The show is about to start

But our star isn’t ready

She has never shown her face to the public

She has always worn a mask

And for once it will be gone

She will show for one night

Who she is

 

Act I Scene I

A three year old girl enters

She is in her room

Clutching her teddy bear

She plugs her ears and that’s when it begins

The yelling and the screaming

Crashes echo all around her

Cop sirens can be heard

Her father is being taken away

She whispers, “Thank god.”

 

Act I Scene II

A five year old girl enters

She is sitting in a doctors office

The doctor walks in, a therapist

She holds a book and a bear

The bear gets passed off to the little girl

The light changes and there is something you didn’t notice before

The little girl has a bald spot

She reaches up and just as she’s about to pull

The therapist stops her and shakes her head

The little girl nods and lowers her head

 

Act I Scene III

An eight year old girl enters

She sits in her fathers car

Behind the front seats

On the floor

Crying

She could not believe her father meant this

When he said he loved her.

 

Act I Scene IV

A ten year old girl enters

All skin and bones

The sounds of birds chirping can be heard

Whispers of “You eat like a bird”

Shouts asking “Are you anorexic?”

The little girl stands, trembling

Shaking her head left to right

Trying to keep the attention away from her

Bright lights flash

And the girl is gone

 

Act II Scene I

A twelve year old girl enters

Surrounded by a dark ominous light

She refuses to smile

Her mask has been created

She hides behind jokes and laughter

She can’t tell the truth

She can’t draw attention to herself

 

Act II Scene II

A thirteen year old girl enters

Her heart has just been broken

Her friends laugh at her

Tell her how glad they were that they broke up

No one supported her

The laughter continues

It echoes as everyone walks away

She is left alone

“Once again.” she whispers

 

Act II Scene III

A fifteen year old girl enters

Her friends talk behind her back

Whispers that she can hear

“She just tries to get everyone’s attention.”

“She’s a follower.”

“She’s a hypocrite.”

The whispers get louder and louder as they get repeated

The room she is in gets cast in a red light

She leaves no remains of her evident pain.

 

Act II Scene IV

A sixteen year old girl enters

All alone she sits

And cries

Again

Her only friends left her

She gets ready to die

A bright light flashes

And a whisper of a name exhales through the wind

A reminder of one friend who never left

A smile graces her face for the first time in years

 

Act II Scene V

A seventeen year old girl enters

She is surrounded by people

She smiles, but something is still amiss

She still has her mask on

But it has started to crack

With each smile

With each laugh

With each friend

The mask is cracking

 

Act II Scene VI

An almost eighteen year old girl enters

She has applied for college

She has been accepted

She is excited

She is thankful she didn’t end her life

The mask is gone

A permanent smile

An interest for life shines

Her weight is back, with muscles

Her smile, her laughter

They returned with hardly any dent

They are still rusty from not being used

But the mask no longer blocks the sound of her happiness