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A Fresh Start
Zac is short for Zaccheus.
SCENE 1
[TAX COLLECTORS SITTING DOWN AT A FEAST. CONTINUE EATING & DRINKING WHILE TALKING]
M: So what’s in this dish?
A: Crocodile from the river Nile cooked in Greek honey.
P: Really? I thought it was those Persian lizard things.
M: I must say they have got a very unusual taste.
A: Yes, it tastes like goat, but with a fishy tang.
ZAC: [GO UP STAGE STEPS, BUT REMAIN HIDDEN FROM THOSE EATING]
SERVANT: [GO UP STAGE STEPS & ONTO STAGE] My lords and ladies, Zaccheus....
ZAC: Ssssh! [ARMS FLAPPING AT SERVANT, BECAUSE DON’T WANT TO BE SEEN]
SERVANT: Err, Zac hasn’t arrived yet! [EXIT STAGE]
M: [BAFFLED] What?
A: What was all that about?
P: Well, clearly Zac isn’t here!
M: Talking of Zac. I don’t think he’s quite himself lately.
A: I agree. He used to party really hard, but these last few days he’s been rather distant.
P: He’s not in love is he?
M: What Zac! I thought he had a different one for every day of the week.
A: No, I can’t believe that Zac is in love!
ZAC: [TURN TO SERVANT & BECKON HIM OVER & POINT AT OTHERS]
SERVANT: [STAND AT SIDE] My lords and ladies, Zaccheus has just arrived.
P: Oh, change the subject quick!
ZAC: [WALK IN, SIT AT THE TABLE & START TO EAT & DRINK]
M: Hello Zac. What have you been up to?
ZAC: [CONTINUE EATING] What have you been talking about?
A: [DEFENSIVE] Oh the usual.
P: We were talking about the wine. It’s all the way from Spain.
ZAC: [DEAD PAN] Really.
M: Have you been counting all your money?
ZAC: [DEAD PAN] No.
A: I can’t believe that Zac! You normally count your money twice a day!
P: Yeah, if not more!
ZAC: [UNMOVED. CONTINUE EATING]
M: Are you still managing to get all that money off the bloke at Grove House?
A: Yeah! You had a master plan with him.
P: I don’t know how you do it Zac. What do you do?
M: Do you threaten them with violence?
A: Or do you find a bit of juicy info about them, then they pay you to keep it quite?
ZAC: I don’t want to talk about it.
P: Zac! What’s the matter?
M: You haven’t kept secrets from us before!
ZAC: I’m not going to be collecting my money tomorrow, so don’t expect to see me there.
A: [JOKE TO THE OTHERS] There you go, it is love!
ZAC: [SERIOUS. SHAKE HEAD] No. [PAUSE] Have you heard about a preacher from Nazareth?
EVERYONE: [STARTLED] A preacher!
P: Are you going religious Zac?
ZAC: No. [PAUSE] But have you seen or heard about the preacher, Jesus from Nazareth?
M: I think I heard something about him. He healed someone who couldn’t walk.
A: Yeah, and he made a blind man see.
P: [FORCEFUL] Stop! You are all talking as if you believe in this man!
M: No we’re not! Zac asked us whether we had heard about this preacher....
A: ...and we’re just saying what we’ve heard.
ZAC: [THOUGHTFUL] But what if it’s true?
P: It can’t be true!
M: No it can’t be true. I’ve heard that he raised someone back to life!
A: Yes, during a funeral, he walked up to the coffin and raised the body back to life!
P: [ANGRY] You’re talking again as if it was true! No human can do that!
ZAC: That’s what I mean.
M: So it must be a fake? Right Zac?
ZAC: I don’t know.
P: There you go! Zac has gone bonkers! He’s gone all religious!
ZAC: [DEFENSIVE] No I haven’t! All I said was: ‘I don’t know’
A: [RELIEVED] you had me worried there Zac. I thought you were a gonna!
ZAC: No, you’ll still have to put up with me.
M: So we’ll see you tomorrow at the normal place, collecting your money then?
ZAC: No. I’m not going to be collecting my money tomorrow, so don’t expect to see me there.
A: Oh! You’re going to see the preacher then!
ZAC: That’s my business.
P: [ANNOYED] Come off it Zac! He won’t want to talk to you!
M: You’re far too bad for him!
ZAC: You’re probably right. But I’m still interested to meet him.
A: You meet the preacher man! Get real Zac! He won’t want to speak to you!
P: Anyway, I’ve heard that he gets surrounded by thousands of people, so he won’t even be able to see you in the crowd.
M: No, being such a shortie!
A: If you stand behind just one person, you’ll be invisible!
P: What a waste of time!
M: Think of all that money you could make in that time.
A: So we’ll see you tomorrow, OK?
ZAC: [SHAKE HEAD]
P: Get real Zac. You are, what you are. No preacher is going to change that!
M: Oh, let’s leave him to start to see sense!
EVERYONE EXCEPT ZAC: See you tomorrow Zac. [EXIT STAGE]
ZAC: [SHAKE HEAD & EXIT STAGE]
SCENE 2
[CROWD PEOPLE – NO HEAD DRESSES (ie names with a number 2 after them) SAT IN WITH THE AUDIENCE]
ZAC: [LOOK TO STAGE SIDE] How on earth am I going to see Jesus? There’s thousands of people!
M: [EXCITED] He’s coming! He’s over there! [POINT TO BACK OF HALL]
ZAC: [FRUSTRATED] Where? I can’t see anything! I’m not going to be able to speak to him!
A: You want to speak to Jesus! That’s impossible with all these people!
P: Anyway, why would he want to speak to you, you’re a thieving tax collector!
ZAC: I’ll climb that tree. I won’t be able to speak to Jesus, but at least I will be able to see what
he looks like. [GO BEHIND TREE, CLIMB IT & LOOK OUT FROM IT]
M: What are you doing up that tree. We don’t want you around here!
A: Go away, you’re not welcome here!
ZAC: Be quiet, I’m not listening to you. I think I can see Jesus!
JESUS: [WALK FROM THE KITCHEN TO NEAR THE STAGE]
P: [EXCITED] It’s Jesus!
M: Hurray! Do a miracle for us Jesus!
JESUS: Hey, Zac! [POINT & WAVE AT ZAC]
ZAC: Who me?
JESUS: Yes! You’re Zaccheus aren’t you! [MOVE TO FOOT OF STAGE, NEAR STEPS]
ZAC: Errrm. How did you know that?
JESUS: God knows everything. Right?
ZAC: [UNSURE] God knows everything. [QUESTIONING] Right?
JESUS: So I know that you’re Zaccheus! Right?
ZAC: [BRIGHTENS] Right!
JESUS: Climb down the tree. I would like to have a meal at your house.
ZAC: [AMAZED] At my house? [CLIMB DOWN TREE]
A: Booo! Why do you go with a thieving tax collector?
JESUS: Because I want to chat with Zac, what’s wrong with that?
P: Everything! He’s a human low life!
ZAC: [EXCITED] I would love to give you a meal at my place. But before we go, I would like to say
that I will give half of my money and possessions to charities and the poor.
Also, to those I have cheated money out of, I will pay back four times the amount.
JESUS: Today salvation has come to you Zac
M: Impossible! He will never change!
A: He’ll always cheat people out of their money.
JESUS: No, you are wrong, Zac has had a deep change of heart, because I have come to
save what was lost. [CLIMB STEPS & EXIT BACK OF STAGE WITH ZAC]
THE END