The True Story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

Plays is protected by U.S. copyright law. Only current subscribers may use this play (www.playsmagazine.com). Middle Grades The True Story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde A reading play complete with sound effects that spoofs the classic tale of horror and suspense.... by Bruce Berger Characters NARRATOR MRS. WIDEBOTTOM DR. JEKYLL/MR. HYDE POOLE, butler MRS. SWEETWATER PARROT MR. GABRIEL UTTERSON CAB DRIVER WAITRESS FLOWER GIRL MAN MOTHER OF FLOWER GIRL DR. LOUIS LANYON POLICE OFFICER VOICES IN CROWD, offstage voices TIME: 1875. SETTING: London. SCENE 1 NARRATOR: Our tale, a strange one, begins in the veterinarian office of the honorable Dr. Henry Jekyll. MRS. WIDEBOTTOM: Oh, dear doctor, with all my heart I thank you. I was so afraid my pet rat would not live to see another day. What was that miracle drug you gave Rudolph? DR. JEKYLL: It s called cheese, Mrs. Widebottom. Just give him a little each day, and I m sure he ll do well. MRS. WIDEBOTTOM: Bless you, doctor. You are so good and kind. JEKYLL: The health and well-being of my patients is all that matters. Good day, madame. JEKYLL: Come in, Poole. 1

POOLE: You look so tired, sir. You d best get some rest. JEKYLL: I fear not, my faithful servant. I have a long night of work awaiting me in my lab. POOLE: Yes, sir. (Moves off microphone) I shall leave you to your duties, sir. Good night. JEKYLL: Alone at last! If he only knew that there is another side to me. A side that I hide. My Hyde side! (He laughs hysterically.) NARRATOR: A fire burning in the fireplace threw strange shadowy shapes upon the walls. Dr. Jekyll moved toward a small table at the back of his laboratory. Slowly he raised a clear beaker containing blood-red liquid. JEKYLL: Mm-m-m. Delicious. Now, just a pinch of this white powder the final ingredient. SOUND: Hissing. JEKYLL: No one has ever made a drug like this before. This magic mixture will separate my good side from my evil side! My good side can go on working as a veterinarian while my evil side will follow its wicked bent. Ha ha! To drink! This will show those who laughed at me, especially that Dr. Louis Lanyon. How he scoffed when I told him that each person is really two! (With a sinister laugh) Well, he who laughs last NARRATOR: The doctor lifted the beaker to his lips and drank from it. JEKYLL (Gulping): Hm-m-m. Needs a little sugar....ah-h! The pain! the pain! The burning in my heart! My bones feel as if they re breaking. I must control this shaking. (Pause. Now speaking in a raspy harsh voice) Ah, the pain is gone. I feel like another 2 man. I feel so different so young and strong! And yet, I am so much smaller than I was. My clothes are so big on me now. SOUND: Dragging and shuffling. NARRATOR: Dr. Jekyll crossed to the mirror scarcely illuminated by the fire. His hair was thick and wild, in total disarray. (JEKYLL begins to laugh evilly.) His eyes were small and beady. His nose was flat and brown. His teeth were sharp and crooked. MR. HYDE (Pleased): I like the look! NARRATOR: And so, born on that fateful evening, was a dark and terrible side of the good doctor: Mr. Hyde. Mr. Edward Hyde! SOUND: Pounding on the door. POOLE: I say, Dr. Jekyll, sir, I ve brought you some milk and cookies. (Pause) Sir? Sir? HYDE (In a whisper): Poole! That fool! Why does he bring the cookies now? I must put more powder in the solution. SOUND: Hissing. HYDE: I must drink swiftly. (Gulps) Ahh-h! The pain, the burning! (In JEKYLL s voice) The pain is gone now. My face in the mirror, my hands. I am myself again. JEKYLL: Oh, I say, Poole, are those cookies chewy or chocolate cream? SOUND: Music rises. * * * SCENE 2 NARRATOR: As the days passed, an abrupt change began to take place in the doctor s normal, daily routine. It

