Mrs. Johnstone Stands Over Her Sons
The play opens with the striking image of Mrs. Johnstone standing over the bodies of her sons. This dramatic choice reveals how the story will end, moving the focus of the plot to the question of why it happened. It also immediately sets the stakes of the story as the viewer is immediately aware of the consequences of the plot. Above all else, this image highlights the anguish of Mrs. Johnstone who is forced to watch both her sons die. It is a chilling and unsettling scene with which to begin the musical.
Summer Montage Scene
Towards the end of the play, there is a brief montage of Eddie, Linda, and Mickey hanging out and taking pictures together during the summer. They laugh and smile throughout, feeling momentarily joyful. The narrator notes that this time was good but that all three would eventually have to move on. This cheerful imagery highlights the fact that the trio was briefly happy before adulthood made things more complicated. After Mickey marries Linda and Eddie leaves for college, things take a permanent turn for the worse. Before their paths all radically diverged, they were able to enjoy a more innocent time in their relationship.
Robbery
After losing his job at the local factory, a desperate Mickey agrees to do a robbery with Sammy. The robbery goes wrong and Sammy ends up killing someone. The scene is staged with Sammy facing a man at a filling station, his back to the audience. An alarm is heard and then he fires off his gun. Mickey says there is a man bleeding on the floor. They return home and Mickey freezes up, tears streaming down his face. The imagery highlights the casual brutality of Sammy's actions while also immediately showing the long-term damage this will cause Mickey. The quick pace of the scene also shows how Mickey's life comes apart at the seams in mere minutes.
Mrs. Lyons Lunges With a Knife
In the midst of her mental unraveling, Mrs. Lyons attempts to kill Mrs. Johnstone with a kitchen knife. Mrs. Johnstone fends her off, but the scene indicates the extent to which Mrs. Lyons has become vicious and paranoid. The scene also foreshadows her ultimately instigating Eddie's death by taunting Mickey about Linda's relationship with Edward. The image of her lunging with the knife shows the sad end of her character arc as she has gone from a bereft and lonely housewife to a would-be murderer.
