(The sounds of a crowded museum. Voices, hubbub, squeaks of shoes on the floor.)
(Lights up on “The National Museum of Women in History.” Paintings and statues of famous women hang throughout.)
(Along with MUSEUM EMPLOYEES, MUSEUM GOERS, and the paintings, there is a group of elementary STUDENTS led by a MUSEUM TOUR GUIDE and MS. CHAN.)
MUSEUM TOUR GUIDE
Students from Eleanor Roosevelt Elementary School! Please proceed this way to the “History Through Time” exhibit.
(MS. CHAN wrangles her STUDENTS.)
MS. CHAN
That’s us! Move it or lose it, fourth grade!
SKYLAR
This museum is gigantic!
ALEX
How long is this field trip gonna be, anyway?
And do we get a snack?
BAILEY
JUNO
Wait, where’s Naomi? Excuse me, Ms. Chan, Naomi’s not here yet.
MS. CHAN
Don’t worry, Juno. I’m sure she’ll be here. Naomi’s always on top of things.
(They head to another part of the museum. After a moment, NAOMI MCPHERSON, 10, sprints in, out of breath. #2 – PERFECT/NOT begins.)
PERFECT/NOT
NAOMI: (calls to offstage) Mom, I'm late, just go! No, don't get out of the car, I don't need a hug! Yes, it's all good, it's perfect!
(NAOMI:) (to the audience) It's deÞnitely not perfect.
when my mom asked, I
yes ter day was my
worst day in years! (As the song continues, we go back to yesterday and watch the action as it unfolds in the school. NAOMI is there with her CLASSMATES and MS. CHAN.)
(#3 – PERFECT/NOT (PLAYOFF) begins. We are back at the museum. MS. CHAN and the rest of the STUDENTS “see” NAOMI.)
MS. CHAN
Naomi! There you are! Is everything okay?
Sure, perfect.
(She looks at the audience. Not.)
(JUNO, BAILEY, ALEX, and SKYLAR pull NAOMI off to the side to talk to her.)
Hi, Naomi. I’m sorry about your turtles essay.
Thanks.
NAOMI
JUNO
I’m sure you’ll do great next time.
BAILEY
Or at least not so terrible as last time. (A beat.)
SKYLAR
And you probably won’t break out crying again—
NAOMI
Can we please not talk about it?!! (a beat)
At least I know one thing: today is a field trip, and field trips do not have essays.
(They head back toward MS. CHAN and the rest of the STUDENTS.)
MS. CHAN
Okay, class, we have a super fun exercise to do! An essay! (#4 – AN ESSAY begins.)
STUDENTS
What?!
MS. CHAN
We’ll visit the “History Through Time” exhibit: “13 American Women Who Changed the World,” and for tomorrow you’ll write a paper on how these women inspired you to follow your own dream.
BAILEY
Why do we need a museum of women’s history, anyway? Can’t it be history history?
MUSEUM TOUR GUIDE
Women are history history, they just often get left out. (#5 – THEY CHANGED THE WORLD begins.)
THEY CHANGED THE WORLD
MS. CHAN: And there are so many more important stories to tell!
Patriotic March
(MS. CHAN:)
They're in cre di ble,
(Big musical finish! MS. CHAN heads off; the MUSEUM GOERS and MUSEUM EMPLOYEES disperse. NAOMI talks to her friends.)
NAOMI
I can’t do this essay. It’s impossible!
ALEX
It’s not that hard, just write it.
JUNO
Besides, you already know what you want to be when you grow up. An astronaut.
NAOMI
I don’t know...
BAILEY
Are you kidding? “I’m Naomi, blah blah, planets, satellites, blah blah...”
JUNO
“Neil Armstrong, Mary Jamison—”
NAOMI
Mae Jemison.
SKYLAR
Exactly. And you’re great at math!
NAOMI
I just... I don’t wanna say I’m going to be something all amazing and then be a loser! And if I can’t write an essay now, how am I gonna do it in middle school and high school and college and—
ALEX
Whoa, whoa! We’re only in fourth grade!
BAILEY
But we do have a lot of essays ahead of us.
NAOMI
Ugh!!... What are you gonna write about?
JUNO
I want to be a pro soccer player.
SKYLAR
Electrical engineer! And dancer!
ALEX Pilot!
BAILEY
I’m gonna be an influencer. And then president. (to the group) Will you follow me? I just have to convince my parents to get me a phone first!
(#6 – PERFECT/NOT (REPRISE) begins.)
PERFECT/NOT (REPRISE)
(They head off. NAOMI, alone, contemplates the portraits of SONIA SOTOMAYOR, FLORENCE GRIFFITH JOYNER, and SALLY RIDE.)
Slow, Introspective
& # # 4 4 # 4
(SCENE 2: TIME TRAVEL)
TIME 1, TIME 2, TIME 3: (booming voices offstage) YOUR WISH IS GRANTED!
(TIME 1, TIME 2, and TIME 3 leap onstage. They are children, siblings who work and play off each other seamlessly.)
TIME 3: It's time for some Time time!