was a change not unnoticed by his clients. SOUND: Splashing. MRS. SWEETWATER (Frantically): Doctor, are you sure this treatment will stop my parrot s hiccups? JEKYLL: Of course, Mrs. Sweetwater. Do not forget: I am the doctor! MRS. SWEETWATER: Yes, but you ve been holding him under the water for three minutes! SOUND: Splashing is heard again, followed by gasping for air. MRS. SWEETWATER: Oh, Salty, speak to me! Speak to me! PARROT (In high-pitched, parrot-like voice): Bork! Bork! Crazy doctor! Crazy doctor! JEKYLL: Oh, Birdie wants to go back under water? PARROT (Hysterically): Bork! Bork! MRS. SWEETWATER (Indignantly): Come, Salty. Let us leave! JEKYLL: Yes, yes, Mrs. Sweetwater, just pay Poole on your way out. SOUND: Door slamming. JEKYLL: Oh, dear, I fear the evil Mr. Hyde is beginning to creep out of me when I least expect it. That poor bird. I must make room for Hyde in my life. My clothes are much too big for him. (Calls) Poole! POOLE: Yes, sir? JEKYLL: I must go out. POOLE: Very good, sir. Where are you going? JEKYLL (Speaking suddenly in HYDE s voice): Don t be so nosy, you nasty (Composing himself and speaking as JEKYLL) I mean uh I am off to the store, my dear Poole. I am sorry I snapped at you. Please forgive me. SOUND: Sinister music rises. NARRATOR: After purchasing all the necessities for Hyde, Dr. Jekyll returned to his home. POOLE: Ah, sir, welcome home. Did you take care of all your business? JEKYLL: Yes, I did. Poole, a man named Edward Hyde will be visiting this house often in the future. I have given him keys. He is free to come and go as he likes. Treat him well, do all that he wishes. POOLE: Yes, sir. JEKYLL: Also, my lawyer, Gabriel Utterson, will be arriving shortly. Send him in to my study immediately. POOLE: Very well, sir. SOUND: Door closing. POOLE (To himself): This is altogether strange. Dr. Jekyll has always lived alone. SOUND: Knocking at door, then door opening. POOLE: Good evening, Mr. Utterson. MR. UTTERSON: Good evening, Poole. Is the good doctor in? SOUND: Wild cackling is heard off. 3

POOLE: He s in his study, sir. I m afraid he hasn t been himself lately. SOUND: Knocking on door. POOLE: Dr. Jekyll? Dr. Jekyll? Mr. Utterson is here. SOUND: Hissing, followed by scream, then door opening. JEKYLL: Ah, my good friend, Gabriel. Do come in. SOUND: Door closing. UTTERSON: It s good to see you, Henry. It has been a long time. JEKYLL: Yes, I ve been very busy. Gabriel, I have asked you here today to discuss my will. UTTERSON: Your will? I believe it is in order. JEKYLL: There are some changes I want to make in it. Here is my new will. SOUND: Rustling of paper. UTTERSON: Hm-m! If you die, you wish to leave everything you own to your friend, Edward Hyde? (Alarmed) It further states here that if you are missing for a period of three months, Hyde is to get everything you own! JEKYLL: Your reading is excellent, Gabriel. UTTERSON: But this is madness! Who is this Hyde? I have never heard you speak of him. JEKYLL: He is a new friend, a very close friend. UTTERSON: But, Henry, this is so sudden. Is this Hyde forcing you to change your will? 4 JEKYLL: Not at all. UTTERSON: As your lawyer and friend, I cannot allow you to do this. I would like you to discuss this with your physician, Dr. Lanyon. JEKYLL (Angrily): That quack! Louie Lanyon has nothing to do with this. How dare you! You are my lawyer, not my warden! If you find this task beyond your capabilities, I can always take my affairs elsewhere. UTTERSON: Very well. I will take what you have written. I shall make these changes and return them for your signature so it can then be witnessed and notarized. And if something happens to you, I will see that your wishes are carried out, but you must know, I do not approve. I bid you good night. SOUND: Door opening and closing. JEKYLL: He s right. This is madness, but a madness that excites me as nothing ever has before! Ha ha ha! NARRATOR: Dr. Jekyll went to his laboratory and laid out the clothes he had purchased. SOUND: Fizzing and gulping. JEKYLL: Hm-m! That strawberry flavoring does improve the ah-h! The burning! The pain! HYDE: My Hyde side is now in command. Where are my clothes? Ah, here they are! What is this? Plaid? He bought plaid? That doctor must get his taste in clothes from his patients. NARRATOR: Hyde wasted no time in dressing, grabbing his cane, and rushing out the back door of his laboratory to the street. HYDE: Cabbie! Hey, you! Stop that carriage and let me on.

