Mothers and Daughters

(She has removed her negligee and donned a bathing cap; and now she goes around behind the bathroom, invisible but still audible. The sound of a shower is heard.)

Oh, damn it! Cold as ice. There, that’s better.

(She sings “Night and Day” lustily. Then the shower is turned off and she reappears wrapped in a large bath towel and stands, her back to the audience, rubbing herself vigorously.)

Still, to be honest, I must admit that, compared to the average girl you meet, I’m really quite complex. Intelligent and well informed too; and a good conversationalist.

(Indignantly, as over her shoulder, she sees someone looking in at her.)

Well, for heaven’s sake! Honestly, some people!

(She pulls down an imaginary window shade and the scene is blacked out, her voice coming out of the darkness.)

And my looks are nothing to be ashamed of, either. I have a neat little figure and my legs are really very nice. Of course, my nose is sort of funny, but my face definitely has character — not just one of those magazine-cover deadpans.

(With a yawn)

Oh, I never seem to get enough sleep.

(The lights come up as she raises the imaginary shade. She is dressed now in her shoes, stockings, and slip. She seats herself at her dressing table, facing the audience, and brushes her hair.)

If I could only stop lying awake for hours, dreaming up all the exciting things that could happen but never do. Well, maybe this is the day when things really will begin to happen to me. Maybe Wentworth and Jones will accept my novel. They’ve had it over a month now, and all the other publishers turned it down in less than two weeks. It certainly looks promising.