The Scrapbook

TIME:  Today
SETTING:  A modest living room
CHARACTERS:

Henry Rogers, age sixty-two
Louise Rogers, age sixty-one
Alice (the Rogers' daughter), age thirty-three

PREMISE:

Alice Rogers and her father, Henry, are dealing with the
guilt of having Alice’s mother, Louise, placed in an
institution, where they hope she will receive the
professional care they cannot give.  Ten months later,
as they wait for Louise to return,  they examine, blame
each other, and try to justify their reasons for
hospitalizing Louise.  The morning after her arrival,
Louise engages in mundane conversation with Henry
and Alice.  Alice probes Louise's treatment in the
hospital, until satisfied that she wasn't responsible for
any of her mother’s suffering there.  Louise reveals her
anger toward and hatred of Henry and Alice for
abandoning her in the hospital.  She also says that she
has only come home for a brief visit, to test their
reactions to each other, and hers to them.  She is now a
stronger woman, on her way to control over her life.  
Henry and Alice have yet to accept how they treated
Louise and her need to return to the hospital.

Copyright John Pekich 1980

NOTE:  The writing of the Scrapbook was supported, in
part, by a Literary Fellowship from the New Jersey State
Council on the Arts, 1980.


The Stuff of Dreams

TIME: Today
SETTING:  A cocktail lounge
CHARACTERS:

Michael, a man in his early twenties
Frank, a middle-aged bartender
Judy, a cocktail waitress
The Youth, a cocky kid about nineteen
Harry, a customer
Kathy, Harry's girlfriend

PREMISE:

Michael, in his early twenties, enters a cocktail lounge
and makes small talk with Frank, the bartender.  Judy, a
cocktail waitress, gradually pulls out of Michael some of
the horrors he experienced as a soldier.  In a flood of
guilt, Michael reveals that he destroyed innocent
civilians, using the excuse of being under orders.
Meanwhile, a Youth enters and arrogantly begins to give
Frank a verbal hard time.  Harry, a customer, tries to
stop the Youth from insulting Kathy, Harry’s girlfriend,
and is viciously beaten by the Youth.  Michael is unable
to stop the Youth from attacking Harry, thus losing his
opportunity to expiate some of the guilt for killing the
civilians.  Michael realizes that he is living his nightmare
as the play opens, again, with the action repeating itself.

Copyright John Pekich 1984


Cycles of Yesterday

TIME:  Today
SETTING:  A comfortable living room
CHARACTERS:

Barbara, a successful writer, in her early forties.  Single.
Ruth, Barbara's friend and neighbor. In her early forties.
Married.
Alan, twenty-years-old.
Harriet, in her early forties.

PREMISE:

Barbara is a successful writer, in her early forties; when
she was in her twenties and struggling to survive, she
gave up her son for adoption, soon after his birth.  Now,
she is awaiting his visit to her home, fearful of how he
might feel about her, and also anticipating what he has
become.  Alan, the son, is seeking to learn about his  
birth mother, although he loves his adopted mother,
Harriette. Ruth is Barbara’s friend and support during
this crisis in Barbara’s life.

Copyright John Pekich 1984


Storm Sailor

TIME:  Today
SETTING:  A hospital room, hearing room, Widow's
Walk
CHARACTERS:

Richard Samuelson, late thirties
Andrew Samuelson, Richard's father, early thirties
Esther Samuelson, Richard's mother, early thirties
Richard, as a young boy, age nine
Richard, as a teenager, age fifteen
Board of Inquiry Member 1
Board of Inquiry Member 2
Board of Inquiry Member 3
Dr. Beale
Nurse
Seaman 1, Judson Brewer
Seaman 2, Tom Sloane
Elderly Andrew Samuelson, bed-ridden

PREMISE:

While visiting his dying father in a hospital, Richard
Samuelson is attempting to find peace with him; he
believes his father had abandoned him and his mother
through his years of being way at sea as a sailor.  
Richard relives his father’s life, sharing with the
audience his anger and bitterness toward his father.  
Richard also believes his father’s greed to deliver cargo
led to the deaths of two of his crew during a fierce gale,
even though Andrew was cleared by a Board of Inquiry.  
Andrew’s true feelings are revealed in a diary that his
physician, Dr. Beale, gives Richard.  In that diary,
Andrew shares his guilt at having been away from his
son and wife for much of their lives; he also writes of his
love for his son, Richard.

Copyright John Pekich 1986


Country Life/City Life

TIME:  1850
SETTING:  Cold Spring Village, New Jersey
CHARACTERS:

Richard, a successful, middle-aged businessman
THOMAS,  a comfortable farmer, early thirties.

Two gentlemen from Cold Spring Village, New Jersey
debate the relative merits of life in the city versus life in
the country.  Richard is a middled-aged, successful
businessman from Cold Spring who left to make his
fortune in Philadelphia and extols the virtues of that
hectic and exciting lifestyle.  Thomas is a young farmer
from Cold Spring who prefers the calm and peace of the
country, without the luxuries that Richard praises.

Copyright John Pekich 1990


Hannah

TIME:  1850
SETTING:  Cold Spring Village New Jersey
CHARACTERS:  Hannah, a strong-willed, middle-
aged woman of Cold Spring Village.

