ACT 1: THE TRIP TO DENTIN SCENE 2: THE INVITE 

 THE CAMERA REVERSES FROM THE SHOT OF VIDEO BEING PLAYED ON THE PROJECTOR ONCE THE VIDEO ENDS. IT ZOOMS OUT FROM THERE ON BACK TO A CROWD OF PE NOT PAYING ATTENTION.

 A small crowd of scruffy and somewhat dirty, not filthy, gathering of men and women wait in a high school auditorium. They all face the stage where a mic on a stand has been placed. They murmur as they wait. A short, pale, disheveled man walks up to the mic. 

SAM: (Standing at mic)"Hello... Hello?" 

The murmur in the audience dies down significantly and the focus is now on Sam. 

SAM: "Um... Tonight is, um, the two-hundred and sixtieth weekly announcement since the fall of the City of ’Salvation’." 

Light cheering from the crowd is heard. 

CROWD MEMBER 1: "Yea!"

 Sam looks down to the floor and looks up. He carries on with the announcement with a heavy heart. 

SAM: "Birthdays this week: Jodi, Jenny, Johnny, Jimmy, and Bruce... Congratulations..."

 Even lighter cheering is heard from the crowd, a low chummy "Happy Birthday", starts in a low hum. 

SAM: "This weeks watch guards are as follows: Freddy and David on the north entrance, Jimmy and Johnny on the east entrance..." 

CROWD MEMBER 2: "Happy birthday you two!"

SAM: "Bill and George on the south entrance, and, Russell and Kurt on the east entrance..." 

Silence follows Sam’s announcements, he looks for his wife Louise who is off to the side of the stage. 

 SAM: (Whispering, or mouthing to his wife off stage.) "Anything else?" 

Louise gestures to a strange man behind her who applies makeup. 

LOUISE: (Mouths, or whispers) "Howard’s Hamburgers." 

Sam looks back at the audience in disgust.

 SAM: "... And now, a word all the way from New Dentin! A message from our friends at Howard’s Hamburgers!" 

(Sam attempts to seem enthused but really hates the idea of a Howard’s Hamburgers representative in his area) 

The crowd claps heavily as the strang man jogs up on stage. He is dressed nicely in comparison to the people gathered. He wears an orange coat and orange business pants with a tie to match, with a white button up underneath it all. He has 60’s style mutton chops and a parted to the righ hair. The strange man’s, or representatives name is Klunk. Like the noise. 

KLUNK: "Hello!"

 CROWD: (In a slightly a unison not as loud as Klunk) "Hello." 

KLUNK: (Louder than before) "Come on! Hello!" 

CROWD: (Slightly louder) "Hello!" 

KLUNK: (Yelling) "HELLO!" 

CROWD: (Now yelling with him) "HELLO!"

Klunk, with a big grin on his face, paces back and forth with mic now in hand. 

KLUNK: "Now that’s what I’m talking about! Now, hello everyone! My name is Klunk, and I am from the prestigious Howard’s Hamburgers." 

Audience claps heartedly, looking content toward Klunk. 

KLUNK: "So everyone, I have some extremely exciting news. Since we’ve all noticed your growth of your, ahem, ’community’... And the great Timothy Howard wanted to reward you!" 

Cheering from the audience. 

KLUNK: "Yea give yourself a round of applause!"

 Slightly heavier cheering is heard. 

KLUNK: "Now, since Howard’s Hamburgers is such an advocate for survival, Mr. Howard wanted to congratulate you with our state-of-the-arc gated road. A safety route, a way for good transport, a way to the future!" 

Crowd cheers and stands and applauds to Klunk’s cheesy line. 

KLUNK: "Now, before we actually allow any kind of growth between our two little orders, ahaha, our great, respectable, Colonel Timothy Howard would like to select few of you to come visit, visit us! To see if you are worth investing our time with!" 

The audience is ecstatic with the idea of becoming big again. They grow in commotion. 

 KLUNK: (Glancing at Sam in between talking to audience) "Now, just to give you a taste, of what your people may be integrated with… I believe we have a… a video set up. Is that correct?"

 SAM: (Glancing between his wife and Klunk) "Y-y-yes, Louise?" 

KLUNK: (Mutters out loud) "It can’t be that hard, but ok?" 

The video starts with the classic black and white count down 

 (DENTON, U.S.A, BY RICHARD O’BRIEN) 

 CAMERA PANS OVER A GIANT CITY, HEAVILY GUARDED, WITH LARGE, THICK WALLS ON ALL SIDES. THE CITY IS A COLLABORATION OF GIANT WHITE HOUSES, WITH BRIGHT GREEN YARDS AND WHITE FENCES THE CAMERA ZOOMS INTO A CROWD OF PEOPLE STANDING AROUND AN ENORMOUS HOUSE IN THE CENTER OF THE CITY. THE CAMERA ZOOMS INTO A SINGLE INDIVIDUAL, WHO HAPPENS TO BE TIMOTHY HOWARD, THE OWNER, AND FOUNDER OF HOWARD’S HAMBURGERS TIMOTHY HOWARD: 

"You’ll find happy hearts, and smiling faces And tolerance for the ethnic races - in Dentin." 