(Lights ßash and swirl. Sounds bend. NAOMI feels like the stage is tilting –thrown to one side, then the other.)
NAOMI: What's happening?!
(ENSEMBLE swirls around her, creating chaos.)
(SCENE 3: SONIA SOTOMAYOR) (Suddenly, the effects stop. Up ahead is a painting of SONIA SOTOMAYOR.)
SONIA SOTOMAYOR: I have never had to face anything that could overwhelm the native optimism and stubborn perseverance I was blessed with. U
NAOMI
(double take)
Uh, o-kayy. Am I still in the museum?
TIME ONE
Welcome, time traveler, to 1961!
TIME TWO
A great moment in women’s history!
NAOMI
What? For real? Who are you?—
TIME ONE
You’ll find out.
TIME ONE, TIME TWO, TIME THREE
All in due TIME!
(TIME ONE, TIME TWO, and TIME THREE disappear, and YOUNG SONIA, age 7, in a Yankees cap and holding a magnifying glass, appears. Other BRONX LOCALS are hanging around, chatting and playing street games.)
That was weird.
(#7 – ANOTHER SOLUTION (PART 1) begins.)
ANOTHER SOLUTION (PART 1)
YOUNG SONIA: ¡Hola! Have you seen anyone with my plate of arroz con dulce? I'm sure it's my brother, but I need proof.
NAOMI: What? Where are we?
YOUNG SONIA: The Bronx. I sense you're surprised. Which crosses you off as a suspect.
NAOMI: The Bronx?! I was just at the museum! Wait, I know you, you're...
YOUNG SONIA: Yes! The great Detective Sonia! No mystery is too hard, no adventure too... adventurous! Nancy Drew wishes she had my head for clues! I can solve any problem!
NAOMI: Any problem?
b 4 4 . . . . 8 Sneaky, Swung Eighths
YOUNG SONIA: Absolutely. You know what the key is?
NAOMI: I wish I did.
YOUNG SONIA: Persistence plus ßexibility! If one thing doesn't work, you just Þnd...
SONIA:) (YOUNG SONIA:) ANOTHER
(SONIA'S PARENT and DR. FISHER enter.)
SONIA'S PARENT: Sonia! Listen to Dr. Fisher! He has something important to say.
DR. FISHER: Sonia, those times you fainted?
(DR. FISHER:) You have diabetes. It's basically too much sugar in your blood.
(DR. FISHER)
It’s very serious, you’ll have to take shots of insulin and watch what you eat.
YOUNG SONIA
I always watch what I eat. Otherwise, I’d drop it before it gets in my mouth.
NAOMI
I don’t think that’s what he means.
(#8 – ANOTHER SOLUTION (PART 2) begins.)
DR. FISHER
And you won’t be able to be a detective. It’s too dangerous.
YOUNG SONIA
What? I can’t be a detective? What do I do now?
NAOMI
Um... find another solution?
(#9 – ANOTHER SOLUTION (PART 3) begins.)
ANOTHER SOLUTION (PART 3)
SONIA'S PARENT: Sonia! Perry Mason está pasando. I put it on for you.
YOUNG SONIA: ¡Gracias!
NAOMI: What's that?
YOUNG SONIA: You don't know the Perry Mason TV show? He's the greatest defense lawyer ever. He takes the hardest cases and solves them to defend the innocent!
(YOUNG SONIA:) Wait
(The BRONX LOCALS give YOUNG SONIA an encouraging gesture (a look, a pat on the back, etc.) as they exit.)
NAOMI: Wow. You really do bounce back from things.
YOUNG SONIA: It's still hard. But you've just got to Þnd a different way around it.
NAOMI: I don't know if I can do that. YOUNG SONIA: Let me be the judge of that.
(YOUNG SONIA:) Hey... judge. I like the sound of that. Well, I've got to go. I guess because of my diabetes my brother can have my arroz con dulce. I'll have to Þnd a new favorite dessert!
(YOUNG SONIA waves to NAOMI and exits. NAOMI is left alone onstage. She is quite confused.)
SCENE 4: TAKING TIME
Whoa. What was THAT?
(TIME ONE, TIME TWO, and TIME THREE jump back onstage.)
TIME ONE THAT was the magic of TIME!
Who are you?
We, my Little Acorn, are Time!
We heal all wounds!
TIME TWO
TIME THREE
A stitch in us saves nine!
NAOMI
Is this like some interactive museum tour?
TIME ONE
Interactive, yes! Museum, no, Little Acorn.
NAOMI
Why do you keep calling me that?
TIME ONE
Because that’s what you are!
TIME TWO
An acorn that will grow into a tree.
TIME THREE
You’re a calf, a kitten, a kid!
NAOMI
I know I’m a kid.
TIME THREE
And you will grow up to be a cow, a cat, a goat!
NAOMI
What are you talking about?!
TIME ONE, TIME TWO, TIME THREE TIME TRAVEL! Ta-dah!
(On the “Ta-dah,” TIME ONE, TIME TWO, and TIME THREE do their signature synchronized move that they will repeat throughout the show.)
