Summary
The musical begins with a scene that is chronologically its last. In the 1980s, a woman named Mrs. Johnstone stands over the dead bodies of her two sons in a council office. She sings that she wants someone to tell her this moment isn't real. The narrator then introduces the story of the Johnstone twins who never learned that they were brothers until the day that they died. The narrator says he will recount their story and let the audience judge their mother for themselves.
The story then flashes back to the 1950s in Liverpool, England. Mrs. Johnstone sings the song "Marilyn Monroe." She recounts how she met her husband at a dance and they began a relationship that resulted in her having several children. He then abandoned her for a younger woman, leaving her to raise their children alone and on a single income. She wistfully recalls her days of dancing and describes how much she misses them. The song ends when the narrator reappears at her door, dressed as a milkman.
The milkman reminds Mrs. Johnstone that she is late on her payments to him and that he cannot keep supplying her if she does not pay him. She says that they are having money problems. He replies that everyone is having money problems and that he can't give her milk if she doesn't have the money to pay him. Mrs. Johnstone's children appear, reminding her that they are hungry. She finishes her song, imagining a day in which she becomes rich and is able to take all of her kids dancing.
Mrs. Johnstone then converses with her employer, Mrs. Lyons. Mrs. Lyons is a wealthy woman who owns a large home. Her husband Mr. Lyons is a businessman. Mrs. Lyons says he is away on business often and that she sometimes feels lonely in their expansive house. She tells Mrs. Johnstone that they expected to have children but she is unable to and Mr. Lyons does not want to adopt. She opens a package and places some new shoes on the table, which immediately makes Mrs. Johnstone anxious. She tells Mrs. Lyons to take them down, as it is bad luck to put new shoes on a table.
Mrs. Johnstone then goes to visit her gynecologist to check up on her pregnancy. She learns she is going to deliver twins. The news unsettles her, as she is not financially prepared to take care of two more children. She returns to Mrs. Lyons' house the next day, distracted by her troubles. Mrs. Lyons asks her what is wrong and she tells her about the situation. Mrs. Lyons immediately hatches a plan. The narrator sings a brief lyric about an idea taking root.
Mrs. Lyons tells Mrs. Johnstone that she should give her other baby to her. She says that she will pretend to be pregnant and that her husband will be none the wiser. Mrs. Johnstone agrees, thinking she can give one of her children a better life. Mrs. Lyons sings "My Child," describing her yearning for a child of her own, then Mrs. Johnstone joins in, imagining the happy life of the child she will give up. Mrs. Johnstone swears on a Bible.
The children are born. Mrs. Johnstone has second thoughts about giving one of them up. Debt collectors appear at her doorstep, reminding her that she is overdue on her payments. They criticize her for not knowing better than to buy things she can't afford. She says that when the payment date is months off, it appears further away than it actually is. She says she doesn't need any reminders about what she should and shouldn't do. They depart with several of her belongings.
Analysis
Fate is one of the musical's central themes and appears prominently in its first scene. The narrator says that the story of the Johnstone twins is a tragic one, as their linked destinies end with their untimely deaths. He says that they spend their lives not knowing that they are related and only find out on the day they both die. The audience is made aware of their ultimate end before even meeting the brothers. The musical highlights how these boys were tied to their fate, while letting the audience decide who or what was ultimately responsible for their deaths. The superstitious comments made by Mrs. Johnstone about the bad luck of putting shoes on the table foreshadow their fated ends.
Class is also a major theme in the musical's opening section. Mrs. Johnstone is burdened with numerous financial problems. She is supporting a large family on her single income as a housekeeper, is behind on numerous bills, and faces an uncertain future, as she is dealing with a twin pregnancy she cannot afford. In spite of all of this, she is still hesitant to accept Mrs. Lyons' offer, as it would mean giving up one of her children. She reluctantly agrees to it, as she reasons that it may vastly improve the life of one of her twins. This heartbreaking moment highlights how Mrs. Johnstone is forced to make difficult choices due to her class status.
Family plays a key role in the musical as well. Mrs. Lyons is faced with an entirely different set of problems from Mrs. Johnstone. She has a large house and great wealth as a result of her husband's job. However, she is unable to have children and spends a great deal of time alone because her husband is constantly away on business. Her husband has doubts about adoption, as he thinks an adopted child could never truly be theirs. This causes Mrs. Lyons a great deal of pain. She yearns for children and feels that her life is empty without them. She is thrilled by the prospect of adopting one of Mrs. Johnstone's twins because she thinks it will end her misery. The musical shows how these two women's problems are reversed: Mrs. Johnstone has a family she cannot provide for and Mrs. Lyons has financial means but no way of having a family of her own.
The score of the musical effectively situates its mood. The overture begins with ominous chords played by orchestral strings and a choir, then the narrator recounts the story of the Johnstone twins. This scoring adds to the musical's dramatic weight, as it effectively cues the tragic events of the plot. Additionally, it highlights the purpose of the narrator as an observer of the terrible course of their lives. Like the narrator's comments, the opening theme ultimately serves to bookend the musical's beginning and reveal the tragic fate that awaits the twins. Subsequent songs like "I Won’t Say A Word" and "My Child" share this tone, as they capture the characters' yearnings, which ultimately result in the tragic closing scene.
The play's opening scenes reveal the fate of the Johnstone twins before delving back into the past. The narrator asks the viewers to judge for themselves who was ultimately at fault for their deaths. While the audience is given no immediate clues, the initial events shed some light on how the twins came to be separated and the difficult circumstances their respective mothers faced. Class, fate, and family all take on foreboding significance, as Mrs. Johnstone and Mrs. Lyons find no easy resolution to any of these issues.