CAB DRIVER: Here, here, mate. What s the hurry? Where to? HYDE: Take me to Soho! And hurry up about it! CAB DRIVER: Yes, sir. SOUND: Horse clopping. NARRATOR: Soho was a dark and dangerous part of London where fights occurred often, and respectable people were rarely seen. CAB DRIVER: Here you are, sir. Soho! Hey, where is my fare? HYDE: You want your money? SOUND: Money thrown on ground. HYDE: Then go search for it! (HYDE laughs maniacally.) NARRATOR: What a time the wild Hyde had! He ate, drank, fought, and behaved in a crude manner, drinking from his finger bowl and using the dessert fork for his salad. WAITRESS: Oh, he s so disgusting! HYDE: Spare me your morality, barmaid. Leave me alone I want to talk with my acquaintances. SOUND: Men laughing. HYDE: Yes, my friends, together we shall make the banks of England our doormat. Their riches will be ours! I will lead you to the very Crown Jewels. We shall meet tomorrow and our reign of terror shall begin! SOUND: Sinister music. * * * SCENE 3 NARRATOR: At last the businesses of Soho began to close. The terrible night came to an end. But the worst was yet to come. SOUND: Sinister music. NARRATOR: The happy Hyde emerged from his new haunt hardly tired from his night s adventure. The day people were beginning their business. FLOWER GIRL: Good morning, sir. Would you like to buy a flower? HYDE: Get that ragweed out of my face, you little bag of rubbish. SOUND: Thud as if something hit the ground. FLOWER GIRL: Ow! Why did you push me down? (Wailing) And you smashed my flowers! HYDE: Oh, stop your complaining! MAN: What is the meaning of this? Have you no feeling, you cur? You hurt this child and you try to walk away! (In kind voice) Don t try to get up, child. (Calls) Someone send for a doctor! LANYON: I am a doctor. Little girl, are you all right? FLOWER GIRL: No, I m not all right. Oh, the pain, the shame, the humiliation. I m going to the police. I ve got my rights! CAB DRIVER: That low-life rode in my cab and didn t even give me a tip. WAITRESS: He s so disgusting! LANYON: My name is Dr. Louis Lanyon. Perhaps we should call for a constable. HYDE: No, no! No police, Louie! LANYON: What did you say? Did you call me Louie? Only one person has 5

ever called me Louie! HYDE (Nervously covering up): No, I said phooey! Phooey! MAN: Well, what do you intend to do for this child? MOTHER OF FLOWER GIRL: I think he should give her family some money. One hundred pounds sems right. HYDE: What? Are you crazy? CAB DRIVER: Let s beat him up! VOICES IN CROWD (Ad lib): Yeah, yeah! Hit him! Scratch him! (Etc.) WAITRESS: Oh, he s so disgusting! HYDE: All right, I ll give the girl the money. But I don t carry that much with me. Follow me and I ll get it. NARRATOR: The crowd of people followed Hyde to Dr. Jekyll s laboratory door. Hyde entered the lab and reemerged with a promissory note for one hundred pounds, signed by Dr. Jekyll. LANYON: Why, this is signed by Dr. Henry Jekyll! How does a disgusting creature like you know such an honorable doctor? HYDE: Oh, we go way back. (Pause) Here, lady! Now, take your money and your daughter and go. NARRATOR: The crowd melted away, but Dr. Lanyon remained. HYDE: What is it? Do you want a pint of blood or something, Louie? LANYON: That is the second time you ve called me Louie. Only one other person in the world has ever done that: Dr. Henry Jekyll! HYDE: All right, Lanyon, I guess the time has come to play my hand. Come into the laboratory, and I ll tell you everything. NARRATOR: Slowly Dr. Lanyon followed Hyde into the laboratory, cautiously watching his every move. Hyde was giddy, enjoying Lanyon s uneasy state. HYDE: Heh, heh, heh. You seem a little nervous, Louie. LANYON: Who are you? Where is Jekyll? HYDE: Oh, he s closer than you think. My name is Edward Hyde. Do you remember how you laughed when Jekyll told you his theory about every person having two sides? LANYON: How did you know about that? HYDE: Oh, I know many things. I know how you ridiculed his thoughts, his ideas of a good and evil side to everyone. Hand me that beaker! SOUND: Mixing of liquids, jingling, and hissing. HYDE: Would you like to see what happens when I drink this, Louie? LANYON: Are you mad? HYDE (Wildly): Mad? Ha ha ha! Mad? Ha ha ha! Mad? (Very calmly) Well, no, I don t think so. (Gulping sound) Ah-h! This pain is such a pain! SOUND: Ripping of clothes. JEKYLL: Oh, great. There goes a good plaid suit! LANYON: Oh, no! Jekyll! It is you! And you are Hyde, too. 6