TIME ONE
You are on a journey through history! We are the living embodiment of Time!
NAOMI
(skeptical)
You. You’re Time? But you’re just kids. How can you be Time?
TIME TWO
Oh, we’ve been around forever. We were there when Abraham Lincoln chopped down that cherry tree.
TIME THREE
And when Cleopatra ruled England.
NAOMI
Those never happened. You’re not Time at all, are you?!
TIME ONE
We are, I swear! Sort of! You’ve heard of Father Time?
TIME TWO
Our dad.
TIME THREE
Mother Time’s our mom.
TIME ONE
We are just not as experienced as they are. But we can help you, I know we can.
NAOMI
Help me? How?
TIME ONE
To be anywhere else, just like you wished!
TIME TWO
Plus, if we can help you, maybe we can prove to our parents we can tackle bigger problems!
TIME THREE
Like fixing the Leaning Tower of Pizza. Why would they make a tower out of pizza anyway?
NAOMI
Yeah, maybe you need to do some research on that one. So, what, I just keep traveling through time forever?
TIME ONE
No, not forever. Just until you’ve figured out your essay.
NAOMI What? I can’t!
TIME TWO
You wanted to know how these women did what they did. Go ask them for yourself!
NAOMI
I think I feel a little sick to my stomach.
TIME THREE
Oh, well in that case...
(#10 – APGAR PORTRAIT begins. TIME ONE, TIME TWO, and TIME THREE gesture – a swirl of time travel happens again, sending NAOMI spinning. Then TIME ONE, TIME TWO, and TIME THREE gesture again, revealing...)
SCENE 5: DR. VIRGINIA APGAR
(The portrait/statue of DR. VIRGINIA APGAR appears. The beeping sounds of a hospital in the background.)
DR. APGAR (PAINTING)
Nobody, but nobody, is going to stop breathing on me.
Who’s she?
Dr. Virginia Apgar!
My mom’s a doctor.
NAOMI
TIME ONE
NAOMI
TIME ONE
That’s cool! But Dr. Apgar did it in the 1930s. Most women weren’t able to go to college then, forget about placing third overall in her medical school! Which she did! She was trained as a surgeon, but then her mentor told her not to go into surgery.
(The painting fades to reveal DR. APGAR in scrubs. They are in a hospital, full of DOCTORS, NURSES, and a few PATIENTS. She heads over to another group of DOCTORS, including DR. WHIPPLE.)
DR. APGAR
Dr. Whipple, you know I’m fully qualified to be a surgeon.
DR. WHIPPLE
Qualified, yes. I’ve never seen a brighter or more determined doctor. But...
DR. APGAR
But what?
DR. WHIPPLE
There are too many surgeons in New York City. And it’s the Great Depression!
DR. APGAR
I’ve wanted to be a doctor since I was a girl. I’m not stopping.
DR. WHIPPLE
Don’t stop. Go into a field where you can change the world.
DR. APGAR
Which is?
(DR. MAY steps in.)
Anesthesiology!
Anesthesiology?
DR. MAY
DR. APGAR
TIME THREE
Anna-whosa-whatsa-wee?
NAOMI
Seriously?! Anesthesiology’s where they put you to sleep during surgery, so you don’t feel pain and stuff.
TIME THREE
I knew that. Totally knew that.
DR. MAY
We have a crisis in surgery. We can’t keep patients asleep long enough to do difficult operations. You can make a difference, change everything!
TIME ONE
Dr. Apgar went where the opportunity was. She became Anesthesiologist-in-Chief at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital. And then she noticed something...
(A NURSE enters, carrying a baby.)
NURSE
It’s a girl! I’m taking her to the nursery.
(The NURSE heads off, but DR. APGAR stops them.)
DR. APGAR
Wait! They didn’t even look at her! Bring her back! (looks at the baby) She’s blue. Non-responsive. We need to get her more oxygen, now!
NAOMI
Whoa.
(DR. APGAR takes the baby away for more examination.)
TIME ONE
That baby’s going to be just fine. Because of Dr. Apgar.
(DR. APGAR returns. NAOMI edges up to her. This is the first time they talk to each other.)
NAOMI
That was amazing. How did you do that?
DR. APGAR
Oh, it’s not a big deal. I mean, for the baby it is. The moment we’re born is probably the most dangerous in our whole life. But what I did?
(shrugs)
I stay curious and notice things. I’ve always been curious. When I was young I built radios with my dad. Now I build my own musical instruments!
NAOMI
Cool!
DR. APGAR
You know what I noticed? Nobody even looks at the baby after it’s born. They just say congratulations and send it off to the nursery!
NAOMI
What would you even look for? All babies look the same to me. All wrinkly and crying.
DR. APGAR
It’s pretty easy, really...
(#11 – THAT’S THE SCORE begins.)
THAT’S THE SCORE
ENSEMBLE:)
DR. APGAR: For each of the Þve categories, give the baby a score: zero, one, or two, and then add them all up. If a baby scores a seven or higher, they're doing great. Four to six, we'll help them along. Zero to three - I'd call it an emergency!
well you are!
