Episode three of Stage & Screen continues our special presentation of "Listening in the Shadows" with "When No One Was Watching," written by Emma Siler, directed by Megan Longton, and starring Emma Finlay and Lauren Hite.
Episode three of Stage & Screen continues our special presentation of "Listening in the Shadows," an original, five-part radio drama written and performed by our students as part of our Fall 2020 season. Today's drama is called "When No One Was Watching," written by Emma Siler, directed by Megan Longton, and starring Emma Finlay as The Doctor and Lauren Hite as The Detective.
Production Credits:
Project Director—Matthew Shifflett
Project Coordinator—Haley Parker
Production Manager—Jared Spears
Sound Designer and Editor—Kurt Davis
Foley Artist—Fel Macias
The Department of Theatre & Film is grateful for its patrons and corporate sponsors. As a department we are committed to the high quality instruction that our students receive. Investing in the students’ education and these quality productions helps us move toward our common goal of graduating successful, creative adults who are lifelong learners. If you are interested in contributing to these efforts, please visit https://umfoundation.givingfuel.com/theatreandfilm.
00:00:05
From the Department of Theatre & Film at the University of Mississippi, this is Stage & Screen.
00:00:15 Host
Hello and welcome to episode three of Stage & Screen. I'm your host, Katherine Stewart, and today we have another thrilling installment of Listening in the Shadows, an original five part radio drama written and performed by our students as part of our Fall 2020 season.
00:00:33 Host
Last week we heard Merry Morning, and if you didn't catch that one, look up episode two of the podcast and check it out.
00:00:41 Host
Today's drama is called When No One Was Watching. Written by Emma Siler and directed by Megan Longton. So here is When No One Was Watching.
SFX: Sirens, crackling of fire, and steps running up stairs
SFX: Sirens, fire, and steps fade
SFX: Click of a recorder
DETECTIVE CARSON: July 21st. Case notes for file #27491, Dr. Maryce Turner, 45, found in
her second story apartment on St. Charles Avenue. No signs of forced entry and no signs of
struggle. Body lying face up on the floor. Smoldering mattress lay on top of the victim, severe
burns on the right side of the body. Arm reduced to charred humerus bone. Chest wall and
abdominal muscles burned away to reveal intestines and pleural cavity. Cause of death,
however, is a small and precise stab wound to the heart. Several other stab wounds were obtained
post-mortem. Blood spatter on walls, forensics is working on report based on pattern. Foul play
is suspected. No known witnesses.
SFX: Click of a recorder
(Pause)
SFX: Walking: two sets of footsteps and a faint ambulance siren
SFX: Sirens fade when a door is opened
DETECTIVE CARSON: Thank you. If Dr. Ross is ready, you can send her in. Also, there is a
Dr. Harvey on the log the day Dr. Turner was killed. He hasn’t responded to any of my office’s
attempts to contact him. Get me some information there as well.
SFX: One set of footsteps fades as a door closes
SFX: Detective Carson’s footsteps until a chair creaks/shifts
SFX: A light thump as the recorder is set on the table and is then clicked on
DETECTIVE CARSON: July 23nd. First round of questioning for case #27491. Interviews
taking place at the Infectious Disease Laboratory at the Public Health Service Hospital where Dr.
Maryce Turner did most of her work. Today I will be speaking with Dr. Ross, one of the last
people to have seen Dr. Turner alive. I would also like to speak with Dr. Harvey, the Cancer
Research Department Head, but he has proven to be difficult to track down. Logs show these
three as the last left in the research wing on the night of the 21st.
SFX: Knocking on the door and click of recorder
DETECTIVE CARSON: Come in.
SFX: Door opens and closes.
DETECTIVE CARSON: Good morning, I’m Detective Carson. Dr. Ross, I presume?
DR. ROSS: Yes, I am. Good morning.
DETECTIVE CARSON: I just want to ask you a few questions. Take a seat, please.
SFX: Footsteps and chair creaks/shifts
SFX: Click of recorder
DETECTIVE CARSON: State your full name, please. Don’t be nervous, this is just for my
records.
DR. ROSS: Dr. Sandra Ross.
DETECTIVE CARSON: Could you tell me about your relationship with Dr. Turner?
DR. ROSS: Almost strictly professional.