JEKYLL: Yes, your doubts should be gone, Lanyon. Where is your disdain for my theories now? Would you like to see me change again? SOUND: Gulping. JEKYLL: Ah-h-h! HYDE: Ha ha ha! Good riddance to that suit! My journal here records all the details of leading a double life. One day I shall be famous! LANYON: Jekyll, this isn t science! It is insanity! What purpose does this serve? HYDE: You have no vision, Louie. There are no limits to the possibilities a double identity may provide. As Hyde, I can steal the very treasures of London! I can even commit murder! The wild Hyde is free from any reproach. Don t you see? When the authorities seek him out, he has only to retreat to the safety of the kindly Dr. Jekyll. Ha ha ha ha ha! LANYON: I can t let you do this. You shall not destroy the good name of Jekyll. HYDE: Put down that beaker, you fool! SOUND: Sound of breaking glass. HYDE: That s not what I had in mind. LANYON: And now I shall burn your vicious journal in the fireplace. Jekyll, you must put an end to this madness. HYDE: No, Lanyon, what I shall put an end to...is you! SOUND: Wrestling and fighting, with chairs falling over. POOLE (From off microphone): Dr. Jekyll? Dr. Jekyll? Are you all right? LANYON: Stop! (Gasp) Please! SOUND: Pounding on door. POLICE OFFICER (From off microphone): Police! Open the door! UTTERSON: Henry, it is Gabriel Utterson. Open up, and let us help you. HYDE: Stay out, you fools! You won t stop me! LANYON: Henry, please! (Gasp) SOUND: Crashing of door opening. UTTERSON: Look! That strange man is trying to kill Dr. Lanyon. He s got a knife! SOUND: Gunshot. HYDE: Ah-h-h! No, it can t be. POOLE: Dr. Lanyon, are you all right? LANYON: Yes, Poole, I m fine. UTTERSON: Where is Dr. Jekyll? Who is this man? LANYON: This is Dr. Jekyll. And Mr. Hyde! They are one and the same. UTTERSON (In disbelief): What? LANYON: A twisted science experiment. There is no pulse. He is dead, I am afraid. UTTERSON: Look! He s changing. The face of Dr. Jekyll is returning. POOLE: Astounding! UTTERSON: And he s moving. He s alive! Henry, are you all right? LANYON: You re wounded but not dead. How can this be? 7

JEKYLL (Gasping): You ve destroyed my evil side, my friends. Louie, I m sorry. You were right. A person s evil side should be kept hidden from the world. It must not be given freedom to roam. UTTERSON (Concerned): Dr. Lanyon, will he be all right? LANYON: Yes, the gunshot wounded only the evil side. It was your good side that saved you in the end, Jekyll. JEKYLL: Thank goodness. Louie, throw that journal into the fire. SOUND: Thud of book landing in fire; then fire crackling. JEKYLL: The evil side will now turn to ashes. Say, Poole, do you think this plaid suit can be sewn back together? POOLE (Exasperated): Oh, Dr. Jekyll. NARRATOR: And so ends the strange story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, a man who will never again be haunted by an evil alter ego but who will forever be doomed to bad taste. SOUND: Music rises. THE END PRODUCTION NOTES The True Story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde CHARACTERS: 7 male; 5 female; 3 male or female for Narrator, Store Clerk, and Parrot. NOTE: Dr. Jekyll has distinguished, elegant voice; Mr. Hyde has hoarse, raspy voice. PLAYING TIME: 20 minutes. SPECIAL NOTE: This play may be performed as a radio play for the classroom. Sinister and dramatic music throughout is important to give color to the performance. SOUND: Door opening, closing, slamming shut; jingling of glasses; hissing, fizzing sound; dragging, shuffling; pounding on door; splashing; money thrown on floor; ripping of clothes; crashing sound of breaking glass. For horse clopping, plastic cups hit together or on overturned desk. For wrestling and crashing sound, turn over school desk. Old clothes can be used for ripping. NOTE: Be careful with broken glass sound. Place piece of broken glass in an empty trash can and shake can to achieve desired sound. 8