Shout it
(DR. APGAR and the HOSPITAL ENSEMBLE exit.)
NAOMI
She wasn’t even trying to invent anything. She didn’t mean to change the world; she was just curious and spoke up.
TIME ONE Precisely!
NAOMI
But staying curious? That’s gonna help me write an essay? At essays I’m just hopeless.
TIME TWO
Don’t say that, you’re not hopeless! There’s always hope! In fact, you’ll find it up ahead.
TIME THREE
Now we’ve gotta go! We fly when we’re having fun!
(TIME ONE, TIME TWO, and TIME THREE disappear, leaving NAOMI alone onstage.)
NAOMI
Wait!... Great. Now I’m alone and lost in history! With homework!
SCENE 6: HARRIET TUBMAN
(NAOMI)
Hope... Time said I’d find hope. I don’t feel hope, I feel cold. Why is it so dark in time travel? Are those crickets? (The sound of crickets and frogs. Lights dim, stars twinkle. NAOMI hugs herself from the cold and fear. And then she hears rustling.) Is that... Who’s there?
(#12 – TUBMAN PORTRAIT begins. Behind NAOMI, the painting of HARRIET TUBMAN appears.)
HARRIET TUBMAN (PAINTING)
I should fight for my liberty as long as my strength lasted.
NAOMI
Oh wow.
(The painting fades to reveal HARRIET TUBMAN behind it. HARRIET is startled to find NAOMI.) You’re... you’re Harriet Tubman!
HARRIET TUBMAN
Shhhh! Quiet! You want to let the whole world know? There’s a bounty on my head forty thousand dollars strong!
I’m sorry, I...
NAOMI
HARRIET TUBMAN
If you’re with me, you shush, understand? Anyone finds us, we’re taken south! I’d make ’em kill me first. But don’t you worry. I haven’t lost a single passenger, not about to now. There’s a station up ahead.
NAOMI
A station? On the Underground Railroad!
HARRIET TUBMAN
Hush, I said.
(#13 – ESCAPE begins.)
(A dog barks. We hear voices. The ENSEMBLE enters and fills the stage, standing with their backs to the audience, giving off shadows resembling a forest. One of the ENSEMBLE holds up a lighted lantern, but we don’t see their face.)
(HARRIET TUBMAN)
Run, child! Through the stream!
(HARRIET grabs NAOMI’s hand, navigates a stream, heads toward the lit lantern, and finds a safe hiding spot next to it behind a rock. The voices fade.)
HARRIET TUBMAN
Take a few breaths, we’re safe now. They’ve headed down the road toward town.
NAOMI
Was that...? Are we...?
HARRIET TUBMAN
You’re safe. What’s your name, I can’t call you child all the way to Canada.
NAOMI
Naomi.
HARRIET TUBMAN
Naomi. I like that. Mine is—
NAOMI
Harriet. I know.
HARRIET TUBMAN
My given name’s Araminta. They called me “Minty.” My parents come from Ashanti people, the Ashanti Empire.
NAOMI
I didn’t know that. Wait, you said Canada?
HARRIET TUBMAN
Six hundred fifty miles to St. Catherine’s, Ontario.
NAOMI
We have to walk to Canada? I thought the North had free states.
HARRIET TUBMAN
There’s free and there’s free. You’ve heard of the Fugitive Slave Law? They can pick you up in any state in the Union and take you back into slavery. You don’t get a day in court, even if you’re a free citizen!
NAOMI
Wow. How do you keep doing it? How do you keep going?
HARRIET TUBMAN
How could I not?
(#14 – HOPE begins.)
(HARRIET) ...Tell you the truth, I have hope.
bird sing ing, the Moderate Ballad
song that it's bring ing. The - -
mu sic fresh as the air.
sight of a moun tain, with
(Through the rest of the song, the ENSEMBLE will periodically hold up lanterns, creating signals and lighting the path for HARRIET and NAOMI to travel. We will never see their faces, but we will deÞnitely hear their voices.)
(HARRIET:)
ENSEMBLE:
(HARRIET:) When I crossed that line to Pennsylvania the Þrst time, free, I looked at my hands to see if I was the same person. There was such a glory over everything. The sun came like gold through the trees, and over the Þelds, and I felt like I was in Heaven.
Più Mosso (HARRIET:)
ENSEMBLE:
(ENSEMBLE:)
# # # #
(HARRIET and NAOMI have completed their journey. All lanterns are turned off, except one on the opposite side of the stage.)
NAOMI: Thank you. I'll keep hoping. But my problems feel kind of small compared to all this.
HARRIET: Well, you're kind of small, it makes sense. Each person's got their own road, you'll Þnd yours.
NAOMI: How do you know?
# # # #
HARRIET: Haven't lost a passenger yet. (HARRIET points to the lone lit lantern across the stage.) This must be your next stop.
# # # #
(NAOMI heads to the lantern as HARRIET and the ENSEMBLE exit. NAOMI reaches the lantern just as the person holding it turns around. It is TIME TWO.)
TIME TWO Well?
