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♪

[snores]

[knock on door]

[woman whispering] Saul?

[knocking] [whispering] Saul, wake up.

Huh?

[Agent] Sophia Kaplan - official business of the Communist Party.

[knocking on door]

[Woman] Stall them, while I get her out the back.

[knocking on door]

[Agent] Sophia Kaplan open this door immediately!

Hello?

[Agent] Open this door!

[knocking on door] Now!

I'll be right there.

The darn door is stuck.

Sophia. Hurry.

What are you doing?

I'm not leaving without The Russian Doll.

[Agent 2] Kick it down.

Before you kick, let me try one more thing.

[Lock clicks] Now we are getting somewhere.

No, no, no.

Sit, please.

Would you like to know why I am so good at my job?

All right.

Sophia, you need to leave!

Not with that bag.

I can't look like I'm taking a trip.

A trip?

Where are you going?

It is because I have this special ability

to see inside people's hearts.

"I have this special ability to see inside people's hearts."

Listen to me.

I sound like character from comic book.

What I mean to say is this:

I always know when someone is lying to me.

It's true.

[Agent] Would you like a demonstration?

That's not necessary.

I insist. I insist.

Let's start with easy one.

Where is your daughter, Sophia?

Shall I ask again?

Where is your daughter, Sophia?

I don't know.

That's was easy.

You told the truth.

Oh!

Let's try it with your lovely wife, shall we?

Where is your daughter, Sophia?

I...I don't know.

I'm afraid she is lying to me.

But maybe I am mistaken.

Let me ask again, just to be sure.

Where is your daughter?

Oh, this.

Don't you hate it?

It's a little bit of too much, don't you think?

Try not to pay any attention to it.

Where is your daughter?

I don't know.

[Gun shot]

Oh my God!

Oh!

Oh my...

[Agent] Where is your daughter? -I don't know!

You want to kill me, too?

Kill me!

I don't know where she is!

[Rachel] Okay, great.

Let's hold there for just a minute.

That was excellent, everybody.

Before we break, I just want to take a minute

to take care of something that feels really overdue.

It is rare, in small theater productions,

that you come across the dramatic range and skill

that Aaron Richmond brings to our company.

But when you put that together with the fact

that he wrote The Russian Doll,

well, I think we should all take a moment

and say, "Thank you, Aaron, for everything."

[Applause] I love you all.

[Viola] Back then,

I didn't know anything about The Russian Doll.

I was just a cop with a problem that I couldn't solve.

My wife had died about a year earlier.

But to me, it still seemed like yesterday.

Hi, Travis. Slow night?

Oh, you know.

Maybe things will pick up. [Guitar strums]

You don't have to do that, Detective.

I want to make a request.

That's fine,

but you always give me too much money.

Well, I want you to play the one that I like.

[Guitar strumming stops]

You know, I wrote a new one.

-One that's not- -Okay.

I don't want to hear a new one, Travis.

I want you to play the one that I like.

All right.

[Guitar introduction]

♪ There's a problem in need of attention. ♪

♪ But I can't find the words to say ♪

♪ there's a hole in my soul at the mention ♪

♪ of you.

♪ And the wind whistles through but I'm lonely. ♪

♪ And I can't make it go away.

♪ All my rainbows and sunsets come only ♪

♪ in blue.

♪ And I stare at the ceiling 'til morning. ♪

♪ Break down on the street with no warning. ♪

♪ A fool filled with plenty of longing ♪

♪ for two.

[Rock music]

[Sounds of glasses clinking, chatter, pool balls clacking]

How 'bout you show me

how you'd look on one of these tables, naked?

How 'bout you back the fuck up, right now?

[face-saving chuckle] How 'bout that?

[slow, blues music]

I saw what you were doing, slut.

Excuse me?

Waving your skanky ass at my boyfriend.

Are you talking about that guy?

There's not enough tequila in the world.

[Woman] What did you say?

Look. I'm not interested in your disgusting, fat-

[laughs]

So, you slapped me.

So what next?

You gonna pull my hair?

You- [gasps]

And my ass is not skanky, bitch.

Georgia, can you see me out here?

Okay.

Uh, you've never been pregnant, right, Sweetie?

No.

Okay.

Good. Um,

I'm gonna show you something.

[clears throat]

Thanks, Kevin.

You see how long that took?

Yeah.

And that's me, hurrying.

So, when Sophia gets up out of the chair

and crosses to the dresser,

I want you to take advantage of the fact

that she can't move quickly, okay?

Added to what you're already doing,

believe me, the tension in this scene

is going to give the audience nightmares.

[Male] What is wrong with you?

[Female] I'm sorry. I'm trying.

[Male] Well I guess you're not trying hard enough.

You disgust me.

