Blood Brothers

As Act One opens, Mrs. Johnstone laments in song, begging the narrator and audience to “tell me it’s not true.” The Narrator, meanwhile, introduces the audience to the story of the Johnstone brothers, twins separated at birth, who found out the story of their origins only moments before they died. There is a brief tableau, during which the audience witnesses Edward and Mickey’s deaths, after which the Narrator brings forth their mother, Mrs. Johnstone.

Mrs. Johnstone, a thirty-year-old woman who looks far older than her years, sings about her deadbeat husband. She remembers the days of their courtship, when he flattered her by saying that she was “sexier than Marilyn Monroe,” and took her dancing. Things went downhill, however, when Mrs. Johnstone got pregnant. The pair had a shotgun wedding, after which she quickly became pregnant again. By the time she was twenty-five, Mrs. Johnstone had seven children and was pregnant again. Her husband, she tells us, then left her for a woman “who looks a bit like Marilyn Monroe.”

The Narrator, now playing a Milkman, rushes in to demand that Mrs. Johnstone pay him for the milk she’s ordered. She tells him that she can’t pay now, but that she needs the milk because she’s pregnant. The Milkman replies, “no money, no milk.” Mrs. Johnstone then listens as her children complain that they are hungry. She tries to calm them by listing all the food they’ll eat when she begins to earn money, and she tells them that one day they’ll all go dancing, just like Marilyn Monroe.

The scene shifts, moving to the house of Mr. and Mrs. Lyons, where Mrs. Johnstone works as a cleaning lady. Mrs. Lyons enters with a parcel and greets Mrs. Johnstone, complaining about how big and empty the house feels—her husband, Mr. Lyons, is away on a nine-month business trip. As Mrs. Lyons unwraps her package, she laments the fact that she hasn’t had any children. She says that her husband is against adoption, but she believes that “an adopted child can become one’s own.” Mrs. Johnstone jokes that while Mrs. Lyons can’t have children, she can’t stop having them. As they speak, Mrs. Lyons puts the contents of her parcel—a pair of new shoes—on the table. Mrs. Johnstone immediately reacts with alarm. Deeply superstitious, she believes that shoes on the table mean bad luck. Mrs. Lyons is amused, but agrees to put the shoes away. Then she exits.

After Mrs. Lyons leaves, the Narrator enters. He lists various superstitions, from shoes on the table to spilling salt to breaking a mirror, creating a sense of foreboding for the audience. Mrs. Johnstone tries to reassure herself that she is not superstitious.

The Narrator reenters, this time playing the Gynecologist. He listens to Mrs. Johnstone’s fetus’ heartbeat, and she tells him that she thinks she’s figured out a way to feed the new baby. She is appalled, however, when the doctor tells her that she is actually having twins.

We return to Mrs. Lyons’ home, where the rich woman finds Mrs. Johnstone devastated by the idea of having two more children, even worrying that they will be taken away from her by the state. Mrs. Lyons is immediately intrigued—and the Narrator appears, commenting on how “quickly” Mrs. Lyons’ idea has been “planted.” As the Narrator exits, Mrs. Lyons begins to beg Mrs. Johnstone to give one of the twins to her. Mrs. Lyons realizes that Mrs. Johnstone is due right before Mr. Lyons gets home, meaning that she could pass off the pregnancy as her own. Excited, Mrs. Lyons pads her stomach with a pillow, but Mrs. Johnstone expresses disbelief that she’s actually serious. Mrs. Lyons tries to convince Mrs. Johnstone to agree to the scheme, even telling her that she’ll be able to see the child every day.

Mrs. Johnstone asks if Mrs. Lyons is really that desperate for a child. Mrs. Lyons responds in song, explaining how she constantly imagines a fantasy son, but that he always “fades away.” Moved, Mrs. Johnstone imagines what it would be like for a child of hers to be raised in the lap of luxury. Mrs. Lyons joins in, telling her cleaning lady about all the wonderful things the child would have. Together they picture his future as a wealthy, upstanding member of society. Once again, Mrs. Lyons promises that Mrs. Johnstone could see the child whenever she wanted, and she swears to take care of him. Mrs. Johnstone agrees, much to Mrs. Lyons’ joy.

As she begins to plan the deception, Mrs. Lyons has Mrs. Johnstone swear on a Bible never to tell anyone about the bargain. The two agree, and the Narrator appears, telling them (and the audience) that it is now too late for the women to go back on their agreement, because the deal has been sealed. Mrs. Lyons leaves to shop for things for the baby as Mrs. Johnstone stays behind, shaken. The Narrator says that a deal is a deal, and that there is now a debt that must be paid.

