ACT II:
SCENE I:

(Lights come up. The set is SOPHIA’S living room. The New York City skyline can be seen in the distance. Sounds of mid-morning traffic can be heard through an open window. It is a warm summer morning; a light breeze is blowing. SOPHIA is attractive in a seductive way, even in her exercise gear. Books lay on the coffee table.

Sophia’s apartment is well-furnished and filled with religious art and artifacts, and Greco-Roman columns. A framed poster of the “Pieta” is seen in the living room as well as a print of “The Penitent Magdalen”.

Offstage SOPHIA is singing. The volume of her voice increases and then there is silence. MAGDALENE doesn’t see SOPHIA enter the living room because she has her back turned to SOPHIA as she stares at the “The Penitent Magdalene”. SOPHIA enters the room with a cup of coffee in her hand. She sees MAGDALENE and screams ! MAGDALENE turns around and, hearing SOPHIA scream, she screams.

SOPHIA scrambles around the room and finds her gun.

SOPHIA
Hands up ! Put ‘em where I can see them ! Now ! OR I WILL SHOOT !

MAGDALENE
My God ! I mean you no harm.

SOPHIA
Who THE HELL are you ? How’d you get in here ?

MAGDALENE
Don’t you remember ? You called my name.

SOPHIA
I’m callin’ the police…right now. Move and I’ll shoot.

MAGDALENE
Last night when you lay weeping, you called out to me –

SOPHIA
You’re crazy. I’m calling –

MAGDALENE
Yes, you called me. Last night.

SOPHIA
You don’t know what I did last night. I didn’t call you. I don’t even know who you are.

MAGDALENE
(Pointing to the picture of “The Penitent Magdalen”.)
There…

SOPHIA
Okay, now I’m definitely calling. You’re some wacko, a nutcase…you broke into my apartment and now you’re claiming -

MAGDALENE
I am –

SOPHIA
You are not !

MAGDALENE
I am.

SOPHIA
Yah right. And I’m Mother Theresa.

MAGDALENE
Why do you say that ? Why did you cry out and call my name if you didn’t believe ?

SOPHIA
Believe in what ?

MAGDALENE
(Walking towards SOPHIA and the telephone.)
Don’t call them. I won’t hurt you.

SOPHIA
Sure you won’t. You break into my apartment, you claim to be her (gesturing towards art print), and now you say ‘I won’t hurt you.’ This is New York, lady.

MAGDALENE
Okay, then make your call. And I’ll be gone before they get here.

SOPHIA
No, you won’t. You’re not going anywhere.
(SOPHIA walks towards MAGDALENE and then jumps her. They roll around on the floor. SOPHIA struggles for the gun, grabs the gun and points it directly in her face.)
Now don’t move and nobody’ll get hurt. Understand ? I don’t know how you got in here, lady. Or who the hell you are. Wait ‘til my father hears about this. Somebody’s in serious trouble. They’re supposed to be watchin’ out for me, those idiots... Somebody’s gonna pay for this – my father will make sure of it.

MAGDALENE
That’s what made you weep last night. Your father called you. He was mad at you. Something you did.

(SOPHIA gasps.)
He wants the best for you, Sophia. Better than what he had. And you mock him and you lie to him. He disapproves –

SOPHIA
(Moving away from MAGDALENE.)
What were you - spying on me ? Did he hire you ?

He has no right to disapprove of anything…besides, how could you know that ? Were you in here last night ? Are you a psychopath ? Are you gonna kill me now ?

MAGDALENE
I am not here to hurt you. Not here to kill you. I am here to reveal the truth.

SOPHIA
What truth ?

MAGDALENE
The truth you are seeking. Just like me.

SOPHIA
Just kill me. Get it over with. Here…put the barrel in my mouth.
(SOPHIA aims the gun at herself.)

MAGDALENE
I will do no such thing.

