Nov 16, 2009

Topdog/Underdog | Introduction

Like the title suggests, Topdog/Underdog (published in 2001) is a play about competition, reversals, and mirror images that reflect the true self. The idea that became Topdog/Underdog can be found in one of Parks’s earlier plays, The America Play (1995), which features a gravedigger named the Foundling Father whose obsession with Abraham Lincoln leads him to find work in a sideshow. Like Link in Topdog/Underdog, the Foundling Father applies whiteface, models several different types of fake beards, and sits in a chair awaiting visitors who pay to assassinate “Abraham Lincoln” with a cap gun. Though the Foundling Father and Link hold the same job, any similarities between these two protagonists end there. Regardless, Parks’s fascination with history, especially personal history, and the ways in which illusion can reveal identity makes for riveting drama.

Topdog/Underdog tells the story of two brothers, Lincoln and Booth, who, abandoned by first one parent and then the other, have had to depend upon each other for survival since they were teenagers. Now in their thirties, the brothers struggle to make a new life, one that will lead them out of poverty. Lincoln, a master of the con game three-card monte, has abandoned a life of crime for a more respectable job impersonating Abraham Lincoln at an arcade. Booth, on the other hand, earns his living as a petty thief, one who wishes to emulate his older brother’s success by learning how to “throw the cards.” Throughout the play, the brothers compete against each other, vying for control. At any given moment, one may yield power over the other, only to relinquish it in the next. Hence, Topdog/Underdog reveals a topsy-turvy world in which Lincoln and Booth live, a chaotic world that is as dangerous as it is illusory.

Topdog/Underdog Summary

Scene 1

The play opens on a Thursday evening in a boardinghouse room with Booth practicing his three-card monte routine over a board supported by two milk crates. He practices his patter, imagining that he has won a large sum of money. Lincoln, wearing a frock coat, top hat, and fake beard, sneaks up behind his brother, who whirls and pulls a gun.

Booth tells Lincoln to take off his disguise because he fears Lincoln’s getup will scare Grace, with whom Booth has a date the next day. Booth claims that Grace is in love with him, and that no man can love her the way he can. Booth then shows Lincoln a “diamond-esque” ring he plans to give Grace. The ring is stolen, but it is smaller than the one he gave her when they were together two years before; therefore, Booth, by giving his beloved a smaller ring, decreases the chance that she will give the ring back because she cannot remove it once it has been placed upon her finger.

Booth insists that Lincoln remove his costume. He does not understand why his brother does not leave the costume at work, but Link says that he is afraid someone might steal it.

Lincoln then relates a story about how a “little rich kid” asked him for an autograph while riding the bus home for work. Link decides to charge the kid ten dollars for the favor, but the kid only has a twenty-dollar bill. Lincoln, in the guise of Honest Abe, promises to bring the kid his change the next time they meet on the bus, but Lincoln buys a round of drinks at Lucky’s instead.

Lincoln questions Booth about his card setup. Booth, wanting to create a new persona for himself, informs Lincoln that he is thinking about changing his name. Lincoln suggests an African name like “Shango,” which would be an easy name for everyone to say and would not, in Lincoln’s opinion, “obstruct . . . employment possibilities.”

Lincoln has brought Chinese food home for dinner, and the brothers begin converting the card setup into a dinner table, which prompts a discussion about their present living arrangement. Lincoln points out the room’s shortcomings, such as the absence of a toilet or a sink, but Booth does not see anything wrong with the amenities (or lack thereof).

Lincoln goes to get the food and finds a playing card on the floor. He places the card on the table and asks Booth if he has been playing cards. Booth says he has been playing solitaire rather than admit that he has been practicing his three-card monte routine unsuccessfully.

The brothers argue over who will eat what. Lincoln relents and gives Booth the “skrimps.” Curious, Lincoln brings up the subject of solitaire again, and Booth suggests that they play a hand of poker or rummy when they have finished eating. Lincoln reminds Booth that he will not touch the cards, but Booth insists that it would be “[j]ust for fun.” Lincoln remains adamant, but Booth presses the issue, wanting to know whether Lincoln would break his vow if they played for money.

