Harlem Duet

Rhapsodic music underscores the voice of Christopher Darden as he asks OJ Simpson to try on the glove. Billie is concocting something in her living room lab. Wearing rubber gloves, she adds purple-colored drops to a flask, then picks up a white handkerchief that is embroidered with strawberries. Alone in the apartment, she speaks aloud to Othello, telling him that she has a plan for him and his bride. She cites the handkerchief, which he gave to her when they committed to one another, as a symbol of his history. It is an heirloom: a gift from his mother that she received from his father, who was gifted the handkerchief from his mother before him, and meant to be passed down from generation to generation. The handkerchief carries “…the emotions of all your ancestors” (75), and rather than love, represents their suffering. As she speaks, she reaches for the flask and carefully pours its solution over the handkerchief. She ends her monologue with the words, “My sable warrior…Fight with me. I would fight with you…Suffer with me…I would suffer—” (76).

Her buzzer rings, prompting her to take her flask to the kitchen and empty it in the sink.