A series of mini-dramas based on public conversations, as overheard and rewritten by local playwright/director Aurora Stewart de Peña.

Overheard in the washroom of The Rhino.

All of the stall doors in the Ladies’ bathroom are shut. Ellie, 22, walks in and stands by the sinks.

Ellie: Meghan?

A toilet flushes. A woman in her 40’s opens the door, walks to the sinks, washes her hands. She smiles politely at Ellie. 

Ellie: Meghan?

No reply.

Ellie: Meghan, I know you’re in here.

Meghan: (From behind a closed door) What?

Ellie: Well, did you see Luke at the top of the stairs?

Meghan: Yes.

Ellie: Oh. I didn’t know if you did, being that you completely ignored him.

Meghan: Yeah, I saw him.

Ellie: You don’t even care to say hi?

Meghan: Nope.

Ellie: Well, I think it really hurt his feelings.

Meghan: What are you, the baby mama to his feelings?

Ellie: No… but we want you to be okay with us. Like, we want you to be comfortable. Like, we still want to be friends.

Meghan: Stop saying “we.”

Ellie: Us still want to be friends.

Meghan: I don’t care.

Ellie: Can you come out of there, please?

Meghan: Nope, don’t want to, don’t have to.

My doing favours for your ran out when you and Luke decided it was okay to indulge whatever gross feelings the two of you had for each other. Now leave me alone, I’m peeing.

Ellie turns to leave.

Meghan: Oh! And I’m going to keep on ignoring you when you come back upstairs, okay?

Exit Ellie.

____

Aurora Stewart de Peña is half of the theatre company Birdtown & Swanville (the other half is Nika Mistruzzi). You can follow her on Twitter at @Aurorahhh.

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