The Next Chapter is a collaboration between Fighting Words and The Gate Theatre. Through a series of playwriting workshops, participants had the opportunity to develop their storytelling skills, culminating in a showcase in The Gate Theatre in September 2025 where professional actors performed the participants\u2019 work, building their confidence in creative expression. <\/p>\n
CharactersEric: 25, from Coolock, Dublin. Has OCD, just finished an electrician apprenticeship and is looking for a job. Lives at home with his mother and his partner and their child. He was electrocuted and injured badly at one stage. Deirdre (Dee): 35, has an 8-month-old baby in the pram and two more kids at home. She works for human resources at a company.Lucy: Eric\u2019s partner. Lives in Eric\u2019s mother\u2019s house with him, their child and his mother.Ma: Eric\u2019s motherKatieReceptionistBus driverScene 1<\/p>\n
The number 27 bus to Tallaght. Dublin, Present Day. It\u2019s raining outside. Dee sits alone downstairs. The bus stops. Eric gets on and walks over to Dee.<\/p>\n
Eric: You\u2019re in my seat.<\/p>\n
Dee:\tWho told you this was your seat?<\/p>\n
Eric: I get this bus every day and sit in that exact seat.<\/p>\n
Dee: This isn\u2019t your seat.<\/p>\n
Eric: I\u2019ve been taking this bus for 15 years.<\/p>\n
Dee: It\u2019s not your seat today pal.<\/p>\n
Eric: May I please have that seat.<\/p>\n
Dee: No. You may not.<\/p>\n
Eric: Don\u2019t tell me I can\u2019t have that seat. You\u2019re not the boss of me!<\/p>\n
Dee: I\u2019m not giving you this seat. Do you not hear what I\u2019m saying? Is there something wrong with you?<\/p>\n
Bus stops. Driver comes in.<\/p>\n
Driver: Eric, what\u2019s going on here?<\/p>\n
Eric: She\u2019s in my seat <\/p>\n
Driver:\tEric, we\u2019ve had this problem before. Can you please find another seat. Just for today.<\/p>\n
Dee: Please get this guy away from me<\/p>\n
Driver:\tEric, you\u2019re going to have to sit somewhere else or get off the bus.<\/p>\n
Eric gets thrown off the bus. Scene ends.<\/p>\n
Scene 2<\/p>\n
Eir company headquarters in Tallaght. Reception area and Dee\u2019s Office. Eric enters soaking wet, umbrella inside out.<\/p>\n
Receptionist: Welcome. How can I help you?<\/p>\n
Eric: I have an interview for Eir. I\u2019m an electrician.<\/p>\n
Receptionist: No worries. Dee is waiting for you. You\u2019re very late. Down the hall. Room on the left. <\/p>\n
Eric: Ok. Thank you.<\/p>\n
Eric walks down the hall. Knocks on Dee\u2019s door.<\/p>\n
Dee: Yes. Come in.<\/p>\n
Eric: How\u2019s it going? Sorry I\u2019m late. Ah, s**t. Not you.<\/p>\n
Dee: What do you want?<\/p>\n
Eric: I\u2019m here for the interview.<\/p>\n
Dee: Take a seat. Not this one!<\/p>\n
Eric: I\u2019m sorry for earlier. But that was my seat.<\/p>\n
Dee: Of all the seats on the bus, why did you want my seat?<\/p>\n
Eric: I needed that seat. I\u2019m used to sitting there. I have OCD.<\/p>\n
Dee: Every single person on the planet has OCD these days. Give me a good reason why I should even let you do this interview?<\/p>\n
Eric: I\u2019ve got bills to pay. I really need this job. I\u2019m after having a baby.<\/p>\n
Dee: If I let you interview are your manners going to be as bad as they were on the bus?<\/p>\n
Eric: No. Of course not. I can be professional.<\/p>\n
Dee: Okay. Let\u2019s see what you\u2019ve got.<\/p>\n
Lights down. Scene ends.<\/p>\n
Scene 3<\/p>\n
Eric\u2019s mother\u2019s house, where he lives with his partner, Lucy, their child, his mother and his older brother. Space is cramped. The baby is crying and Lucy is trying to soothe it. Eric enters.<\/p>\n
Lucy: Where have you been all day?<\/p>\n
Eric: Told you I had an interview. Before you ask I definitely didn\u2019t get it. And I got kicked off the bus again. And look at the state of this place!<\/p>\n
Lucy: The absolute NECKKKKK of you. I\u2019ve been slaving over this house all day long and you come back here jobless. What have you got to say for yourself?<\/p>\n