DETECTIVE CARSON: ‘Almost’? How long had you known each other?
DR. ROSS: Two years. We were hired around the same time, originally for different projects.
Dr. Harvey and Dr. Turner were the lead researchers on a study I was very interested in being a
part of. I spoke with Dr. Turner, told her that I was interested, and was able to transfer to their
team, under her recommendation. I read her publications all through medical school. Her work
is… extraordinary.
DETECTIVE CARSON: Can you tell me about that work?
DR. ROSS: How familiar are you with SV-40?
DETECTIVE CARSON: Not at all.
DR. ROSS: It’s a virus. Back in the 60s, the polio vaccine was nothing short of a miracle, but
what they didn’t know until years later was that thousands of those vaccines were contaminated
with a strain of SV-40. It was no one’s fault. There was an undetected endemic amongst the lab
monkeys that were used in the production of the vaccine, it even made it past the purification
process. There truly was no way for them to have known.
DETECTIVE CARSON: I believe you. What is your current work’s connection to SV-40?
DR. ROSS: SV-40 causes tumors. Researchers believe that if that virus can cause cancer, an
antiviral should be able to prevent it. Our work involves mutating viruses to prevent the cancers
that they cause.
DETECTIVE CARSON: So, you are trying to cure cancer?
DR. ROSS: Well, prevent it, but yes.
SFX: Pen scratching against paper (Det. Carson taking notes)
DETECTIVE CARSON: Thank you. Could we talk about the last time you saw Dr. Turner?
(Pause)
DETECTIVE CARSON: Was there anything out of the ordinary… in what she said? In her
mood? How she was behaving?
DR. ROSS: No. She left a bit early, but it was for a date her friend had set up for her. The main
work was done, just routine irradiation. I told her that I’d handle the clean-up and she went
home.
DETECTIVE CARSON: A date? Do you know with who?
DR. ROSS: I don’t know who it was, but it was set up by one of the nurses who works here. I
can give you her information.
DETECTIVE CARSON: Yes, thank you. I’ll contact you if I have any more questions. Here’s
my card, in case you think of any new details.
SFX: Click of recorder
(pause)
SFX: Faint sound of a police scanner that fades when the recording starts
SFX: Click of a recorder
SFX: Papers shuffling
DETECTIVE CARSON: July 24th. Case notes for file #27491, Dr. Maryce Turner. I have still
been unable to contact Dr. Harvey. His secretary returned my call and said that he was away at a
scheduled medical conference in Seattle. I have confirmed his registration for this conference
and placed a call to the hotel booked by his secretary to confirm his arrival. Unsurprisingly, this
information was withheld. A warrant is in the process of being approved.
I have scheduled a second interview with Dr. Sandra Ross Tomorrow at the hospital in
relation to Dr. Harvey’s presence inside the lab on the night of Dr. Turner’s death. We were
already aware that he was in the research department on the 21st, but new electronic records
show that his ID was swiped to enter lab 432, where Dr. Turner and Dr. Ross were conducting
their work. This indicates that all three doctors worked together inside the lab that day, but this
went unmentioned by Dr. Ross.
Yesterday, Dr. Turner’s car was found, not in its usual parking spot, but nine blocks
away. On scene investigators bagged up a tube of lipstick from the floorboard, an empty can of
soda, and a small bottle of spray deodorant. A spent cartridge of pepper spray was also
discovered about twenty feet from the car. Car keys were not found at the site either, but were
found by a man trimming hedges a block away, seeming to indicate that Dr. Turner was not
alone and not in control of the vehicle. There were no fingerprints, leading us to believe the site
was wiped clean. Furthering suspicions of foul play.
I spoke to the nurse Dr. Ross mentioned before. The nurse verified the date, giving me
the name Cole Landry and a phone number. My call has yet to be returned, and he remains a
suspect.
SFX: Click of recorder
(Pause)
SFX: Birds chirping and wind through trees
SFX: Click of recorder
DETECTIVE CARSON: Thank you for meeting with me. Your information on the blind date
Dr. Turner was going on seems to be a promising lead.
DR. ROSS: I’m glad it was useful. I felt bad that I couldn’t do more.
DETECTIVE CARSON: I just have a few more questions.
DR. ROSS: Oh. Sure. How can I help?
