john proctor lines

MR SMITH “sex”

THE ENTIRE CLASS (in unison) “the biologic character or quality that distinguishes male and female from one another as expressed by analysis of the person's gonadal, morphologic, chromosomal, and hormonal characteristics.”

MR SMITH or…

THE ENTIRE CLASS (in unison) “The physiologic and psychological processes within a person that prompt behavior related to procreation or erotic pleasure.”

CARTER: I know it seems really lame, guys believe me I remember being exactly where you are and feeling like “are you kidding me?” but this is the curriculum and these are the facts

IVY: but doesn’t it make sense for sex ed to actually come before people know about sex?

NELL: do you have the syllabus memorized?

IVY: she Absolutely does

MR. SMITH: yes we are the whole play but come on, you guys! we’re gonna have a lot of fun, read some scenes out loud together… were any of you guys in drama before it got cut?

Beth and Ivy raise their hands

BETH but boys can be members

IVY they should be members

MISS GALLAGHER it’s just a tricky situation with everything that’s been going on in the community… people are – tensions are high you have to understand that

IVY our tensions are high, too!

we need an outlet!

MR. SMITH whoa whoa whoa – what’s going on in here?

IVY we signed out the room

it said it was free

MR. SMITH you know what I remember the proposal now I was in that meeting what a great idea and a very well-worded mission, Beth, awesome work

BETH thank you

IVY Nell had one at her school in Atlanta

RAELYNN thank you, Miss / Gallagher

NELL thank you

IVY yeah, / thanks

MISS GALLAGHER why don’t we go see if he’s in his office girls, you hold tight

BETH thank you Miss Gallagher!!

IVY yay!!!

NELL I was never mad and especially not at him I was frustrated with the system public schools are broken

IVY he’s *so hot*

BETH I don’t think about him like that I told you

IVY liar

NELL I most certainly do

IVY his *shoulders* are just

NELL were you watching when he dropped the chalk last week? when he bent over to get it?

IVY oh my god wait have you seen how big his feet are?

NELL big feet don’t necessarily mean anything about like the size of other things

IVY but still

he wore these sweatpants to relay for life last year and like…

RAELYNN (to Nell) all the honors lit classes get to go to his house for dinner at the end of the year

NELL shut up

IVY he’s like

the only adult I know who doesn’t treat us like toddlers

BETH yeah he really respects us

NELL not like Miss Gallagher

I don’t care what Mr. Smith said “I know they must do things different in Atlanta” that was some bullshit

IVY it’s SO WEIRD to think she’s only like

eight years older than us

BETH I think that’s a big part of it she’s like trying to be a Real Adult

IVY yeah my sister’s 20 and Miss Gallagher was a senior when she was a freshman

RAELYNN she was a cheerleader I used to go to cheer camp when I was little and I’d like learn dances from her

IVY then she went to college for counseling or whatever

and Ms. Cole was retiring when she graduated so now she’s back here

BETH I just do you think any of this will mess with college? like is she gonna write down in my file that I was disrespectful?

IVY oh my god that’s not a thing

NELL: it could actually help with college everywhere worth going would love that you spoke truth to power

BETH I hope so

IVY also why are you so worried about college all the time the lowest grade you’ve ever gotten was like a 96

RAELYNN I love horses

BETH I just wanna go somewhere good

IVY my dad said we’re getting another stoplight

NELL fuck that we’ll like go to buzzfeed or something make this ish go viral “forbidden feminism in Appalachia – 1900s or now?”

IVY “the answer might surprise you!”

RAELYNN I think we should read Twilight

BETH no

IVY Raelynn, why are you so obsessed with Twilight? it came out when we were like seven

RAELYNN: yeah but she does a lot of other stuff too plus I mean Edward’s like a mega feminist which is so weird because he’s actually from the gilded age or whatever

BETH: Victorian

RAELYNN but like we can be obsessed with guys and still be feminists, right?

IVY I thought you were breaking up with him

NELL I like The Craft

RAELYNN I don’t even know what that is

IVY is that the old movie about witches? isn’t it like really dark?

RAELYNN I do love witches

IVY since when?

RAELYNN um since forever?? remember fifth grade? I did that project on the Salem Witch Trials and wrote in my diary as one of the girls like in character or whatever and got really weirdly obsessed with it?

