PLAYS

 
 

Couple of the Century

A Play in Two Acts by William Fowkes


Looking for love, marriage, and therapy on Central Park West.



Presented at the Downtown Urban Theater Festival ’08, Cherry Lane Theatre, New York


Semi-finalist in the Open Book’s 8th National Readers Playwrighting Competition



Couple of the Century is an expanded, full-length version of my one-act play, The Session, finalist at the Strawberry One-Act Festival World 2005 at the Bernie West Theatre, New York and published in The Distillery.

 

“...an engaging, amusing, touching tale.”

- White Horse Theater Company, NYC


“What with the state of current events, the world needs all   the romance and comedy it can get…”

- Penguin Repertory Company, Stony Point, NY


“…an intriguing play about the dynamics of modern   relationships. The structure, moving back through time to   the couple’s meeting, is compelling…a funny & accessible   play that speaks to the difficulties of connecting with our   loved ones.”

- Trinity Repertory Company, Providence



“Fowkes…is developing as a playwright, and this one   contains at least 4 scenes that engage, inform, surprise -   scenes that allow his actors to probe, seek and find   subtleties in their characters. His dialogue is rich and stageworthy. … It’s always a joy to see talented writers   stretch and grow.”

- Richard Seff’s NY Theatre Buzz on DCTheatreScene.com (7/14/08) 



Presented at the Downtown Urban Theater Festival June 2008 at the Cherry Lane Theatre, NYC

Directed by Wendy Peace & Nic Tyler

Starring Wendy Peace*, Jerry Ferris, Janice Mann*, John Blaylock*

*Member of Actors’ Equity Association

“Our Love is Beautiful” by Jack Woodbridge            Remixes by Andy Chimicles


CAST OF CHARACTERS

NICK TURNER. Age: 33–44 (44 in opening scene). Attractive, self-confident, charming and in good physical shape. College dropout from Flatbush (Brooklyn) turned successful contractor. Part Italian. (Appears in 7 scenes.) 

DIANE LONDON. Age: 31–42 (42 in opening scene). Attractive, articulate and reserved. Yale graduate from Short Hills, New Jersey turned therapist. (Appears in 8 scenes.)

ED. Age: 34. Pompous, competitive, “aristocratic” and stiff. A lawyer from Greenwich, CT. Married to Caroline. Former classmate of Caroline and Diane at Yale. (Appears in 1 scene.)

CAROLINE. Age: 32-34. Friendly, funny, easygoing, and easily distracted. Married to Ed. Diane’s best friend. Former classmate of Diane and Ed at Yale. (Appears in 2 scenes.)


THE SETTING

The play begins in a therapist’s office at The Century, a large, twin-towered, pre-war apartment building on Central Park West in Manhattan, and continues in other settings in and around The Century.


THE TIME

The play begins in April 2005 and then moves back in time from scene to scene until it reaches May 1994. The final scene jumps forward to June 2005, two months after the opening scene. 


ACT ONE

Scene 1: April 2005. A therapist’s office at The Century. 

Scene 2: 3 months earlier (January 2005). The Turners’ bedroom at The Century.

Scene 3: 10 months earlier (March 2004). Same setting. 

Scene 4: 7 years earlier (April 1997). The Turners’ dining room at The Century.


ACT TWO

Scene 5: 18 months earlier (October 1995). A restaurant.

Scene 6: 16 months earlier (May 1994). A coffee shop.  

Scene 7: 11 years later (June 2005). The Turners’ bedroom at The Century.


SYNOPSIS

Nick Turner and Diane London are a mismatched couple looking for love, marriage, and therapy on Central Park West. After an opening scene in which we discover them at a point of crisis, the play moves backwards to explore the evolution of their fumbling relationship. Along the way we see what happens when people can’t even discuss what’s wrong, when old friends don’t help matters any, and when achieving sexual intimacy seems to require advanced acting skills. In the final scene, we’re back in the present, wondering if things can possibly work out.