The Stag Party and Seductive Reasoning
Two Comedies
by
Book Cover & Preview Text
RUTH
I didn’t know what the hell I was gonna do. Probably still be stranded on the side of the road if ya hadn’t stopped. All I do is get in and drive. I don’t know anythin’ about cars. I keep tellin’ myself I should, but I don’t have the time…can’t be bothered. Know what I mean? It’s just a pain in the ass.
ERIC
At first, I thought you were trying to get away from somebody...waving your broken shoe in the air.
RUTH
Well, I hadda do somethin’ to get your attention. Rotten piece of junk. The heel fell off when I kicked the fender. They’re my best pair too. And look what else happened. Ripped my stockin’s...here...here...and this one...all the way up to here. Ya got any nail polish?
ERIC
No. Why?
RUTH
Thought maybe I could save ‘em.
ERIC
With nail polish?
RUTH
If ya take a little and put it at the start of the run, it keeps it from...from...
ERIC
Running?
RUTH
Oh, forget it. They’re shot. I’m takin’ ‘em off. Good thing I shaved this mornin’. There’s nothin’ more gross than goin’ ‘round in public with little stubble hairs growin’ outta your legs. They’re still one of my best assets. Haven’t got many scars yet, thank God. Don’t ya think they’re nice?
ERIC
Very nice.
RUTH
(Drapes her stockings over the couch.)
Well, listen, do I owe ya anythin’ fer comin’ to my rescue?
ERIC
No. You...you don’t owe me anything. I wasn’t much help really.
RUTH
Whadda ya mean? Ya drove me to the garage...got the mechanic to tow the damn thing in fer me. Hey, that’s help enough, honey. I’m tellin’ ya, things had better get better or I’m gonna...I don’t know what.
ERIC
Don’t worry. Everything’ll be fine. The telephone’s over there if you want to make a call.
RUTH
What?
ERIC
You wanted to make a call, didn’t you?
RUTH
Oh, yeah. Where is it?
ERIC
Over there.
RUTH
Thanks. I know it don’t pay to sweat the small stuff, but this makes me so mad. Screws up everythin’. My plans for today are all goin’ down the toilet.
Formats
Book Details
About the Book
A collection of twenty-something characters struggle with their own personal regime changes at the dawning of the Reagan Era in Paul M. Kelly’s taut and comical full-length play, The Stag Party and the one-act, Seductive Reasoning.
In The Stag Party, Kelly gathers a group of college pals together to toast the forthcoming marriage of one of their own but, in Kelly’s hands, the toast burns rapidly as a planned bachelor party quickly turns into a last stand of youthful camaraderie. The play explodes into acid remarks and recriminations and follows a trajectory of wild escapades when several female friends crash the event.
Innocence is not as it appears in Seductive Reasoning. A college student, living on his own for the first time, comes to the aid of an all-knowing and world-weary sexpot when her car breaks down. Taking her to his apartment to use the phone while he finishes his laundry, the young man turns out to be not as naïve as he supposes, and the older woman not as emotionally hardened as she suggests.
Kelly’s two plays provide a wistful portal to 1980, an unpredictable year for end-of-the-line baby boomers, when their hopes and aspirations were filled with skepticism. In The Stag Party and Seductive Reasoning, the author’s characters anxiously brace themselves for the seismic jolts of self-discovery.
About the Author
Paul M. Kelly holds a doctorate in education from