It was an old theater. Dilapidated and derelict its structure a foregone reminder of a time when visual arts were more personal and more involving. The theater had once been a haven where actors of varying degrees of expertise came to masquerade as another soul for the sake of storytelling. What was once a elaborate auditorium was now a relinquished ruin.
The theater at first was like any other in the beginning. It was once the center of entertainment and when the advent of cinema came to the town, the townsfolk flocked to the cinema as though its images were more appealing to the people. Within years time, the old theater soon became an abandoned hulk that fell into disarray.
When the town released an ordinance that the old theater was to be demolished, a talented actor by the name of Byron decided it was time for one last performance before the theater met its demise. As a young man between the ages of twenty-five to thirty. he had dark hair, medium build and stood at least five feet eight. He first came to love acting when he came to the theater at a young age. As a small child watching the figures on stage bring to life the very characters he read about, Byron became enthralled at the idea of becoming an actor himself. Each day Bryon recalled going down to the theater to audition for a part, regardless if he were the lead or a mere walk on, Byron sought to secure himself a role in one of the various plays that had been performed numerous times in that old theater.
However, out of all the various plays Byron preformed, there was one that perturbed greatly. It was a play he never finished. It was a major blow to Byron who had rehearsed and memorized his lines with detailed accuracy. Yet when time came to perform, Byron found he was unable to act simply because the play had been cancelled the night of the show. Nothing saddened him more than the realization he was unable to entertain the few audience members who had arrived. It was the night the theater had finally closed its doors and would never again embrace the mysticism of visual art. Regardless of such, Byron was determined he would finish this play no matter what.
Word got out that Bryon was to preform one final play at the old theater, those who had come to see him before had returned. Just as Byron was determined to finish this one play, those that saw him before were determined to watch Byron act. When the time to perform arrived, Byron did not squander a second. He appeared on stage and tackled the performance with vigor and charisma. His lines, his actions, and his gestures were flawless. No longer was Byron a mere actor playing another role, he had become the character. He breathed, spoke, thought and lived as his character. What the audience observed was not an actor, but a living character.
The audience laughed, cried, and cheered as Byron gave one of the best performances the theater had ever witnessed. The performance that was truly a send off for a theater whose destruction loomed ever closer. It was a once in a life time performance that those in attendance would never forget and it was a performance that would never again grace any theater.
When Byron had completed his play, those few souls that came to witness the last play of this desolate ruin of a theater gave him a standing ovation. Byron was overwhelmed. Never before had such a play meant so much a small devoted crowd. When the applause had ceased. Byron leaped into the audience. As he stood there, everyone observed Byron until he at last spoke.
“Now that I have completed this play,” he said,”That means that we are no longer bound to this world. I am grateful you attended this play and I am in turn grateful to have performed. Now we can move on.”
With that the audience members arose from their seats to join with Byron. Their bodies were neither physical nor living, but transparent shadows of apparitions bound to the world refusing to leave until one final task was completed. Byron’s last performance had finally been completed and it was now time for him and his loyal attendees to pass over. As dawn began etching into the darkened theater, the lone light which illuminated a portion of the stage finally flickered out and with that, Byron and the audience slowly vanished into the sunlight.