NAOMI
I understand. I guess the least I can do is try.
(#15 – SONIA ENTRANCE begins.)
SCENE 7: SONIA AT PRINCETON
(TIME TWO smiles. TIME ONE and TIME THREE join NAOMI and TIME TWO onstage. TIME ONE, TIME TWO, and TIME THREE gesture and the lights change, and we are on a college campus bustling with PRINCETON STUDENTS.
SONIA SOTOMAYOR, now 20, comes striding across to a door, dressed like a student from 1974.)
Hey! That’s Sonia!
NAOMI
(to TIME ONE, TIME TWO, and TIME THREE) When are we?
TIME TWO
I’d say about 1974. She’s a student at Princeton University.
NAOMI
Wow!
(ADULT SONIA raises her hand to knock but then thinks twice. She paces, nervous, in front of the door.) Sonia! Sonia, hi!
ADULT SONIA
Oh, hi. Hello. I’m sorry, I’m not really focusing well right now.
NAOMI
What’s wrong?
ADULT SONIA
What’s wrong? That’s the door of the president of Princeton! I can’t go in there and confront him, can I?
NAOMI
Well I don’t know—
ADULT SONIA
But on the other hand, there’s only 31 Puerto Rican and 27 Chicano students at the whole college, out of thousands of students! There needs to be more representation, he needs to hear that, right?
NAOMI
I definitely—
ADULT SONIA
But who am I to go in and talk to the president of Princeton?! Maybe I should just let things work out on their own, not make a fuss.
(This time NAOMI doesn’t answer.) No, really, I need an answer this time.
NAOMI
Oh! I mean, you’re gonna be on the Supreme Court someday, the highest court in America. Of course you can go in there!
ADULT SONIA
Supreme Court?! There’s never been a female justice on the Supreme Court!
NAOMI
There’ve been six, including— (TIME THREE pops their head onstage.)
TIME THREE
(to NAOMI)
Psst! Naomi! This is 1974. The first woman doesn’t get appointed to the Supreme Court until 1981.
ADULT SONIA
I’m just working hard to be a lawyer. Maybe a judge one day.
NAOMI
I think you could go further than that! And anyways, you always sound convincing to me. Just go talk to him and... I don’t know... be Sonia.
ADULT SONIA
I do know how to do that. Thank you, Naomi.
(SONIA knocks and goes through the door. SONIA talks to the PRESIDENT OF PRINCETON.)
PRESIDENT OF PRINCETON
Hello Miss Soto-may-er.
ADULT SONIA
It’s Sotomayor, sir. With all due respect, Princeton needs to change. There is not one Puerto Rican or Chicano professor, not one class on Puerto Rican or Chicano cultures!
PRESIDENT OF PRINCETON
I’m sorry, but I can’t just hire faculty because you ask me to. This is the way it is.
ADULT SONIA
Respectfully, it’s not the way it should be. On behalf of the Latino students here, we’ll be filing a letter of complaint.
PRESIDENT OF PRINCETON
You go right ahead.
(SONIA leaves the office. She’s shaking with adrenaline.)
ADULT SONIA
I can’t believe I did that!
You were amazing! (beat)
NAOMI
He said no, though. (#16 – ANOTHER SOLUTION (REPRISE) begins.)
ANOTHER SOLUTION (REPRISE)
ADULT SONIA: I heard. We don't have change yet. The key word is "yet." I'll just have to Þnd...
NAOMI: (rolling her eyes a bit) Don't tell me... BOTH: Another solution!
(PRINCETON STUDENTS gather as SONIA sings.)
(SONIA and PRINCETON STUDENTS exit with a sense of purpose, excited to be fighting for what is right. TIME ONE, TIME TWO, and TIME THREE enter.)
NAOMI
Bye, Sonia!
(to TIME ONE, TIME TWO, and TIME THREE) But what good is a letter of complaint? They’ll just keep doing what they’re doing.
TIME TWO
Actually, in response they added a class on Puerto Rican history and recruited more Latino students and faculty, thousands in the years since she walked through that door. Princeton University, founded in 1746, changed because Sonia from the Bronx spoke up.
Huh.
NAOMI
SCENE 8: DOWN TIME
TIME THREE
Okay! Who’s next?! I’m really hitting my stride here! Pow! Supreme Court justice! Bam! Medical innovator! You wanna meet an undercover reporter? Or one of the sparks of the Civil Rights Movement? NAOMI
Can we just... can we just... not?
TIME THREE
What’s wrong? Wait, are we not doing this whole magical journey thing right?
NAOMI
No, no, that’s not it. I just need a little—
TIME ONE, TIME TWO, TIME THREE Time? Ta-da!
NAOMI
Ha. These women are amazing, but every time I think about writing the essay, it just seems impossible. I know I should push through, but... I wish I could talk to somebody about this.
TIME ONE
How about an adult you trust? Like your teacher?
NAOMI
Ms. Chan? She’s nice, but isn’t that cheating? Like I already failed?
TIME TWO
What?! No, that’s her job, to help you!
NAOMI
It’s like I’m supposed to be perfect at things right away. Or at least really, really good. Otherwise why do it?
