ONE ACT PLAY 3 :Gray Matter by Jeanettee D.Farr

ONE ACT PLAY 3 : Gray Matter by Jeanettee D.Farr

Introduction- Jeanettee D.Farr is a contemporary American woman playwright. She has produced and directed a variety of plays. It is a short play about an encounter between an elderly White woman and a Black youth in the waiting room of a police station.

The Theme- Russell, a Black youth accuses Marge, a sixty six year old White woman of being racist but she denies it. By the end of the play, the woman realizes that appearances can be deceptive.

The Affected Youth- Russell walks into the police station. Marge is seated inside. Immediately, she moves her purse closer to herself. Russell is taken aback when he notices her quick reaction. He accuses Marge of distrusting him because of his colour.

Troubled Marge- Marge is very upset when Russell blames her. She pretends that she had only wanted to take a piece of gum from her purse. Russell asks for a piece of gum and Marge gets irritated. She had immediately assumed that he was a criminal because of his dark colour.

Russell’s Inquisitive Nature-Marge tries to excuse her actions by saying she was only making room for him by moving her purse away. Russell sits in the chair closest to Marge and notices her reaction. He asks her why she felt nervous by his actions. When she denies it, he tells her that he had come to see his parole officer.  She feels her fears are justified.

Tactful Russell- Russell tries to know Marge’s name. First, she refuses to tell him. Then she lies to him that her name is Sheila. Russell is sarcastic and calls her a liar. He adds that only a beautiful, young woman could have such a name. Marge says that she was named “Sheila” but had grown old.

Russell reveals the truth- Suddenly, Russell says he wasn’t truthful to Marge a minute before. He adds that he hadn’t come there to see the parole officer. He didn’t have a police record. He adds he was on his lunch break and had to return to his office. He then shows her his hands. He makes her admit her distrustful nature. She had thought him a criminal the moment he walked in, even though she knew nothing about him. She tells him that was her gut instinct. It is then that Marge suggests that Russell should get himself a nice suit and groom himself well.

Marge’s comments on Russell’s looks- When Marge asks Russell how he had come to the police station, he says he came by car. He adds that he had got it by his hard earned money. He accuses her of judging him only by his looks. He says she wouldn’t have been worried if it had been someone of a different colour.   In order to pacify him she is willing to share a secret recipe `pot roast’ with him. She adds she wouldn’t share it even with her sister.

Marge’s reason for visiting the police station: Hesitantly, she begins complaining that she has been waiting for a long time to file a complaint. Unwillingly, Marge tells Russell that she wasn’t upset because of the colour of his skin. She is not willing to trust anyone at that moment as she had lost her wallet on the road. She was upset as the wallet had lots of money, her driver’s license and the photos of her grandchildren. She adds with a touch of irritation that someone would have swiped her gold card and taken all her money by then. After a moment she says that, that was not the main reason she was upset. The fact that someone on the street knew her identity and details about her was frightening. So, she wanted to file a complaint at the police station. She was hoping that there might be someone truthful who would actually return her purse if they found it.  But, she says in a dejected tone that such a thing is not likely to happen. She gets ready to leave. Russell asks her to wait for a minute and adds maybe there were still truthful people in the world. 

Truthful Russell- Russell calls her “Marge”. She is startled. He adds that she looks like “Marge”. He admits he has seen her name on her license. He had found her wallet and had brought it to hand it over at the police station. He returns her wallet. He assures her that he hasn’t taken anything from it.

Marge is overwhelmed- She accepts the truth and says her name is “Marge”. To make amends for her behavior, she shows him, her granddaughter Sheila’s photo. Russell remarks that there is a resemblance to Marge.

Conclusion- Both Marge and Russell realize that they don’t have to wait for anyone. Then, both of them cross out their name from the signed list at the counter. As they leave, Russell reminds Marge to take the purse which she has forgotten again. The playwright brings out the message that looks are deceptive. “We should never judge a book by its cover”.