Christine – Rehearsal Tracks, Sides & Lyrics

CHRISTINE: Side 1 ( from Act 1 – Scene 5 )

Chris and Gary sit quietly for a moment, sipping their tea. Then both of them start to talk at the same time.

CHRIS

So how…

GARY

I’m wondering…

They stop and laugh.

CHRIS

Sorry, You first.

GARY

Okay. I read the material you sent over. I must say, it sounds like a terrible disease. But before I take anything to my board of directors, I need to ask how things are going. What kind of progress are you making?

CHRIS

We’ve found that strict control over environmental toxins and processed foods has been effective in reducing the frequency and severity of the attacks. I’ve also found ways to help manage the patients’ pain with a combination of medications. The data consistently verifies that the protocols are providing the patients with some relief—and time—though I haven’t found the magic bullet yet, if that’s what you’re asking. On the other hand, we’ve maintained careful, detailed records, and I keep going over the data. I believe the answer will be revealed at some point. That’s what can happen in medical research. Suddenly, there it is right in front of you, and because you’re so familiar with the data, you can see it. That’s my hope. Every day, that’s my hope.

GARY

Is anyone else working on DeShores’ Disease?

CHRIS

As far as I know, we’re the only ones. A diagnosis of DeShores’ still means the patient is fighting a losing battle. Once the marker shows up in their blood, they might have a couple of years… or just a few months. We never know. I wish more researchers would get involved, but most go where the funding is—or where the potential for recognition lies. And honestly, many doctors want to save lives, not fight a disease with a 100% early fatality rate.

GARY

Sounds discouraging. I can see why that wouldn’t have much appeal.

CHRIS

There’s more. There’s the human cost. Teenagers tend to think they’re invincible. When the attacks start, suddenly they realize how vulnerable they really are. They’re devastated. Many doctors can’t handle that kind of emotional toll day in, day out.

GARY

But you do.

CHRIS

For now, but once we find a cure, I may disappear to an island somewhere, eat mangoes straight from the trees, and never dream about another sick kid again.

GARY

I hope that happens for you, but now I’m curious. How did you end up here? It’s not exactly a prestigious post. What made you want to get involved with something like DeShores’?

CHRIS

Oh, my. Well, I guess it started a long time ago. When I finished high school, I wanted to join the Volunteer Corps—you know, go light a candle in the dark, forgotten places of the world.

GARY

How’d you like it?

CHRIS

I didn’t go. My mother convinced me I could do more good by going to med school. She was particularly gifted in research and had made quite a name for herself. She told me she thought I had the abilities to do the same. So I followed in her footsteps. After residency, I joined a research team at one of the top hospitals in the world. I was surrounded by brilliant minds battling the most prevalent diseases. But after a while, I kept feeling something was missing. I couldn’t stop thinking about the diseases that weren’t getting any attention—the forgotten ones no one was trying to cure. Something inside me still wanted to light that candle. Then I heard about DeShores’. When I told my mother I was interested, she said forget it. She told me I already had a good career and might even make a name for myself, that DeShores’ would be a waste of my time. But it wouldn’t go away. I can’t explain it, except it felt like divine guidance. I knew this was for me—my cause. When I told my father what I was feeling, he said each person has a calling, something stronger and deeper than occupation or career, but it takes courage to actually do it. Not long after we had that talk, he died.

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CHRISTINE: Side 2 ( from Act 2 – Scene 9 )

KELLIE

What do you think?

CHRIS

Well, something’s going on, because Lorca is still here. So why do I feel so awful?

KELLIE

Only those we love can hurt us badly.

CHRIS

What’s that supposed to mean?

KELLIE

Ten thousand people die in an earthquake halfway around the world and we hardly give it a second thought, but one kid fighting to stay alive wrenches our guts out. That’s how we know we’re connected.

CHRIS

I did not intend to get connected. Emotional involvement is damaging to the research. If I indulge in personal connection, I lose objectivity, and my data is worthless. I have to stay detached. It’s the price we pay for truly scientific research. It has to be that way. Don’t you understand, Kellie? It has to be that way.

Chris gets up and starts pacing.

CHRIS (CONT’D)

Do you think the lab tech feels bad when he drops the rat back in? Does he root for the little guy as he swims forty-seven, forty-eight, forty-nine hours? When the legs won’t go anymore and the little head starts going under… does the lab tech care? Or cry?

Can he eat dinner that night? Does he dream about all the rats he timed, watching their final struggles? Do their eyes beseech him, silently begging for help? Do they scream at the end because they feel so terribly alone?

I thought I could take it, Kellie. I thought I could keep my heart away. But Lorca… she clung to me like a child.

Have I actually made it worse? Is she going to try to swim fifty hours? I can’t save her. I’ve tried and I’ve tried, and I’ve failed.

I don’t know if I can bear the look in her eyes… She trusted me. She came to me for help, and I’ve given her nothing, nothing… nothing but false hope.

And now I’ve dried her off and spoken soothing words, and touched her heart—but she’s back in the bucket… and she’s still going to drown. I can’t take any more.