The Love Triangle
Cast
actors/musicians
carnival players
BARDICUS: Why is it that people fall in love?
Is it so that we can write lines and feed our pens?
Shall I fly on high with wings of a dove?
Will I write of heartbreak or of happier times?
This thing called love it comes from above
It can enlighten the darkest soul
While it is coy it can also destroy
Those who dare to eat from its bowl
I shall write a tale of male rivals who meet
Within the confines of a female heart
Neither shall be shy or in any way discreet
As they compete for this woman from the start
Bold Pontonius shall be made of serious romance
While Fervious with counter with humourous ire
Astute Porticia will give romance an even chance
One may catch fire with the other in the mire
[theme music plays]
SCENE: A narrator takes to the stage
NARRATOR : Life is a carnival I say
So come and join the fun
Lots of things for everyone
Lots of things to be done
Bring all of your friends
To join with the games
Bring the family along too
Entertainment here for you
Today we have a tale of Chester
A tale of burning love
Pontonius and Fervious dance
Struck by arrows from Cupid above
So let’s make haste and view the scene
As these fools rush in for Porticia’s love
We’ll have some fun as we go along
And sing some songs forlorn
SCENE Enter Pontonious, Fervious and Porticia
PONTONIOUS: What say you my fair Lady?
Will you be my love?
Give to me your hand for life
Accept as a token my glove
FERVIOUS: Listen not to this mistaken fool
For I am the one for you
Come this way and walk with me
Because my heart is true
PORTICIA: What do you expect me to do?
When given such a choice
It is hard for me to decide
And so it is I will set a test
An entertainment feast for free
And whosoever shall be the best
He shall be the one for me
[two clowns rush on to scene holding huge flowers and throw them out to audience while saying “she loves me …”she loves me not” to each other]
NARRATOR: Move on daft ones [chasing away clowns]
Let us move matters on
For now the competition begins
With the heart of the lady to win
[next follows two bouts of competition staged by the rivals]
PONTONIUS: To prove my love I present a dance
Which will put your heart in a trance
For you shall be the one for me
As in this dance you soon shall see
[the dance takes place to a samba beat, and has the theme of a woman being wooed by a man]
FERVIOUS: This fool is too serious for his own good
He does not make you laugh as a good lover should
And so I present to you for your delight
Clowns, jugglers and acts for an uplifting sigh
[enter various forms of tomfoolery and juggling, with music]
PORTICIA: My choice you both have made now much harder
You have given me so much pause for thought
I need more time to make some decision
You will need to bring more acts forth
I propose that there should be a song contest
And then whosoever shall write the finest words
Shall come and stand here by my side
And my heart and love shall be theirs
[the scene is broken by the entry on to the stage of two figures in black, one of them is filming with a camera phone]
THEO: FREEZE!
[all the characters on the set become frozen figures]
THEO: Get filming this now Dippy!
[Thug 1 proceeds to strike the characters in the play so that they each fall to the ground in turn]
THEO: Flowers for power! Ha! What a bunch of pouncy nerds. Real
men let women chase after them. What do you say Dippy?
Dippy: Sure thing Theo.
[a loud voice shouts from the wings]
WRITER: LEAVE THE STAGE AT ONCE!
[Theo and Dippy leave the stage in response to the command of the writer’s voice]
[the Writer enters on to the stage]
WRITER: Hello, I’m the writer of this play. Please excuse the intrusion
brought about in the middle of “The Love Triangle.” This was
done with the intention of showing how uncouth and
uncultured happy slapping is. This trend is negative in the
extreme and is a form of destructive bullying that is designed
to humiliate and crush its victims. Look at my poor characters
who have been smashed in the midst of romance. Now, the
power of writing enables me to restore my characters to full
flow and they will know nothing about what just happened. But
sadly this is not the case for those in schoolyards and on the
streets who have been victims of such crime. Often they will
have to see the images played over to other people again and
again. This is an abhorrent crime and one that must be stamped
out. It causes hurt and misery for many.
I shall now return you to “The Love Triangle” … CHARATERS
RESUME!
[all of the players stand up and resume their previous positions… the narrator enters as the writer exits]
NARRATOR: On with the show we now shall go
As our love hearts compete in song
How? We wonder, will the competition go?
Which one will get it right and which one wrong
Who will win the heart of our dear maiden?
And who will be the one left crying on the floor?
