20260926-195646

4 of 30 scenes played · 1 revisions · 0 facts
party
the whole script — all 30 scenes, as it finally stood (4 played)
1Mara hangs a hand-painted banner reading WELCOME HOME DAN over the kitchen doorway while her sister Ruth holds the ladder
2Ruth finds an unopened letter addressed to Mara, stamped from a prison, tucked behind the fruit bowl
3Mara takes the letter from Ruth and puts it in her apron pocket without opening it
4Guests have arrived and fill the room with drinks, and Mara stands among them still in her apron
5Ruth takes Mara's apron off her for her, and the letter is now in Ruth's hand
6Ruth, locked in the bathroom, has opened the letter
7The letter's last line is visible: "Don't let me come home to that house"
8Ruth comes back and finds Mara lighting candles on a homecoming cake
9Ruth pushes the open letter onto the table beside the cake, in front of Mara
10Mara folds the letter shut and sets the cake plate on top of it
11Headlights: a taxi has pulled up and a man with a duffel bag steps out
12Mara runs out and hugs Dan on the path, and Ruth stays in the doorway
13Dan stands under the WELCOME HOME DAN banner among balloons, guests clapping, beside a wall of family photographs
14Dan cuts the cake and lifts the plate, uncovering the letter he wrote
15Dan holds his own letter, open
16Dan turns to Ruth, not Mara, and hands the letter to her
17Dan and Ruth have gone outside to the dark garden, away from the party
18Ruth gives Dan her car keys
19Mara is at the kitchen window, watching them through the glass
20Mara comes out the back door and takes Dan's duffel bag from the porch step inside
21Mara has put Dan's bag in the middle of the party and is unpacking it onto the sofa
22Dan comes back in and sees his clothes laid out across the sofa
23The guests have begun to leave, coats on, filing past Dan
24The party is gone; only Mara, Dan and Ruth remain in the emptied room
25Mara holds out Dan's old house key on a string to him
26Dan's other hand still holds Ruth's car keys
27Ruth takes a framed photograph of Dan as a boy off the wall and puts it in his duffel bag
28Dan repacks his shirts into the bag over the photograph while Mara watches
29Dan leaves the house key on the porch step and gets into Ruth's car with the bag
30Mara is alone at the front window among the balloons, and the curb outside is empty
scene 1 · medium
Mara hangs a hand-painted banner reading WELCOME HOME DAN over the kitchen doorway while her sister Ruth holds the ladder
early evening · a house kitchen
the picture turned out to be: There are two women standing in a room. There is a white banner hanging from a white door. There are colorful balloons in front of the door.
looked at: w, w, d
scene 2 · close
Ruth finds an unopened letter addressed to Mara, stamped from a prison, tucked behind the fruit bowl
minutes on · the kitchen
the picture turned out to be: A person is holding a piece of paper. There is a bowl of fruit in front of the person. There are colorful balloons behind the bowl.
looked at: p, b, f, c
scene 3 · medium
Mara takes the letter from Ruth and puts it in her apron pocket without opening it
seconds later · the kitchen
the picture turned out to be: There are two people standing in a kitchen. The person on the left is wearing an apron. There is a window behind the people.
looked at: a, w, p
scene 4 · medium
Guests have arrived and fill the room with drinks, and Mara stands among them still in her apron
an hour later · the front room
the picture turned out to be: A group of people are standing in a room. There is a man in a blue shirt standing in front of a table. There are pictures on the wall behind the people.
looked at: p, b

never shown — the story from here when it stopped

5. Ruth takes Mara's apron off her for her, and the letter is now in Ruth's hand
6. Ruth, locked in the bathroom, has opened the letter
7. The letter's last line is visible: "Don't let me come home to that house"
8. Ruth comes back and finds Mara lighting candles on a homecoming cake
9. Ruth pushes the open letter onto the table beside the cake, in front of Mara
10. Mara folds the letter shut and sets the cake plate on top of it
11. Headlights: a taxi has pulled up and a man with a duffel bag steps out
12. Mara runs out and hugs Dan on the path, and Ruth stays in the doorway
13. Dan stands under the WELCOME HOME DAN banner among balloons, guests clapping, beside a wall of family photographs
14. Dan cuts the cake and lifts the plate, uncovering the letter he wrote
15. Dan holds his own letter, open
16. Dan turns to Ruth, not Mara, and hands the letter to her
17. Dan and Ruth have gone outside to the dark garden, away from the party
18. Ruth gives Dan her car keys
19. Mara is at the kitchen window, watching them through the glass
20. Mara comes out the back door and takes Dan's duffel bag from the porch step inside
21. Mara has put Dan's bag in the middle of the party and is unpacking it onto the sofa
22. Dan comes back in and sees his clothes laid out across the sofa
23. The guests have begun to leave, coats on, filing past Dan
24. The party is gone; only Mara, Dan and Ruth remain in the emptied room
25. Mara holds out Dan's old house key on a string to him
26. Dan's other hand still holds Ruth's car keys
27. Ruth takes a framed photograph of Dan as a boy off the wall and puts it in his duffel bag
28. Dan repacks his shirts into the bag over the photograph while Mara watches
29. Dan leaves the house key on the porch step and gets into Ruth's car with the bag
30. Mara is alone at the front window among the balloons, and the curb outside is empty
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