DETECTIVE CARSON: I understand that Dr. Harvey is the head of Cancer Research. Before
you mentioned that he and Dr. Turner were leading this study. As I’m sure you know, it’s
unusual for someone in his position to participate so directly in a project. Can you tell me more
about his involvement?
DR. ROSS: Once I joined in alongside Dr. Turner, he took a less active role in the research.
DETECTIVE CARSON: I see. So, what was he doing with you in the lab on the night of the
21st?
DR. ROSS: I’m sorry, I didn’t think it was important. It’s not uncommon for him to check in.
DETECTIVE CARSON: It’s all important, Dr. Ross. Can you tell me where he is now?
DR. ROSS: He went on vacation with his family somewhere in Florida. I’m not sure when he’ll
be back. I didn’t feel like it was my place to ask.
DETECTIVE CARSON: Florida?
DR. ROSS: I believe that’s what he said. I know that he said his kids were excited. (Growing
nervousness) I’m sorry. I have to leave. My break was over five minutes ago.
SFX: Quickly retreating footsteps
SFX: Click of recorder
(Pause)
SFX: Faint sound of a Police scanner
SFX: Click of recorder
DETECTIVE CARSON: July 26th. Case notes for file #27491, Dr. Maryce Turner. Cole Landry
is cleared of suspicion. He returned my call and explained that Dr. Turner never showed up at the
restaurant where they were scheduled to meet. Restaurant staff confirmed Mr. Landry was still
there two hours past the time Dr. Turner was meant to arrive, placing him there at her estimated
time of death. A busboy did mention, however, that he had scratches on his face and appeared to
be out of breath. While he is technically cleared, my personal suspicion remains.
Due to his notable absence, Dr. Harvey has become a more probable suspect. The hotel in
Seattle was served the warrant and confirmed that he never arrived. I was able to contact his wife
who also believed he was at the conference. She received a phone call from Dr. Harvey
yesterday during which he confirmed his well being, but that he wouldn’t be able to return home
for awhile. I left her my phone number to get in contact with me if she received another call from
Dr. Harvey. She seems genuinely concerned and unaware of suspicious activity. She is not a
suspect at this time.
Dr. Ross has officially become a suspect as well, based on her initial withholding of
information and blatant lie surrounding Dr. Harvey’s whereabouts. I also noted heavy bruising
on her forearms in our meeting yesterday that were originally hidden by a sweater. The
colorations of the markings indicates that they were obtained no more than a week ago.
SFX: Click of recorder
DETECTIVE CARSON: heavy sigh
SFX: Phone ringing
DETECTIVE CARSON: Hello?
DR. ROSS (frantic, over the phone) : He’s dead. And it’s my fault. I didn’t mean to. I didn’t
know. He’s dead. I was just following orders, you have to understand. The hospital called and
told me this morning. He was alone. I wasn’t even there. He died alone, because I took the day
off because I was so scared you’d come question me again. I killed him and left him alone.
DETECTIVE CARSON: Dr. Ross? Who’s dead? Dr. Harvey?
DR. ROSS (over the phone) : No. The patient. He’s dead. He just died and it’s my fault. I was
just following orders, but I did it. It’s my fault. (I killed him!)
DETECTIVE CARSON: The patient? What patient? You didn’t mention a -
DR. ROSS (barely listening, over the phone) : He wasn’t very old. Just a kid, really…
DETECTIVE CARSON: Dr. Ross -
DR. ROSS (over the phone) : Some prisoner no one will even realize is gone. That’s why Dr.
Harvey picked him.
DETECTIVE CARSON: Dr. Ross, please, you have to calm down.
DR. ROSS (over the phone) : I see him everywhere. He’s following me, his ghost is. I know it. I
feel it. I see him. I keep trying to explain to him that I didn’t know, that I was just doing my job,
that there is no way that I could have known but he won’t listen. They never listen to me. No one
ever listens.
DETECTIVE CARSON: Take a breath. He’s not there, there’s no ghost. You’re okay.
DR. ROSS (over the phone): I can’t live with it. I can’t. I won’t.
DETECTIVE CARSON: Dr. Ross, stay on the phone with me.
DR. ROSS: There’s nothing you can do. I can’t live with it. I did this to him and myself.
DETECTIVE CARSON: I’ll help you. Just keep talking to me.