SOPHIA
Do me a favor – blow my fucking brains out ! I hate my life anyway. It’s so twisted.

MAGDALENE
The truth you seek can untwist you, Sophia.

SOPHIA
(Slowly walks toward the “Pieta” poster.)
What are you, my mother ? I don’t seek any truth. Do you understand that ? Truth is painful – look at that ! Christ dead in his mother’s arms. That’s truth ! Sad and painful. That’s what they did to Christ for seeking the truth ! Crucified him ! Nailed him to the cross because they couldn’t handle the truth !

MAGDALENE
I know. I was there.

SOPHIA
Let me get this straight. You break into my apartment, you say you’re who ? Mary Magdalene. The Mary Magdalene who was at the crucifixion ? You tell me about my father. You tell me what I was doing last night. Who are you ? Did my father send you ?

MAGDALENE
In a way he did.

SOPHIA
Now you’re gonna talk in riddles ?

MAGDALENE
Dear child, you’re not LISTENING to me. You think I’m here to kill you. That your father sent me. But it is you who cried out, you who have called me here.

SOPHIA
You’re crazy ! And I don’t believe in angels – it’s bullshit. You cry out and they come and save the day. Sorry…don’t think so.

MAGDALENE
Why are you so hard-hearted ?

SOPHIA
I’m a New Yorker, lady. I fight every day for what I want. Murders happen every day, rape – what about that ? Where are the angels when a woman is getting raped in broad daylight ? Huh ?

MAGDALENE
I cannot answer that.

SOPHIA
See ! It’s all bullshit ! You say I called your name. And you say you’re Mary Magdalene. And you can’t even answer a simple question. Just go. Get outta here. I’m not gonna call the cops. I bet you’re harmless. Just go. I won’t tell anyone you broke in here. Just leave. LEAVE ME ALONE.

(SOPHIA gets up and walks over to the window, wiping the sweat from her brow. She stares outside the window, and MAGDALENE stands silently. SOPHIA ignores her. MAGDALENE walks to the front door.)

MAGDALENE
You lost your mother when you were a young girl. It has been a rough time for you. And that day you were so happy. You were walking home from school. Had just left your school friends. Do you think your story has gone unnoticed ?

(SOPHIA turns around. She is horrified.)

You were skipping along. It was a warm, sunny day. In early June. Your mother was standing at the edge of your driveway, so happy to see you. And this car drove past you and you saw it swerve. You thought you were imagining it. Then the car started driving in the direction of your mother. And before you knew it, the car struck your mother. As you ran towards her, the car drove into the bushes in front of the driveway , stopped, and then drove away. And then there was silence. You ran screaming to your mother, but it was too late. She was gone. Her lifeless body lay there.

SOPHIA
Stop ! Just STOP RIGHT THERE –

MAGDALENE
You couldn’t move. Your legs would not run. You knew it was too late. She was gone. You knew. Right then and there. And you have been all alone since that day, Sophia. In such deep, deep isolation.

SOPHIA
(Tears are beginning to stream down her face.)
You know nothing. You don’t know me. Leave me alone !

MAGDALENE
But the worst part –

SOPHIA
Okay ! I believe you are who you say you are. Now go, please. Go ! I don’t wanna hear this. I’ve been through this a thousand times in my head…two thousand times.

MAGDALENE
(Walking to SOPHIA to comfort here. SOPHIA gets up and walks out of the room. Magdalene goes over to the coffee table and sits on its edge.)

And the worst part, SOPHIA, is that you have kept a shocking secret all these years –

SOPHIA
(SOPHIA re-enters the room. She is now pale and shaking.)
What secret ?
(MAGDALENE stares at SOPHIA. There is silence.
SOPHIA throws a glass object and it breaks.
SOPHIA looks down at the floor at the broken pieces and then looks up.)

You know the secret ?

MAGDALENE
Your secret has layers. Just like mine.

SOPHIA
You know the secret ?

