IMPORTANCE OF BEING IMPORTANT

IMPORTANCE OF BEING IMPORTANT
 A
SHORT PLAY
BY
BINA SHARIF

EASTERN WOMAN

WESTERN MAN

MAN IS A DRAMA TEACHER
WOMAN IS HIS STUDENT

(Play opens with Chris, the drama teacher teaching drama class.
He is talking about Harold Pinter.  Eventually the program will include Beckett,Bernard Shaw,
Oscar Wild, Chekhov)

(Chris recites a monologue from te play, Woman of no importance from Oscar Wild)
Eastern woman named NABILA does a monologue from, An hour of fun with Karima Allah
She messe it all up.

ANOTHER DAY OF CLASS
Chris does another monologue from Oscar Wild's Salome

NABILA:  Does a monologue about being in NY and can't figure out why everyone in NY is of ut-most importance.  She is absolutely frustrated. Can't get along at work, have Afterall socializing
with real New Yorkers, her economy is bad, she suffers from not being a New Yorker

The acting teacher Chris is also not a New Yorker though he is western man, he is going
through the same difficulty...both of them lack te self importance of being Important, just
like New Yorkers who are Important for being Important.

Chris, the drama teacher is stuck with only one student, Nabila, he is incapable somehow of
getting more students though he is an amazing teacher, does not have his own place, has room mate difficulties, can't get a date though he is good looking and extremely handsom, all oter people
rushing about with great sense of self importance show condescending behavior towards him
as if he was a person of least importance, actually of no importance at all....

NABILA's existence is exactly the same, no importance at all in this city, people rushing by behaving busy and very important, attitude of superiority and of  wealth and of cutural importance...
She can justify the self serving attitude of New Yorkers because she is Asian, a minority, an immigrant and thus desn't even try to break out of the circle of self defeat but CHRIS , being a white American male though not a New Yorker can't even justify him being an outsider.  Afterall he was born here and is white.  The supreme race....

ONE DAY A REVALATION HAPPENS TO HIM.  HE REALIZED THAT...

"Every one  in the world is of utmost importance except him and his student, Nabila.
He realized that god was talking to him, whispering to him, giving him advice and clarity...
as if god was telling him, "

GOD: (God to Chris)

Listen my dear fellow, fellow whom I created, listen to me and listen good. "Every one in the world is of ut-most importance except you. You are one person in this big world whom I deliberately not
made an important person, you, I made quite unique. You are out of billions who were born the least
important people with my understanding and permission as THHE LEAST IMPORTANT PRSONS
ON THIS EARTH."

"BUT DON'T WORRY I ALSO ADE ONE MORE PERSON WHO IS UN-IMPORTANT AND THAT IS YOUR DRAMA STUDENT NABILA.

"BUT BOTH OF YOU ARE ALSO VERY BLESSED AND BLESSED BY ME AND IN WHICH WAY YOU MIGHT ASK?

"I WILL COME TO THAT LATER BUT LETS GO BACK TO YOUR MISFORTUNE OF BEING THE MOST UN-IMPORTANT PEOPLE ON THIS EARTH AND ITS RESULTS.
THHIS IS HOW YOU WILL BE TREATED ON THIS PLANET.

"ACTUALLY THE WORLD WILL MISTREAT YOU.
INFURIATE YOU
INSULT YOU
TE WORLD WILL NOT RECOGNIZE YOUR TALENT
YOUR SPIRIT
YOUR ABILITY.

