Perfect Arrangement
by Topher Payne

Name: Perfect Arrangement
Brand: Topher Payne
SKU: 9780573705083
Rating: 4.27 (139 reviews)

Perfect Arrangement Book Cover — Perfect Arrangement Cover

Highlights

Female

Male

120 mins 1950s Strong Role for Leading Man (Star Vehicle) Interior Set Period Costumes Comedy

Synopsis

It’s 1950, and new colors are being added to the Red Scare.

Two U.S.

State Department employees, Bob and Norma, have been tasked with identifying sexual deviants within their ranks.

There’s just one problem: Both Bob and Norma are gay, and have married each other’s partners as a carefully constructed cover.

Inspired by the true story of the earliest stirrings of the American gay rights movement, madcap classic sitcom-style laughs give way to provocative drama as two “All-American” couples are forced to stare down the closet door.

Press Reviews

"The best thing about Topher Payne’s fabulous Perfect Arrangement is its pitch-perfect capture of the 1950s comic voice, and its application to the dreadfully serious drama."
— DC Theatre Scene

"Usually a playwright has to choose between writing a laugh-out-loud comedy and a very serious drama. Topher Payne has written both with Perfect Arrangment."
— TheaterMania

"As hiding gets harder, pitch-perfect comedy ensues: slamming doors, strange disguises, preposterous excuses... Eventually, the four must decide whether face-saving domestic lies are worth it, or whether ostracism beats living in fear. In our own era of surveillance and paranoia, their mid-century problems don’t feel so far away."
— The New Yorker

"[A] clever canapé of a comedy... Mr. Payne is a deft and witty writer."
— The New York Times

Characters

Character	Gender	Age	Description
Millie Martindale late 20s-30s, Bob's wife. Plays "The dizzy wife" when people are in the house, but actually very quick-witted and observant. Smart enough to maintain the act.	female	20s	late 20s-30s, Bob's wife. Plays "The dizzy wife" when people are in the house, but actually very quick-witted and observant. Smart enough to maintain the act.
Norma Baxter 30s, The knowing, efficient, classy dame. A secretary at the State Department who could just as easily be Secretary of State. A smart woman who's great with a wisecrack and level-headed in a bind.	female	30s	30s, The knowing, efficient, classy dame. A secretary at the State Department who could just as easily be Secretary of State. A smart woman who's great with a wisecrack and level-headed in a bind.
Jim Baxter 20s-30s, Norma's husband. A prankster type, always ready with a comeback. A high school teacher with lots of energy. A little wired, good with a plan.	male	20s	20s-30s, Norma's husband. A prankster type, always ready with a comeback. A high school teacher with lots of energy. A little wired, good with a plan.
Theodore Sunderson 40s-50s, The boss. Bombastic, loud, a little overbearing. A patriotic windbag.	—	40s	40s-50s, The boss. Bombastic, loud, a little overbearing. A patriotic windbag.
Kitty Sunderson 40s, Ted's wife. Legitimately ditzy. Her brain seems to work on a totally different wavelength than the rest of the world. Very sweet, and very genuine. Just doesn't quite "get it".	female	40s	40s, Ted's wife. Legitimately ditzy. Her brain seems to work on a totally different wavelength than the rest of the world. Very sweet, and very genuine. Just doesn't quite "get it".
Barbara Grant 40s, A formidable opponent. No-nonsense, beautiful, brilliant, and a little scary.	—	40s	40s, A formidable opponent. No-nonsense, beautiful, brilliant, and a little scary.
Bob Martindale 30s-40s, A WWII veteran, reserved. A bit bookish, but a solid man's man. Good-humored and well-mannered.	—	30s	30s-40s, A WWII veteran, reserved. A bit bookish, but a solid man's man. Good-humored and well-mannered.