IVY oh riiiight oh my god I forgot / about that

BETH I’m telling you there is a LOT to unpack! we can fully address her past mistakes and problematic aspects and how far she’s come by like talking about intersectional feminism and stuff

IVY I liked her before her music got all sexual

RAELYNN you were just talking about Mr. Smith’s feet, you perv

IVY I’m not flaunting that to the world through my music!

RAELYNN also speak now came out in 2010 and had very sexual lyrics so it’s not really a new thing for her

IVY what

were the sexual lyrics in speak now

NELL I do kinda like that song she wrote about John Mayer

IVY (singing and clutching her heart) “I took your matches before fire could catch me”

IVY and RAELYNN (also singing) “so don’t look now”

ALL (singing) “I’m shining like fireworks OVER YOUR SAD EMPTY TOWN”

NELL why not?

BETH I dunno you just I dunno

IVY because you’re from Atlanta

that’s what she means

RAELYNN but like in a very very sneaky way like no one will know it’s her but I’ll know he’ll just turn up dead one day from like “natural causes” and I’ll be like yeah girl yes you did it

beat

IVY so wait

have you or have you not been talking to Lee?

RAELYNN I genuinely want Taylor Swift to murder John Mayer and I don’t have anything to say to Lee so no

IVY okay

*beat*

have you talked to Shelby?

RAELYNN if this is feminism club why are we talking about something that’s like the opposite of feminism?

IVY I was just asking I’m kind of like worried about her

scene 7 first line

IVY (as Betty) “You drank blood, Abby! You didn’t tell him that!”

SHELBY (as Abigail) “Betty, you never say that again! You will never –”

IVY (as Betty) “You did, you did! You drank a charm to kill John Proctor’s wife! You drank a charm to kill Goody Proctor!”

*tiny beat, they look to Mason*

MASON (reading stage directions) “Betty, collapsing on the bed”

IVY (as Betty) “Mama, Mama!”

MASON (reading stage directions) “She dissolves into sobs.”

*and then Ivy actually does dissolve into sobs*

*it feels like she’s probably been holding this in all day*

BETH (quietly) are you okay?

*Ivy runs out of the room*

MASON shit I mean sorry

MR. SMITH no no it’s okay

*Ivy comes back in, embarrassed*

first line of scene 8

I mean

it sucks

which like

that sounds dumb to say

because obviously

but yeah

it’s been really really bad

RAELYNN how’s your mom?

IVY I’ve like

hardly seen her?

she’s just

in her room a lot

BETH she made that whole statement, though

IVY yeah no

that was basically just the lawyer

I don’t really know if it’s even true

RAELYNN what does your dad say?

IVY I mean he says it’s not true

so yeah

or like

I guess he says that he did

touch her?

or whatever?

but like

it’s the way he touches everybody

and I guess she just misunderstood?

I mean

you guys have met my dad

he’s like

he’s just nice he’s just really nice to everybody

but yeah he’s been like sleeping in my brother’s old room

and now that another Woman said the stuff like

I don’t know if you saw?

this morning?

it was on the news

it’s just like my dad got her this really great job in Macon

and she still works there so why would she even do that if my dad’s this terrible person??

*beat*

look I don’t know if I feel good about doing this anymore like *(she gestures to all of them)* this

BETH feminism club?

IVY yeah

it’s just

I think Miss Gallagher was right

it’s not a good time

we’re not ready / for

NELL but like what does being a feminist have to do with your dad?

IVY I mean I feel like the only reason this is even a thing

is because all of a sudden it was just everywhere you know?

like even my grandpa knows about Harvey Weinstein

and my grandpa doesn’t know anything about anything past like 1980

BETH but like sorry but it’s not really all of a sudden? like at all? I mean Tarana Burke started Me Too in 2006 it’s just people weren’t listening until now

IVY but it’s not just like

god

these are peoples’ *dads*

you know?

I feel like I wasn’t thinking about it like that before

I mean how would you feel if it was your dad?

RAELYNN Ivy’s right it does feel really different now? it feels like I don’t know it feels different

IVY yeah like

my dad keeps saying this whole thing is just getting out of control because people like

I mean it’s weird we’re reading The Crucible in the middle of everything because he even said it was like a witch hunt

and I mean the more attention we give it

I don’t know

I feel like I’m not making sense

I know we’re trying to do good stuff and be good feminists

and like Beth, I know you have all these plans

but we also don’t wanna give the wrong impression

BETH then we won’t

IVY … it’s really messed up that you’re not taking my side on this

BETH no no no no no I am! we are!