SFX: Call ends
DETECTIVE CARSON (yelling) : Someone get me Dr. Sandra Ross’ address!
SFX: Police sirens that get louder then fade
SFX: Car door slams and running footsteps
SFX: Frantic knocking on the door
DETECTIVE CARSON: Dr. Ross! Open the door!
DR. ROSS (clearly distressed, through the door) : Go away. There’s nothing you can do. I’m
losing everything.
DETECTIVE CARSON: Dr. Ross! Please, open the door.
DR. ROSS (through the door): You have to understand. I was told that he was sick…that Dr.
Turner had developed a new drug to treat cancer, not just prevent it, and that he was a
volunteer…
DETECTIVE CARSON: It’s not your fault if they lied to you.
DR. ROSS (through the door): I found the documents… They were using the same virus that we
used to prevent the cancer… to cause it.They were making it a weapon. A way to hurt people,
not save them. I’ve known for weeks… but I just ignored it. I had already started the injections
with the patient and when he kept getting worse… I didn’t want to accept that it was my fault. I
was in denial. I was so scared. I knew that if anyone ever found out, I’d go to jail. But people are
dying and more people are going to die.
DETECTIVE CARSON: You can help us make sure that that doesn’t happen.
DR. ROSS (through the door) : I admired Dr. Turner for years. I never thought… It’s shocking
what people are capable of doing when no one is watching. They’re going to kill me. There are
so many powerful people involved in this. I’ve seen the lengths they’ll go to for this project…
and Maryce didn’t even tell anyone. She just made a mistake...
DETECTIVE CARSON: Dr. Turner? They killed her? Who? Who killed Dr. Turner?
DR. ROSS (through the door) : Half of her body, gone in an instant. Her arm… almost
entirely… She was working with the electron accelerator. Must have been a mistake in the
modifications… There was a flash, and when I turned, she was on the ground, her body was
smoking... I’ve never seen a body smoke before. It was horrible. She hadn’t even made a sound.
She just dropped.
She was barely recognizable. And she was still breathing. Half of her body was burned
away, her chest cavity was exposed, and she was still breathing. That’s the worst part. She
survived it. I could have tried to save her… I could have at least tried, but he wouldn’t let me….
DETECTIVE CARSON: Then how did she die? How did she get to her apartment?
DR. ROSS (through the door): After she was electrocuted, I ran towards her, but Dr. Harvey got
to her first and pushed me back. I’m laying on the floor, screaming that she was still alive, but he
wouldn’t listen. The next thing I knew… He was holding a scalpel… He only hesitated for a
second. He said that we didn’t have a choice, that she was going to die anyway and we didn’t
have the supplies to even try to save her … It was best to stop her suffering, he was being
merciful, she was in so much pain. You could tell, she was struggling and fighting to
breathe...…in that moment, I believed him. I was in shock. It wasn’t about the supplies, or the
mercy...now I know, he would have sacrificed any of us to keep your office from treating the lab
like a crime scene.
DETECTIVE CARSON: So he stabbed her, out of “mercy”, then he had the body moved?
DR. ROSS (through the door) : I don’t know much about that. He was already beginning to
distrust me. He only said that he would handle it. He sent me home. I felt like a zombie. Just
doing what I was told. One step in front of the other. I went home. I went to bed. It was all a set
up. All of it.
SFX: Gun cocks
DETECTIVE CARSON: Dr. Ross!
SFX: Frantic knocking on the door
DETECTIVE CARSON: Open the door. Just open the door.
DR. ROSS (through the door): All of our work was done in secret, there were never any
consequences. That doesn’t even matter now. I killed that boy, and he’ll always be watching.
SFX: Gun shot
END
00:17:00 Host
OK, that was when no one was watching. Written by Emma Siler. Directed by Megan Longton and starring Emma Finlay as the Doctor and Lauren Hite as the detective. Next up will be.
00:17:15 Host
Somewhere I didn't want to be written by Robyn Medeiros and directed by Rie Talley, so if you haven't subscribed already, go ahead and do that so you don't miss any of these great dramas. And if you're enjoying what you hear, we would be ever so grateful if you'd share us with your friends and leave us a review. Not only do reviews help other people find us, but.
00:17:35 Host
You know, they just make us happy. Until next time this is Stage & Screen.