Ma: Don\u2019t you talk to my son like that!<\/p>\n
Eric: I\u2019m going to my room.<\/p>\n
Lucy: I\u2019m sick to death of this Eric. You\u2019re not going anywhere.<\/p>\n
Ma: Talk to my son like that again, I\u2019ll burst the head off ya.<\/p>\n
Eric: What are you sick of?<\/p>\n
Lucy: You haven\u2019t had a job in six months. You\u2019re constantly going on about the state of the house. That\u2019s the sixth time you\u2019ve been kicked off the bus. (Turns to Ma) I\u2019ll deal with you later.<\/p>\n
Eric: Okay! So why don\u2019t you go get a job? I\u2019ll look after the baby and the house. And I\u2019ll do a better job of it.<\/p>\n
Lucy picks up the pot of pasta and throws it at him, narrowly missing his head.<\/p>\n
Scene 4 <\/p>\n
Dee\u2019s apartment\/house. Dee\u2019s car has broken down. Her ex-husband, John, is there, wearing a fishnet vest, drinking a can, when she walks in with the baby. <\/p>\n
John: Well, well, the kids are starving, your turn for dinner.<\/p>\n
Dee: You\u2019re here all day you could have cooked them something!<\/p>\n
John: Don\u2019t be bringing home your work stress. We have an agreement.<\/p>\n
Dee: What have you been doing? Sitting on your arse all day!<\/p>\n
John: Been trying to fix that car you can\u2019t drive.<\/p>\n
Dee: Can\u2019t drive something that\u2019s not fixed.<\/p>\n
John: You\u2019re always blaming others. I\u2019m not listening to this.<\/p>\n
Dee:\tYou\u2019re just a waste of space.<\/p>\n
John: I\u2019ve been working on that car for hours. You never give anyone a chance.<\/p>\n
Dee: I\u2019ve given you enough chances. You\u2019ve been sitting there drinking beer wasting time. Where are the kids anyway?<\/p>\n
John: Upstairs. Doing their homework. They were helping me with your car. <\/p>\n
Dee:\tHave you signed those divorce papers yet?<\/p>\n
John: No way. And I won\u2019t. Not on those terms. This is my house too. And you\u2019re not taking the kids.<\/p>\n
Dee: Nobody says I was taking them. The court will decide that. Let\u2019s see how this goes in court. They don\u2019t look kindly on alcoholics.<\/p>\n
John storms out.<\/p>\n
Scene 5 <\/p>\n
John and his mistress, Katie, are in Katie\u2019s apartment. <\/p>\n
John: Me and her just had words again. I\u2019m sick of this.<\/p>\n
Katie: You said you were going to leave her. You should have left by now.<\/p>\n
John: It\u2019s too hard with the kids. It\u2019s messy. I\u2019m not leaving her with the house.<\/p>\n
Katie: I\u2019m not playing second fiddle to her and the kids. So sign the papers and leave her go. Don\u2019t you love me?<\/p>\n
John: Of course I do. But I love the house too. <\/p>\n
Katie: So what\u2019s the plan?<\/p>\n
John: I don\u2019t know. What do you think?<\/p>\n
Katie: You know what I think. I\u2019ve said it all before. Plug something into that dodgy socket in her room. Poof! Electrical fire. Then report her for being an unfit mother.<\/p>\n
John: What if the kids get hurt? <\/p>\n
Katie: Do it when they\u2019re in school and I\u2019ll be your alibi.<\/p>\n
John: That could work!<\/p>\n
They kiss. <\/p>\n
Scene 6 <\/p>\n
Eric and John standing on stage. Eric\u2019s phone rings.<\/p>\n
Eric: Hello. Who\u2019s this?<\/p>\n
John: I got your number off a mate.<\/p>\n
Eric: What mate?<\/p>\n
John: Jimmy. Jimmy Jones. The bus driver. I heard you were looking for work.<\/p>\n
Eric: I\u2019m always looking for work. What do you need done?<\/p>\n
John: Can you come out and look at a job for me?<\/p>\n
Eric: Sure. Send me the address. When suits you?<\/p>\n
John: Can you come over this afternoon? <\/p>\n
Eric: Not this afternoon. I have an interview. Tomorrow?<\/p>\n
Scene 7<\/p>\n
Eric and Dee. Second interview. Eric arrives at the office. Dee is on the phone.<\/p>\n
Receptionist: Fancy seeing you here again!<\/p>\n
Eric: I\u2019m surprised to see myself here again.<\/p>\n
