JOSEPH BRODSKY
Democracy!
Act
II.
The offices oj the head
of
a slllall capitalist stale.
Illterior:
011
the walls, pictllres (?f IIIOI'ie alld yoek-alid-roll stars. Alltlers.
A
life-sized st'1fed bea r, ill ,phose directioll the a((ors 1I0d or glallce ,ph!'lle,'er tire pro-
1101111
"tlrey" is IIsed. Hi,Rh willdoll's, ill Ihe Re,Rell(Y style, shaded by
1I
1
1,ile ClIr–
taills Ilrrollgh which olle call lIIake Ollt th e spires (?f Lllthcrall (hllreltes alld sigllS
readillg C illzallo , Coca-Cola, McDollald 's , Cle. LOII,I! CO I!/crell(C table o/lergrOlvll
with beer alld ,ville bottles alld food .
011
Ihe ,porkillg desk
of
Ihe head
C?f
stale, a
stalllpede oj telepholles.
Evmillg.
Three lIIiddle-aged
111m
alld
0111'
,pOII,all of III1(erlaill
l1.1!t'
CO liS
II
IIICfood .
They
illclllde: Basil Modest(Jllich, Head
<?f
S iale; PelrOl'icil, Millisler (?f Ih e Illlerior;
Gllstav Adolfo/lielr, Fill alice Millislcr; Cecilia, Millister
of
Cllltlire. Matilda,
the
secretary.
Not bad oysters, eh?
Yeah. Fresh.
By plane after all.
Ours or theirs?
Ours, whi ch are just repainted theirs.
Ri ckety, too .
Still , just two , three ho urs at best.
Three.
Still fre sh .
Awfully good with lemon.
Editor's Note: Act One ofJoseph Brodsky's play
Delllocracyl
has been performed
abroad and in Washington, D. C.