[Female] I'm sorry.

[Male] Look at me when I'm talking to you.

Look at me!

[Slap]

[Male] You're pathetic. Do you know that?

So that's it?

You're just gonna sit there and cry

like some kind of psycho bitch?

[Female] I don't know what you want.

[Male] Do you know who knows what I want?

[gasps]

Jasmine? Are you home?

[Viola] Like me, Darlene Scarano

had never heard of the play The Russian Doll.

She had no idea that just a few miles away, every night,

actors were rehearsing it.

But, in a tragic case of wrong-place-wrong-time,

she stumbled upon a letter in her apartment

about the playwright, and a murder.

She called 9-1-1, and her life was changed, forever.

[Operator] 9-1-1. What's your emergency?

Well, I'm not sure whether this is actually a real emergency,

but I just found this letter about this play

called The Russian Doll, and a murder.

I guess this guy Aaron Richmond-

[Muffled cries for help, sounds of struggle]

[Operator] Hello? Ma'am, are you there?

Hello?

[Viola] The playwright, Aaron Richmond,

was mentioned in the 9-1-1 call.

So my partner and I went to speak to him first.

[Aaron] I wrote The Russian Doll nearly thirty years ago.

I've been very lucky to have made a modest living

performing it almost the entire time.

The Deer Pond board of directors rented me this house

for the whole run.

Do you have any idea why your name came up

in a phone call about a murder?

[chuckles]

Well, someone does get killed in my play.

Do you have a copy of the script here?

Oh, of course.

If you'll excuse me.

[whispering] Oh my God.

Do you think he's wearing anything underneath that robe?

I sincerely hope so. [laughs]

Well.

You look good.

Don't.

Look. All I'm saying

is that nobody can quite pull off a hangover like you.

[Aaron] Good God but you are a lovely creature,

Georgia. Look at you.

Why, Mr. Richmond!

Are you watching me walk around in my lingerie?

I'm not so sure that's appropriate.

[laughs]

I signed this for you.

[Viola] Mr. Richmond,

do you know a woman named Darlene Scarano?

[chuckling]

Oh, I meet so many people in show business,

you know, but, no, I'm sorry. Who is she?

She's the woman who dialed 9-1-1,

and she mentioned you, specifically.

So you're sure that you don't know her?

[Aaron] Mm-mm.

How dramatic.

I'm sorry, I don't know the woman.

What did she say about me?

[Viola] Darlene was attacked

before she could finish the call.

So we're looking for her right now.

My goodness, when was this?

This morning, around 9:30 a.m.

Can you account for yourself during that time?

[chuckling]

Good God, am I a suspect?

No. Nobody's suspected of anything,

but we do have to follow every lead that we have.

So you're sure you weren't with Ms. Scarano this morning?

As I already told you, I don't know the woman.

[Aaron] I was here this morning.

-All morning? [Aaron] Mm-hmm.

[Footsteps descend stairs]

Oh! Excuse me.

[Aaron] Georgia Bismark. Detectives...

Ames.

Fiore.

Well, if you'll excuse me, I'm on my way to work.

Before you go, Georgia. What time did we have breakfast?

[Aaron] Georgia came over to run lines this morning.

She's in the show, too.

Uh, around 8:30.

And you were here with Mr. Richmond from 8:30 on?

That's right.

Okay, thank you very much, Ms. Bismark.

We won't keep you here any longer.

[EJ] Oh, wait. Before you go,

do you happen to know a Miss Darlene Scarano?

No, I'm sorry.

I don't know anybody by that name.

[EJ] Look. All I'm saying is if I showed up to work the next day

in the same clothes as I was wearing the day before,

I wouldn't be surprised if you had some questions for me.

Are you done yet?

[doorbell rings]

[Viola] I kept wondering how the missing woman

was connected toThe Russian Doll,

and how she got hold of a letter about the playwright.

So, we went to her apartment to talk to her roommate, Jasmine.

[Jasmine] I thought she was at work.

[Viola] No. She went in to work early,

but she left to go to a dentist's appointment,

and never made it back.

Does she have a boyfriend?

No.

A few months ago she broke up with this guy

when he moved away.

[Viola] Is it unusual for Darlene to go missing like this?

Missing, as in interrupted in the middle of a 9-1-1 call

about some stupid play and suddenly disappearing?

Yeah. That's unusual for Darlene.

[Jasmine] Sorry.

When was the last time you saw her?

Last night.

I was home when she got back from work.

Uh, I left after dinner to go to my boyfriend Mark's house.

So you have no idea where Darlene might be?

[Ominous music]

[intermittent gasps, labored breathing]

[Plastic chair breaks]

[Door creaks]

Don't worry, Darlene.

Everything will be fine, if you don't try to be a hero.

