Skript Analysis

I.  WHERE ARE THEY?
            A. In what country, city, place, building, room, etc.? The Charles house in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. “How he gonna find his way all the way up here to Pittsburgh?” (pg. 14)
            B. How do the characters describe the place they are in? In the “Setting” section, it says that the house or what we can see of it (the kitchen, parlor, and staircase to the upstairs) is “sparsely furnished, and although there is evidence of a woman’s touch, there is a lack of warmth and vigor.”
            C. Is there any special significance to the place they are in? There is an upright piano in the parlor that is the centerpiece of the play. Also, they are in the North of America, which is much different than the South in this time period. There are small mentions of this throughout the play.

II. WHEN ARE THEY?

            A. In what day, month, year, century, season, time of day, etc.? It’s sometime during May through August of 1937. Watermelons are in season during that time, which is what Boy Willie and Lymon harvest. The times of day change throughout the play.
            B. Do the characters have anything specific to say about when they are? “But he would have been fifty-seven if he had lived. He died in 1911 when he was thirty-one years old.” (pg. 45)
            C. Is there any special significance to when they are? Is it, for instance, a national holiday? The 1930’s, many African Americans had a hard time finding jobs because of the great depression, though that is not mentioned within this play.

III. WHO ARE THEY?

            A. How are they related? All the Charles are related: Doaker and Wining Boy are brothers. Berniece and Boy Willie are siblings and niece and nephew to Doaker and Wining Boy. Berniece’s daughter is Maretha. Lymon is Boy Willie’s friend, Avery courts Berniece, and Grace is a girl who goes out with Boy Willie and then Lymon.
            B. What are their roles in life? Doaker is a railroad cook, and the peacemaker in the Charles house. Boy Willie and Lymon both work or worked in the South on farms. Berniece works for some rich white folks in their house. Wining Boy used to record records and play piano. Avery is a wanna-be preacher.

            C. What do they think of each other? Berniece and Boy Willie don’t like each other. Besides that, most of the characters are indifferent with one another. "All I know is Crawley would be alive if you hadn't come up there and got him" (pg. 53 Berneice), and "I see Berniece still try to be stuck up" (pg. 8 Boy Willie).

            D. What do they think of themselves? Berniece thinks she's too busy to look for better things in life. "I got enough on my hands with Maretha. I got enough people to love and take care of" (pg. 67). Doaker just lives every day the best he can. "I'm just living the best way I know how" (pg. 93). Boy Willie thinks he deserves better. "I'm living at the top of life" (pg. 92).

            E. Under what form or government and/or economic system to they live? They live in a very discriminatory United States of America. However, Boy Willie feels like African Americans have more opportunity than ever before. In a way, so does Berniece through her daughter.

            F. What role does religion play in their lives? What are their attitudes about this? They all seem to believe in ghosts. They ask Avery as a preacher to cleanse the house. I think they all believe in god too.

            G. What are the prevailing attitudes toward sex, family, marriage, and ethical conduct? Do they live within or rebel against these attitudes? Most of the males in the play believe that Berniece needs a man. The men besides Doaker seem to think that sex is not related to marriage. Berniece doesn’t think she needs a man.

            H. What kinds of dialogue do the characters speak? Realistic? Naturalistic? Poetry? Other? They all speak with a southern slang, except Avery who speaks with clarity, like a preacher.

IV. WHAT HAPPENED BEFORE THE PLAY BEGAN?

            Before the play happens, Boy Willie makes a deal with Sutter’s brother, whose grandpa used to own Boy Willie’s great grandpa as a slave. After Sutter died, Sutter’s brother supposedly said that he would sell Boy Willie Sutter’s land. Boy Willie had already saved up one third of the payment, and then he and Lymon bought a load of watermelons to resell and get the second third. They drove two days from Mississippi to Pittsburgh, and then the play begins.

V. WHAT IS THE FUNCTION OF EACH CHARACTER IN THE PLAY?

            A. Principal Characters. Who is the protagonist? Who is the antagonist? Boy Willie is the protagonist, and so is his sister Berniece. The antagonist is the society that the family lives in. If I had to pick a character as an antagonist, I'd pick Boy Willie, because he doesn't seem to care about anyone else, and the drama doesn't start until he gets there.

            B. Secondary Characters – what is the function of each? Doaker keeps the peace between Boy Willie and Berniece.

VI. WHAT HAPPENS IN THE PLAY?

            A. Briefly describe the principal event in the play. What is the climax? The climax is the scene where Berniece brought in her gun to threaten Boy Willie as he tries to take their piano. "BERNIECE realizes what she must do. She crosses to the piano. She begins to play" (pg. 106).

            B. Below.

            C. Which specific physical objects/props are called for? Bible, whiskey bottles, toast, pocket book, pots and pans, wash cloth, glass cups, ironing board and iron, suit, a tub, teakettle, perfume, pint bottle, caster and wood plank, screw driver, cards, lamp, hot comb and hair grease, a letter, fake money, rope, gun, candle and lighter.

            D. Which special physical activities are called for? Stage combat? Dancing? There are lots of singing parts. Boy Willie falls down the stairs. Characters drink whiskey a lot. Lymon rolls off the couch. Boy Willie runs up the stairs at one point to have an off stage fight.

VII. WHAT IS THE PLAY’S THEME?

            This will likely evolve throughout the rehearsal process. The play’s theme that there is always two sides to every story. Berniece has her opinions and so do Boy Willie. However, it’s not good to create sides, or split things, like pianos in half. They needed to talk things out.

 The piano itself might also represent unity when played, but Berniece won't play it until the end, which is when everything is set right again.

VIII. WHAT IS THE WORLD OF THE PLAY?

Describe the world of the play – the distinctive social universe created by the total given circumstances plus all the social standards. How does the world of the play affect the conduct and mental attitude of each of the characters? Is the world they inhabit good or bad, friendly or unfriendly, amusing or frightening? Does anyone’s point of view toward the world of the play change or develop as the action progresses? Should the audience’s impression of this world be the same as the characters’? In this society, African Americans are at the bottom of the pillar. The only ones lower than them is women. Boy Willie is greatly affected by this and makes his only goal in life to get revenge, and/or buy land because to him that is a step up in life. In a way, his wants are justified because the world he lives in is very cruel to him. I don’t think Boy Willie’s opinion changes by the end of the play, but something about Berniece does.

B. Construct an action chart (scene breakdown) for the play. This will help you understand entrances/exits, character relationships and functions, and uses of space needed for the play.

Scene	A1, S1	A1, S2	A2, S1	A2, S2	A2, S3	A2, S4	A2, S5
Doaker	X	X	X			X	X
Boy Willie	X	X	X		X	X	X
Lymon	X	X	X		X	X	X
Berniece	X	X		X	X		X
Maretha	X	Off stage line					X
Avery	X			X			X
Wining Boy		X	X				X
Grace					X		X