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If a late 19th century house could take, what stories would it tell?  Who built it and ‘why’, and what secrets and dreams does a deserted house hold when the dust settles thick and its beauty has all but faded?  This play follows the history of just such a house over a century of time.  Act One looks at the rich husband who built the house for his neglected wife, believing that it was all she needed to be happy.  Act Two, set 80 years later, visits the antics and escapades of two single young men who are renting the first floor of the house.  This light-hearted act focuses on the pressures of young male friendship and fear of rejection by the opposite sex.  In Act Three, the house—now deserted—serves as a hangout for partying teens and a group of friends who decide to conduct a séance—much to the dismay of the elderly caretaker of the property!  In the final act, a newly-wed couple visits the house with the intentions of buying it and moving it out into the country.  Like the original wife in Act One, the young woman questions the amount of time and energy her husband will be putting into the house—and how much will be left for her.  In the play’s final scene, the original couple visits the house for a last look around, and brings closure to the tale.

Production Requirements:

Cast: Seven men and eight women (double-casting is possible).

Act One:       

  • Kate Stenford—attractive, early to late thirties

  • Jake Stenford—well-built man of strong character; early to late thirties

  • Patricia—lady friend of the couple; refined, roughly the same age

Act Two:       

  • Mark—late teens to mid-twenties

  • Bill—late teens to mid-twenties

Act Three:     

  • Tony—approximately sixteen, somewhat simple

  • Ben—approximately sixteen, mature for his age

  • Debbie—mid-teens, likes to be in control

  • Emily—mid-teens, sensitive and insecure

  • Sue—mid-teens, practical

  • Sarah—mid-teens, mature for her age

  • Mr. Larsen—late fifties to late sixties; gruff caretaker

Act Four:      

  • Alan—mid to late twenties; attractive and level-headed

  • Cindy—late twenties to mid-thirties, Alan's older sister

  • Sarah—mid to late twenties; Alan's fiancé.

 

Set: This play takes place over a 100-year span of time.

Act One: Set in the late 1800's.  The house is occupied by its original owners, Kate and Jake Stenford.  The set depicts the living room portion of the house.  There is an elaborate couch to the right of CS, with a matching armchair to its left.  A writing desk is down SL, and two doorways at SL lead into the kitchen and a sitting room.  At SR, is the main entrance door to the house, and a hat tree, upstage from which there is a large window.  The set is furnished elaborately, and there is a spectacular staircase against the back well, descending from upper SL to a landing at CS, and four steps down to the stage floor, which is the focal point of the room.  Under the stairwell at upper SL is a small door that leads into storage closet, and there is a window located in the wall at the landing.

Act Two: Set in the 1960's.  The house is occupied by renters, and is becoming run down.  The turn-of-the-century furniture has been replaced by the following items: a stereo system located under the large window at CR, a well-worn sofa sleeper which is currently pulled out into a bed at CS.  There is a portable TV on a stand in front of the sofa, and a thread-bare, over-stuffed chair at SL.  A multi-colored afghan has been draped over the large window in lieu of a curtain.  There is a rope barrier draped over the bannister at the foot of the stairway with a “Do Not Enter” road sign fastened to it.  The entire room is in a state of disarray, with garbage, magazines, clothing, empty food containers, etc. strewn about.

Act Three: Set in the 1980's.  The house is unoccupied and has become a frequent hangout for teens.  The room is void of furnishings.  There are no drapes remaining, and the window on the landing has been boarded up.  There are various items randomly lying about the room—empty cardboard boxes, old blankets, discarded clothing, crumpled paper. Empty beer cans and other garbage associated with countless teenage parties that have been held at the house.

Act Four: Set in present day.  The house is still unoccupied, and has all but been taken off of the real estate market.  Demolition seems inevitable. The set is much the same as it was at the end of Act Three, except that all of the windows are now boarded up, casting the set in nearly total darkness.  The wallpaper is peeling badly, and the small closet door has been propped up against the wall SL. 

 

 

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