The Narrator exits and the play moves to a hospital room, where Mrs. Johnstone has given birth to her two baby boys. As she returns home, a Catalogue Man and Finance Man descend upon her and begin to demand that she pay her bills, asking her why she orders things she can’t pay for. More creditors enter, and they begin to remove Mrs. Johnstone’s possessions from her house in order to pay her debts. As she watches, she begins to sing about the many debts that she’s had to pay in her life—and the biggest debt of all is that she will have to give one of her sons to Mrs. Lyons. Mrs. Johnstone laments the fact that she will never know her son, and that her life will always be full of prices to pay.

Mrs. Lyons enters, wearing fake pregnancy padding, and is upset that Mrs. Johnstone hasn’t notified her about the twins’ birth. Mrs. Johnstone begs to keep them both for a few days, but Mrs. Lyons says that her husband Mr. Lyons is due back tomorrow. She reminds Mrs. Johnstone that she swore on the Bible to keep their agreement. Upset, Mrs. Johnstone tells Mrs. Lyons to take one of the babies, and once again she sings about the debts in her life. Mrs. Lyons tells her to take a full week off before returning as a cleaning lady. Mrs. Lyons exits.

Mrs. Johnstone’s children ask her what happened to the twin whom Mrs. Lyons just took. Mrs. Johnstone responds that he’s gone to heaven, and tells them about all the wonderful toys that he will play with there. The children ask if they can have toys as well, and beg her to look in the catalogue with them.

A week later, Mrs. Johnstone returns to work at Mrs. Lyons’ house. She stops for a minute at her baby’s crib and plays with him. Seeing her, Mr. Lyons approaches, and he expresses pride in both his wife and his new son. Mrs. Lyons, however, reacts hostilely, and tries to keep Mrs. Johnstone from touching the baby. Hurt and confused, Mrs. Johnstone exits. Meanwhile, Mrs. Lyons tells her husband that she doesn’t want Mrs. Johnstone touching the baby because she might give it a disease. She goes on to say that Mrs. Johnstone is bothering the baby, and is trying to act like the baby’s mother. Mr. Lyons tries to comfort her, but Mrs. Lyons refuses, saying that she wants to fire Mrs. Johnstone. Her husband says that she should do whatever she wants, and he tries to leave for a meeting. Then Mrs. Lyons asks him to give her some money: fifty pounds. Though Mr. Lyons is confused and alarmed, he agrees.

Mrs. Lyons calls for Mrs. Johnstone and announces to her that she is no longer doing satisfactory work. She tries to give Mrs. Johnstone the fifty pounds, and tells her to leave for good. Shocked, Mrs. Johnstone says that she’ll be taking her son with her, but Mrs. Lyons refuses. Growing more and more upset, Mrs. Johnstone threatens to call the police. Mrs. Lyons responds that Mrs. Johnstone is at fault because she essentially sold her baby. Horrified, Mrs. Johnstone throws away the money that Mrs. Lyons has given her. Mrs. Johnstone says that she still wants to see her son, and that she’ll tell someone about what Mrs. Lyons has done. Mrs. Lyons, terrified by the threat, makes up a new superstition on the spot, telling Mrs. Johnstone that twins secretly parted who learn about their origins will both immediately die. Therefore, the twins must be raised apart, and must never know the truth.

The Narrator enters and once again sings about all the various omens of bad luck. He tells Mrs. Johnstone that “the devil’s got your number,” and that eventually, he’s going to find her and punish her for selling her son. The song ends as he threatens that the Devil is “knocking at your door.”

The play moves seven years into the future, as the son whom Mrs. Johnstone kept, Mickey, knocks on his mother’s door while carrying a toy gun. His mother comes out, relieved to see him, and embraces him. He begins to complain, saying that “our Sammy”—his older brother—has stolen his other gun. Mrs. Johnstone tries to comfort him, saying that Sammy only bullies his brother because he’s the youngest. Mickey explains that they’ve been playing policeman and Indians. Then he pretends to shoot his mother, telling her that she’s now dead. Mickey offhandedly mentions that they’ve been playing down by the big houses near the park. Alarmed and upset, Mrs. Johnstone tells him never to play in that area. Mickey protests that she lets Sammy play there, but she replies that Sammy is older than he is, and exits.

Frustrated, Mickey sings about how much he envies his brother Sammy. He complains that even though he himself is almost eight, everyone in his life treats him as a baby, bullying him and telling him what to do.

