The Climbers (NHB Modern Plays)

By Carmen Nasr

When Yasmin and her guide, Tshering, return from a perilous expedition to Everest without a member of their party, they have a lot of questions to answer. Where is Yasmin's husband Charlie? What happened on the mountain? Why do Yasmin and Tshering's accounts differ so drastically?
As private investigator Connie tries to distinguish hallucination from reality, and fact from delusion, it's clear that someone, somewhere, is not telling the truth.
Set at an altitude where life hangs by a thread, Carmen Nasr's play The Climbers is a thrilling exploration of the lure of the mountains, the drive to conquer and the price of staying alive. It was first performed in June 2022 at Theatre by the Lake, Keswick, directed by Guy Jones.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Nick Hern Books
• Release date: Jun 23, 2022
• ISBN: 9781788505734

Carmen Nasr

Carmen Nasr is a British-Lebanese playwright whose plays include: The Climbers (Theatre by the Lake, Keswick, 2022); The Maladies (Almeida Young Company, 2022); and Dubailand (Finborough Theatre, London, 2018).

Book preview

ACT ONE

One

26,000 feet.

The Himalayan Mountain range. The Mountain just before dusk. As the light changes the mountain starts to project itself onto the sky. A giant shadow of the Mountain rises above it, becoming its mirror image.

YASMIN enters in full climbing gear. She is exhausted, disorientated, close to collapse. She stops. She turns around to look at the mountain. She breaks and falls to her knees.

A storm rises, it rages and engulfs her.

A shift.

4,600 feet.

A room in a hotel, in a Nepalese city, the closest one to the Mountain. It’s basic and plain. There may be a bed, a table and chairs. Outside the mountain range looms large. CONNIE stands near YASMIN, who perhaps sits on the chair.

CONNIE. I know you’re upset.

YASMIN. My husband fell off a mountain. Pretty gutted, yeah.

CONNIE. I’m so sorry, Yasmin.

YASMIN. Right. Thanks.

CONNIE. Would you like something hot to drink?

YASMIN. No thanks. I’ve already been offered about five hundred cups of tea. I can’t stop weeing.

CONNIE. What about herbal tea, I brought this turmeric and nettle one?

YASMIN. No thanks.

CONNIE. It doesn’t sound great does it? Someone told me it was good for grief.

YASMIN. I’m alright. Thank you.

CONNIE. It’s Connie, by the way. Sorry. I didn’t even introduce myself. I think it’s the altitude. Like I’m on a delay. So weird.

YASMIN. It’s not high up enough for that.

CONNIE. Oh right. Silly me. Well maybe it’s jetlag then. Do let me know if you change your mind, by the way.

YASMIN. About what?

CONNIE reaches into her bag and pulls out a packet of Jammie Dodgers.

CONNIE. Jammie Dodger?

YASMIN. No thanks.

CONNIE. I thought it might be comforting, something from home. Here, have one.

YASMIN. I’m alright, thanks.

CONNIE stuffs one, maybe two biscuits into her mouth.

CONNIE. Sorry, I’m so hungry. I fell asleep on the flight and missed the little meal they give you. I love airplane food. Most people hate it, I don’t know why, it’s such an exciting little meal.

Sorry, sorry, let’s get back to it.

YASMIN. Okay.

CONNIE. As I was saying, Charlie is still technically missing.

YASMIN. That’s absurd.

CONNIE. There’s no body.

YASMIN. Because there is no way of getting him down.

CONNIE. At this stage we just need to gather as much information as possible.

YASMIN. Look, I’m sorry I don’t think I’m ready for all this.

CONNIE. That’s all right, Yasmin. We have plenty of time. We can just sit a while if you want?

They sit in silence. It’s uncomfortable. Maybe CONNIE eats another biscuit.

YASMIN. Actually, can I have a coffee? I’m tired.

CONNIE. Of course. Great. I’ll go and get one. How do you take it?

YASMIN. It doesn’t matter.

CONNIE. I’m on it.

CONNIE exits. YASMIN waits a few moments. She gets up from the chair, and sits on the floor, back against a wall. It feels solid, like it will hold her grief. She lets her grief surface for a second. It’s from somewhere very deep down. She stops herself. She composes herself.

CONNIE returns with a coffee, and hands it to YASMIN.

I’m here to help. To help make sense of it all. To unmuddle.

YASMIN. There isn’t a muddle.

CONNIE. Maybe that’s the wrong word.

CONNIE holds out the Jammie Dodger packet to YASMIN.

Biscuit with your coffee?

YASMIN. I’m fine, thanks.

CONNIE. Well I’ll just leave them here.

So it was a fall?

YASMIN. Excuse me?

CONNIE. He fell, your husband. You said it was a fall.

YASMIN. Sorry, I’m not quite following.

CONNIE. Charlie, he fell? Is that how it happened? How he went missing?

YASMIN He’s not missing. He fell. He fell a long long way. He couldn’t have, he couldn’t have you know –

CONNIE. I understand that this is all very upsetting. But memories they fade and change, it’s important we talk as early as we can, when the truth is still within our reach. Tell me what happened.

Please, Yasmin.

YASMIN prepares herself.

YASMIN. On the way down. We got lost. There was a storm. He was struggling. We slept in a bivouac, a hole in the snow. Next day. We carried on. We were both weak. Then he fell. He fell a long way. And that was it.

CONNIE. Thank you. I know that was