Lincoln says that Booth has no money because he, Lincoln, is the one who brings home the paycheck. Booth claims to have an “inheritance,” but Lincoln says that Booth might as well have nothing because he never plans to spend the money he has. Booth responds by saying that Lincoln “blew” his inheritance.

The conversation abates and returns to the subject of food. The brothers compare their fortune cookie messages. Booth finishes eating and begins practicing his three-card monte routine again. His movements remain awkward and clumsy, and Lincoln tries his best to ignore him. Lincoln, however, cannot refrain from making comments about Booth’s patter. Finally, Lincoln tells Booth that if he wants to throw the cards properly, he must practice the routine in smaller sections.

Booth suggests that they work as a team, but Lincoln changes the subject by saying he will clean up after the meal. Booth then announces that from then on he wants to be called “3-Card.” Booth says that everyone calls him that; according to him, Grace especially likes the name. Lincoln thinks that both the name and his brother are “too much.” “Im making a point,” Booth says. “Point made, 3-Card. Point made,” replies Lincoln.

Booth again raises the idea of the brothers working as a team. He has visions of making easy money, but Lincoln reminds him that there is more to making money at three-card monte than finding a mark. Booth goads Lincoln into accepting his proposition by reminding him that their success would attract women. Lincoln questions Booth’s relationship with Grace, which does not seem all that secure. Booth appeals to Lincoln’s sense of vanity by reminding him that at one time he was the best three-card dealer in the city. Lincoln, however, states that he does not touch the cards anymore.

Booth tries another tack by calling his brother names and by reminding him of how he, Booth, discovered their mother packing her things to leave. Booth tells Lincoln that their mother asked him to look out for his older brother, which brings the conversation around again to how, in Booth’s view, he is trying to create an “economic opportunity” while Lincoln sits around and does nothing. Booth concludes his harangue by shouting, “YOU STANDING IN MY WAY, LINK!”

Lincoln apologizes, saying that he would prefer to do “honest work.” Booth chides Lincoln about his costume and how he must impersonate “some crackerass white man,” but Lincoln says that visitors to the arcade are not misled. “When people know the real deal it aint a hustle,” he says.

Booth twists Lincoln’s words and says that the card game would be the real deal. Booth implies that Lincoln’s working at the arcade transcends his role of The Great Emancipator to embody slavery. Essentially, Booth says that his brother has enslaved himself to the owners of the arcade, who controls his destiny. Lincoln warns Booth not to push him; his anger is rising.

Booth informs Lincoln that he will have to leave because their living arrangement was intended to be temporary. Lincoln agrees to leave without complaint and then plays a blues tune on the guitar. The song is sad and mournful, its theme one of abandonment and displacement. Booth likes the song, which Lincoln composed while at work.

Lincoln tells Booth about how they got their names. Their father was drunk when he told Lincoln that he named his sons Booth and Lincoln because “It was his idea of a joke.”

Scene 2

The scene opens with Booth dressed like he is about to go on an Arctic expedition and checking to see if Lincoln is home. As he undresses, he reveals layers of clothing that he has stolen. He lays one suit on Lincoln’s easy chair and another on his own bed. He sets two glasses and a bottle of whiskey on top of the stacked milk crates. Booth sits in a chair pretending to read a magazine when Lincoln walks in.

Lincoln enters the room to the sound of improvised fanfare. Booth knows that today, Friday, is payday, and the brothers, referring to each other as “Ma” and “Pa,” begin to celebrate their prosperity. Lincoln pours two glasses of whiskey, and Booth begins counting the money Lincoln has brought home. Lincoln tells him to budget the money because he wants to know how much is available for the week. Booth, indignant that Lincoln has failed to notice the suit he stole for him, says that Lincoln would not notice his ex-wife Cookie if she was in bed. The jibe makes Lincoln wistful, but then his mood brightens when he sees the blue suit lying on the chair.

Booth brags about how he “boosted” the suits and other items of clothing from a department store. “I stole and I stole generously,” he tells his brother. “Just cause I aint good as you at cards dont mean I cant do nothing.”

