DOUG: And when you want a lobotomy, you just can’t get it, can you, Henry? Nod your head for a yes. Brilliant choice, Roy. Who does Henry play? A hero suffering from verbal diarrhoea.

JUSTIN: Doug!

DOUG: [referring to ROY] Mr Show Business here chose him.

ROY: Go burn a cat.

JUSTIN sees LEWIS’s apprehension and takes him aside.

JUSTIN: You must feel a bit queasy. I know I was when I first came to work in an asylum. The thing is, and you’ll discover this, is that they are just normal people, well, not quite normal, or else they wouldn’t be in here, would they? But you get my drift?

LEWIS: [uncertainly] Yes.

JUSTIN: They are normal people who have done extraordinary things, thought extraordinary thoughts. You are getting a good hunch. They’ll be no real trouble: no carving knife against the throat. [A beat.] You might want to keep a close eye on Doug, though. I didn’t know he had been released from a closed ward—being in C ward means the patient is never allowed out, day or night, until we’re satisfied they won’t harm others or themselves. But he should be all right if they’ve let him out—as long as he’s taking his medication. He’s a bit cheeky the way he won’t take it sometimes.

LEWIS: Is this where we’re performing?

JUSTIN: It looks a bit dispirited, I know—

DOUG: [shouting over to LEWIS] You get to fuck the actresses?

JUSTIN: Doug!

DOUG: I was told that’s why people want to direct.

JUSTIN: [to LEWIS] The government bought the land next to the asylum last year and this theatre was on it. Someone set fire to it, but it’s safe. A bit grungy, as we say, but safe. There’s some lights up there—what do you call them in the theatre?

LEWIS shakes his head.

Anyway, we’ll get someone on the staff to have a look at the wiring. [He stares at the ceiling.] Bit of a hole up there. Let’s hope it doesn’t rain on the night, eh? [A beat.] Any questions?

LEWIS: What if someone forgets to take their medicine and—

JUSTIN: Goes berserk? That’s for the movies. They’ll just act a bit extraordinary, that’s all. If something happens get someone to call a nurse. [Looking at his watch] I wish the women would hurry up.

LEWIS: What sort of thing do you want me to do with them?

JUSTIN: A play. I thought you had been told.

LEWIS: No, I mean, what sort of play?

JUSTIN: Up to you. A panto? Excerpts from Shakespeare. Whatever you like. The important thing is to keep them interested. To bring them out of their shells. Give them something interesting to do.

The lights start flickering.

Oh, oh, trouble in the fuse box.

He goes to examine it.

DOUG: [to LEWIS] So, where do you live?

LEWIS: Excuse me?

DOUG: Digs. Flat. House. Burrow. Abode. Shack.

LEWIS: I live in a house.

DOUG: Ah, nice. A house is a nice thing to live in. Where?