How could you ? How could you know ? Nobody knows. NOBODY. Not a single soul. Nobody except me. And my father. He knows the truth. And his business partners. That bastard !

He denied doing it. I heard him on the phone after her funeral. But how could you know these things ?

MAGDALENE
The world around you is not always what it appears to be. There’s more than this (pointing around the room). A lot more than what you see in this room. There are angels all around. Layers, dimensions, other worlds. You just can’t see them. But they exist.

Sophia, you called out my name and I came. Recognize that your soul has called me here.

SOPHIA
I will NEVER be free of his lie !

MAGDALENE
You must release it. Or it will kill you.

SOPHIA
(She walks over to the window again.)
Release it ? Release my secret ? That my father was the one who killed my mother ? That he had her killed because she was sleeping around on him ? That he couldn’t allow that to keep happening ? His business partners pressured him. But he had the power. And he made the choice. To kill his own wife, the mother of his child, to save face.

Did he ever think if he came home once in awhile, that maybe she wouldn’t have done that ? That maybe she was lonely and afraid ? And he was never there for her - in that way. So she slept around. Is that a reason to have her killed ? She was my mother !

MAGDALENE
Who told you these things ?

SOPHIA
My aunt…when I got older. My mother used to call her up crying.

Is it that secret ? Is that what you want me to release ? Should I yell it out the window ? Hey, you down there…guess what ? I’ve got a secret. Oh please. This is un- fucking believable !

MAGDALENE
It’s your secret. Not mine. I held enough secrets in my day.

SOPHIA
He was drinking, and he found out my mother was with another man again…and he killed my mother. He covered it up; he’s good at that. And when I heard him on the phone, he hung up and came after me. He told me to go to bed, that I shouldn’t listen to other people’s private conversations.

I asked him if he had my mother killed. And he said no, he’d never do anything like that. That I was hearing things. That she was killed by a hit and run driver. And I needed to go to sleep, and not to talk about this crazy idea anymore.

What was I supposed to do ? My mother was dead. And my father tells me I’m imagining things. I heard him on the phone, heard his words. I was the only witness. I witnessed the TRUTH. And, you know what ? The truth was ugly ! It was the worst thing I ever heard. And right then and there, he took away my power. He took my soul.

(SOPHIA falls to her knees. There is silence.)

MAGDALENE
Dear child…let me help you.

SOPHIA
Don’t touch me. Get away from me.

MAGDALENE
But –

SOPHIA
(Looking up)
Nothing touches me. Even the men I sleep with don’t touch me.

MAGDALENE
Why is that ?

I call the shots. It’s my way or the highway. But you’d know about that. You were a prostitute. You’re the most famous prostitute in history !

MAGDALENE
That’s why I came.

SOPHIA
Why ? To teach me how to be a better whore ? Well, damn…this is my lucky day, Mary.

MAGDALENE
I was not a prostitute.

SOPHIA
Okay. Whatever you say. You break in my apartment, but you’re an angel so you can walk through walls, right ? And then you proclaim you’re Mary Magdalene. And I’m in the 21st century. And you know what I did last night, and you know my family secret. This is one crazy day in the life of Sophia Martucci ! Over the top – even by my standards !

Not sayin’ I do, but even if I did believe you, now you’re tellin’ me you’re not a whore. Everyone says you were. Even Aunt Rita ! All my years in Catholic school – what did they teach me ? That Mary Magdalene was a prostitute. That’s what Sister Damian told us. Especially when we wore short skirts.

And, since I’m a prostitute, I’m thinking maybe you’re here to tell me about that. Another big secret. If my father knew, he’d kill me, too. Just like my mother. He would KILL me, Mary ! He doesn’t know what I do for extra money. He thinks the money he gives me pays for all of this. Hah ! What denial. My father knows what his money pays for.

