DNA - Plot Summary Acts 1- 2

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DNA by Dennis Kelly - Acts 1 & 2

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DNA - Summary

DNA is a modern drama in 14 short scenes. It revolves around the 'accidental' torture and murder of a teenage boy named Adam, which has happened just before the events of the play. The subsequent story concerns the guilty teenagers' efforts to cover up their crime and move on with their lives. This group consists of ten members: Leah - Easily the most vocal of the group. Usually seen with Phil, the quietest. Leah is intelligent, but unsure of herself. A moral girl. Phil - Always using his mouth, but usually to eat. Rude to Leah. Whenever he speaks, he displays a sinister intellect. Mark & Jan - Never apart, Mark and Jan give the audiences clues through their inferences. Easily led. Low moral fiber. Brian - Sensitive. Cries for much of the play and is forced to go along with the plans. Anti-depressants utterly change his behaviour. John Tate - Apparently new to the school and a bully. Cannot handle the stress of events and eventually turns to Jesus. Cathy - Sociopath who is more excited than repulsed by events. A willing participant in all the worst aspects of the play. Richard - A lesser character. Acts tougher than he is. Usually paired with Brian as a handler. Danny - Lesser character. Future dentist, more obsessed with his prospects than any moral concerns. Lou - Mostly an onlooker, though goes along with the plan. Highly repetitive.

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Act 1 Scene 1

The play opens on a street, where we meet Mark and Jan. Their conversation relates to the confirmation of an unnamed death. The audience is immediately drawn into the mystery. Jan and Mark speak in barely credible tones, as if they don't really believe the news themselves. 'Dead'... 'Are you sure?' The word 'dead' is repeated 9 times in a short exchange. This must mean someone has died. But who?

Dead (binary/octet-stream)

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Act 1 Scene 2

A field. Leah and Phil Leah talks, incessantly. Phil eats, continuously. Leah's stream of consciousness is telling. She wants Phil to speak. She is lucky that he doesn't, given what happens later. Phil remains silent. Like talking to a brick wall. 'I talk too much, so shoot me. So kill me, Phil, call the police, lock me up, rip out my teeth with a pair of rusty pliers' Leah says she is scared. Not just her, everyone. Jan and Mark enter... 'Oh shit', say Leah.

A Brick Wall (binary/octet-stream)

Caption: : Phil

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Act 1 Scene 3

A wood. Scene opens with Lou, John Tate and Danny, but all cast members (bar one) join the scene. John Tate is stressed and clearly the leader of the small group. John Tate tries to ban the word 'dead' after Lou's repeated use. The audience is beginning to sense a conspiracy. Richard and John Tate lock horns. Richard backs down. Cathy is excited by the situation. The unpopular Brian is crying. John wants Mark and Jan to tell the story. The story of Adam. From what they say, Adam is a boy who tries who hang around their group and is, possibly, not too bright.

The group regularly perform 'hazing' rituals, with Adam as the initiate. He is made to eat leaves, burn his socks, steal vodka, become a human ashtray, play with traffic and finally, to walk over a dangerous pit while the others throw rocks. Adam Falls. As Mark explains - 'I mean we were just having a laugh, weren't we, we were all, you know ..' Phil speaks. He has a sinister plan to cover their tracks involving burglary, theft, the invention of a paedophile postman, Brian as a fake witness, the collection of decoy DNA evidence and the complete and utter cover-up of the gang's involvement. He is like a toffee-chewing Moriarty. The group is left speechless by the Machiavellian brilliance of his plan. No-one objects.

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Act 1 Scene 4

A Field. Leah and Phil. Leah is talking about a documentary on the genetic differences between Chimpanzees and Bonobos - the former vicious and the other empathetic. ‘The tiniest change in their DNA' makes the difference'The woman was saying that if we'd discovered bonobos before chimps our understanding of ourselves would be very different.' Leah tries to choke herself to death to get Phil's attention. Still nothing. Bonobos, she says, are sex mad. Is she referencing the correlation between sex and death?

Bonobo Apes: the Sexy Primates (Embed)

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Act 2 Scene 1

A street. Jan and Mark. Their conversation is cryptic, clipped and repetitive, as before. MARK: He's not going. JAN: What do you mean he's not going? MARK: He's not going. 'He' is Brian, who does not want to go the police with the fabricated story of the postman who exposed himself to him.

Patbot3000 (binary/octet-stream)

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Act 2 Scene 2

A Field. Leah and Phil. Phil eats silently. Leah holds a tupperware box. Leah rhapsodises about the harsh nature of outer space - Leah: what about Venus, hot enough to melt lead or Titan with oceans of liquid nitrogen, I mean stars, Phil, a billion nuclear reactions a second, I mean to be honest it's all either red hot or ice cold, so, so, so ... No. It's life that upsets the natural order. It's us that's the anomaly.' Leah confesses to killing Jerry, a pet, who remains in the box. However, she goes on to note that, since Adam's death, the sense of community has grown. The group have a common, shared goal. Aside from John Tate, life is getting better for everyone.

Tupperware (binary/octet-stream)

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Act 2 Scene 3

A Wood. Phil, Leah, Lou and Danny. Later, Richard, Cathy, Jan, Mark and Brian. The police have arrested a real postman. His DNA matches DNA on Adam's stolen clothing. Cathy, showing 'initiative', has framed a postman on purpose. Phil speaks again. He orders Brian to lie to the police again and finger the postman. BRIAN: I can't face it. They look at me. They look at me like I'm lying and it makes me cry...And then, because I cry, they think I'm telling the truth. Phil threatens to kill him if he doesn't accede.

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Caption: :

Slide 10

Act 2 Scene 4

A Field. Phil and Leah. An attack of deja vu prompts Leah to, once again, orally investigate the nature of the Universe. Her monologue touches on the issues of evolution, original sin and predestination: Leah:D'you think we're doomed to behave like people before us did? If you change one thing you can change the world. Do you believe that? · PHIL: No. LEAH: Right. Well I do. I do, Phil.

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