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Survival!

$25.00

A futuristic play that speculates about the end times. After the rapture of the church, Steve Burton has gotten saved and is now working for the new evil government. He and fellow employee Valerie escape from their jobs and go into hiding. As the play opens they are sneaking into an abandoned house and find two women and a man already hiding there.

The story is really not so much about the book of Revelation as it is a story about people trying to survive in a safe house together. Steve and Amanda become attracted to each other and then Stephanie shows up, a frightened girl running away after her church was raided. The gospel is presented and one character gets saved. Some are arrested at the end and leave the house knowing that they will face execution. Serious acting as the character Mark breaks down under the stress of fear and anger.

8 actors (4 male and 4 female) all adult or older teens. About an hour. No set changes… easy set with just a living room scene.

CAST OF CHARACTERS:

STEVE BURTON: A widower who works for the government. Now a Christian and wishes to flee the governments stronghold, becomes a fugitive and goes into hiding.

AMANDA SCOTT: A single girl who is seeking God. She runs because she doesn’t want to take the mark.

MARK WILSON: He has been Amanda’s boyfriend for a long time. He is not seeking God, but took Amanda into hiding to protect her.

VALERIE AMES: A single girl who works with Steve. They escape the government facility together and decide to travel together as they go into hiding.

BETTY NORTH: Amanda’s very independent roommate who doesn’t agree with Amanda’s choices, but does not want to see her hiding out some place alone with Mark. She was up for an adventure.

STEPHANIE RICHARDS: A Christian girl who runs when her church was raided. She finds the safe house and is welcomed and is befriended by Amanda.

1ST OFFICER AND 2ND OFFICER: Extras with guns and uniforms and a few lines.

Excerpt:

SCENE ONE

Scene opens with a man and a woman sneaking into the house. The
room is like the living room with a couch and table and lamp and
all. They could be crawling through a window or just coming into
the room after having broken into the house.

VALERIE: Look at the furniture! Are you sure no one lives here?

STEVE: No. These homes were all abandoned after the big earthquake.
I checked. Besides, with the road being out, how would they drive
in and out?

VALERIE: It just seems strange that people would leave their home
all furnished. I mean, if they had to move, wouldn’t they take
their furniture with them?

STEVE: I’m sure there is an explanation for it. They might have
been in a big hurry to leave, and had to just leave it all behind.

VALERIE: Well, I guess the road is in such bad shape that it would
be hard to bring a truck in to haul things away. It is very nice.
I mean, you had a really good idea in coming here. I hope we weren’t
followed.

STEVE: I don’t think so. It seemed to me that we got away unnoticed.

VALERIE: Well, it won’t be for long. When we don’t show up for
work tomorrow, they will be looking for us. I sure hope we are
doing the right thing.

STEVE: There is no question. It was only a matter of time, and
they would be forcing us to take the mark and be a part of something
very evil….from the devil himself.

VALERIE: Well, don’t start on that Revelation stuff again, Steve.
I am in agreement with you that we need to hide from those characters,
but I won’t go that far! This whole end times talk and antichrist
is a little too bizarre. You know that they were saying the same
thing during World War II. People thought Hitler was the antichrist.
But I guess he wasn’t, was he?

STEVE: No he wasn’t. But I think we may have the real thing among
us now.

VALERIE: Okay, believe what you want. I just don’t want to be caught
up in this whole thing. I just wonder how well we can hide. I mean
this place is fine for now. It’s furnished and all, but what about
food? I’m sure there is no food in the fridge. What a about heat?
Electricity? There can’t be any power here.

STEVE: Well, let’s check the place out. Maybe there are beds in
the bedrooms as well.

VALERIE: I hope there are lots of blankets.

STEVE: I’m sure we will be okay here for awhile. Tomorrow, I will
go to some of the local churches in the area and see if anyone has
an underground movement going on to provide food and such.

VALERIE: Oh, you don’t think that they haven’t thought of that?
You can’t trust anybody! I wouldn’t go sticking my neck out so
that they can chop it off!

STEVE: That’s a poor choice of words!

VALERIE: I’m sorry. But I’m a little frazzled right now. I’m tired
from all the running and I’m wondering about the choices I’m making
with my life. I don’t know where my family is, and I hate the
condition the world is in! I don’t know where my next meal is
coming from, and I don’t know if I want to be hiding in this house
with a man that I only know from work! Shall I continue?

STEVE: No. I get the picture. Why don’t you lie down for awhile?
(Points to the couch)

VALERIE: I thought we were going to look around the house. Why
should I sleep on the couch if there is a nice bed some place?

STEVE: Alright. Let’s go that way. (He motions toward door and
then walks in that direction. Suddenly the door swings open and a
man enters with a gun. Valerie is startled and screams)

MARK: That’s far enough. What are you doing here?

STEVE: I guess I might ask you the same question.

MARK: I’ve been listening at the door, and if you think you are
going to stay here, you’re fooling yourselves.

STEVE: Obviously, we did not know that we weren’t alone. Is this
your house? We didn’t mean to intrude. I had thought that all these
homes out here in this area were abandoned.

MARK: Well, you were wrong, weren’t you? Now why don’t you just get
right on out of here and go back where you came from?

VALERIE: We will be happy to leave, but we won’t be going back
where we came from! Come on, Steve, let’s go before this guy gets
too heavy with his finger there.

MARK: Who are you and where did you come from?