TIME THREE
No one can do something perfect the first time. There is no perfect. Good enough is perfect.
NAOMI
It doesn’t feel that way. (beat)
What if these women are just naturally amazing and I’m... not.
TIME ONE
I think you need to learn to love yourself. Even when you fail.
NAOMI
Hey I love myself. I mean, I like myself. Most of the time.
TIME THREE (skeptical) Mmhmm. (beat)
Okay, I know what you need. Let us introduce you to somebody who really knows how to do it.
NAOMI
Who’s that?
(#17 – JOYNER PORTRAIT begins. TIME THREE gestures, and time travel swirls again. Then TIME THREE gestures again, revealing...)
SCENE 9: FLORENCE GRIFFITH JOYNER
(The portrait of FLORENCE GRIFFITH JOYNER running with an American flag.)
FLORENCE (PAINTING)
When anyone tells me I can’t do anything... I’m just not listening anymore.
NAOMI
I know her. That’s Florence Griffith Joyner. She won Olympic gold medals for running.
TIME THREE
Four of them. For over thirty years she’s held the records for the fastest woman ever to run, ever! She also designed her own running gear – you think I’d look good in a one-legged running suit?
NAOMI
Wow. She’s just a winner I guess. What’s she got to do with me?
TIME ONE
Aha! Come on!
(The painting fades, and FLORENCE is on the starting blocks of a race, along with other RUNNERS. A CROWD watches with rapture.)
RACE ANNOUNCER
Runners on your marks. Get set. Go!
(#18 – RACE begins. FLORENCE and the other RUNNERS run in slow motion.)
TIME THREE
We’re running too! Come on!
(TIME THREE pulls NAOMI into the race, running alongside the RUNNERS in slo-mo.)
(to audience)
(TIME THREE)
I’ve slowed it down for you mere mortals. She’s in the goldmedal race in the women’s 200-meter sprint at the 1984 Olympics. You see what she’s doing? Straight back at high speed, never looks back—
NAOMI
This is crazy! Am I running in the Olympics?! In slow motion?!!
RACE ANNOUNCER
At the end of the turn... Griffith ahead, holding her lead on Ottey... approaching the finish...
NAOMI
And of course she’s gonna win!
TIME ONE
Not so fast!
(At the last moment, VALERIE BRISCO-HOOKS pulls ahead of FLORENCE, winning the race.)
RACE ANNOUNCER
And it’s Valerie Brisco-Hooks first! Florence Griffith in second! Merlene Ottey in third!
NAOMI
What? She came in second?
TIME ONE
True story. She got a silver medal in the 1984 Olympics. And then silver again in the 1987 Championships. She’ll have to wait another year for a shot at the Olympics again. (beat)
Let’s fast-forward a few days. She’s back at it, training again. Go talk to her.
NAOMI
(to FLORENCE)
Excuse me, Miss Flo-Jo?
FLORENCE
It’s Florence, sweetie.
NAOMI
Really? Can I ask you a question?
FLORENCE
Of course. But make it speedy. I’ve got to get back to my job at the bank.
You work at a bank?
NAOMI
FLORENCE
Sure. I need to make money to live, right? I train in the morning, at lunch, and after work.
NAOMI
Why? I thought you were just a natural athlete.
FLORENCE
When I first started, my technique was all wrong. I’ve had to work hard to get this fast. (counting on her nails) I run four miles a day, lift weights for my legs...
NAOMI
And whoa. Those are amazing fingernails.
FLORENCE
You like? Red, white, and blue, and this one’s gold! I got disqualified from a relay once because they said my nails were too long! Heck with that, I like my nails!... So what’s your question?
NAOMI
Um... when you lose, I mean come in second... how do you keep working? How do you know you’re good enough? I mean, of course YOU’RE good enough—
FLORENCE
Hey, sweetie, you’re good enough too. You’re great no matter where you are. And if you’re not your number one fan, who will be?
(#19 – RUN MY RACE begins.)
RUN MY RACE
ENSEMBLE
FLORENCE: Those outside voices? I just don't listen. People questioned my record – said I was helped by a strong wind. So you know what I did? I ran it again and broke the record again.
(FLORENCE:) People said I couldn't run with my nails? I added jewels to them! NAOMI: Nice. (A CROWD joins, cheering the RUNNERS as they train and run.)
RUNNING ENSEMBLE:
What's in side us will
sure ly guide us. I'll -
FLORENCE: (smiling) It's not about being the best. It's about being your own personal best. I've got some more work to do...
(FLORENCE, RUNNERS, and CROWD exit. NAOMI and TIME ONE, TIME TWO, and TIME THREE are onstage.) NAOMI
(sucking it up, to be brave) Okay. I can do this. Positive thoughts. Here we go... (#20 – RIDE PORTRAIT begins.)
(NAOMI steps forward... TIME ONE, TIME TWO, and TIME THREE gesture for the painting of SALLY RIDE to appear.)
SCENE 10: SALLY RIDE
SALLY RIDE (PAINTING)
You can’t be what you can’t see. (SALLY RIDE steps out in a NASA uniform and smiles at NAOMI.)