I like the secret, you know ? Gives me a sense of revenge. For what he did. For what he made me hold inside…all these years. The lies, the doubt. Did he say it or didn’t he ? Did he kill her or didn’t he. No wonder I could never make a decision !

(SOPHIA pauses, takes a deep breath, and collects herself.)
I don’t care that she slept around. Once someone takes your power away, things build on other things, you know ? My mother was a good woman.

MAGDALENE
(Now sitting on the floor.)
Yes, she was.

SOPHIA
Did you know her ? I mean…in the…spirit world…wherever you came from. Have you seen my mother ?

MAGDALENE
Yes, I have.

SOPHIA
Really ? What does she look like ?

MAGDALENE
Much different than what you remember.

SOPHIA
She was beautiful. Sweet. And kind. She was someone special. It was the way she walked, you know, the way she talked. She had such a pretty smile. God, why did she marry my father ? She was good…and he was evil !

MAGDALENE
Well, they say opposites attract.

SOPHIA
(Walks over to her liquor cabinet and pours a glass of tequila.)

Strange day… July 22…strange…weird. You know, this girl I went to school with – she always said wild things can happen on a 22 day…guess she was right. Always thought she was a little out there. She believed in angels. I used to make fun of her. Maybe she knew more than I wanted to deal with.

MAGDALENE
(Teasing her)
Who ? Sara ? Oh Sara knows quite a lot. Maybe you should go see her sometime.

(SOPHIA drinks the entire glass of tequila and faints. MAGDALENE walks over to her and drags her onto the sofa. She tries to revive her but is unsuccessful.

MAGDALENE walks around the living room, examining different objects in the room.
She then moves to the picture of the “The Penitent Magdalen”.

[This painting,“The Penitent Magdalen”is by Georges de la Tour
and is in the collection of the NY Metropolitan Museum of Art.]

How they have painted me, these artists. So many ways, so many times, and for so many different reasons. Here. This one. Sitting with a skull. In the dark. Staring away. I look pregnant there. I do. Look at my stomach.

Me sitting there. Watching the candle burn. What does he think I am watching ? The mirror…only reflects the candle burning. How odd. And he paints me with such deep sadness. Such isolation. (Pointing to SOPHIA) Like her. And yet, the candle’s flame…it draws me near. I see hope in that flame.

(Turning to the audience.)
Can you believe this man painted six different versions of me ? Six ! I mean, I’m flattered but… in every one he paints me with the same colors. White and red. Red and white. Red skirt, white blouse. White blouse, red skirt. But, my French compatriot, had his raison d'être.

Ah…my beloved France. So much happened there. Throughout the centuries. And in the rest of Europe too. I could stand here for days and tell you amazing stories of bravery and devotion. Of the epic struggles between the church and its people. Still to this day, it makes me cry.

Even the artists were in on it. Such defiance ! Painting the required religious imagery du jour and then planting a secret code within it. Clever men they were. DaVinci, Botticelli. Remember them ? And there were others. Many others. Have you seen these works ? I’ve heard some are here, in this place. Go…look for the secret symbols. I tell you – they are there. Right in front of you.

(MAGDALENE turns to SOPHIA, who is still motionless.)
Such complication. Does it need to be ? Why is it so necessary to keep such secrets ?

People die because secrets are told.

Sometimes our strongest belief is our biggest secret. Why ?

What do you believe ? Do you know ? Do you have the time ? To be passionate about something ? To care ? And if you care, would you die for your beliefs ?

(MAGDALENE points to the painting again.)

My image has been stained with the blood of the corrupt. I was NOT a prostitute ! My identity was denied. Not in my own time. No…but centuries later. Seems passion and purity could not be united. Even though our ancient wisdom told us so. No, passion and purity could not be joined together. So I was given a very historical name – prostitute !

(MAGDALENE stares away for a few moments. There is complete silence.
She walks back to the sofa and lays her hand on SOPHIA’S head.
After a few moments, SOPHIA awakes.)

