Synopsis
From the Dramatists Play Service:
How do you say "farewell" to someone who never appears in the first place? Let the action speak
for itself: the time is 1915; the place a shabbily genteel basement apartment on Manhattan's
Lower East Side. Its denizens are Gert and Minnie Povis, the former quite correct and slightly
formidable, the later not above sneaking a clandestine bottle of beer or reliving her brief but
happy days as a member of a third-rate opera company. The sisters supplement a small income by
turning out handpainted greeting cards, which Cousin Peonie merchandises through her
acquaintances in the "outside world." One of these is Chuck Bailey, who is in love with Poenie
but out of favor with Gert. He does move a lot of greeting cards, however, which means more
money for the growing fund in the "Visit to Eugene Box." Brother Eugene, we might add, has been
off in Africa for a rather long time doing nobody knows what. All this, of course, has its
complications, which runs something like this: Gert manages to break up Peonie's romance; Peonie
vanishes; a baby is left on the doorstep; the authorities take the baby away despite the pleas
of Gert and Minnie. But then the pendulum swings back: Chuck redeems himself; Poenie returns;
Minnie gets slightly tiddly on liqueur-filled chocolates; Chuck and Peonie decide to get married
and adopt the baby. As for brother Eugene, he is exposed for the worm he is by a certain letter
not meant for his sisters' eyes, and they decide not to visit him after all—so it is farewell,
and perhaps good riddance too.
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