Darlin' Hero, The

One-Acts 20

By: Charles Kray
Cast: 7 M, 1 F, 2 flexible, extras
Performance Time: Approximately 30 minutes, 28 pgs.

FARCE. In a dilapidated funeral home in Dublin, Patrick and Mulligan sit beside the coffin of their dearly departed friend, Jake Kilrain, and drink to Jake’s final journey to the heavenly gates. Patrick and Mulligan have vowed to stay with the body until dawn, but when the whiskey runs out, the two head to Clancy’s pub and take Jake’s corpse with them. At the pub, they prop Jake up at the bar, and continue their drinking vigil without anyone noticing that Jake is deceased. When Clancy demands payment for the drinks, Patrick and Mulligan dash, leaving Jake with the tab. Enraged, Clancy slugs Jake and knocks him off the barstool, which makes everyone think Clancy’s blow has killed Jake. The shocking news of Jake’s death spurs round after round of drinks—all on the house. With each round of drinks, the story of Jake’s death changes until everyone is toasting Clancy as “the darlin’ hero.”

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Charles Kray is an award-winning playwright whose plays have been produced in regional and college theatres throughout the United States and Australia. Mr. Kray earned an MA in playwriting from UCLA, where he was awarded the MCA fellowship in creative writing. Mr. Kray lives in Carson, CA.