SOPHIA
Where am I ? Oh, God, you’re still here.

(SOPHIA crawls off the couch and slithers on the floor towards the door.
She stops, turns around, and sits up against the door.)

I thought this was a dream. Thought when I woke up you’d be gone. Maybe I could pass it off – like a nightmare or a hangover. Maybe my client last night – maybe he drugged me or something. This isn’t happening.

MAGDALENE
Your client ?

SOPHIA
That’s right. My client.

MAGDALENE
(Looking up)
Someone forgot to tell me this detail.

SOPHIA
The man I was paid lots of money to have sex with.

MAGDALENE
How much ? No. Forget it. I don’t want to know.

SOPHIA
To do things with him that his wife won’t do. Or maybe he doesn’t even want her to do it to him anymore. Who knows. Who fucking cares.

It’s a very upscale business, you know. I’m very well-protected, wear the finest clothes – even though they’re never on too long. Hey…my clients respect me, Mary. They enjoy my talents.

MAGDALENE
Really ?

SOPHIA
Yah, really.

MAGDALENE
Do you enjoy your clients ?

SOPHIA
What ? What’d ya think ? Do I enjoy them ? About as much as I enjoy my father.

MAGDALENE
What does that mean ? Are you intimate with your father ?

SOPHIA
My God, no ! I’m not that twisted…not yet. (Pauses) Oh God, am I ?

MAGDALENE
You confuse me.

SOPHIA
I confuse myself.

MAGDALENE
Well, that clarifies things.

SOPHIA
(She looks up and laughs.)
Funny, Mary. Very funny. Glad you could laugh at my expense.

MAGDALENE
What do you expect ? I come here and have to listen to your mouth. You declare spirits are bullshit. You tell lie after lie. So many lies, in fact, you can’t even recognize the truth when it’s staring you in the face ! You believe in nothing but your own body and what it can do for you.

You are so filled with rage and doubt that you don’t believe in anyone, not even yourself. You sleep with men to take revenge upon your father. You wicked young woman !

You proclaim there is no hope in the world. You want to kill me with your gun. And if you can’t kill me, then you want me to kill you. Put the gun in your mouth. You don’t even believe who I am as I stand before you, knowing your darkest secret.

How dare you doubt who I am…and where I came from. Enough. My patience is over. I am not your father ! You will mock me NO MORE !

SOPHIA
Mock you ? Fuck you ! Get the hell outta here. Now !
(MAGDALENE slaps her in the face.)

My pain is my own. It’s not yours. It’s mine. What good would it do to let go of it ? Did ya ever think maybe it keeps me alive, keeps me going ? Maybe I like the edge it gives me. Maybe I feel safer that way.

(Walking centerstage)
Women are just taken advantage of, if they let their guard down. It’s still a man’s world, Magdalene. Remember ? Look what they did to you. Look how good they did it to you. I’d say they screwed you, bigtime. Hell, we’re in the 21st century and everyone still thinks you were a prostitute.

Doesn’t that piss you off ? It’s really startin’ to piss me off…

And you want me to lose my edge, let go of my pain. So what ? So I can feel vulnerable and be taken advantage of. Don’t think so. Especially not here. Not in this place.

MAGDALENE
If not here, where ? If not now, when ? The time is now.

SOPHIA
What does that mean ?

MAGDALENE
Now is the time. Right here.

SOPHIA
No, not here. Not now.

MAGDALENE
Yes, here and now. Do as I say, child.

SOPHIA
No. I won’t. You’re not my mother. You’re Mary Magdalene, remember ?

MAGDALENE
I know who I am.

SOPHIA
(Walking away from MAGDALENE and picking up her gun.)
Good. Glad someone does.

MAGDALENE
Put the gun down. Come over here. And be still. Or I will make you still.

SOPHIA
Now you’re threatening me ? I have the gun, not you.

MAGDALENE
The gun won’t work.

SOPHIA
The gun works fine.