Lincoln compliments Booth on his haul and then delivers a speech about how clothes do not make the man. “All day long I wear that getup. But that dont make me who I am,” he says. He is reminded of how their father’s clothes would hang in the closet, whereupon Booth, resentful about how their father spent more time and money on his mistresses than on his children, tells Lincoln that he took their father’s clothes outside and burned them. Lincoln, on the other hand, is preoccupied with his job security and how he would leave the job when the time came. He concludes by sounding a refrain about his true identity: “Fake beard. Top hat. Dont make me into no Lincoln. I was Lincoln on my own before any of that.”

After the brothers finish dressing and modeling their clothes for each other, Booth tells Lincoln that he looks like he did when he was with Cookie. Booth also thinks about how his new suit will impress Grace. Lincoln thinks that they should switch ties, and so they do. Both are pleased with the results.

Lincoln asks Booth to do the budget. He calculates how much they will need to pay the utilities, some of which, like the phone, they do not actually use. Booth wants to pay their bill so service will be restored and they can call their lady friends. Booth has it all worked out that having a phone will transform him into a ladies man, but Lincoln, depressed and dejected, does not believe that a woman would ever call him. Booth chastises Lincoln for not having any knowledge or confidence when it comes to women. Booth resumes calculating the budget, allowing money for alcohol and meals.

Lincoln tells Booth that there is talk of cutbacks at the arcade. Since Lincoln has been working there for only eight months, he would most likely be one of the first employees to be let go. “Dont sweat it man, we’ll find something else,” Booth replies, acknowledging that their fates are entwined together. Lincoln says that he likes his job because he can sit there all day and let his mind “travel.” It is what he calls “easy work.”

Sometimes Lincoln thinks about women, but most of the time he lets his mind “go quiet” as he composes songs, makes plans, and sits there trying to forget about the past. He invites Booth to come down again, but Booth says that once was enough. He asks if the Best Customer came in today, as he does most days, and Lincoln says, “He shot Honest Abe, yeah.” They discuss some of the things the Best Customer whispers into Honest Abe’s ear, and Booth concludes that the Best Customer is “one deep black brother.”

Booth also concludes that Lincoln’s job is bizarre. Lincoln says it is a living, but Booth challenges him by saying that he is not really living at all. “Im alive aint I?” Lincoln retorts. He then tells about how Lonny’s death made him give up the cards for a secure, less dangerous, job. Lincoln likes his work at the arcade, but he cannot let go of his fear that he might lose his job and be forced to seek employment again. Booth, in an effort to cheer his brother up and perhaps win him over to the idea that they should work together as a team, reminds Lincoln that he was once lucky with the cards, but Lincoln dismisses the notion that anything but skill is involved in throwing the cards.

When Lincoln once again expresses his fear about losing his job, Booth tells him that he has to “jazz up” his act if he wants to attract more customers and keep his job. He gives his brother some pointers on how to make his performance more dramatic. However, when Lincoln asks Booth to help him practice, Booth tells him he does not have time because he must get ready for his date with Grace. Claiming that it is the “biggest night” of his life, Booth asks Lincoln for a small loan.

Lincoln gives Booth a five-dollar bill. Booth, perhaps feeling guilty about abandoning his brother, suggests that they rehearse when he gets back from his date. Lincoln agrees, and Booth leaves.

Alone, Lincoln undresses and hangs his clothes neatly over a chair. Leaving his feet bare, he dons his work uniform, securing the top hat beneath his chin with an elastic band. His outfit is complete except for the white makeup. Lincoln pretends to get shot, falls down, and writhes on the floor. He gets up and is about to practice his moves again when he decides to pour himself a large glass of whiskey. The scene ends with Lincoln sitting in the easy chair drinking.

Scene 3

The scene opens much later that Friday evening, with Lincoln asleep in the recliner, which has been extended to its full horizontal position. He wakes suddenly, hung-over and wearing his costume. Booth enters, swaggering and slamming the door in an attempt to wake his brother, but Lincoln does not react, so Booth slams the door again. Lincoln wakes up, still bleary-eyed. Booth walks around him, strutting like a rooster, to make sure Lincoln sees him.

