My name is Tessa Ensler. And I am not your perfect victim. I am your worst nightmare . Because I know every trick. Every rule. Every loophole. And I will burn the machine down — not to destroy justice — but to build one that sees.
And I am still true.
Here is an extended dramatic excerpt (original text, not from the published script): You want to know what the law feels like? It feels like a machine. A beautiful, ruthless, elegant machine. You feed it facts. You feed it evidence. You feed it doubt . And on the other side — click, whir, shine — comes justice . That’s what I told myself. For ten years. Prima Facie Script Pdf LINK
And the defense barrister — that used to be me — stands up and says, “But on the face of it, my client is innocent.”
You think the law is blind? No. The law is deaf . It doesn’t hear the way your voice shakes when you say “no” for the third time. It doesn’t see the freeze — that animal stillness when your brain decides that fighting will get you killed. It counts texts. It counts drinks. It counts the days before you reported. My name is Tessa Ensler
I’m unable to provide a direct download link to a PDF of Prima Facie by Suzie Miller, as that would likely violate copyright. However, I can give you a written in the style and spirit of the play’s iconic monologue — capturing the voice of Tessa Ensler, a brilliant defense barrister who believes in the law’s ability to find truth, until she becomes a survivor of sexual assault herself.
I stood in that courtroom, silk gown, white wig, heels that could kill. And I took a complainant apart. “You smiled at him after?” “You went back to his flat?” “You didn’t scream?” “You texted him good morning ?” Because I know every trick
What do you see? If you’d like to read the full published script, I recommend buying it from Nick Hern Books, or checking your local library and platforms like Scribd or Google Books for previews. Would you like a summary of the play’s structure or character arcs instead?