Don't try to call out for help.

Don't try to get away.

In fact, don't do anything, or it's gonna get real bad.

[Gloves slam against floor]

[Mark] Are you kidding me?

[muffled sounds of pain]

What did I tell you?

Don't do anything dumb!

[muffled crying] Do you understand?

[whispering] Open your hand.

Do you want me to get angry?

[whispering] No.

Open your hand.

[Glass shard breaking].

[whispering] I really don't want to hurt you.

[screams]

But if you make me, I will.

[crying]

[Viola] We didn't have much else to go on,

so we went to the garage where Jasmine's boyfriend worked.

You know, I always wanted to write a book about being a cop.

Maybe I should turn it into a play.

What do you think?

I never thought of you as the writer type.

You must be the detectives.

I'm Jasmine's boyfriend, Mark.

She told me about Darlene. How can I help?

Gosh, I haven't seen Darlene...

I think it was sometime last week.

You think she's in real danger?

[breathing heavily]

Okay. Well, if you think of anything,

or obviously if you hear from Darlene, give us a call.

Yeah.

[muffled calling for help]

Oh wait. You know what? Shit. I'll be right back.

I think I forgot the script inside.

[muffled calling for help]

[Door slams against wall] Goddammit, Darlene!

I told you not to be an idiot!

[Hammer smashes against trash can]

Now I have to hurt you.

[screams in pain]

[groaning in pain]

I told you.

[background chatter and restaurant noise]

This is actually really good.

Mom! What are you doing here?

-Your Honor. -Oh, EJ, sit.

We're not in court.

How's Frank? And the twins?

[EJ] Oh, everybody's really good.

Mom?

Well, I couldn't reach you by phone.

So I asked EJ where you'd be having lunch today.

I wanted to let you know that when I bring dinner by tonight,

Bernadette Lowry and her daughter Faith

will be joining us.

Mom, please don't do this.

Look, I know this is hard, but I really think it's time

for you to start meeting people.

How many ...

How many times do I have to tell you I don't want to get set up?

[whispering] Okay? Wendy died a year ago.

Almost two.

Whatever! It doesn't matter.

I'm not ... I'm just ... I'm not ready to start dating.

This isn't a date, for heaven's sakes.

I have known you your entire life, Viola.

You might be fooling everyone else,

but I know you're still very hurt, and very angry.

And when you're not working,

or acting out in some dive bar somewhere,

you're hiding from the rest of the world

at that lake house that Wendy built.

You don't know what you're talking about.

Really?

Yeah. Really.

First of all, I'm not angry!

Honey, look at yourself.

And second, I'm not hiding from anybody.

Well great!

Then Bernadette, Faith and I will see you at 6:30.

Thanks a lot, partner.

What?

So then I meet Ricky's parents, and they proudly announce

that their goal is to make sure he gets into Harvard.

[laughter]

Wow.

I had no idea that college was such a high priority

for first graders.

Oh yeah.

It's right up there with meeting the tooth fairy.

So, what did you tell Ricky's parents?

Well, I told them that my goal was

to get him prepared for second grade.

And to stop picking his nose.

[laughing]

And what did they say?

Well, they tried to have him assigned to a different class.

And the principal said he'll take it under advisement.

And four months later, the school year ended,

and we all survived.

Well, I am really sorry about this,

but I actually have to get going.

I have to go back to work.

Right now?

Yeah. I have to interview some people

at a rehearsal down at Deer Pond.

For The Russian Doll?

Yeah.

I studied that play in college. I have tickets to opening night.

Did you know that there was a scandal

back when it first opened?

[Faith] This Russian woman filed a lawsuit

right here in Massachusetts.

She said the playwright stole her life's story.

Well, that is a very unhappy memory of a miserable ordeal.

What happened?

Good Lord, it was nearly 30 years ago now.

There was a woman named Sylvia Adler

with whom I was involved with for several months.

But, it happens she was unwell, and after we split up,

she actually sued me, claiming that I had

somehow stolen the play from her.

She lost the case of course.

Is everything alright, Aaron?

[Aaron] Everything's fine, Oliver, thank you.

And who are you?

Attorney Charles Oliver Bridges.

I'm a cast mate of Mr. Richmond's,

and I'm also a criminal lawyer.

Is there anything I can help you with, detectives?

If we need your help, Mr. Bridges, we'll ask for it.

But meanwhile, we need

to speak to Mr. Richmond privately, please.

Are you sure you don't need me for anything, Aaron?

Everything's fine, Oliver, yes. Thank you.

Okay. All right, well safe flight.

No, we'll be fine.

Okay.

Take care.

Looks like we lost Kevin for the week.

A week?

Who's Kevin?

Kevin Quarrels, our stage manager.