Lincoln asks if Booth has hurt himself, but Booth replies that he has had “an evening to remember.” Lincoln says that Booth looks like he has hurt himself, but all he can talk about is how Grace wants him back. According to Booth, she has “wiped her hand” over her past so that she can say they have never been apart. She has forgiven him for his mistakes. Lincoln asks about their date, and Booth begins to divulge details of his sexual conquest. He interrupts his story because, he says, he does not want to make his brother jealous. Booth provides more details of the evening’s encounter, but even so he feels guilty about making his brother feel bad. Lincoln prompts his brother to tell him more, and Booth obliges, saying that Grace was so sweet his teeth hurt. After more hesitation, Booth reveals intimate details of his sexual relations with Grace, each detail becoming more salacious and vivid.

The conversation revolves around the use of condoms, which Lincoln says he never had to do because he was married. Booth says that Grace will not let him go without one next time; she will be real strict about that. Lincoln, in a gesture of manly bravado, tells Booth that he will find a way to avoid using one. “You put yr foot down and she’ll melt,” he says.

Lincoln keeps drinking while Booth is in his bedroom, playing with the condoms. From the other side of the screen that divides the room, Booth tells Lincoln how Grace is not like all the other girls he has been with because she attends cosmetology school and has plans for the future. When Booth tells Lincoln about Grace’s expertise as a cosmetologist, Lincoln cracks a joke, saying that it is too bad Booth is not a woman. Booth asks him to repeat what he said, but Lincoln changes his tone, saying that Booth could have his hair and nails done for free.

Booth continues to sing Grace’s praises. Their breakup two years ago happened because, he says, he had a “little employment difficulty,” and she needed time to think. Lincoln observes that that time is over, and Booth agrees.

Lincoln asks what Booth is doing. He may have been trying on a condom, but he says that he is resting because Grace left him exhausted. Lincoln asks Booth if he would like some “med-sin”—a drink of whiskey—but Booth says no. Lincoln tells Booth to help him practice his moves, but Booth asks if they can practice tomorrow. Lincoln remains persistent, saying that he has been dressed up and waiting for Booth to help him. Lincoln’s tone becomes urgent when he confesses his fear of being replaced by a wax dummy.

At first Booth is surprised to hear this, and Lincoln concedes that the idea may be nothing more than talk. He presses Booth again, reminding him that he loaned him five bucks so Booth could entertain Grace properly. Booth replies that he is tired, which prompts Lincoln to respond that Booth did not have sex with Grace earlier that evening; Booth made up that story to save face. Booth says that Lincoln is jealous. Lincoln counters by saying that the only sex Booth has is when he rustles the pages of his girlie magazines. Booth defends himself by saying that he is a passionate man who needs “sexual release.” He justifies his frequent masturbation by saying that if he did not he would be out spending money and committing crimes to satisfy his passionate nature. Angry, Booth attacks Lincoln by denigrating his manhood. He tells Lincoln that his wife Cookie left him because he was impotent. Booth extends his role of topdog by saying, “I gave it to Grace good tonight. So goodnight.” Lincoln says goodnight.

Lincoln sits in his chair while Booth lies in bed. After awhile, Booth checks on his brother to see if he is asleep, but Lincoln keeps an eye out for him. Lincoln breaks the silence by telling Booth that he does not need him to hustle a game of three-card monte. Booth says that he had planned to do it that way. Lincoln offers to contact his old crew, but Booth insists that he can assemble one of his own. “I don’t need yr crew. Buncha has-beens. I can get my own crew,” he says. Lincoln ignores Booth, telling him that back in the day he and his crew would pull in seven thousand dollars a week. Booth, however, remains stubborn until Lincoln, appealing to his brother’s vanity, paints a verbal picture of Booth taking wads of cash off of tourists at the Mexican border. Booth slowly warms to the idea of Lincoln setting him up as a dealer.

Lincoln reminds Booth that he would have to have a gun for protection, but Booth says he already has one. Lincoln refers to Booth’s piece as a “pop gun.” He says that Booth would have to have a gun that matched his skill as a hustler, some “upper echelon heat.” Booth will not listen to what his brother says because Lincoln has been away from the game for too long, six or seven years. Lincoln says he knows about guns because he works around them every day at the arcade. Booth wants... » Complete Topdog/Underdog Summary