As Mickey sulks, Edward, Mrs. Lyons’ son, emerges and greets him, saying that he saw Mickey playing by his house. Mickey says that he’s not allowed to play up there anymore, and Edward replies that he’s not supposed to play down by Mickey’s house. When Mickey demands candy, Edward happily agrees, adding that Mickey can take as many as he wants. Confused by Edward’s generosity and openness, Mickey tells him that in his world, people don’t simply give things away for free. His brother Sammy, for instance, would urinate on a sweet before giving it to his younger sibling. Mickey curses, impressing Edward, and then teaches his newfound friend “the ‘F’’ word.” Edward vows to look up the word in the dictionary. He then has to explain to a confused Mickey what exactly a dictionary is. The conversation turns back to Sammy, and Mickey explains that his older brother’s mood swings are due to the plate in his head—left over from when his sister, Donna Marie, dropped Sammy on his head as a baby.

Awed by Mickey’s streetwise talk, Edward asks the other boy if they can be best friends. Mickey agrees. The two exchange names, and realize that they’re not only the same age, but have the same birthday. Because of this revelation, Mickey asks if Edward wants to be his “blood brother.” The two cut their fingers and shake hands, pledging to defend and stand by each other, and to always share sweets.

Sammy enters and interrupts the moment, holding a toy gun. He demands a sweet, and Edward agrees, even as Mickey frantically attempts to get his new friend to lie about having candy. Eventually Mickey hands over a sweet, but he also tries to get his gun back from Sammy. As the brothers squabble, Edward attempts to see the plate inside Sammy’s head, before apologizing for his rudeness. Sammy mocks Edward as “poshy,” but Mickey stands up for the other boy. The conversation moves on, and Sammy complains that all of his pet worms have died, and that he’ll need to give them a funeral.

Mrs. Johnstone emerges from her house, and Mickey introduces Edward as his “brother.” Mrs. Johnstone hears Edward’s name and freezes with surprise. After a moment, however, she orders Sammy and Mickey to get into her house. Edward asks her if he’s done something wrong, and Mrs. Johnstone asks him whether Mrs. Lyons knows where he is. Edward admits that his mother would be upset to learn where he is. Mrs. Johnstone orders him to head home, telling him to never come around her house ever again. If he does, she warns, the bogey man will get him.

As Edward leaves, Mrs. Johnstone sings a lament that her son will never recognize her.

We shift to Mr. and Mrs. Lyons’ house. Mr. Lyons gives Edward the present of a toy gun, and then pretends to die. Mrs. Lyons begins to read her husband and son a story, but Mr. Lyons gets ready to leave before it is over. Edward reacts with disappointment, but Mr. Lyons explains that he must go to work. As Edward reads the dictionary, Mrs. Lyons complains that Mr. Lyons doesn’t spend enough time with his family. Mr. Lyons is unmoved, however, and he exits.

With his father gone, Edward asks Mrs. Lyons how to spell the word “bogey man.” Mrs. Lyons tells him that the bogey man is just a superstition of silly mothers.

The doorbell of the Lyons house rings—it is Mickey come to see if Edward can play with him. The boys explain to Mrs. Lyons that they are blood brothers. Mrs. Lyons tries to usher her son off to bed, and then escorts Mickey out of her house. When she returns, she asks Edward how he met Mickey, and revealing that she knows Mickey’s last name to be Johnstone. She scolds her son, telling Edward that he and Mickey are not the same. Edward says that he hates her, and that if she loved him she would let him spend time with Mickey, whom he likes more than he likes his mother. They continue to fight, until Edward calls his mother a “fuckoff.” Incensed, she slaps him. After telling him never to mix with such horrible boys again, Mrs. Lyons abruptly apologizes, calling him her “beautiful son.”

Edward watches from his garden as the neighborhood children begin a series of battles with each other. Sammy is in one gang, while Mickey and his friend Linda are in another. The children sing about their game, celebrating when they beat each other, but all the while knowing that “it doesn’t matter” because “the whole thing’s just a game.” Sammy is particularly violent and inappropriate, tormenting his little brother until Mickey tells him to “fuck off.” The other children immediately turn on Mickey and Linda, telling the boy that he’s going to die and go to hell for saying “the ‘F’ word.” Mickey is upset by the taunts, and Linda attempts to defend him. Eventually the two are left alone onstage.

With the other children offstage, Linda comforts the upset Mickey. He cries that he doesn’t want to die. She tells him that everyone must die eventually, and that in death he’ll at last be able to see his twin again. Mickey brags that he’s stolen Sammy’s best gun, and tells Linda that they can play with it with Edward.

Mickey and Linda arrive at Edward’s garden. The two boys share the fact that their mothers don’t want them to play together, but decide to ignore their commands. Mickey introduces Edward to Linda, and the three decide to play together with Sammy’s gun by trying to shoot at the “thingy” on the Peter Pan statue in the park. Edward is worried that they’ll be caught by a policeman, but the other two children brag that they’ve been caught by policemen hundreds of times, and explain the various ways that they prank the unsuspecting lawmen. Edward is deeply impressed, and the trio exits.