His mom suffered a stroke and is in ICU in Chicago.

He's flying out tonight. [groans]

I should tell the rest of the cast.

Oh, um, Mr. Richmond,

is The Russian Doll a work of fiction?

[laughs]

I don't believe ... You know,

the story of a young Jewish woman from Russia

emigrating to the United States

might have come to me from the result of meeting Sylvia,

who was, actually, originally from Moscow.

But aside from that, the story is entirely fictional.

It is not based upon her life, or on the life of anyone else.

Okay. So then,

Ms. Adler's plagiarism claim, that was a lie?

[Aaron] Absolutely.

Please believe me, detectives.

This is not the case of the big, bad American

threatening the young immigrant woman.

Sylvia Adler was a nutcase.

Life with her and her daughter was far from an erotic fantasy.

[Nighttime sounds]

♪

[Viola] I wasn't expecting you.

I like it here.

I wouldn't be surprised if you have some questions for me.

Because I really want to kiss you.

But first...

Wait.

We forgot something.

Ah...

[Lawyer] Well I'll tell you one thing.

They sure as hell didn't have detectives

that looked like the two of you

back when I was working in the D.A.'s office.

[laughs]

Do you know anything about this?

Yeah.

That deposition took place right here.

It must have been 25 years ago.

[Lawyer] How'd you get a hold of a copy of this?

These transcripts don't usually make it into the public record.

Yeah, well, I have connections at the courthouse.

You heard of Judge Ames?

[laughs] Oh yeah.

She's a tough one.

Yeah, well that's her mother.

Ah.

So.

Have you had a chance to read it?

Every word.

Your claim is that the story of The Russian Doll is,

in fact, the story of your escape from Russia.

Is that correct?

Yes.

And you also say that you wrote the play.

I did write the play.

But you have no proof.

My diary is proof.

You mean the diary you wrote after you heard Mr. Richmond

was producing the play.

The other lawyer was kind of a jerk.

But it really didn't matter, because in a few minutes,

it was all over.

[Lawyer] So, you have no proof you wrote the play.

No notes, nothing.

He took everything.

Well did you tell anyone that you had written the play?

[Sylvia] No.

No, wait. My daughter.

My daughter Lena. I told her when I was finished.

[Lawyer] How old is Lena?

She is seven years old.

[Lawyer] Will she be testifying at the trial?

Absolutely not.

I would never put her through that.

Miss Adler.

If I choose, I can subpoena your daughter to testify.

No!

You can't make her!

[Lawyer] I assure you I can.

Well, then I will end this right now!

She committed suicide that same summer.

[chuckles]

Sure could have used the money from that case.

I had my accident a month later.

Bad year.

What happened to Lena?

Who?

Sylvia's daughter.

What happened to Sylvia's daughter

after she killed herself?

[stammering] I don't understand why that matters.

I was under the impression that you were looking for some girl

that disappeared yesterday.

Right.

A girl that we believe is in danger.

So why don't you quit jerking us around

and tell us where Sylvia's daughter is?

I - I refuse to answer for fear of incriminating myself.

This case just keeps getting better.

What did you do to Sylvia's daughter?

I didn't do anything to her!

Well then, why won't you tell us where she is?

Am I missing something here?

What's the problem here exactly?

I thought you got disbarred for taking your clients' money.

I was never disbarred, okay?

Only suspended!

And that had nothing to do with the adoption.

Oh, okay. Adoption.

So, what?

You were afraid to tell us about this because

you ripped off some desperate couple who wanted a kid?

That sound about right?

No.

Listen carefully, counselor.

I don't care what you did 25 years ago.

I don't care what you did yesterday.

Start cooperating, or this shit show you call your law practice

is over by the end of the week.

♪

[Mark] I hope you like the new place.

I think it's kind of charming.

[whispering] Oh, and I had to handcuff you

because of what you did before.

I doubt you're gonna cut them off.

♪

[Man] No, I'm sorry.

I don't recognize her.

Is she a member here?

No, she's actually a roommate of one of your trainers here.

Jasmine Perrot.

Oh, Jasmine.

I love her.

The girl is intense.

If by intense you mean scary.

Jasmine's training style isn't for everybody.

No shit.

Is she here?

[Man] Uh, no, actually. She's off today.

Was she working yesterday?

Um, yeah. I think I remember seeing her.

She was here in the morning for a while,

and then she came back in the afternoon.

Let me check.

Yes, uh, she had clients that morning from 10:30 to 1:30,

and then she came back for a couple of sessions

beginning at 5 in the afternoon-

Wait. Are you - are you sure about those times?

Her first appointment was at 10:30?

Uh, well she had a reschedule of the 10,

and it was rescheduled for this Sunday at noon.

