In this one-act non-musical, Harold J. Haynes takes another intense look at inner city kids. He is also the author of the enormously dramatic, highly versatile longer drama, I Just Wanna Tell Somebody, which can be produced as a musical, non-musical, or shortened easily by omitting episodes. Both plays have proved themselves as contest material reaching the state level in competition.

Originally designed for performance by an all-black cast, the play may, of course, use actors of any race or a mixture of races. Mr. Haynes, teacher in a Houston, Texas, inner-city school, was attacked by outsiders while protecting his drama students in an after-school rehearsal—making headlines at the time. His first-hand knowledge and writing expertise make him a master in this field. He urges directors to update language and to omit or change any material unsuitable for a particular situation.

Four high school boys break into the gym at night and accidentally lock themselves in. Desperate to get out, their tempers begin to flare. To pass the time, each tells a story about his life and his hangups. As their true natures are revealed through these flashbacks, the conflict heightens and the night ends in tragedy.

John Manley, drama director at E. L. Furr Senior High School in Houston, wrote: "After reading the script, my students and I could tell right away that this would be a superb production. It was amazing to us how Mr. Haynes was able to capture the true dialogue of today's inner-city teens. I was impressed and so was our community and administration. In fact, we were asked to present the play for a faculty in-service that was aimed at getting teachers to understand inner feelings of our students. We had so much success with the produciton, we were asked to hold it over for two extra weeks. This play is both real and magical."

"We successfully produced Isolation as our spring one-act play. It received rave reviews from students, parents and faculty alike. I am writing to you to request permission to present Isolation this year to our student body as a part of our Black History Program." —Darryl E. Gilmore, O. W. Holmes Middle School, Dallas, Texas.

Set, school gym (bare stage with two benches); time, now; costumes, typical clothing of today's inner-city teenagers.

Other plays about child abuse: Rag Dolls, The Secret in the Toy Room

See also: Awareness Plays for Young Adults