Frankie and Johnny in The Clair De Lune

Playwright: Terrence McNally

Rights: Dramatists

Cast Size: 1w, 1m

Synopsis:

The setting is a walk-up apartment on Manhattan’s West Side where, as the curtain rises, Frankie (a waitress) and Johnny (a short-order cook who works in the same restaurant) are discovered in bed. It is their first encounter, after having met several weeks ago on the job, and Frankie is hopeful that Johnny will now put on his clothes and depart, so she can return to her usual routine of watching TV and eating ice cream. But Johnny, a compulsive talker (and romantic), has other ideas. He is convinced that he loves Frankie, a notion that she, at first, considers to be ridiculous. She has had more disappointments than delights in life, and he is the veteran of one broken marriage already. And neither of them is in the bloom of youth. Yet out of their sometimes touching, sometimes hilarious interplay the promise of a relationship beyond a “one-night stand” does begin to emerge and, as the lights dim, the two are back in bed again, but this time side-by-side, holding hands before the glowing television screen.

Ratings:

Language: 16+

Adult Content: 18+

Violence: 13+

Pay attention to: Food is cooked and prepared on set. Johnny gets burned and margarine is placed on the burb wound. There is a slap. Sex is heard but not seen. Potential for nudity or partial nudity.

Flexibility: All changes must be approved in advance.

Production Notes: Music plays a very big part in the play.