[Knocking on door]

So I never asked you how your date went last night.

Oh, Jesus Christ, EJ. You too?

What? So not good?

Look. It wasn't a date, okay?

Okay. Not a date.

10-4.

[Knocking]

Come on in.

Any news on Darlene?

[Viola] Not yet.

No, we just need to go over your work schedule

the day that Darlene got taken.

You said that you were working from 10:00 to 1:00?

Yeah.

And then I went back later in the afternoon.

[Phone buzzes] Right. But we just talked to Philip

at the health club, and he said that your... um,

uh... Sorry. He said that, um,

your 10:00 got rescheduled that morning--

[Phone buzzes] Sorry.

Yeah. Uh, I got to work a few minutes before ten.

Um, my client didn't show so I called her,

five after ten, something like that.

She said she'd spaced, so we rescheduled for this Sunday.

Hang on.

[Viola] We'd asked the play's director to text us

a picture of her missing stage manager.

It was our first real break in the case.

Holy shit.

When was the last time you saw your boyfriend?

Um, last night.

Mark and I had dinner together.

Then he went to class.

He's going to night school to be a paralegal.

How many nights a week?

Tuesday through Saturday.

And then he's got a Sunday afternoon study group.

[EJ] Are you aware that while he was

supposed to be at night school

he was actually stage managing a play?

What?

Oh my God.

Every guy... every boyfriend I've ever had is an asshole.

Every single one.

All this time he was lying?

Is that even his real name? Mark?

Well, he was going by Kevin at the theater.

And he never mentioned anything to you about The Russian Doll?

I only heard about the stupid thing

from the woman at the health club.

Did Mark know Darlene?

Yeah, he knew her. She was my roommate.

Oh my God.

Oh my God. You think he took Darlene?

Motherfucker!

♪

[Breathing hard]

[Thud]

[Muffled cry for help]

[Banging on door]

[Quieter banging on door]

[Barely audible banging on door]

[barely audible] Help me!

♪

[Viola] As soon as Jasmine's boyfriend became a real suspect,

EJ and I went back to the garage to confront him.

But he had disappeared.

It wasn't until later that day

that we got our next break in the case,

from an unexpected source.

[Remote car lock sound]

-Faith! -Hi!

Looks like I'm catching you at a bad time.

No. You know what? I was just going to go out for a quick run,

but come on in.

[Faith] Sorry I'm barging in on you like this.

No, it's um it gives me... It's good.

It gives me a chance to apologize for my mom,

for pulling you into that dinner last night.

[laughs] Are you kidding?

If I hadn't come willingly,

my mom would have dragged me here by my hair. So.

Um... [laughs]

By the way, I don't remember if I mentioned it last night,

but your place is gorgeous.

Yeah, Wendy built a lot of this herself,

so, it was kind of her dream house.

Uh, well, listen.

I don't want to hold you up much longer.

I just came over to give this to you.

[Faith] I got curious,

and did some research on The Russian Doll.

Oh, you know what?

We already looked into that Russian woman

who said that she had written the play, so...

Oh. Did you find the diary?

[Viola] Diary?

Where did you find this?

[soft laugh] On line.

It took some digging,

but I'm pretty good at that kind of stuff.

This is...

Wow.

I totally owe you a beer.

Make it a glass of wine and you've got a date.

[breathing hard, straining]

[Sylvia] I remembered something today

which is both terribly depressing and yet,

somehow freeing.

I could have proven that Aaron stole my play.

It's now too late, but still,

it makes me feel a little better.

July thirtieth.

I was never satisfied with the play's ending.

It saddens me to know it will be performed with a flaw.

I should have concluded with a speech

explaining all people are like Russian dolls,

and that we all discover what we are truly like

when we shed our coverings, and expose what is within us.

August tenth.

It ends today.

I have found that deep within me is a naiïve and weak child -

someone who cannot live as an adult.

The pain is too great.

♪

[breathing hard]

[Garage door lock clicking]

[Screaming]

[Groaning]

[Taser crackling]

[Mark] You never fucking learn!

God!

Ah, fuck!

[piano music playing]

[Computer shuts, music stops] We need to talk.

Yeah. I finished reading the play.

I loved it.

There's just one small problem, though.

[EJ] The writer's name is wrong.

It should have said, "Sylvia Adler."

What?

Yeah, you were threatened because you plagiarized

The Russian Doll.

This is an outrage.

I'd go with felony.

See, the secret would have died with Sylvia,

except someone found the proof in her diary,

and then put it on line.

What proof?

Well, what's the name of the main character in your play?

Sophia Kaplan.

And what do you suppose is the name of Sylvia's best friend

-in real life? -Oh, I... I think I know.

Yeah?

Sophia Kaplan!