YOU WON'T HAVE WHAT OTHERS WILL HAVE.
PEOPLE WILL STEP ALL OVER YOU
LITERALLY HIT YOU ON YOUR SHOULDERS.
CRUSH YOUR FEET
HIT YOU IN YOUR STOMACH WITH BICYCLES
THHEY WON'T EVER CALL YOU
IF YOU CALL THEM THEY WON'T RETURN YOUR CALLS
THEY WILL BE LATE FR MEETINGS WITH YOU IN CASE THERE IS A MEETING
BUT THERE WON'T EVER BE A MEETING AND IF THERE IS, THEY WILL BE LATE
VERY LATE, MAKE YOU WAIT AND WAIT.  WAIT FOR THHEM IF YO EVER HAVE A DATE WITH THEM, DATE WITH ANY FRIEND, IN CASE YOU WILL HAVE A FRIEND.
THEY WILL KEEP YOU WAITING, THEY WILL BE LATE, NOT ONLY HALF AN HOUR,
NOT ONLY AN HOUR BUT DAYS AND WEEKS AND YOU WILL WAIT AND WAIT AND WAIT....

AND YOU WILL NEVER COMPLAIN UNLIKE THE MOST IMPORTANT PEOPLE WHO ALWAYS COMPLAIN, MOST IMPORTANT EOPLE COMPLAIN ABOUT,

FOOD
WEATHER
POLITICS
BOYFRIENDS
GIRLFRIENDS
MOEY
BOREDOM
DEPRESSION
WEIGHT GAIN
POOR PEOPLE
(THEY CAN'T STAND POVERTY)
THAT'S ONE QUALITY OF THE MOST IMPORTANT PEOPLE ON THIS EARTH.
CAN'T LOOK AT POOR PEOPLE, SICK PEOPLE, OLD EOPLE, FAT PEOPLE, UNSTYLISH PEOPLE...

MOST IMPORTANT PEOPLE WILL COMPLAIN AND COMPLAIN AND COMPLAIN
EVEN WHEN THEY HAVE EVERYTHING, EVERYTHING IMAGINABLE...THEY WILL COMPLAIN
BECAUSE THAT'S THE REQUIREMENT OF BEING IMPORTANT...
BECAUSE TEY HAVE TO SHOW SOME KIND OF UN-HAPPINESS TO JUSTIFY THEIR IMPORTANCE OVER OTHERINHABITANT OF THIS WORLD...

THEY WANT THE OTHERS, THEOTHER UNFORTUNATE, LESS IMPORTABT PEOPLE TO DISAPPEAR FOR EVER SO THEY WON'T HAVE TO EVER LOOK AT THEM AND BE REMINDED OF THEM...

BUT THIS VERY BEHAVIOR WHICH I ASLO EMPOWERED THEM WITH ALONG SIDE F BEING VERY VERY IMPORTANT MAKES THEM, "UNBLESSED."

A PARADOX, DELIBERATELY CREATED BY ME WHICH IS VERY COMPLEX AND HARD TO EXPLAIN...

THESE IMPORTANT PEOPLE OF THE EARTH WERE ORN UN-BLESSED
BORN TO BE UNHAPPY...

'THAT WAS THE PUNISHMENT OF ALL THE PEOPLE WHOM I GAVE THE PLEASURE OF BEING BORN IMPORTANT.

THE PUNISHMENT IS TO COMPLAIN, TO NEVER BE SATISFIED, TO HHAVE GREED, TO
HAVE THIS ULTIMATE SENSE OF ELF IMPORTANT.

THEIR PUNISHMENT IS TO COMPLAIN AND COMPLAIN CONSTANTLY,BECAUSE THEY THINK ITS THEIR RIGHT TO HAVE EVERYTHING AND EVERYTHING MUST BE THE
BEST OTHERWISE THEY WILL ALWAYS BE UNHAPY BECAUSE THEY WERE BORN IMPORTANT AND THAT BRINGS THE PERMANENT DIS-SATISFACTION, UNHAPPINESS, MISERY.