Hi. You wanna come with me?
NAOMI
Sally Ride! Where are you going?
SALLY RIDE
Space.
(NAOMI gulps, nods.)
Not directly. We’ve got a lot of work first. The mission leaves in June of 1983. You up for it?
NAOMI
You mean, really go to space? Zero gravity? Look back at the Earth?
SALLY RIDE
That’s the plan.
NAOMI
I bet you were dreaming of this your whole life.
SALLY RIDE
Not really. I wanted to be a pro tennis player.
NAOMI
So, I don’t need to decide right now what I’m going to be? I don’t have to be perfect at it already?
SALLY RIDE
Of course not, you’re a kid! You don’t have to be perfect at anything. You can mess up and learn and grow. But you know what else you can do?
NAOMI
What’s that?
Dream. (holds out her hand) Let’s go.
SALLY RIDE
(#21 – ISN’T IT COOL? begins.)
ISN’T IT COOL?
(TIME 1, TIME 2, and TIME 3 gesture, and time travel swirls again. The time travel swirl stops as an ASTRONAUT TRAINER comes onstage, along with other NASA EMPLOYEES and astronaut CADETS.)
Magical Chimes
TRAINER: Welcome to Astronaut Training, cadets! Please report to your classrooms.
NAOMI: Classrooms?!
SALLY: You bet. Lots of studying to do!
Freely
sics and mech a nics,
get where I'm go ing, but I'm (SALLY,
NAOMI: Whew. There's all this to learn? And I thought I had homework!
SALLY: And that's just the classroom side. Now we've got to do the physical tests.
NAOMI: The what now?
NAOMI: Whew! Thank goodness that's over.
SALLY: Over? Not yet. Now we have to face reporters.
REPORTER 1: Miss Ride! Miss Ride! Will it be different to be a woman in space?
SALLY: Well, is it different to be a woman on Earth?
REPORTER 2: Miss Ride! As the Þrst American woman in space, are you going to be able to handle it? Are you going to cry?
NAOMI: Hey, that's not cool!
SALLY: I'm going to do my job.
NAOMI: (to SALLY) Why did they ask those silly questions?
SALLY: You know, that's the Þrst good question I've heard today! (They climb into the rocket ship and prepare for takeoff!)
SALLY: Wanna see something really cool? I helped develop the space shuttle's mechanical arm. But it's frozen from how cold it is in space. But if we adjust it, and point it at the sun, the sun will melt the ice.
(SALLY heads out into space and repositions the docking arm. Meanwhile, TIME 1, TIME 2, and TIME 3 ßoat by onstage, giving a thumbs up. SALLY returns.)
(The sound of a space shuttle landing as SALLY and NAOMI return to Earth. NAOMI gives SALLY a hug. NAOMI stands proud.)
NAOMI
(talking herself up)
I can do this... I can do this!
TIME ONE
You can do this!
TIME TWO
Hey, that means we did it too!
TIME THREE
Well smell us, Copernicus!
(TIME ONE, TIME TWO, and TIME THREE do a celebration dance!)
TIME ONE
Let’s get back to your field trip.
(#22 – VOICES begins. NAOMI is starting to come back to her class’s reality and hears their voices as if they are coming from a long distance.)
JUNO
Ms. Chan, how many words does our essay have to be?
ALEX
Do we have to read it out loud in class?
BAILEY
And how are we supposed to be like them anyway?
SKYLAR
I mean, we’re just kids! They’re like super-famous grown-ups!
(NAOMI falters. TIME ONE, TIME TWO, and TIME THREE see it.)
TIME ONE
(FLORENCE appears as the STUDENTS fade away.)
FLORENCE
Those voices, think positive ones.
NAOMI (struggling)
I’m trying.
(FLORENCE disappears.)
TIME ONE
Remember what Sally Ride said.
(SALLY RIDE appears.)
SALLY RIDE
You can dream. (SALLY RIDE disappears.)
NAOMI
I know, but... they’re right, I’m just a kid! It’s one thing if you’re all grown up, it’s different for a kid in real life! It’s too hard!
TIME TWO
You don’t have to be perfect, you can just try.
NAOMI
I’m just one little girl by myself. What can one girl do? I can’t. I can’t.
TIME THREE
You can—
NAOMI (mini-tantrum)
I’m not gonna do it! I’m not! Leave me alone!
(Silence.)
TIME ONE
Okay. I guess we failed too, then. Maybe it’s time to give up. (a long beat; then, kindly)
You know what? No. We’re persisting. You think a kid can’t do anything to change the world? You just watch!
NAOMI
Where are you taking me?
TIME ONE
New Orleans, 1960. You’ll see what a little girl can do.
(
SCENE 11: RUBY BRIDGES
(Music indicates another time swirl. The painting of RUBY BRIDGES appears. It fades to reveal a girl, even smaller than NAOMI, in a starched white dress. Angry voices offstage shout unintelligible insults. The ENSEMBLE forms a line upstage with their backs turned to RUBY and NAOMI. They represent the forces against her but are not the actual mob. RUBY walks. She takes a few steps, then shakes her head. Daunted but not defeated, she decides to pause, rest emotionally, and recharge.)