STEVE: I’m not sure that is any of your business. Since you are
so adamant about us leaving, why don’t we just leave peacefully
and quietly, and we can go and look for another empty house. I’m
sure there are lots more.

MARK: Why do you want to find an empty house? Are you running away
from something?

VALERIE: Look, we don’t need the interrogation. You’ve got the gun,
and you are clearly not going to be hospitable. So we will just
leave and you need never worry about us again.

AMANDA: (entering) Mark, I’ve been thinking and I think you should
let them stay.

MARK: (spinning around) I told you to stay in there and keep quiet!

AMANDA: Don’t point that thing at me! You’re being ridiculous!
They just want to hide some place, too! We just got here first.

STEVE: So, this isn’t your house?

MARK: Amanda! I told you to shut up!

BETTY: (entering) Amanda’s right, Mark. I don’t think we should
let them go.

AMANDA: Well, I didn’t say that.

BETTY: No, look at them! What kind of uniform is that? Are you
with the government?

STEVE: Yes, we are. Well, we were. We have just gone… I guess
you could say we are AWOL.

BETTY: And if we let you go, then you will report us to the
authorities.

VALERIE: And why would we do that?

BETTY: Look, I don’t trust anyone anymore.

VALERIE: I see your point.

BETTY: You could be out here looking for us and you plan to turn
us in to the authorities.

STEVE: Well, I can see how you might think that, what with the
uniforms and all. But we are not going to do that. I guess there
is no way to convince you of that, though.

AMANDA: I believe them. Think about it. We were listening to them
ever since they got here, and they had no idea that we were here.
They did not say anything to indicate that they were loyal to the
government, but actually to the contrast. I think they are just
like us, and I think we should invite them to stay. This house has
lots of room.

BETTY: I still think we should keep and eye on them, and try to
find out more about them.

AMANDA: Fine, and are you going to sit there and keep a gun on them
the whole time, or are you going to let Mark do that?

MARK: What do you think, Betty? Amanda thinks they’re okay.

BETTY: Well, she does have a point. Plus, they know all of our
names now. Okay, let’s start with finding out who you are. Do you
have any I.D.? (They both get their I.D.)

STEVE: Here. I’m Steve Burton.

VALERIE: Valerie Ames. (Handing her I.D)

BETTY: They were telling the truth about where they worked. It
says here that they are both employees for the IGA.

MARK: They could be fake ID’s.

BETTY: Fake or real, those ID’s could come in handy sometime.
STEVE: So then, could you put that gun down now?

MARK: Oh. Sorry. (Puts gun down and reaches out hand) I’m Mark
Wilson, and this is my fiancée, Amanda Scott. She’s Betty North.

Amanda and BETTY: Hi.

AMANDA: I’m sorry we gave you such a bad reception.

VALERIE: Well, I don’t blame you under the circumstances. We are
all on edge these days.

STEVE: Are there more of you, or just you three?

BETTY: No, just us. We’ve actually only been here a few days.

VALERIE: I guess the house was just like this when you found it?

BETTY: Yes. All the rooms are furnished. In fact, whoever
lived here, left in quite a hurry, and took very little with them,
or so it would seem. Amanda has a theory about it. It is very
interesting.

STEVE: What’s your theory?

AMANDA: Well, I think this house was owned by Christians. There
are several bibles in the house as well as other books and things
that would confirm that. So, probably this whole house was emptied
out when the disappearances happened.

VALERIE: Oh! The rapture thing again? There you go Steve! Someone
to finally be on your side!

STEVE: Well, it makes a lot of sense. They have pointed out that
almost all the people who vanished were either children or Christians.

BETTY: And there are a lot of Christians still here! Churches are
full of them! That theory has so many holes in it! Plus there
were people in prison who disappeared! But I guess the bad guys
who repent are now Christians…..I’ve heard it all.

STEVE: Personally, my favorite is the U.F.O. theory.

AMANDA: Your favorite?

STEVE: My favorite one to laugh about.

BETTY: I give up trying to figure it out.

VALERIE: I still think that the whole thing is a government
conspiracy. They are behind it somehow and now they want to
control all of us. That is why I just had to get out of there.
Did you know that they have started executing people because
they refused to take the mark? And without the mark, you cannot
buy anything anymore. This world has gone crazy!

2 reviews for Survival!

  1. wesage

    I highly recommend SURVIVAL and THIS IS THE DAY. Both of these plays are cleverly written. “This is the day” is very funny with a serious message for all ages while “Survival” is a serious play that speaks to the end times.

    Cleveland O. McLeish, playwright, http://www.christianplaywright.org

  2. wesage

    Warren, AWESOME! Fantastic! Four-Star all the way! I am so impressed…it is one of the best I’ve ever seen from anybody. I love your work! What a gift for writing dialogue to give great substance to terrific ideas. In my opinion, both The Journey and Survival are tops. You can’t get any better (at least I think). You are giving real depth to the characters and really giving a distinctiveness to each personality. It is just what I wanted. And you have already made the gospel message so clear–crystal clear. It has all the markings of ONE BIG AND VERY POWERFUL play. Your play has great suspense, a thriller environment, great character development, and realism to it as well. Very creative and clever ending. You might think I rate every play as terrific, but that’s not true. In fact, since our plays have been gaining popularity over the years, I have become much more picky about scripts. The play is a masterpiece!

    Bill Rodebaugh, Pastor of Landmark Baptist Church, Greenville, NC.

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