Stagefright by Carole Wilkinson Read Free Book Online

you thought you could act. You’ll be the star of the show.”
    “I can’t say all that dumb Shakespeare stuff.”
    “We’ll rewrite it. You can play it any way you like as long as it gets across the same message.”
    “Any way?” Drago smiled maliciously.
    Velvet gave him a suspicious look. She couldn’t begin to imagine what Drago’s warped mind could do to Shakespeare.
    “Almost any way. I think you’ll be good. Will you do it?”
    Drago shrugged. “I suppose so.”
    They went back inside.
    “Drago’s agreed to be Richard.”
    Everyone clapped. Drago tried to look like he didn’t care.
    “But we’re going to rewrite it a bit, if that’s okay, Mr Mac. So it’s more like modern speech.”
    “Fine with me.”
    “We’ll start with the scene where Richard woos Lady Anne,” Velvet said.
    “Okay, now we’re making progress,” Mr MacDonald said. “Look, it’s too dismal in here. I think we should continue this casting meeting in Hades.”
    “Great idea.” Jesus was already on his way to the door.
    “Who’s going to pay?” Drago asked.
    Taleb was searching his pockets. “I haven’t got a cent.”
    “I’ll shout,” said Mr MacDonald. “But don’t think I’m going to make a habit of it.”
    They strolled nonchalantly past all the straining and sweating athletes. They were all trying to make out like it wasn’t a big deal, but there was no doubt about it, walking out of the school gates and over to the coffee shop across the road in school time was a buzz. Even Drago was smiling. Velvet felt a bit guilty. She didn’t want to actually start enjoying being at Yarrabank.
    True to its name, Hades was warm. They pushed two tables together next to the open fire and peeled off their hoodies. The walls were painted black with orange flames. Red devil toys hung from the ceiling. The decor in Hades was really tacky, but it was a big improvement on T6. The owner had banned Drago from setting foot on the premises for putting sugar in the salt shakers, and Mr MacDonald had to plead for a good behaviour bond.
    Their orders arrived and they all sipped frothy coffees and hot chocolates and started thinking about the play again.
    “There aren’t any good parts for girls,” Hailie grumbled as she wiped some foam from Peter’s top lip and licked it off her finger.
    Roula and Velvet exchanged a glance.
    “There’s Lady Anne. That’s a good part.” Mr MacDonald leafed through his photocopy. “Turn to page three. She comes in mourning the death of her husband, who Richard killed in battle. What happens next?”
    They all studied their photocopies.
    “She slags off at him,” Peter said. “She calls him names. A toad and a hedgehog.”
    “Oooooh, serious stuff.” Drago was following the words with his finger.
    “And she spits at him.”
    “Nice.” Even Jesus was interested.
    “Yes, but underneath the nasty exterior, Richard is a real charmer,” Mr MacDonald continued. “Even though he’s just killed her husband, he manages to win her over. He offers her his sword to kill him, but she can’t do it. He gives her his ring.”
    “And she’s sucked in badly.”
    “We’ll need a song for Lady Anne there I think, Taleb.”
    Taleb shrugged.
    Velvet was impressed. Mr MacDonald was managing to get the cultural studies class interested in Shakespeare.
    “How come you know so much about this play, sir?” Peter asked.
    “I studied it at uni.”
    “Which part did you play?” Velvet couldn’t picture Mr Mac as a young man.
    “I didn’t act in it. I wrote an essay.”
    “Did you get a good grade?” Roula asked.
    Velvet could see that they were getting off track again. “That’s one girl’s part. But there are three of us.”
    “What about Margaret, the old queen? There’s a terrific scene where she curses everybody. And there’s Edward’s wife, Queen Elizabeth, and Richard’s mother, the Duchess of York. Plenty of female roles.”
    “Great. So someone gets to play Drago’s mum,” Hailie