Муха.
МУХА. Ага. Ага. Я говорила. Я была права. Я везде летала, все видела. Они очень хрупкие создания. Какой эффект! Только ночь разлуки — и уже совсем седой. Одна ночь. А если бы две? Или даже лучше три?! Ну, что, Котяра, ты неплохо тут без меня поработал. Молодец. Хвалю. За верную службу я тебя, пожалуй, награжу. Там, знаешь, в овражке, у гнилого бревна валяется сухая рыбья голова. Можешь съесть.
КОТЯРА. Спасибо. Только не раздувай из себя слона, Муха. Ладно? Исчезаю… (Прислушивается.) Нет, сначала хочу поглядеть на трогательную встречу друзей. Может, опять слеза прошибет.
МУХА. Погляди, погляди.
Котенок, Башмак, Кастрюля, Карасик, Мотылек с песней.
Ну, что, герои? Что, Котенок? Где твой друг? А ты, Карасик. Где твои золотые плавнички? Мотылек, ты достал новые крылья? Хи-хи-хи! Что же вы замолчали? Так лихо пели, пока шагали по дороге: «В ногу! Песня! Солнце! Крылья!» Посмотрите на себя — чего вы добились!? Примолкли…
ВСЕ. Обманула!
КОТЕНОК (Одуванчику). Ты молчишь? Я вернулся. Почему ты молчишь? Твой свет лился всю ночь. Я видел дорогу, когда у меня устали глаза. Но меня обманули. Ты слышишь, Одуванчик?
МУХА. Конечно нет. Он оглох от горя!
ОДУВАНЧИК. Слышу…
КОТЕНОК. Скажи что-нибудь, поругай меня.
ОДУВАНЧИК…если у тебя отважное сердце…
КОТЕНОК. Сердце!
ОДУВАНЧИК…даже если ты рожден на помойке…
КОТЕНОК. Если!
МУХА. Заткните уши, не слушайте, он бредит!
КОТЯРА. Ну вот, слеза прошибла. Полегчало.
ОДУВАНЧИК…даже если тебя обманули…
КОТЕНОК. Обманули!
МУХА. Он говорит глупости!
ОДУВАНЧИК…если ты видел дорогу…
КОТЕНОК. Дорогу!
МУХА. Он умирает! Умирает!
БАШМАК. Все умирает.
КАСТРЮЛЯ. Все теряет свой блеск.
БАШМАК. Плавнички…
КАСТРЮЛЯ. Крылья…
ОДУВАНЧИК…вокруг меня все так изменилось…
МУХА. Это мир! Хи-хи-хи!
ОДУВАНЧИК. Мир… Я так люблю… Что мне так режет глаза?
МУХА. Это свет. Хи-хи-хи!
ОДУВАНЧИК. Свет… Я так люблю… Мне больно!
МУХА. Это жизнь. Хи-хи-хи!
ОДУВАНЧИК. Жизнь… Я так люблю…
МУХА. Все. Умер. Скончался. Погиб на посту!
ОДУВАНЧИК. Душно! Дунь не меня, Котенок!
КОТЕНОК. Сейчас! Сейчас! (Дует.)
Белая метель.
МУХА. Облетел!
КОТЯРА. Осыпался!
БАШМАК. Стерся!
КАСТРЮЛЯ. Сносился!
КОТЕНОК. Прости меня! Ты слышишь? Прости!
ГОЛОС ОДУВАНЧИКА…если у тебя отважное сердце… даже если ты рожден на помойке… если ты видел дорогу… даже если тебя обманули…
КОТЕНОК. Я слышу! Я понял! У меня отважное сердце!
КОТЯРА. Куда ты, Котенок!?
МУХА. Постой, постой!
БАШМАК. Прощай!
КАСТРЮЛЯ. Котенок!
КАРАСИК. Не оборачивайся!
МОТЫЛЕК. Беги!
КОТЕНОК. Вперед!
Сердце, в ногу!Лейся, песня!Ярче, солнце!Крылья! Если!
Конец
COME ON, KITTEN! (Translated by O. Zhivago)
Worldwide is a garbage dump.How to clean this filthy sump?How to cure this crazy world?Our days are dark and cold.Those who rule us are maliciousCaddish, impudent, suspiciousAnd to us they've always lied.Never mind.Our indifference and fearsRuin up our souls and ears.They can't hear very much,Only «March!»Folly laziness and lies,Whim that nobody denies,Cruelty is going fatter,If there's somebody to flatter.If there's somebody to lie,Garbage dumps would never die.
~ ~ ~
THE DANDELION
THE KITTEN
THE SMART CAT
THE FLY
THE LITTLE CARP
THE MOTH
THE POT THE OLD BOOT
ACT 1
The Pot's rattling. The Kitten, The the Little Carp, The Moth and the Fly alarmed.
EVERYBODY. What has happened? What has happened? What has happened here? Who is making these sounds?
THE POT. Horror, horror, disaster!
EVERYBODY. What's the matter? Quickly tell us about it! What's the matter? Quickly tell us! What? Would you tell us about it?
THE POT. Help! Help! We are lost!
EVERYBODY. Who is missing? Who is missing? One, two, three, four… The Boot is missing. Where is the Boot? We've lost The Boot. One, two, three, four… Where is The Smart Cat? We've lost The Smart Cat!