Interesting coincidence. Do you want to hear another one?

Sophia's neighbors in real life

have the same exact names as the neighbors in your play!

You didn't make up the names

because you didn't write the play.

Sylvia did.

I assure you she did not.

Yeah, and your fans are really going to be behind you

100 percent when they read Sylvia's diary.

Legally, The Russian Dollis yours.

The statute of limitations is long past.

We just wanted you to know that we understand

why somebody would want to kill you.

You're a lying douche bag.

Has anyone seen Oliver?

-There you are! -Sorry, Georgia.

I need to talk to you about something.

[Viola] We think we know who might be behind the threat.

[Wood banging on concrete floor]

[Drill sound]

Kevin wrote the letter?

Well we think so.

Did you know him before this production?

Mm-mm. I've never set eyes on him before.

Well what about you, Ms. Sullivan?

I met him here at the theater a couple of months ago

at the beginning of rehearsals.

He was a volunteer.

[Male] What is wrong with you?

[Female] I'm sorry. I'm trying.

[Male] Well I guess you're not trying hard enough.

[Male] You disgust me. [Female] I'm sorry.

[Male] Look at me when I'm talking to you.

Look at me!

[Slap]

[Male] You're pathetic. Do you know that?

So that's it?

You're just gonna sit there and cry

like some kind of psycho bitch?

[Female] I don't know what you want.

[Male] Do you know who knows what I want?

Don't try to hide from me!

[gasps]

[Nighttime insects sounds]

♪

Please - don't stop.

[whispers] Let me.

[Guitar introduction]

♪ The weather is turning.

♪ November has come to call.

♪ And someone back home does not wish I could be there. ♪

♪ And fires are burning,

♪ in the chill of a South End fall. ♪

♪ Like trees sad and yearning, toss questions to the air. ♪

♪ I can never forget her

♪ for more than one night at a time. ♪

♪ 'Cause I'll never let her

♪ fade from the edge of my mind. ♪

♪ Like a ghost just wanting to be free ♪

♪ from the haunting and the need. ♪

♪ Now I've often wondered,

♪ the spirits who walk the halls ♪

♪ to rattle their chains and the nerves of future lives. ♪

♪ Is this what they wanted?

♪ To weep and to walk through walls ♪

♪ never to slumber

♪ 'till judgment day arrives?

♪ I can never forget her

♪ for more than one night at a time. ♪

♪ Guess I'll never let her

♪ fade from the edge of my mind. ♪

♪ A ghost just wanting to be free ♪

♪ from the haunting and the need. ♪

♪ The haunting and --

[Gasps]

[Faith] You don't have to apologize.

No, I... I do. [restaurant sounds and chatter]

Look, I really didn't mean anything

-when I said that... -And I wanted...

I wanted to show you something.

That's my wife, Wendy.

That's a... a beautiful picture.

Yeah. That was, um, taken on her birthday.

She died a year... well, two years ago.

You guys look very happy.

My mother told me.

She said you were still grieving.

Well, no, not really.

I mean, it took me months to get over it,

but it's in the past.

Oh.

It's just... I have become...

I'm not a good person to be around.

Look at me, I'm...

I'm about to break that cup into a million pieces.

I am just... I'm... I am so, so

angry.

Oh.

I thought you were going to say you,

were so sad.

[Phone buzzes] Ames.

Wait, who is this?

[Man] I haven't thought about Lena's birth mother in years.

I assumed that was all behind us.

Yeah, but when Mr. Oslo called us

and explained the situation,

Tom and I decided we should call you.

Do you know where Lena is?

Uh, yeah. She moved to the west coast

after graduating from college.

And she teaches theater

out in Washington state, near Seattle.

And when was the last time you spoke with her?

Oh, she called just yesterday.

No, actually, I think it was the day before yesterday.

-Let me check. -Oh, that's right!

She caught us on our way to the movies.

Yep. Day before yesterday.

And when you spoke with her, did anything seem unusual,

or did she seem okay?

Uh, she was fine. Just calling to say hi.

Nothing special.

Do you have her phone number?

Of course. [laughs]

Okay.

All her contact information is right there.

[Woman] That's her, by the way. She hates that picture.

You spoke with her two days ago?

[Woman] Yes. That's right.

[Viola] And right there, the case was broken wide open.

Jasmine was Lena, Sylvia's daughter.

The only person with a motive to harm Aaron Richmond.

[Jasmine] "Every boyfriend I've ever had is an asshole."

-That lying sack of... -Don't beat yourself up.

She fooled me too.

Now she's not answering. Of course.

Try her boss at the health club.

[Sound of treadmill running]

Hey - see you tomorrow.

Uh, yeah.

She's here on the treadmill.

Excuse me?

Of course.

I understand.