CAMERA CUTS TO A TO PARENTS SITTING ON PORCH WATCHING THEIR KIDS PLAY OUTSIDE 

HUSBAND (SINGS TO WIFE): "You’ll find a rambling rose, and a picket fence" 

WIFE: (sings to camera) "Tenderness and innocence - in Dentin" 

KLUNK: (strolling down street, with two girls, singing to camera) "You’ll find conference rooms And a children’s playground Dentin is a real OK town Civic pride and civic duty" (Sings to girls) "And Dentin girls are-(Wolf whistle) Full of beauty"

 Klunk continues to walk, but the girls jump in front of camera and sing. Camera follows them as they walk down the street 

GIRLS: "You may call us the goody goody two shoes We’re here to cheer you with the good news That D-E-N-T-I-N gets T-E-N Almost ten out of ten!" 

Girls sing until they cross an old folk’s home, where outside there are people sitting on the porch 

 OLD GUY IN WHEEL CHAIR: "If you’re looking for a life of leisure," 

NURSE: "You’re going to get a whole lot to please ya!" 

OLD GUY IN WHEEL CHAIR: "Again and again," 

NURSE: "And again and again," 

OLD GUY IN WHEEL CHAIR AND NURSE: "And again!" 

VIDEO CUTS TO ALL THE PEOPLE STANDING OUTSIDE OF THE LARGE BUILDING WITH HOWARD PEOPLE AROUND BUILDING: "Dentin, Dentin, you’ve got no pretension You’re where the heart is, you’re OK Dentin, Dentin, I’d just like to mention You’re the home of youth You’re America’s truth You’re Dentin, Dentin, U.S.A." 

VIDEO CUTS TO PEOPLE WORKING IN HOWARD’S HAMBURGERS, SINGING TO EACH OTHER. 

KID FLIPPING BURGERS (KID 1): "This is the Mecca of America," 

KID NEXT TO KID 1 (KID 2): "The Bethlehem of the West," 

KID 1: "This is the birthplace of the virtuous," 

KID 2: "The home of Howard’s Hamburgers," 

BEHIND THEM HOWARD WALKS, PUTS TWO BEEFY HANDS ON THEIR SHOULDERS AND SINGS TO CAMERA 

TIMOTHY HOWARD: "Leisure wise, we’re sure you will adapt." 

FLOOR MANAGER WALKS UP AND ALSO LOOKS AT CAMERA FLOOR MANAGER: "Enjoy your stay, have a happy holiday," 

CAMERA IS PULLED IN ON TWO GIRLS 

GIRLS IN COMMUNITY: "And we’ll all put Dentin, Dentin, on the map," 

COMMUNITY: "Dentin, Dentin, you’ve got no pretension You’re where the heart is, you’re OK Dentin, Dentin, I’d just like to mention You’re the home of youth You’re America’s truth You’re Dentin, Dentin, U.S.A. Dentin, Dentin, you’ve got (clap) no pretension You’re (clap) where the heart is, you’re OK, Dentin, Dentin, I’d just (clap) like to mention You’re (clap) the acceptable face (Clap) Of the human race You’re (clap) Dentin, Dentin, U.S.A!" 

THE VIDEO ENDS AND THE LIGHTS IN THE AUDITORIUM COME UP, AND SCREEN GOES BLACK 

SAM: (to his wife) "Worst waste of time ever." 

KLUNK: (jogs up on stage) "Yea! So who’s excited about visiting Dentin?" Audience claps heavily in response 

SAM: (To his wife, she is also clapping. He grabs her hands and stops them) "I cant believe in you, do you actually want to go see more people like him!" 

The clapping from the auditorium stops and the people and Klunk turns to Sam and his wife. There’s a long pause, and the spotlight goes to them. 

SAM: "Uh...I’d..." 

KLUNK: "It seems like, not all new civilizations are... civilized... Say, Sam, why don’t you come out here on stage." 

Sam releases his wife’s hands, and slowly walks next to Klunk. 

KLUNK: "So, Sam, tell me, do you not want your people to visit Dentin?" 

Half of crowd boos Sam, then crowd murmurs 

SAM: "No, I do…" 

KLUNK: "Good, cause as you know, Howard’s Hamburgers is one of the biggest providers for your city..." 

SAM: "I know, and we’ve been very thankful, but..." 

KLUNK: "But what?.... Don’t you wan’t your people to continue thriving? With a road to Dentin, supplies will be able to get to you quicker in case there’s an... Incident." 

SAM: "Yes, I guess you’re right." 

KLUNK: "Great, I’m glad you where able to come to your senses, I know it’s hard for you people to do that, but if now you don’t mind, we’ll choose the lucky people to come visit Dentin."

SAM: "Well maybe we should give them a chance to decide wether or not they want to go." 

KLUNK: "Oh? But they do want to go. Isn’t that right?" 

Crowd cheers heavily. Klunk get’s Sam off the stage and has two men in armored suits with guns come up with a giant wheel half of it with a "yes" and a second half saying "no" 

 KLUNK: "Now, the first fifty of you who spin ’yes’ will come to visit Dentin!" The crowd cheers Sam watches from the sides with a fear

 END OF SCENE 2 

Next Chapter: Act 1 Scene 3