THE POT (keeps rattling). Quickly! Quickly! Come on! Help!
EVERYBODY. Help! And what has happened? What has happened?
THE POT. Is everybody here?
EVERYBODY. Everybody! Oh, no, not everybody! The Boot is missing, The Smart Cat is missing. Well, well, speak!
THE POT. Save yourselves!
EVERYBODY. Save yourselves! Save yourselves!
THE MOTH. But I can't save myself, I have no wings. Please, someone save me.
THE KITTEN. I don't know how to save myself. Please, someone teach me.
THE POT. The Smart Cat and The Boot must have already saved themselves. And we'll be lost here!
EVERYBODY. We'll be lost…
THE KITTEN. I don't know how to be lost. I'm so small. Please, someone teach me.
THE POT. Save yourselves!
EVERYBODY. Save yourselves, before it's too late.
THE KITTEN. You know, Fly, I want to learn quickly how to save myself?
THE LITTLE CARP and THE MOTH. So do we! So do we! We want to save ourselves too!
THE FLY. To save yourselves you have to do this way: don't care a bother about anything. You, Moth, don't care about The little Carp. And you, Kitten, don't care about the Moth.
THE KITTEN. I can't. Teach me!
THE FLY. Oh, it's very easy to do. You must tell the Moth that you are bored with him. Well, then!
THE KITTEN (To The Moth). I'm bored with you.
THE MOTH. Why are you bored with me, Kitten?
THE FLY. Don't you dare answer him! Go away from him! This is called saving oneself.
THE KITTEN. So easy? Then I'll hurry on… Oh!
THE OLD BOOT. Stop, Kitten. Where are you galloping to?
THE KITTEN. I'm saving myself. I can teach you how to do it. You, Boot, just tell me that you are bored with me. Now, then!
THE OLD BOOT. I'm bored with all of you.
THE POT. He doesn't understand. He doesn't want to save himself! He doesn't hear! Listen! Everybody, listen!
THE POT (stops ratting). (A rustle is heard.) Do you hear? Haven't told you? Now you can make sure! Save yourselves!
THE OLD BOOT. Whom from?
THE POT. From him, from this one. Just here.
THE KITTEN. Hey! Who is there?
THE MOTH. Is it silent?
THE LITTLE CARP. Isn't answering?
THE KITTEN. It is rustling.
EVERYBODY. It is rustling.
THE KITTEN. It's climbing out.
EVERYBODY. It's climbing out.
THE KITTEN. It's creeping up.
EVERYBODY. It's creeping up.
THE POT. I warned you! I warned you! I was the first to sound!
THE FLY. Now then… Let me listen… What could it be? One, two, three, four… Boot?.. No, The Boot is here. May be The Cat? Hey, Cat. Have you heard me? Ca-a-t! It's rustling. It's scratching.
THE KITTEN. The Smart Cat can't rustle. He growls and then at once rushes at you. Here it is something else. Let us do it this way: you all go away and I'll sneak up and catch it. I can do it, The Smart Cat taught me.
THE OLD BOOT. And if it goes all the way round and it catches you?
EVERYBODY. It will catch you! It will catch you!
THE LITTLE CARP. Let me listen too. Well then? Now it is scratching louder.
THE POT. Save yourselves!
THE OLD BOOT. But who would steal up on us from under the earth?
THE LITTLE CARP. May be this is… May be this is… a mountain growing!
EVERYBODY. A mountain!
THE LITTLE CARP. Oh, yes! Have you ever seen how the mountains grow? They simply grow up and that's all. When I was The Goldfish!..
EVERYBODY. Tell us, tell us, Little Carp, what are mountains?
THE LITTLE CARP. Mountains — it's something… it's something huge!
THE FLY. Don't listen to him, I've flow all over the world, I've been everywhere.
EVERYBODY. Tell us, tell us, have you even seen the mountains?
THE FLY. To be sure, there is no such thing as mountains in the world.
THE KITTEN. But something is scratching here?
EVERYBODY. And what in the whole world is there? Tell us, tell us!
THE LITTLE CARP. There is the sea.
EVERYBODY. The sea! Tell us, have you ever seen the sea?
THE FLY. The sea is something that doesn't exist either.
EVERYBODY. And what does exist in the world? Tell us!
THE FLY. Then listen… I've flown all over the world. I've been everywhere. There are only garbage dumps in the world. Big and small ones. I've flown all over the world. I've seen everything. Everything!
THE MOTH. Don't listen to her. It's not true! There are the mountains behind the thistles.
THE LITTLE CARP. There is the sea behind the thistles!
THE MOTH and THE LITTLE CARP. The world is quite quite different there behind the Thistles.
EVERYBODY. The world!
THE MOTH and THE LITTLE CARP. There, behind the thistles the life is different too.
EVERYBODY. Life!
THE FLY. Over there on that other garbage dump everything is just the same. Well, how about scratching?
THE KITTEN. It's very close.
THE LITTLE CARP. Here is a big mountain growing!
THE FLY. There is no such thing as mountain.
THE OLD BOOT. Yes. That's true. There were the mountains before, indeed. But now I won't find a thing like that.
EVERYBODY. Where are they?
THE OLD BOOT. They are worn out. Everything is worn out. Everything falls into decay. Everything gets older and goes to ruin.
THE MOTH. But there is the sun in the world.
