Snow in July
The stage is set as a comfy living room – sofas, armchairs, a table in the back with photos, a radio and other trinkets displayed on it, a standing lamp, a coat rack, all (fairly) beige and monochrome. Nothing in particular stands out. The room is messy – there are wrappers and crumpled papers on the floor, empty beer cans, clothes strewn etc. BEN, wearing a grey dressing gown, enters and turns on the lamp, yawning. He observes the mess of the room but does not react to it. Instead, he walks to the table, picks up a bottle of whiskey and pours himself a glass. Before drinking any, he picks up a photograph from the table and looks at it for a moment. Suddenly, he downs the whiskey, puts the photo back face down, pours himself another glass and exits.
For a moment, everything is still. Then, CLARA hurries onstage humming to herself, wearing a yellow summer dress. She immediately bustles over to the table to put the photo back upright before noticing the state of the room and huffing with exasperation. She begins to move around the room, clearing up the mess bit by bit until the room is much cleaner. As she works, she turns a radio on and begins to dance along to the music – ‘Gimme, Gimme, Gimme’ by ABBA - lost in her own bliss.
While she dances, Ben re-enters, now wearing black suit trousers, a white shirt and a black tie, glass of whiskey still in hand. In his reverie, Ben does not notice Clara at first, but the sight of her startles him. He looks stunned – somewhere between relieved and horrified.
BEN:
Clara?
Clara turns to him but continues to dance to the music. She beams.
CLARA:
Don’t you look dapper. Suits suit you, honey.
BEN:
What…
CLARA:
I’m away for five minutes and you’ve already let the place become a tip! What have I told you about hanging up your clothes? It’s not that hard, those coat hangers probably feel abandoned at this point. You know we’ve got company coming round today, we can’t just leave the place looking like this!
BEN:
What are you doing here?
Clara picks up a black blazer from the back of the sofa and holds it out to him. Ben looks at it for a moment before taking it and putting it on.
CLARA:
Tidying up your mess, what does it look like? (Pause.) Aren’t you happy to see me?
BEN:
Of course… of course I am.
CLARA:
Good. I was worried for a second there. (Gesturing to his glass.) A little toast to celebrate? It’s a little early, don’t you think?
Ben stares at her in stony silence.
CLARA (CONT.):
Well, each to their own, I guess. I would’ve popped the prosecco. Do we have any at the moment?
As she speaks, Clara walks and opens the curtains, letting in the morning light. The room brightens. Ben winces.
BEN:
Do you have to do that?
CLARA:
Oh, come on, it’s a beautiful day! Look!
BEN:
I’ve looked.
CLARA:
(Imitating him.) “I’ve looked,” he says. God, someone got out of bed on the wrong side today! Lighten up a bit, love.
Ben turns off the radio.
CLARA (CONT.):
Hey, I was listening to that!
BEN:
Yeah, well it was giving me a headache.
CLARA:
Party pooper. Come on, darling, just get those hips moving a bit, one little wiggle.
Clara tries to make him dance but he swats her hands away as she approaches. She looks at him reproachfully as he sits down on the sofa.
BEN:
Don’t.
CLARA:
(Shocked.) The man I married would never pass up an opportunity to boogie to ABBA. Who are you and what have you done with Ben?
BEN:
(To himself.) I wish I knew. (To Clara.) I’m not in the mood for dancing.
CLARA:
Well, what are you in the mood for then?
BEN:
Anything else.
(Pause.)
CLARA:
We could play a game! I think we have Articulate in the cupboard—
BEN:
Seriously. What is this? Why are you here?
CLARA:
I don’t know. You tell me.
She sits down beside him.
CLARA (CONT.):
I wanted to make sure you were okay.
BEN:
I’m fine.
CLARA:
“I’m fine,” he says. You’re doing that thing where you—
BEN:
Say I’m fine instead of how I’m actually doing. I know. I’m well aware.
CLARA:
Oh God, he’s evolving. He’s becoming self-aware! Nobody’s safe.
BEN:
(Laughing.) Shh. Stop trying to make me laugh.
CLARA:
I’m not trying. You just can’t help yourself.
BEN:
You’re not wrong.
Ben sits awkwardly, hands wringing in his lap, not looking at Clara. She on the other hand is completely at ease, trying to catch his eye. Though they sit close by each other, the distance between the two is palpable. The silence stretches on, making Ben all the more uncomfortable, while Clara remains oblivious.
CLARA:
We have Uno as well, if Articulate isn’t your thing. (Pause.) Do you remember our honeymoon?
BEN:
Nope.
CLARA:
Oh, shh, yes you do. You wanted somewhere hot, and I wanted to go skiing, and we had a whole argument about it because you said that going somewhere cold would be counterintuitive for a honeymoon, and I said that going somewhere hot would be too predictable. I caved, of course – I like letting you win – so we packed our bags for a heatwave and set off. The wedding was lovely, so lovely, don’t get me wrong, but we’d never been so stressed: there wasn’t enough food because the caterers got the order wrong, we couldn’t find the rings for hours, it was pissing it down all day and we were supposed to be getting married outside—
BEN:
That was your idea. You wanted it to rain.