Girl, you better get yourself right with Jesus.

[Wood lid slams shut]

Oh, don't worry.

I'll be done in a minute,

and then you can try it out, okay?

[crying, muffled] No, no please, no, no!

[Sound of treadmill running]

♪

That's her!

This way. Come on!

-Shit. -Hey!

She's right there!

Stop! Stop!

Stop!

It's not her.

[Man] Help! -Did you hear that?

In the bathroom!

-Oh. -Oh, my God.

[Viola] Are you okay? Where are you bleeding from?

Shit!

-And I walked right by her. -Yeah, yeah.

But if I had checked her alibi like I was supposed to,

we wouldn't be standing here

with our dicks in our fucking hands.

[Viola] Okay. So Jasmine and Mark

are in on this together.

Which means that?

It must have what, gone down at their house.

[EJ] Right. And Darlene

somehow gets her hands on the letter,

calls the cops...

[Viola] And then Jasmine hears it, and that's the end of that.

[EJ] Right.

So now we know everything about everybody.

Except where anybody is. Fuck!

Oh this?

Try not to pay any attention to it.

[Drill sound]

[Viola] Excuse me, sir.

May I see that pistol, please?

[Oliver] If you have a warrant.

Hey!

Is there a problem?

Oh, don't feel bad.

She does that to every fool who waves a weapon around like that.

It actually feels heavier than I'd imagined.

It's almost like the real thing.

Trigger really works.

The weighted ones are better.

You'd be surprised how an audience can tell

whether a gun is plastic or metal,

whether the trigger moves, that kind of thing.

[Viola] So how does this stunt thing work, exactly?

Oh, it's really just a timing trick.

Oliver points the gun, squeezes the trigger.

At that moment, someone in the sound booth

cues the sound for a gunshot.

[Oliver] Bam!

[Rachel] Oliver fakes the recoil,

Aaron just simply reacts to the sound,

triggering a little packet of blood to explode.

[Viola] Sounds simple enough.

So do you think we're safe to open tonight?

Well, we're gonna have a couple of plain clothes guys outside.

Besides, I think that Jasmine and her boyfriend

are probably halfway to Canada by now.

[EJ] They know we're on to them.

Yeah. We still haven't found Darlene yet, though.

[Straining noises]

[Mark] You made me do this.

[Taser buzzing] Stop moving!

Technically, I'm not gonna kill you.

You'll kill yourself when you use up all the air.

[Lid slams shut]

♪

Whoa! What's the occasion?

EJ, do not be an idiot.

I'm just trying to blend in.

Oh. Okay.

Hey! Viola!

-Hey! -I didn't know you'd be here.

Yeah, no, it's just a precaution.

Faith, this is my partner, Detective Fiore.

Oh! You're Faith.

[EJ laughs]

It's nice to meet you. I'm EJ.

Nice to meet you, too.

Are you staying for the performance?

Yeah. That's the plan.

Then I'll see you at intermission.

Okay.

-Enjoy the show. -Thanks.

[laughs]

All right. So A, shut up.

And B, I'm going downstairs for one last check.

[laughing] Okay.

I distinctly remember asking you for two bottles of water,

not one.

Would you like to know how I remember this?

Because I require one bottle of water for each act of the play,

and the play has two acts!

If I'm not mistaken,

three-quarters of the earth's surface is covered with water.

So I don't think it is asking too much,

it is not overly greedy or selfish,

to request two bottles of water.

Not one, not three.

Two!

I'm sorry, sir.

I'll go get you one.

Madam Director! [Applause]

Thank you. Thank you all.

This is a very special play.

Because in this world of theater,

in this world of make-believe,

this play challenges us to really see ourselves.

It challenges us to look inside.

To look within,

and discover who we really are-

Russian dolls.

Every one of us.

And you know what?

Everything you need,

everything you need for your performance tonight,

and everything you need for far more than tonight,

is already inside of you.

Inside the doll.

Everything you need is inside the doll.

Carry that with you tonight,

and you'll make me proud.

And you'll make yourselves proud.

And you'll make everyone in that theater tonight proud.

My love is with all of you.

[Applause]

♪

[Viola] Even though I thought that

Jasmine and her boyfriend were nowhere near the theater,

I still felt like we were missing something.

♪

[gasps] Oh! I'm sorry.

I didn't know you were here.

It's all right. Just keep moving.

Thanks.

Everything okay?

Looks good.

[winces] Are you okay?

Contractions.

Been having them for a couple of days now.

Too far apart to worry about.

-Let me get the door for you. -Thank you.

[Applause]

There is a promise contained in every sunrise.

A promise of hope, and rebirth.

A promise that this new day

can be a better one than the last.

[Russian classical piano music]

♪

[Applause]

Hey. What do y'all think so far?

