ACT I
[Living room. Daddy kneeling on the floor by the fireplace, holding the statue of a turtle. Little Girl walks by.]
Daddy (to Little Girl, who is five years old): “Hey. Come in here and look at this.”
Little Girl: “What?”
Daddy: “Look at this.” (Holds up statue of turtle. Its foot is broken.) “What happened to the turtle?”
Little Girl: “What?”
Daddy: “Who broke the turtle?”
Little Girl: “Oh, I don’t know who did it.”
Daddy: “Did you break the turtle?”
Little Girl: “What?”
Daddy: “Did you break the turtle?”
Little Girl: “Um, no.”
Daddy: “Were you there when the turtle broke?”
Little Girl: “Yes.”
Daddy: “So you saw who broke the turtle?”
Little Girl: “Yes.”
Daddy: “Did your brother break the turtle?”
Little Girl: “Yes—I mean, no. I don’t know who broke the turtle.”
Daddy: “Just tell me the truth. I won’t get mad. Who broke the turtle?”
Little Girl: “I don’t know. It was just broken.”
[Little Boy, three years old, walks into the room.]
Daddy: “Little Boy, did you break the turtle?”
Little Boy: “Yes.”
Daddy (looks at both kids, then focuses on little boy): “Who broke the turtle?”
Little Boy: “Sister and I were dancing with the turtle. I was spinning it around and then it hit the wall. Then we fixed it with glue.”
Daddy (to Little Girl): “Were you dancing with the turtle?”
Little Girl: “No, it wasn’t me.”
Daddy: “But look at it.” (Showing its broken foot.) “You don’t remember breaking it and trying to glue it back together?”
Little Girl: “No.” (Looks at her brother.)
Daddy: “But your brother just said that you broke the turtle.” (Turns to Little Boy.) “Did you break the turtle?”
Little Boy: “No.”
Daddy: “But you just told me that you broke it.”
Little Boy: “No, I didn’t.”
Daddy: “You were dancing with it and then it hit the wall.”
Little Boy: “It wasn’t me.”
Daddy (finally losing his patience): “WHO BROKE THE TURTLE?”
Little Girl and Little Boy: “Mommy.”
Daddy: “So you are telling me that mommy broke the turtle?”