PREMISE:

Hannah shares her life in the village, with its hopes and
dreams and disappointments. She is afraid for her
children, with her two daughters being drawn away from
the safety of the village to living and working in luxury
hotels in Cape Island, New Jersey.  She is also worried
about her son wanting to live and work in Philadelphia.  
And she views the increase in the number of tourists,  
hotels, restaurants, and guest houses in Cape Island as
threats to the calm, secure life she and her family once
knew in the village.

Copyright John Pekich 1990


Shamgar

TIME:  1850
SETTING:  Cold Spring Village, New Jersey
CHARACTERS:

Shamgar, in his early thirties, a member of the New
Jersey House of Representatives.  He was a Quaker
who converted to Presbyterianism, and is again abolition.
Rebecca, an elderly Quaker and aunt of Shamgar and
an ardent abolitionist.
Amos, a freeman and skilled tinker. He is a childhood
friend of Shamgar.

PREMISE:

Three villagers discuss the pros and cons of slavery.
Shamgar, in his early thirties and a member of the New
Jersey House of Representatives, is a Quaker who
converted to Presbyterianism.  He sees the necessity of
slavery as an economic force; to eliminate it would affect
many businesses and threaten the jobs of working white
men.   Rebecca is an elderly Quaker aunt of Shamgar
and an ardent abolitionist.  She sees slavery as an
abomination against Christianity and an offense to God,
believing that all men are equal, regardless of skin
color.  Amos, a freeman and skilled tinker, is a childhood
friend of Shamgar.  He argues against slavery based on
his and his family’s experiences as slaves; he also
believes that all men should be free, according to the
writings of Thomas Jefferson.

Copyright John Pekich 1990


The Right To Learn

TIME:  1850
SETTING:  Cold Spring Village, New Jersey
CHARACTERS:

Peter, in his fifties, he is a conservative Quaker
MICHAEL, in his late twenties, a liberal thinker and
member of the Young Friends of education
GRACE, in her late twenties, a young, practical mother
who supports free education

PREMISE:

Three villagers debate the merits of different
approaches to education in Southern New Jersey. Peter,
a conservative Quaker, in his fifties, argues for the
Christian life and educating children in Piety, Practicality
and Philanthropy.  Michael, in his late twenties, is a
liberal thinker and member of the Young Friends of
Education who believes in state-supported education for
all.  Grace, in her early twenties, believes in free
schooling for all; she complains that none of the state
money for education that Michael praises has reached
Cape May County, forcing her and her husband to pay
for their children’s education.  

Copyright John Pekich 1990


Mr. Buttons

TIME:  Today
SETTING: A wealthy home
CHARACTERS:

Jackie Pepper, a seven-year-old boy
Mr. Buttons, Jackie's teddy bear
Phillip, the old,m gray-haired servant in Jackie's home
Tommy, a seven-year-old boy
Store Owner

PREMISE:

Jackie Pepper, age seven, makes friends with a new
neighbor, Tommy, also aged seven. In the process,
Jackie forgets about his teddy bear, Mr. Buttons, who
was his only true friend. Through the help of Phillip, the
old, gray-haired, servant in Jackie’s family, Jackie learns
the true meaning of friendship.

Copyright John Pekich 1990


The Thomas F. Macnamee Seventh Inning
Stretch.  First performance at the Music Pier,
Ocean City, New Jersey, July 18, 1993.


St. Andrews

TIME:  Today
SETTING:  Various locations
CHARACTERS:

Narrator, age 62
Bobby Peterson, age 7
Bobby Peterson, teenager
Rob Peterson, early 20s
Robert Peterson, 60
Father
Susan, early 20s
Susan, 60
Sergeant
Golf Coach
Doctor
Nurse 1
Nurse 2
Fans
Players
Mourners

PREMISE:

A man shares the hopes and dreams, successes and
failures, and highlights from his brother’s life and death,
through a serious of vignettes from when the brother
was a boy to his last days.  He looks at the frustrations
that the younger brother experienced, as a small boy in
fighting for his rights when being bullied by older boys,
and his successes as a baseball player, both locally and
in the Minor Leagues.  He then takes the brother
through the Army and his nearly dying from internal
bleeding, and its effects on his fiancee and family, to his
learning the game of golf, and his wedding.  The play
continues with an imaginary trip to St. Andrews in
Scotland with the two brothers, and later the younger
brother’s dying, and his subsequent memorial service.  It
ends with the living brother imagining going off to St.
Andrews to finish a game with his now deceased
brother, as a way to accept and reconcile the loss.

Copyright John Pekich 2008


The Butterfly Garden of Heaven.  First
performance February 24, 1989.

The Cocoon of Life, with Linda Firmani and Sally
Sharp. First performance August 1989.

Christmas Is Family, with Sally Sharp.  First
performance November 28, 1989 at the East
Camden Middle School, East Camden, New Jersey.

Some Not Too Distant Tomorrow. January 1989.

The Cape May Diamonds. First performance July
13, 1990 at Elaine's Dinner Theatre, Cape May, New
Jersey.

Miller's Revenge.  First performance July 1990 at
Elaine's Dinner Theatre, Cape May, New Jersey.

Murder on the Atlantic City Special, June 1990

The Homecoming

The Birthday

Time
OTHER PLAYS