RUBY
I can’t do it right now. I need to stop.
(RUBY sits on the curb of the street.)
TIME ONE
(to NAOMI)
Now Naomi, this is a different time and a different place than you’re used to. You might see or hear things that are just... awful. But you are safe. Remember that – and don’t forget that this really happened.
(NAOMI nods, understanding, and approaches RUBY with sympathy.)
NAOMI
Hi. I’m Naomi.
I’m Ruby.
Are you okay?
(shakes her head)
RUBY
NAOMI
RUBY
I can’t keep doing it every day. The yelling, the rock throwing. I’m scared.
NAOMI
Somebody’s throwing rocks at you? Who?
RUBY
Them! All those people screaming. The first time I saw the crowd I though it was Mardi Gras, there were so many people. Then it turned out they were yelling at me.
Where are you going?
NAOMI
RUBY
First grade. This school has only ever had White students before, they don’t want me to go to the same school with them.
NAOMI
A mob is throwing rocks because you’re going to first grade? I’m in fourth grade, I’ll tell them a thing or two!
RUBY
Don’t! My mother says it’s best to ignore them. But they’re so mean. The ladies up front, they’re called the Cheerleaders. They’re the worst. One lady says she’s going to poison my food. Another had a coffin with a little Black doll in it.
NAOMI
That’s awful!
RUBY
I love my teacher, but I’m the only student in my class.
The only student? Why?
NAOMI
RUBY
They made up a test, and made it really hard because they didn’t want any kids who look like me to pass it. But I passed it anyway. Three other girls and I – they’re at another school. I hear a few White students come too, but they have to meet in a different class.
NAOMI
But where’s the rest of your school?
RUBY
They stay home. To not be with me.
(#24 – WALK ON begins.)
(NAOMI doesn't know what to do.) (RUBY:) Sometimes I just wanna stop, you know? (NAOMI gives RUBY a hug.)
(While still turned away, they hold up signs from history against desegregation. “Go Back Where You Came From.”)
NAOMI: Is that the school up ahead? Do you want me to go with you?
RUBY: Thanks, but this is something I do myself. You've got your own school to get back to.
NAOMI: How do you do it?
RUBY: My mama says, "Always hold your head up high."
(RUBY walks. NAOMI watches, and both sing as the ENSEMBLE line blocks the school doors. A Þnal sign reads 'STOP RUINING OUR SCHOOL.')
(The ENSEMBLE disperses, leaving a walkway for RUBY.)
(RUBY goes inside the school.) NAOMI
That is the bravest thing I have ever seen. No more excuses... (#25 – PERFECT/NOT (REPRISE 2) begins.)
just have to aim for my
(NAOMI:) (to the sky) Okay, Time, you did it! I'm ready to go home. TIME 1: (jumping onstage) Your wish is granted! Leaning Tower of Pizza, here we come! (TIME 1, TIME 2, and TIME 3 do a dramatic, acrobatic exit. As lights ßash for time travel, NAOMI walks steadily. – SCENE 12: BACK HOME – NAOMI returns to the museum – the portraits, ELEMENTARY SCHOOL STUDENTS, MUSEUM EMPLOYEES, and MUSEUM GOERS are all there. She sees her friends and MS. CHAN.)
Ms. Chan! Ms. Chan!
Oh, hi, Naomi.
NAOMI
MS. CHAN
JUNO
Are you ready to go into the exhibit?
NAOMI
I’ve already been to the exhibit.
You what?
We just left you!
BAILEY
ALEX
NAOMI
I was wondering if you could help me with my essay...
MS. CHAN
Of course!
NAOMI
I think I know what I’m going to write: I love the idea of being an astronaut—maybe someday I’ll do something else, but right now it’s my goal. (regarding the paintings)
Like Harriet Tubman, I will have hope. Like Virginia Apgar, I will stay curious. Like Florence Griffith Joyner, I will work toward my personal best. When I’m stuck, I can find other solutions like Sonia Sotomayor. Like Sally Ride, I will dream, and like Ruby Bridges, I will walk on.
MS. CHAN
Wow. Very nice. I don’t think you needed my help at all!
NAOMI (relieved) I did it.
MS. CHAN
But you know the essay’s not due until tomorrow.
NAOMI
Oh. Well you could always give me extra credit for getting it in early?
MS. CHAN
Nice try. I just have to ask, what changed? What made you see all of this?
(#26 – WALK ON (FINALE) begins.)
WALK ON (FINALE)
NAOMI: I just needed a little... Time. (MS. CHAN looks at her curiously. TIME 1, TIME 2, and TIME 3 duck out from backstage and wink at the audience. NAOMI sings, joined by the HISTORICAL WOMEN she met. As she does, projections of footage of the real women play.)
Growing in ConÞdence
If
Più Mosso
RUBY: So if anyone ever tells you no...
SONIA: If anyone ever says your voice isn't important...