MAGDALENE
Try it. Go ahead. Fire the gun. Straight at me.

SOPHIA
(Trying to fire her gun)
What did you do to my gun ?

MAGDALENE
Come over here and be still. Put your gun down.
(SOPHIA shoves the gun in her mouth and tries to pull the trigger)

Do you think I stand before you with no power ? Foolish girl that you are.

(SOPHIA removes the gun from her mouth and drops it by her side. She falls to her knees and begins to weep.)

You have carried the pain of your mother’s death all of your life. But you were afraid, Sophia. And, after awhile, you thought nobody would believe you – even if you did speak up. But you were the child. Not the adult. How could you know what to do ?

Your mother has forgiven you, Sophia.

But you break her heart. She wants you to be free of this pain and move on. To laugh, to sing – that’s what she wants. She wants you to forgive your father –

SOPHIA
Never !

MAGDALENE
You must. It is time.

SOPHIA
No !

MAGDALENE
As your mother has forgiven you, you must forgive him.

SOPHIA
No. Not in this lifetime. He is a liar and a murderer ! How could I forgive him ? Never !

MAGDALENE
You must.

SOPHIA
She was everything to me. She protected me. She loved me. She was my world !

MAGDALENE
She still loves you. But her message is for you to forgive your father. She knows that when you do, you will be free of him.

SOPHIA
I will never be free of him. He has destroyed me. Inside. He killed my mother and he will never be caught – they will never find any proof that he did it. He got away with it. It was always covered up. The truth never came out. I lived in a constant state of denial.

MAGDALENE
But you never forgot the truth.

SOPHIA
Never. How could I ? Not a moment went by that I didn’t ask God to give me the courage…to help me get the words out…tell someone the truth. Anyone. Where was God then ? Why didn’t he help me then ? Why did he turn his back on me ?

(SOPHIA begins to sob uncontrollably.)

My father taught me to lie. Pretend. Deny. Bury the truth. Once I lied about that, I could lie about anything. Look at me. I’m a great liar now – a world class liar ! What a wicked man my father is ! Wonder where I got it from ? I learned from the best – dear old dad.

MAGDALENE
But your mother was a loving and kind woman. Learn something from her. She doesn’t want you to let him ruin your life anymore. It was enough that he ruined hers.

SOPHIA
How could such a nice person end up with him ? He wasn’t a good husband. He used to cheat on her, too. With his junkie whores. But he was a wise guy, you know. A made man. Had to have girlfriends. He had to be the big shot.

But that was okay for him. That was acceptable. But when she did it, it was a mortal sin. Adultery ! Whore, slut – he called her. The double standard.

I remember that time – mom said he was away on business but I could see that look on her face. I knew he was out doing something he shouldn’t be. Wasn’t sure what. But I knew it was bad. I heard my mother and Aunt Marie talk on the phone. They didn’t know I used to listen. So, I knew the look. That sad look. Talk but look away. Far, far away.

But… what could she say ? He was a made man and working his way up. She didn’t talk back to him. If she did, he would slap her in the face - hard. So she learned to keep her mouth shut. And she became helpless. I watched him make her helpless.

But then something changed. She decided to take a stand. And got herself a boyfriend. Dad threatened her after the first one, but after she kept doing it – well, she was out of control, they said, and had to be taken care of. She knew too much, anyway. They said she was unstable, and he had to do something to stop her. And he did. Forever.

(SOPHIA is now hunched over on the floor crying. MAGDALENE kneels down and holds her.)

MAGDALENE
Your father won’t be around forever.

SOPHIA
Good ! I wish he wasn’t here now. I wish he was fucking dead !

MAGDALENE
Your mother wants you to forgive him. She wants you to tell him. Before it’s too late.
Please –

SOPHIA
It already is.

MAGDALENE
No, it is not…when you lay crying last night, do you remember what you felt ? When you called out my name – do you remember what you asked for ?