IVY my dad was your frickin tee-ball coach! you’re my best friend!

SHELBY no but I’m not trying to – those are just facts I read this book that says most of these girls probably had like PTSD which explains the like crazy physical fits that people thought were happening because of witchcraft but anyway so yeah like the assault stuff was everywhere their dads older men in the town stable boys whoever and even if you managed to get by without – that happening – even then you’d probably lost your dad like Beth said last time and so it / was like

IVY what are you trying to say?

SHELBY what? no / nothing

IVY I mean sexual stuff dads it sounds like you want to say / something to me

SHELBY maybe not all the girls but Abigail was like clearly super smart

IVY she was clearly crazy

BETH let’s all be better than calling women “crazy”

IVY but what about women who are crazy?

BETH yeah but his name stood for a lot more it’s like his reputation his honor

IVY yeah like Abigail’s been trying the whole play to like ruin him or something she’s obsessed with it

BETH well I would love to get back to the whole thing we were um debating like whether or not um so Mr. Smith says that John Proctor is a hero and that’s clearly what Arthur Miller thought too and all my research backs that up every interpretation

IVY yeah the only person who didn’t think so was Shelby

scene 15, ivy and beth scream

IVY what the heck????

BETH you scared me

IVY I’m sorry??

BETH I mean I didn’t think anybody would actually come if I called a meeting right now … especially not you

IVY yeah

I mean yeah

I didn’t really come for the club

this is just better than going home

and also I just

…

I miss you

I know that sounds stupid

I see you every day but / you know what I mean

BETH it doesn’t sound stupid

IVY it’s just been

I mean you know

IVY it’s just been I mean you know

BETH yeah

IVY but like

are you still

are we still best friends?

BETH what are you talking about

of course we are

IVY okay

BETH we always will be

IVY okay

cool

i just

i didn’t know if you were mad at me or something

BETH why would I be mad at you?

IVY I didn’t know if you were like …

it’s dumb

I feel dumb

I know Nell is smarter than me

so you probably

and I know things with my dad have been

yeah

but I just

I dunno it’s dumb I don’t even know why I’m

BETH I’m on edge, okay?

IVY she literally screamed when I came in

like a blood-curdling serial killer scream

NELL I don’t know if serial killers are the screamers right? like I’m pretty sure their victims are the ones who scream

IVY don’t say that word

“victim”

I’m sick of it

BETH I feel like we’ve been avoiding it but like do you think Shelby’s telling the truth?

IVY no

I mean she’s just so

BETH I’m sorry, / Nell

NELL it’s fine

IVY (to Raelynn) do you believe her?

BETH I’m really freaking out about it I hope he’s okay

IVY yeah

NELL I feel like that’s kind of the last thing anyone would be worried about

IVY I kinda feel like girls who do things like this

I mean they ruin peoples’ lives

they should like

go to jail

NELL yeah remember how like intense she got playing Abigail that day in class?

RAELYNN yeah it was creepy

IVY it doesn’t matter

BETH she might just be a good actress

IVY exactly!! she’s acting the whole thing!

RAELYNN I just think we haven’t really even listened to her yet

IVY if you’re accusing Mr. Smith of this

you’re basically accusing my dad of the same thing

RAELYNN but like that’s not how it works your dad admitted that he did it

IVY my dad had a consensual relationship

it wasn’t right

it was a mistake

he’s very ashamed

but he didn’t just –

that lady is making it sound like it was all his fault

like she did nothing to encourage it or

RAELYNN what about all the others? is it five now?

IVY the only thing one of them even said was that he was weird to her at a party like THIRTY YEARS AGO why is that a newsworthy thing!

MASON like cauldron steam?

*the classroom door opens it’s Shelby oh shit*

IVY what are you doing here?

SHELBY um

I need to can I talk to you two? (points to Raelynn and Beth)

IVY no way

you can say whatever you need to say to everyone here

feminism means all for one right?

SHELBY look I just really need to talk to my friends

IVY I don’t know if you have any of those

SHELBY … I’m not asking you to say anything I’m asking you to listen

IVY do you have proof

RAELYNN (getting up and going to the door) I think I’m gonna I need to I’m gonna go check on her

IVY you’re WHAT?