CLARA:
I stand by that. How romantic would it have been to get married in the rain? Like in the movies. But it took hours to do my hair, and the downpour would’ve ruined the dress. And your mum doesn’t do well in the rain at her age. We made it work. Eventually. So the honeymoon was our reward, we deserved it by that point, for surviving everything the wedding could have thrown at us. So we get there – Lake Como, beautiful—
BEN:
Lake Garda.
CLARA:
What?
BEN:
We stayed at Lake Garda, not Como.
CLARA:
Whatever, potato potato, it was beautiful. We’d never seen water that colour before, the trees were all in bloom, the hotel was exceptional – good find, by the way – and the weather… there wasn’t a ski slope to be seen.
BEN:
Thankfully.
CLARA:
Thankfully. But then, after a few days, the winds changed. The temperatures plummeted – do you remember when we went into town for the day and you had about forty layers on? And all the local kids kept calling you—
BEN AND CLARA:
The Michelin Man.
BEN:
Yes, I remember.
CLARA:
And the clouds started brooding, and we thought a thunderstorm was on the way. And we woke up one day, towards the end, thinking how typical it was that our nice trip away had been spoiled like that, and we looked out the window. And it had snowed. Overnight. In July. Thanks, global warming. It wasn’t very much, just a little dusting, most of it had melted already, but there it was, and there was still a little falling. It was beautiful. Chaotic, but beautiful. And I said—
BEN:
Karma’s a bitch.
CLARA:
And you said—
BEN:
So are you.
CLARA:
And I laughed. And then you said—
BEN:
This is beautiful. Best of both worlds. I guess we should go grab some skis. And then you said, I thought you said the cold was counterintuitive. And I said, everything feels right when I’m with you. Even snow in July. Especially snow in July.
(Pause.)
CLARA:
And then you told me you loved me.
BEN:
(Sombre.) And then I told you I loved you.
Throughout this interaction, Ben has become less distant, looking at Clara and engaging with her. Now, though, he recedes into himself again, his face falling.
BEN:
I don’t want to remember that anymore.
CLARA:
I know. You can’t help yourself. (Pause.) It’s going to be okay.
BEN:
Make me remember something else.
CLARA:
Okay. What would you like to remember?
BEN:
That night at the steakhouse.
CLARA:
The waiter got the order wrong and everything came out basically raw. You said it was completely out of raw-der. I told you you weren’t funny. We ate them anyway.
BEN:
When you met my parents.
CLARA:
I came round to their house just when I got mumps from the kids at the clinic. I looked like Violet Beauregarde mid-blueberrification. Your mum said she’d seen worse. Your dad did everything he could not to mention it. You told me I looked beautiful.
BEN:
(Pained by the memories.) Something else.
CLARA:
When we first met at Henry’s party and we both reached for that bottle of champagne and our fingers touched and you had butterflies in your stomach and I couldn’t stop stuttering but you told me you thought it was cute and you poured me a glass and—
BEN:
Please stop.
CLARA:
When my dad died and we lay in bed together and I cried and you held me and told me you’d always be there for me and that you’d always love me and that we’d be together forever—
Ben jumps to his feet and turns away from her. He covers his face with his hands. Clara looks awkwardly around her as if she doesn’t know what she’s said, and plays with her dress.
CLARA (CONT.):
I’m sorry. (Pause.) I’m sorry, Ben.
BEN:
I can’t. I can’t do—
The doorbell rings. Ben’s face drops, but Clara looks ecstatic, almost to the point of hysteria. She jumps to her feet.
CLARA:
Ooh! Company! I love company!
BEN:
Oh God.
CLARA:
A bit of company’s all we need. Company will boost morale.
Three’s company!
BEN:
Stay here.
Ben empties his glass, replaces it on the table and hurries offstage to answer the door. Clara does not notice his absence, instead busying herself around the room, fixing things and making things look nice, including herself.
CLARA:
Do you remember when we went to see Company on the West End for my birthday? I love the music. My favourite song was ‘You Could Drive a Person Crazy’. Yours was ‘Being Alive’. We thought the stage was amazing and the—
Ben re-enters, followed by LUKE, his brother, also wearing a suit. He does not see Clara – indeed, he cannot see her.
CLARA (CONT.):
-singing was incredible, oh, hi Luke, but you said you preferred Hamilton and I said you were insane, and we argued for—
LUKE:
The place looks great. You’ve cleaned.
BEN:
For once.
CLARA:
Give credit where credit’s due, Ben.
BEN:
Umm… something told me it’d be a good idea to clean up before people arrived.
LUKE:
Good idea.
Ben and Luke sit down. Clara remains standing, slightly further back.
LUKE (CONT.):
You look dapper.
CLARA:
That’s what I told him.
Ben glances at Clara and smiles sadly.
BEN:
Thanks. You too.
Luke smiles. A small pause.