-It's good. -I really like it.

Fingers crossed for act two.

Where is that girl?

What is her name? Mother of God,

how am I supposed to get ready for act two?

[breathing hard] I'm sorry.

As you should be.

Did it take you the entire first act to drill a well

for the precious liquid?

My God, did you think I was kidding when I said

I needed a bottle of water for each act.

I assure you, young lady, I was not!

Thank you, so, so much. That was quite refreshing.

[Bottle slams on counter]

[Crowd chatter]

[Water splashes] Oh my God!

[Crowd chatter]

[Viola] Are you okay?

-Her water just broke. -Oh no. You know what?

I'll call for a cruiser.

It's fine. I just called my sister.

She lives two blocks away.

Are you sure?

This is what you get

when you direct a play in your ninth month.

[Car horn honks] That's her.

Let me know how it goes.

[Viola] Okay. Well, good luck.

Let's do it.

♪

Let's try it with your lovely wife, shall we?

Where is your daughter, Sophia?

I don't know.

I'm afraid she is lying to me.

-No. -But maybe I am mistaken.

Let me ask again, just to be sure.

Where is your daughter?

Oh, this.

Don't you hate it?

It's a little bit of too much, don't you think?

Try not to pay any attention to it.

Where is your daughter?

I don't know.

[Two gun shots]

♪

[no spoken audio]

[heart beating]

♪

[heartbeat slows, and stops]

[muffled] [Male] So that's it?

You're just gonna sit there and cry

like some kind of psycho bitch?

[Female] I don't know what you want.

[Male] Do you know who knows what I want?

Don't try to hide from me!

[Viola] EJ and I talked to the people in the cast,

but we got nothing useful from them.

None of them believed that Oliver knew the gun was real.

Neither did I.

And then I remembered something

that Rachel had said earlier that night.

Everything you need is inside the doll.

[Viola] The letter was from Lena.

It was the same letter that had led Darlene to call 9-1-1.

It read: "I'm sure by now you know that I was the one

who switched a real gun for the stunt gun.

Oliver knew nothing about it.

It was my decision to kill Aaron Richmond.

Mine alone.

He had to pay, for abusing my mother and me

when I was a little girl."

[Viola] Lena left an address where we could find Darlene.

But we weren't in time to save the kidnapped woman.

Luckily, it didn't matter.

Because by the time we reached her,

Darlene had kicked the end of the box out.

She'd saved herself.

Lena made sure to tell us how she got away with it,

and why it was so important for Rachel to leave

at the end of intermission.

Because thanks to the personas of Rachel and Jasmine,

Lena, the daughter of the true playwright,

had become a real life Russian doll.

And, with the help of special makeup,

her theater training, and her sadistic boyfriend,

Lena had hidden in plain sight for weeks...

sometimes disguised as a pregnant woman

directing a play...

[no spoken audio]

...and sometimes as a short-tempered personal trainer.

But when I think of her,

I think of the words her mother wanted spoken

at the end of her play.

[Sylvia] We all wear masks and disguises,

whether to hide the scars of our damaged souls,

or the shame of our deceit.

For in a world often marred by cruelty and judgment,

it is truly an act of bravery

to live a life unguarded, and open.

And so, in the end,

many of us become Russian dolls.

Choosing to hide our real selves from the world.

But some have found another path.

They embrace honesty and sincerity,

and choose to accept the risks of living

without pretense or façade.

Because they believe that life becomes infinitely rewarding

when you find the courage

to share the deepest part of yourself with another.

Someone with whom you can be fearless,

and true.

♪

[Introduction to The Mention of You]

♪ There's a problem in need of attention, ♪

♪ but I can't find the words to say, ♪

♪ there's a hole in my soul at the mention ♪

♪ of you.

♪ And the wind whistles through but I'm lonely, ♪

♪ and I can't make it go away.

♪ All my rainbows and sunsets come only ♪

♪ in blue.

♪ And I stare at the ceiling 'til morning, ♪

♪ break down on the street with no warning, ♪

♪ a fool filled with plenty of longing ♪

♪ for two.

♪ When my peers wish to hear all about you, ♪

♪ I don't know how to make them see ♪

♪ that whether I'm with or without you, ♪

♪ you're near.

♪ But if we aren't to be, then I'm dying, ♪

♪ so I cling to the memory

♪ of your touch in the rain and the sun in your hair. ♪

♪ And there's no one on Earth who could steal that, ♪

♪ so if I seem a little unreal

♪ that is simply the way that I feel at ♪

♪ the mention of you.

♪ And there's no one on Earth who could steal that, ♪

♪ so if I seem a little unreal

♪ that is simply the way that I feel at ♪

♪ the mention of you.