Zora Neale Hurston: Collected Plays

Jook

Jook cast: Nunkie Stack-of-dollars Bunk Black-boy Sack-daddy Big-sweet Planchita James Presley45 Ella Ward46 Draws-leg Blue-front Muttsy47 Time: Present. Place: A sawmill jook house. Scene: Interior of main room in the jook.There is a dilapidated piano in one corner.A small rough table against the wall in the upstage corner.There are a few chairs scattered around against the wall. Action: When the curtain goes up, Nunkie is at the piano playing and singing. There are three couples on the floor slow-dragging and joining in with the singing in spots. Nunkie: (Singing)48 Babe, I’m lonesome, I’m the lonesomest man in your town. Got experience of women—small town turnt me down. Aw, I wants to tell you people whut de Florida East Coast done for me. Took my regular—come and got my used-to-be. Say, look here sweet baby, you sho don’t know my mind, When you see me laughing, laughing just to keep from crying. If you ever been down you know just how I feel. I been down so long, down don’t worry me. Says, storm is rising, wind begin to blow My house done blowed down, I ain’t got no place to go. 123 050 cold (75-130) 4/9/08 11:03 AM Page 123 Roll me wid yo’ stomach, feed me wid yo’ tongue Do it a long time baby till de sunshine come. I’d rather be in Tampa, wid de whippoorwill Than to be ’round here, baby, with a hundred dollar bill. I’d rather see my coffin rolling in my door, Than my baby to tell me she don’t want me no more. I’m sittin’ here lookin’ a thousand miles away, I’m going to pack up my suitcase and make my get-away. Says, my heart struck sorrow, tears come rolling down, Says, it seem like, baby, I’m got to leave this town. If anybody ast you, baby, who composed this song, Tell ’em Little Johnny Barton, he been here and gone. (Enter Draws-Leg at left and gets to the center of the floor. He joins in the song and turns about half-dancing.) Draws-Leg: Here! Gimme a woman.I can’t do all this by myself.(To one of the men) Say there Bunk, lend me Planchita for a hot minute, do, I won’t git well. (He pulls the girl away from the other man who laughs it off. He and Planchita begin to dance fancy. Bunk walks towards the right exit and looks offstage. Nunkie begins to play very fast and the dancers laugh and keep up with the music as long as they can. When Draws-Leg and Planchita laughingly give up like the rest, Nunkie stops playing and turns from the piano laughing.) Bunk: (Looking into the room off right) Hey, Black-Boy, how you doing it? Black-Boy: (Off stage) Come on in here and find out. Bunk: Aw, naw! Y’all ain’t goingter hem me up in there! Come on out here so when I wins yo’ money, I got a running chance. (General laughter and the noise of scraping chairs. Enter Black-Boy, Stackof -Dollars, Blue-Front and Muttsy. They stroll straight for the table and begin to place chairs.) Stack: Now, Bunk, you been bugabooing ’round here; come here and lemme see if you know anything about skinning. (All the men but Nunkie gather about the table.Nunkie plays softly and sings in a whisper along with him. The game begins with Black-Boy dealing.) Bunk: (Pointing to his card) See dat deuce? It’s going to carry de whole deck down. Stack: I don’t bleeve it. 124 • cold keener 050 cold (75-130) 4/9/08 11:03 AM Page 124 Blue-Front: I bet you a fat man I’ll be here last. Bunk: A dollar I knows de best one! Stack: A stack of dollars you don’t. Deal! Black-Boy: (Sings)49 Let de deal go down, boys. When yo’ card gets lucky, oh partner, You oughter be in a rollin’ game. Let de deal go down, boys, Let de deal go down. Lost all my money, oh partner In the rollin’ game. Let de deal go down, boys, Let de deal go down. Bunk: (Threatening) I see you peepin’ them card...