Do you remember, Sophia ?
SOPHIA
(Pauses)
Yah, I remember… I asked for the dark cloud that has always been over my head… to go away…I asked to be…I asked for forgiveness, Mary. For what I do. For what I’ve done. For the men I have been paid to sleep with…all of them…for the lies I tell…for all the screwed up things I’ve done …
MAGDALENE
But do you remember why ?

SOPHIA
Because. Because for the first time -

MAGDALENE
What ?

SOPHIA
For the first time…I felt love for the first time since my mother died…I met someone. Someone at school. He’s the sweetest guy I ever met…and I felt his eyes. They looked right through me…like he reached in and touched my heart. And got it beating again.

MAGDALENE
I met a man like that once. In my lifetime. I never believed it could happen.

SOPHIA
I believed…just for a second…I believed…I could fall in love with this guy.

MAGDALENE
I remember that feeling.

SOPHIA
And you heard me sayin’ all this ? You heard me ? Why ? Why now ?

MAGDALENE
Because it is time. Now is the time. Not then. But now.

SOPHIA
Why now ? After all this craziness ? Why ? Why now ?

MAGDALENE
Because…now you finally realize. You understand. You get it. You know. How can you change something within you when you don’t even know what it is ?

Oh, Sophia…don’t you know we turn away from love when we are not loved ? At least here, in the physical. It is only in the spiritual realm that we find endless love.

And if we are lucky enough, we can find love in the hearts of other people.

(MAGDALENE stands and lifts SOPHIA up to a standing position.
Sophia wipes the tears from her eyes and takes a deep breath.)

SOPHIA
I don’t understand spiritual things very much. Sorry Mary. I’m tryin’. You know my soul. Better than me.

And somewhere, somehow…I don’t know how, but somehow, beyond this place…I believe you met my mother. That she told you she wants me to forgive my father. Because she would do that. She would do that.

But, if I do that, it’ll be the hardest thing I’ve ever done…I mean it. And if I do it, I’ll only be doin’ it for her. For her. For my mother.
(SOPHIA turns to MAGDALENE and touches her cheek.)

Mary, I’m sorry.

MAGDALENE
For what ?

SOPHIA
For being so…so…so mouthy.

MAGDALENE
You are that, Sophia. And more. Let’s see…obnoxious, rude, full of rage -

SOPHIA
Hey, gimme a break. You know, you’re not so bad yourself. You might use different words than me, but the tone is there. The attitude. Bet you were like me…when you were young. Bet you had some demons inside there.

MAGDALENE
I’m beginning to feel welcomed here. Maybe even understood.

SOPHIA
I think you were a complicated lady. That’s my guess.

MAGDALENE
Recognize me and you’ll understand yourself.

SOPHIA
Well, sooner or later, somethin’s gotta sink in. Right ?

MAGDALENE
You’re smart. You’ll figure it out.

SOPHIA
Oh, don’t expect miracles from me. Not yet. I got a lot a years to straighten out. A lot a messes to clean up. Really screwed things up for myself. Dark stuff in here.

MAGDALENE
You have quite the imagination !

SOPHIA
Should I call my father while you’re here ?

MAGDALENE
Tomorrow. You can wait ‘till tomorrow, can’t you ? You’ve waited this long.

SOPHIA
Mary, should I tell him about the…you know…about the prostitution thing ?

MAGDALENE
I think…well…it’s your choice, Sophia.

SOPHIA
No. Don’t say that. Don’t do that to me. I’m askin’, Mary…I need some advice…I made bad choices. You know that. More than anyone, you know that.

MAGDALENE

They’ll get better. Takes time, Sophia.
(Walking over and sitting on the sofa)
In the meantime, tell me more about this guy you met –

SOPHIA
(Walking over and joining MAGDALENE on the sofa)
Only if you tell me about the guy you met. You first. Who was he ?

(Lights slowly fade.)