NOTHING IS EVER ENOUGH FOR THEM AS COMPARED TO THE LEST IMPORTANT PEOPLE LIKE YOU AND YOUR STUDENT WHO CAN BE CONTENT WITH WITH VERY LITTLE...CONTENT LEADS TO SOME KIND OF SATISFACTION AND GREATFULLNESS
FOR THE BLESSINGS OF LIFE LIKE THE LITTLE THINGS, SHELTER, FOOD, HEALTH, COMPANIONSHIP, LOVE...THATS ENOUGH...ISN'T IT?  THAT'S THE BLESSING OF THE LEAT IMPORTANT PEOPLE WHOM I CREATED DELIBERATLY AND THHE CURSE OF THE MISERY AND UN-GREATFULLNESS AND PERMANENT COMPLAINS OF THE MOST IMPORTAN AND THE MOST UNHAPY PEOPLE WHOM I CREATED DELIBERATLY AS WELL.  THEY WILL ALWAYS BE VERY IMPORTANTLY UN-HAPPY.

"EXCEPT, THESE TWO PEOPLE, CHRIS, THE POOR DRAMA TEACHER AND NABILA, HIS POOR LONE STUDENT, THESE TWO WERE BORN THE MOSTUN-IMPRTANT PEOPLE BY ME IN THE WHOLE WORLD, BUT THESE UN-IMPORTANT PEOPLE WILL NEVER COMPLAIN, NO MATTER WHAT ANYONE DOES TO THEM BECAUSE THEY ARE NOT IMPORTANT BY MY ORDERS. THEY HAVE FINALLY UNDERSTOOD WHY THEY HAVE BEEN TREATED SO ABOMINABLY.

THE REASON OF THEIR UTMOST UNDERSTANDING IS THAT IT HAS BECOME CRYSTAL CLEAR THAT THEY ARE THE LEAST IMPORTANT PEOPLE ON THIS EARTH AND CREATED UN-IMPORTANT WITH THE PERMISSION OF GOD THUS THEY CAN'T COMPLAIN BECAUSE ITS GOD'S WILL FOR THEM TO BE NOT THHE MOST IMPORTANT PEOPLE LIKE REAL NEW YORKERS.  THEY CAN LIVE IN NY FOR THE REST OF THEIR LIVES BUT THEY CAN NEVER EVER BE IMPORTANT AS NNEW YORKERS AND SINCE IT HAS BECOME CLEAR TO THEM, THEIR FATE OF BEING THE MOST UN-IMPORTANT PEOPLE THEY HAVE HAVE OUT OF NECASSITY ASSUMED THE ATTITUDE OF ABSOLUTE HAPPINESS, CONTENTMENT, JOY...THEY HAVE DEVELOPED THE ABILITY TO ENJOY EVERY LOUSY SITUATION IN THEIR LIFE AND EVERY FUTURE LOUSY SITUATION THEY WILL ENCOUNTER IN THE FUTURE AND ONE DAY GOD WILL MAKE THEM MEET ANOTHER PERSON IN TIS WORLD WHO IS ABSOLUTELY A UN-IMPORTANT AS THEY THEMSELVES ARE...

IN THIS CASE THE FATE BRINGS, CHRIS ONE OF THE MOST UN-IMPORTANT ERSON FROM THE WEST AND NABILA ONE OF THE LEAST IMPORTANT PERSON FROM THE EAST SO THEY CAN HAVE COMPANIONSHIP ON TOP OF THEIR LACK OF IMPORTANCE IN THE WORLD.  NOW THEY HAVE A COMPANION TO SHARE THEIR HEIGHTENED SENSE OF LEAST IMPORTANCE IN THE WORLD.  THEY CAN BOTH BE SATISFIED THAT THERE IS AT EAST ONE MORE PERSON OF LEAST IMPORTANT STATUS IN NEW YORK.  FOR CHRIS ITS NABILA AND FOR NABILA ITS CHRIS.  GOD IS JUST AFTERALL....
ONE HUMAN BEING FROM THE WEST AND ONE HUMAN BEING FROM THE EAST, BOTH NEVER KNOWING THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING IMPORTANT NOW LIVE TOGETHER......