, I do. (Drinks) Ah-h-h! We may have been short bullets at the front, but
before every attack there was plenty of this to go around.
Ivan
If you’re here to take my wife,
forget it. I give no divorce and kidnapping her is a crime.
Nikita
I hear you’re quite an authority on
the subject.
Ivan
I tell you flat out, Comrade hero of the
Nikita
Since you bring up the
Ivan
Not free to wrap her legs around
you.
Nikita
You know, Ivan, Stalin himself tells
me I am next in line.
Ivan
He’s told ten of you the same lying
shit.
Nikita
There’s a consensus among us at the
top. Molotov doesn’t want it. Your boss is hated. (Shrugs) So I’m next. (Pointing his finger at
Ivan.) And when I do
assume authority, your agency, especially, is one that could stand a little
reform.
Ivan
Tomorrow is not today.
Nikita
I think you need to think hard about
tomorrow.
Ludmilla
Let’s go. (To Ivan) We are leaving.
Ivan
Leave if you like but if you say
goodbye Ivan, you will also be saying goodbye Sonia.
Nikita
I have spoken to Stalin. She is not
to be harmed.
Ivan
God forbid! But mistakes do happen.
Stalin is singing songs tonight in the Kremlin. I’ll be attending to serious business in the Lubiyanka.
Nikita
Let me take her off your hands. Be
done with her. Be done with us. Give the word.
Ivan
I couldn’t even if I wanted to.
There are official procedures. Her trial is not scheduled until July. The
judges’ calendars are crowded. I just
couldn’t let her go even if I wanted to.
Nikita
(To Ludmilla) Come on.
Ivan
You walk out with him, and I will
deliver your news to Sonia in person.
Ludmilla
Ivan, for your own sake, start over again with a fresh partner. And…can’t you find it
in your heart to show a little pity for Sonia?
Nikita
(To Ludmilla) Come on.
Ivan
Sonia will hear of it this very
night, I promise you.
Ludmilla
A-I, Nikita! He means it.
Nikita
Tomorrow is coming, Ivan. Give it your best consideration. (Ivan shakes his head.) Let’s go.
Ivan
Go, but Sonia is finished.
Ludmilla
An innocent woman,
Ivan. (Ivan shrugs.) Ivan, what if I stay
here. Will you let Nikita go pick up Sonia?
Nikita
Ludmilla!
Ludmilla
Come on, Ivan. Let Nikita have her
or I am out the door with him for good.
Ivan
Of course, it is within my power to
grant her an emergency parole. (Beat) How
do I know that you won’t run off tomorrow?
Ludmilla
I give you my word. (Nikita shakes his head, unbelieving at the
turn of events.)
Ivan
Ah, I have it. (To Ludmilla) Sonia goes free but she
cannot leave
Ludmilla
Oh, Ivan, that’s so sweet of you.
Thank you!
Ivan
Actually, I have had my doubts all
along Sonia was spying for the Americans. So, Nikita can take her. Agreed?
Ludmilla
Agreed.
Nikita
(To Ludmilla) Are you sure? For all we know Sonia is
dead.
Ivan
No! No! No! On the contrary, she is
very much alive. In fact, you can pick her up now. Yes, go right now! (Nikita
and Ludmilla exchange glances. Ludmilla
nods. Ivan picks up a telephone, speaking loudly.) Vassily,
Ivan here. The Sonia prisoner, yes, that one. Get her
ready for exit. Yes, immediately. (Beat) Well,
toss a blanket around her. Oh, comrade Nikita himself will pick her up in a few
minutes. Release her to his custody. (Beat)
Never mind the rules. I’ll take care of Beria. (Hangs up.) So, is everybody satisfied?
Nikita
Ludmilla?
(Ludmilla nods,
cries.)
Ivan
See, Nikita, the pure heart of a
girl. She is crying tears of joy for her friend.
Nikita
Like it or not, Ivan Ivanovich, change is coming.
Until then, how you treat this woman
is a matter of deep, personal concern to me.
Ivan
Go make your pickup before I change
my mind.
Nikita
Goodnight, Ludmilla
Ludmilla
Goodnight, Nikita. Tell Sonia, for
me… (Ludmilla cries and cannot complete her thought.
Nikita nods, exits. The door chimes the theme from the
Pathetique. Ludmilla stands
dumbly before Ivan. They stare at each other for perhaps a half minute.)
Ivan
Well, aren’t you at least going to
thank me?
Ludmilla
I thank you, Ivan. I really do. You
have a truly…(spits it out) generous soul.
Ivan
See, there is a loving side to me.
Ludmilla
Yes. Ivan, but I am so very tired, I
must rest.
Ivan
I’m thinking of turning in as well.
Days like these, I think we could all use a little…comforting. Ah, why not make
yourself up like Celeste tonight? For the sake of your Ivan, who does truly
love you, I think I’d like you to wear that lovely blouse with the pale blue
flowers.
Ludmilla
I will Ivan. I want…to….please
you….Just let me lie down for a few minutes. I am so…unbelievably exhuasted, you know? (Ludmilla turns and trudges off toward the bedroom. Ivan
calls after her.)
Ivan
Oh, as for the loaded pistol in the
drawer, don’t think of doing yourself in. You’re upset and depressed right now,
so you might not be thinking clearly. If you were to turn it against yourself,
though, Sonia would hear of it promptly, and she would be very very unhappy.
Ludmilla
Of course, you’re right, Ivan. You
think of everything, don’t you. Now, please, I am so tired. (cries) Ivan,
my husband, you don’t know how tired I am.
Ivan
Very well. Rest a bit. (Angrily) But next time you
have an affair I may not be so forgiving! You understand me? (Ludmilla exits
into the bedroom. Ivan shouts after her.)
I said, do you understand me? (Ivan turns and looks at the audience,
shaking his head) Do you see what I must put up with? Honestly! It’s too
much!
Blackout
The End
(For information concerning production of this play, contact Sherwood
Ross,
The
Chickasaw
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