Characters scene 1:
Cristal- little girl
Jayson- mother
Brent- brent
Vashisht- vash
Carl- Narrator
scene 1: Intro
Narrator: "Poverty. A word dat heavy like a sack ah rice, full ah struggle, hunger, an’
dreams gettin’ mash up. But wha’ it really mean?"
(A lil girl, sit down on de floor, lookin’ at an empty plate. Brent an’ Vash, two young
fellas, sit on a step nearby, talkin’ bout life.)
Little girl: "Ma, we go eat tonight? Meh belly real growlin’..."
Mother: "chile,I eh sure nah. No wuk, no money… nuttin’."
Brent: "Boy, vash, we cyah be livin’ so nah. Every day same ting—nutten to eat, nutten to
do."
Vash: "Doh study it, Brent. One day we go make it. We jes hadda find a way outta dis."
(Lights on and off. Two characters step up, representin’ Absolute an’ Relative Poverty.)
Absolute Poverty: "Me? I is absolute poverty. No food, no shelter, no doctor. Every day is
a fight to survive."
Relative Poverty: "An’ me? I is relative poverty. I have food, but it cyah even full meh
belly good. I have a house, but rain leakin’ inside. Compared to some, I real strugglin’."
(Dey step back as narrator talk again.)
Characters scene 2:
Cristal-lil girl
Sanjaa- education
Health-jayson
Basic needs- vash
Carl-narrator
Scene 2: De Causes an’ Measures ah Poverty (Three characters roll out, representin’
Education, Health, an’ Basic Needs. Each one holdin’ somethin’ to show dey role.
Education(sanjaa): "No school? No future. Books? Who have money for dat? Teachers
barely gettin’ pay… how de youth go learn an’ move up?"
Health(jayson): "If yuh sick an’ cyah afford doctor, wha’ yuh go do? No meds, no
hospital, people sufferin’ bad out here."
Basic Needs:(vash) "Food, water, shelter – basic ting! But look ‘round, people hungry,
house run-down, pipe dry."
(Dey move aside an’ narrator step in again.)
Narrator(carl): "Dey does measure poverty in plenty ways—no education, bad health, no
basic needs. But yuh feel we stuck? Leh we see."
Teacher/community leader(jayson)
Doctor(Sanjaa)
Brent(Brent)
Vash(Vashist)
Narrator(Carl)
Scene 3: De Struggle an’ De Hope (lil girl meet a kind teacher who givin’ free lessons
who happens to also be a community leader set up a wuk program.. A doctor helpin’ de
village. Brent an’ vash lookin’ at all dis, wonderin’ if dey could be part of de change.)
Teacher/community leader(jayson): "Education is light in de darkness. Come gurl, lemme
teach yuh. Yuh future could be bright.If we wuk together, we go find ways to make jobs
an’ lift we self up. Poverty eh no curse, is a challenge we could beat!"
Doctor(sanjaa): "Health shouldn’t be someting yuh have to beg for. We go bring medicine
an’ help people here."
Brent: "Bas, yuh hear dat? Maybe we could do sometin’ too. We cyah jes sit down an’ let
life pass we by."
Vash : "Yeah, Brent, maybe we go help build someting better. Is time to make a move."
Narrator: "Poverty feel like a heavy weight, but knowledge, health, an’ opportunity could
move mountains. Yuh go sit down or yuh go stand up?"
Scene 4: De Ending
(Everybody freeze as de narrator talk)
Scene 4: De Ending (De villagers gather round, sharin’ ideas an’ makin’ plans. Brent an’
Vash step forward, determined.)
Lil girl (smilin’): "One day, I go grow up an’ help others too. Poverty eh go hold me back."
Brent: "Same here, we go help de next generation!"
Vash: "We makin’ moves now, no more waitin’!"
(Everybody look to de audience, like dey talkin’ to dem direct.)
Narrator: "De fight against poverty eh for one person alone – it for all ah we! If we wuk
together, help one another, we could build a future where nobody hadda suffer. But de
real question is—wha’ you go do?" "Poverty eh just a number – is real life. But if we act,
we could change it. De choice in we hands."
(Lights off and on)