Mrs. Lyons enters, looking for Edward. The Narrator enters as well, and repeats his refrain, warning Mrs. Lyons that “gypsies” are going to come and take her baby away, and telling her that the devil has her number as well.

Mr. Lyons tries to calm a frantic Mrs. Lyons, who is terrified about where her son has gone. Mr. Lyons wonders if something is wrong with his wife’s nerves. Mrs. Lyons tells him that she hates where they live, and wants to move far away before “something terrible” happens. She is disgusted by the children Edward is playing with, and worries that they are “drawing him away from me.” As Mr. Lyons tries to placate her, he picks up a pair of Edward’s shoes and places them on the table. Mrs. Lyons reacts with fright, sweeping the shoes off the table. As she does so, the Narrator enters, again listing his various bad omens, and adding that the devil is coming for Mrs. Lyons.

The three children, meanwhile, are playing with their stolen toy gun. Only Linda hits the target, until Mickey declares that they aren’t playing with the gun anymore, and they decide to throw stones through windows instead. Neither Mickey nor Linda is brave enough to do so, however, and so Edward volunteers. He throws a rock through a window, only to be caught by a policeman. Linda and Mickey are terrified, but Edward sasses the policeman, as he believes the other two often do. When Edward sees their negative reactions, however, all three children begin to cry. They exit, pursued by the policeman.

The policeman confronts Mrs. Johnstone, telling her that she and her children will get no more warnings—if Sammy or Mickey commit any more crimes, he will take Mrs. Johnstone to court. As he leaves, Mrs. Johnstone sings, imagining moving her family to a new place far away from their home and their troubles.

The policeman moves on to the Lyons’ house, where he behaves in quite a different manner, drinking a glass of scotch with Mr. Lyons and telling him that Edward isn’t really in trouble. He does, however, warn Mr. Lyons to keep Edward away from the poor neighborhood children.

After the policeman leaves, Mr. Lyons asks Edward if he would like to move to the country, explaining that Mrs. Lyons has been ill. Edward protests that he wants to stay, but Mr. Lyons asks him to consider it.

Edward leaves his house and goes to the Johnstones’, where Mrs. Johnstone answers the door. She asks him if his mother looks after him, and he responds that she does. Mrs. Johnstone warns Edward not to come to her house again, and Edward says that he was just looking for Mickey, to tell his friend that he will be moving to the country the very next day. He begins to cry, saying that he wants to stay where Mickey is. Overcome with emotion, Mrs. Johnstone embraces Edward and says that he will soon forget Mickey, but Edward says that he’ll never forget. Mrs. Johnstone observes that while Edward doesn’t want to leave, she herself has been wanting to abandon her community for years. Edward asks her why she can’t buy a house near his family’s. In response, Mrs. Johnstone removes a locket from her neck with a picture of Mickey and herself in it. She gives Edward the locket so that he can remember Mickey, and tells him that he must keep it a secret. Encouraged by this gesture, Edward tells Mrs. Johnstone that he thinks she’s “smashing.”

Mickey and Edward say a wordless goodbye. Edward gives Mickey a toy gun, and then travels away with his parents.

Edward is unenthusiastic about his new home in the country, although Mrs. Lyons tries to persuade him of how beautiful it is. He reacts with violent fear, however, when he sees a magpie, explaining that Mickey told him that the birds signify sorrow. Mrs. Lyons tells him to forget about Mickey, but Edward says that he’s going to go inside and read. Mr. Lyons reassures Mrs. Lyons that children are adaptable, but she is not comforted.

Mickey visits Edward’s former home, but a strange woman answers the door. He asks where Edward has moved, but she doesn’t know, and asks him to leave. Left alone on the street, Mickey begins to sing about how lonely it is to be bored and without your best friend on a Sunday afternoon. “Equally bored and alone,” Edward sings the same song in his garden. They begin to sing about each other, with Mickey singing about how smart and generous Edward is, and Edward marveling at how strong and savvy Mickey is.

Mrs. Johnstone appears clutching a letter, ecstatic. Donna Marie and Sammy enter, as do the Johnstones’ neighbors, and Mrs. Johnstone announces that her family is being relocated to the country, where no one will know her family’s reputation. She begins to imagine her family’s life at their new address, with its garden and its fresh, country air. She orders her children to come help her pack, as all of her neighbors (and the Milkman) rejoice that the unruly family will finally be leaving. Mrs. Johnstone reenters, singing about all of the rickety old furniture that they’re leaving behind. She even pictures the Pope visiting her in her new house. As she sings about this “bright new day,” the scene transitions to the country, where the Johnstone children explore their new home. Act One ends.