Receptionist: At least you\u2019re on time! Dee\u2019s waiting for you in there.<\/p>\n
Eric knocks. Dee says, \u201cSign the papers \u2013 I just want you out of my house and out of my life.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dee: Come in.<\/p>\n
Eric: Where should I sit?!<\/p>\n
Dee: Any seat but mine!<\/p>\n
Rapport is good.<\/p>\n
Eric: Thanks for having me back.<\/p>\n
Dee: Anyone can have a bad day. You sparked something in me! Everyone deserves a second chance.<\/p>\n
Eric: You\u2019ve no idea what this means to me. I\u2019ve got a lot going on at home.<\/p>\n
Dee (Emotional): I can identify with that.<\/p>\n
Eric: Are you all right?<\/p>\n
Dee: Sorry, that\u2019s not very professional of me. I see you have a year and half gap on your resume. What happened?<\/p>\n
Eric: I was a young apprentice. First year on the job. I suffer from OCD as I said in the first interview. My boss left me unsupervised. I was trying to clean up messy cables. Didn\u2019t know they were still live. I got the shock of my life. Literally. Fast forward two months in a coma and ended up with third degree burns. And this is my first interview since. <\/p>\n
As Eric speaks we see the action taking place as if it\u2019s present day.<\/p>\n
Dee: The bus thing. I get it now. You\u2019re doing well. You\u2019re doing really well. <\/p>\n
Scene 8<\/p>\n
John\u2018s house. Eric arrives. Introductions are made. <\/p>\n
Eric: You weren\u2019t clear on the phone what the job was.<\/p>\n
John: I heard you were looking for easy money. Would you do a nixer for me?<\/p>\n
Eric: Lead the way.<\/p>\n
Eric follows John upstairs. <\/p>\n
John: There it is. It\u2019s that socket on the back wall. <\/p>\n
Eric: There\u2019s nothing wrong with it.<\/p>\n
John: That\u2019s the problem.<\/p>\n
John winks and leaves the room and Eric sees a large framed photo of Dee & John, has a flashback of being shocked. Eric storms down the stairs sees John and says:<\/p>\n
Eric: I\u2019m having no part of this.<\/p>\n
Scene 9<\/p>\n
Dee\u2019s office.<\/p>\n
Receptionist: You\u2019re making a habit of this! But I think it could be good news.<\/p>\n
Eric: I know. I got a call to be here this morning.<\/p>\n
Dee: Hey Eric. Come on in.<\/p>\n
Eric: Hi Dee. Thanks for having me back. I appreciate it<\/p>\n
Dee: I\u2019m looking at your test scores. You may have no social skills but it appears you\u2019re an electrical genius. The job is yours.<\/p>\n
Eric is overcome with emotion \u2013 joy then apprehension.<\/p>\n
Eric: But c\u2019mere. Before I accept, wait til I tell you this …<\/p>\n
This play was published in The Irish Times Fighting Words magazine, a collection of stories, poems and essays by young and international writers.<\/p>\n
Fighting Words and the Gate Theatre would like to thank Adult Literacy for Life, Solas Learning Networks and Irish Gov\/EU for supporting this project.<\/p>\n
The HSE Drugs and Alcohol Helpline provides confidential support, information and referrals to services. Call 1800 459 459 or email helpline@hse.ie<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Next Chapter is a collaboration between Fighting Words and The Gate Theatre. Through a series of playwriting…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":462886,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[198710,61,60,82],"class_list":["post-462885","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-science","tag-fighting-words","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-science"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/462885","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=462885"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/462885\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/462886"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=462885"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=462885"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=462885"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}