Here (NHB Modern Plays)

By Clive Judd

A family packs into a small house with a tangled history. Matt is here, yearning to reach someone he's lost. His cousin Jess is here, too; she just wants to feel something. Anything. And Aunt Monica and Jeff are still here, just about. Together, ferocious and funny, they laugh, they scrap, they remember.
Tonight these four people, inextricably bound yet so far apart, will finally confront the old decisions that haunt them. How does a family make a future, when everything that holds it together lies in the past?
Clive Judd's play Here is a tender, funny and utterly truthful story about family and feeling. It was premiered by Papatango at Southwark Playhouse, London, in November 2022 after winning the Papatango New Writing Prize, whose previous discoveries have gone on to win Olivier, Critics' Circle and OffWestEnd Awards and be performed worldwide.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Nick Hern Books
• Release date: Nov 17, 2022
• ISBN: 9781788506182

Clive Judd

Clive Judd is a writer, director and bookseller from Worcester, living in Birmingham. His debut play, Here, was premiered by Papatango at Southwark Playhouse, London, in 2022 after winning the Papatango New Writing Prize.

Book preview

1.

MATT stands in the kitchen, opposite JESS.

He has a rucksack on his back, headphones on, and he is talking very loudly.

MATT.…Daylight robbery. I mean, it’s not like I don’t have the money, y’ know, but… Three quid? For a cup of tea? Day. Light. Robbery.

JESS goes to speak.

Bought one anyway. Chucked some cash down. Load o’ one p’s. Went all over the place. Ha. Dude had t’ pick them up. One by one. An’ they kept, like, gettin’ stuck to the counter, so he was, like, tryna get his fingernails under them. But he couldn’t. Ha. Took him ages. Probably shouldn’t have done that, really. Wasn’t his fault, but… Bah! Three quid, man! Three. Quid. Daylight robbery, that.

JESS goes to speak, again.

An’ this sign, right? Sign on the counter.

‘We’re passionate about sandwiches!’

Jesus fu–… (Passionate abou–…) What does that even mean? Eh? Passionate about sandwiches? Who’s havin’ any, like, emotional response to a sandwich? I wanna buy one. Eat it. Simple. Don’t wanna take it out for a meal. It is a meal!

JESS takes out her phone.

And then I got a fine. Yep. Bastard fine. On the train. Cos apparently I didn’t have a ticket. Well… I didn’t have one, actually, but… Tried runnin’ off but went the wrong way. Got stuck in the end carriage an’ the inspector caught up wi’ me. Found me hidin’ in the bag rack. Ha. Tucked in behind a suitcase. Little kid pointed me out.

‘There is he is, sir.’

Little grass. Little shit.

JESS puts her phone in her pocket.

Tried to manhandle me out. Got a bit stuck, see. Told him to keep his fuckin’ hands off. I was compliant. Had no choice by this point. Was all a bit ridiculous. Awful, awful man. Stunk of cheese puffs. Should have told him. Ha. Nearly told him, actually, but thought that might be a bit mean. Should have told him, anyway.

‘You smell like cheese puffs, mate. You smell like a maize-based snack!’

Should have told him what I thought, right. Yeh. Given it him straight. Given him a piece of my mind. Knocked his little hat off. Oh yeh! Kicked him in the balls. Put him in a fuckin’ headlock.

‘Come here, prick!’

MATT puts himself in a headlock.

JESS watches as MATT struggles with himself for a bit.

Playing both characters.

He’s proper into it!

After a bit of wrestling, MATT realises he’s wearing headphones. He stops. Takes them off. Looks at them.

Have I been wearin’ these the whole time?

JESS looks at MATT.

JESS. Yes.

MATT laughs.

MATT. Was I shouting?

JESS. You were a bit.

MATT laughs, again.

He thinks he’s hilarious!

MATT. Ahh, no way! Absolutely crackers. Ha. Bet that was annoying?

JESS checks her phone, again.

You’ll realise she does this a lot.

(Shit.) Can’t believe I’m here.

JESS. Can’t you?

MATT. No. Well… Yeh, can, but… Y’ know… It’s amazing!

JESS. Is it?

MATT. Oh yeh. Feels like I’ve stepped into a time-warp or somethin’. Like, literally gone back in time.

MATT goes to the fridge.

Opens it. Laughs.

Brilliant.

A small silence.

JESS. Haven’t seen you in ages.

MATT. No.

JESS. Few years.

MATT. Couple o’ years.

JESS. Yeah. Couple.

MATT. Flies dun’ it? Time.

JESS. Yeah. Does.

MATT. Funeral, right. Last time?

JESS. Think so.

MATT. Yeh.

JESS. Just after.

MATT. Left jus’ after, so… Yeh. Would have been, yeh.

Jus’ after.

Another small silence.

JESS. You look alright, like.

MATT. Do I?

JESS. Yeah. You do. Y’ look…

MATT. Dead?

JESS. No. No, not at all. Y’ look alright.

MATT. Feel like shit.

JESS. Do ya?

MATT. Nah. I’m alright.

JESS. How long you staying?

MATT. Dunno. Haven’t thought ’bout it.

JESS. Right.

MATT. Not long. Gotta carry on, eh? Carry on regardless.

MATT chuckles to himself.

He has a look out the window.

Looks back at JESS.

You’re still here, though.

JESS. Well… Yeah… Yeah, I’m… / (I’m here.)

MATT. Thought you might of, y’ know…

JESS. What?

MATT. Moved out.

JESS. Oh. No.

MATT. Still here.

JESS. Hm.

MATT. Still here.

JESS. Sad, isn’t it?

MATT. What is?

JESS. Bit sad. Me. / Here.

MATT. Oh. / No…

JESS. Still.

MATT. No way.

JESS. At my age.

MATT. No way, José.

JESS. Bit sad.

MATT. Nah, I’d love to live here.

JESS. You wouldn’t.

MATT. Would. Love it. This house, I mean. Love this house.

A decent bit of silence.

MATT and JESS look around the kitchen.

JESS. So…

MATT. Hm…?

JESS. What you been, like… Like, doin’ an’ that?

MATT. Not much.

JESS. Oh.

MATT. Not a lot, really.

JESS. Right.

MATT. This an’ that.

JESS. Hm.

MATT. Been, like… Makin’ some stuff. (Guess.)

JESS. Makin’ what?

MATT. Some, um… Well… Some, like, um… Music an’ that.

JESS. Really?

MATT. Bit.

JESS. Sounds good.

MATT. Nah. Sounds proper shit t’ be honest.

Another little silence.

JESS. Should’ve visited you.

MATT. Oh…

JESS. Should have, really.

MATT. / Nah…

JESS. But… Never really know where you are, so… Should’ve done, though.

MATT. Never really in one place.

JESS. Yeah. Guessed that.

MATT. Always on the move.

JESS. From what Mom said.

MATT. Shiftin’ about.

JESS. Nice.

MATT. Can be. Dif’rent towns. Cities. Airports. Spend lot of time in airports f’ some reason.

JESS. Flying?

MATT. Yeah. Flyin’ about. Sometimes, anyway. Ha. Feel like Tom Hanks. Ha. You know, like… Tom Hanks? In that shit film. One where he’s stuck in the terminal?

JESS. The Terminal?

MATT. Yeh, that’s the one. Shit film.

JESS. It is shit, yeah.

JESS smiles. MATT smiles, too. Nods. Looks about.

Then –

MATT. Oh… Almost forgot. Got you a present.

JESS. Have ya?

MATT jumps