LUKE:
How are you?
(Pause.)
CLARA:
(Oblivious to the tone) I’m pretty good thanks, actually.
BEN:
I’m fine.
Clara glares at him. He looks back at her, embarrassed.
BEN (CONT.):
Ish.
LUKE:
Ish sounds right.
BEN:
How are you?
LUKE:
Okay. Considering. I’ve messaged Mum. Her and Dad are stuck in traffic but they’re on the way.
BEN:
Okay. Good.
CLARA:
Unlike Melissa to be late. Probably that old Merc, I keep telling her to get it checked but she never listens!
LUKE:
How did you sleep?
BEN:
Not great. Not used to the space.
CLARA:
Not true – he’s a duvet hogger, takes up as much space as he can.
LUKE:
I can imagine. (Pause.) We’re going to have to talk about this at some point.
CLARA:
Good luck, I’ve been trying to get him to open up for over a decade.
BEN:
(Humouring Luke.) What do you want to talk about?
LUKE:
Anything. Everything. How have the kids been?
BEN:
They’re okay.
CLARA:
“They’re okay,” he says.
BEN:
They’re not okay.
CLARA:
He hasn’t seen them in weeks.
BEN:
(To Clara.) Can you not?
Despite the clear tension in the room, Clara remains – or, at least, tries her hardest to remain – upbeat. She laughs at Ben snapping at her, and comes to sit on the armrest of the chair he sits in.
LUKE:
Sorry. I didn’t mean to—
BEN:
No, it’s not you, it’s—
CLARA:
It’s me.
LUKE:
It’s Clara.
BEN:
It’s always Clara.
LUKE:
I just can’t believe it. It doesn’t make sense. (Pause.) I miss her so much.
Clara’s smile falters. She turns to really look at Luke. As Luke speaks, she begins to walk over to him, until she is standing right beside him, but he does not look at her. Throughout the interaction, their voices overlap.
LUKE (CONT.):
I was thinking about the first day I met her. It seems like a lifetime ago now, maybe two. I remember getting into my flat on the first day – I was shitting it, I had no idea what to expect – and I was the first one there. Or I thought I was, at least. I was unpacking all my stuff when I heard a voice through the wall. She was singing ABBA.
CLARA:
‘Gimme, Gimme, Gimme’.
LUKE:
Pretty sure it was ‘Gimme, Gimme, Gimme’—
CLARA:
It’s my favourite.
LUKE:
-that was always her favourite. She got all the words wrong, but she was belting it out, like she didn’t care if anyone heard. And she didn’t. She was so carefree.
CLARA:
Is.
LUKE:
She didn’t give a toss what anyone thought of her.
CLARA:
Doesn’t. Thinks.
LUKE:
I wanted to be more like her.
CLARA:
Want, Luke, I’m right here.
LUKE:
And then you two met, and you hit it off right away, my best friend and my brother, and everything just felt…
BEN:
Feels.
CLARA:
Please stop.
LUKE:
What?
BEN:
Please stop.
LUKE:
Stop what?
CLARA:
I can’t do this.
BEN:
We can’t do this, please, we need to cancel.
LUKE:
Cancel? I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to upset you.
BEN:
I’m not going.
LUKE:
What do you mean? You have to.
CLARA:
No I don’t.
BEN:
Don’t make me.
LUKE:
Ben. Why can’t you go?
CLARA:
The weather.
Ben stands and walks to the window, gesturing frantically outside. Luke stands too.
BEN:
Look at the weather, we can’t do it today, we have to postpone.
LUKE:
I know this is a lot for you right now, but—
CLARA:
The weather, it’s snowing.
BEN:
It’s snowing.
LUKE:
What?
BEN:
The snow, we can’t do it because of the snow, it’s too much, we can’t do it.
Luke looks out the window incredulously.
LUKE:
Ben… it’s the middle of summer.
CLARA:
It’s July.
BEN:
It’s… it’s not… it’s…
LUKE:
Ben, you’re worrying me.
CLARA:
Please don’t, please don’t make me go, I don’t want to go, why isn’t it snowing? I don’t want to go.
LUKE:
Have you been drinking?
Clara runs to Ben, her hysteria rising.
CLARA:
We went to the edge of the cliffs and looked at the sunset and you held my hand and—
BEN:
(To Clara.) Shut up! Shut up! Get out!
Silence. Luke stares at Ben. Clara shakes with emotion, leaning against the table at the back for support, before staggering away and offstage. Once she’s gone, Ben himself staggers, leaning on the sofa for support.
LUKE:
Ben. Who are you talking to?
BEN:
No one, I’m not…
Pause. Luke moves towards Ben.
LUKE:
It’s just you and me here, Ben. It’s just you and me.
BEN:
I know.
LUKE:
I’m here.
BEN:
I know.
(Pause.)
LUKE:
She’s gone.
(Pause.)
BEN:
I know.
The two brothers look at each other. Ben surprises Luke by grabbing him and hugging him tightly. The two hold onto each other as the lights fade down.