For both of our heroes have had their hearts played with
But soon one of them must be shown the door
So now we present to you
The Roman Chester Song Contest
Put your hearts on a string
For true love it may bring
[the next section contains additional music and song}
NARRATOR: Bring on the first song by Pontonius!
PONTONIOUS: Here I present my song for you
Which tells of my love for you so true
Porticia you are the one for me
I shall give to you my heart so gladly
So come and live life by my side
And my love for you will fly and fly
You will be my big prize capture
And we will ascend into love’s rapture
NARRATOR And now Fervious will present his song!
FERVIOUS: Come on my lady let’s have some fun
Because we all need to laugh when the day is done
I’ll be your fool, I’ll be your court jester
I’ll make you laugh right here in Chester
Come on my lady we’ll dance for free
Into the small hours, maybe till three
Throw off your cares and kick off your shoes
Give your heart to me, you’ve got nothing to lose
[the songs being over, Porticia returns to centre stage]
PORTICIA: Now my head and heart are in a spin
As these two increase their efforts to win
I just want to run and hide away
And return to this on another day
[clowns enter the stage singing silly songs]
CLOWN: Ooooo, my love is true
I’ll fall over for you (falls over)
NARRATOR: Away, away you fools, let us press on for I do believe
That each of our heroes is to have an audience with Porticia.
[Porticia enters and is followed by Pontonius]
PORTICIA: How now good Pontonius?
PONTONIUS: All the better for seeing you my precious one.
PORTICIA: And what greetings do you bear me?
PONTONIUS: I bear you greetings of love and companionship.
PORTICIA: And how can you say this when you know another offers
likewise?
PONTONIUS: I can tell you that my emotions howl like the wind
And my mind swirls like rain in a storm
How can I endure live without you much longer
For without you I would rather not have been born
I have watched you from afar with a sigh
I have wished on all of the stars to be by your side
I have prayed to the goddess of love on high
For Venus to hear my sweet partition I have cried
PORTICIA: Good Pontonius you do embarrass me so.
PONTONIUS: I mean not to. But I find you spellbinding
PORTICIA: I think that I hear the approach of Fervious.
PONTONIUS: Then he shall have his audience. I shall return.
[Pontonius departs as Fervious enters]
PORTICIA: Greetings Fervious!
FERVIOUS: Thank you my lady.
PORTICIA: Have you come to petition me with further amusement?
FERVIOUS: My lady, I have undertaken to be your loving clown
I have sung song and brought you entertainment
I have striven to remove even the slightest frown
So that your beauty may be seen in happiest rainment
This humour is bourne of the sweetest love for you
That I may bring cheer to one that deserves it so
And I would strive to take your hand in marriage too
And for that to any length of humour I would go
PORTICIA: So the hand that you present is a serious one?
FERVIOUS: As serious as my humour will allow.
PORTICIA: You must give me more time. This decision is hard.
[they depart the stage]
[Bardicus enters]
BARDICUS: It seems that I must bring this play to an end
But how shall I send my characters into the wings?
For to their fate my scroll and pen I must lend
As the ending my writing must bring
[characters enter to act out duel]
Two hot swords could in battle meet
Each as a lover the other to unseat
But each of our heroes to the other would not bend
And so it could be that both of them meet a rusty end
Perhaps Porticia could run off with a third suitor
[all characters enter to act out scenario]
And as their swords destroyed each other
From the shadows came another
And took our Porticia in his arms
And she at once fell for his charms
[characters leave the stage]
This seems a route for the play
Though we have sung many a song today
And sweet Porticia must have her tune
And let this be under a silvery moon
She will sing her song of choice
And all will listen to her voice
Her melody will carry into the air
And we will find the answer there
[Porticia enters]
PORTICIA: And so I sing my song of choice
As you wonder who my man will be
Well I there is yet another voice
And so I choose not from two but three
A love of mine from long ago has now returned
The power of Aphrodite has restored him to me
And so it is that both of your hearts must be spurned
And as I head off hand in hand then I am happy
[exit Porticia leaving Pontonius and Fervious crestfallen]
[clowns enter the fray shouting “she’s off with number three” as they dance and laugh, the narrator enters]
NARRATOR: Quiet! That’s enough of your silly chiding. Let us not end this play as a farce.
[narrator proceeds to utter summary of the play in song, as a dance takes place]
copyright dewyswriter 2020
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