The Girl, feeling lonely, sings "Willow Weep for Me." The Man shakes his head and exits as The Lady re-enters in a large feathered hat and too much costume jewelry singing a raunchy song about the kind of man she needs. The Girl and The Woman enter from opposite sides and wing "When Your Lover Has Gone." The Lady joins them and they sing "Take It Right Back," proclaiming that they are done with low-down dirty dog men. ACT TWO The lights come up on each person as they begin to sing. They are alone in their individual areas. The singers have become more and more undone, drinking steadily and slowly over the course of the evening. The shine is beginning to wear off as they reveal their true situations. The Lady addresses the audience explaining that it's "Blues Time" - around three in the morning. The Girl's date never showed up, The Woman never had anyone to begin with, and the Lady is alone with her memories. The Lady says she needs to talk to the women in the audience and tells the men to either leave or cover their ears. The other Women back her up. The Man and the Women trade off as they talk about their worn down hearts. The Man wishes for a woman to love him the way he is. The Women lament over how untrustworthy men can be. As the Man starts to leave, The Woman comes downstage and focuses on him singing that she wants a "Rough and Ready Man" - one who isn't afraid to work. The Man shivers and exits as The Woman gets more and more carried away. The Girl, sitting at the table in her room is clearly a little drunk. She feels she's growing old and has to live while she can, teasing the men in the audience with the "Reckless Blues." The rest of the stage goes dark and The Lady is taking one last look at her scrapbook and sings the "Wasted Life Blues." She lies down on her bed as if she intends never to get up again. The Man enters and sings "Baby Doll," looking at The Lady. He turns to the audience and turns up the heat, then struts off cockily. The Woman sits alone at her vanity, staring into the mirror. The Lady and The Girl add their voices to hers. In the Finale, all four singers join in "I Gotta Right to Sing the Blues / Blue Blues." We are left with an emotional impression of what life was like in the late 1930's in Chicago - good music, hard lives, and dreams that stretch on long into the night. MUSICAL NUMBERS 1. Am I Blue? 2. Blues Blues 3. Blues In the Night 4. Copenhagen 5. Dirty No-Gooder Blues 6. Four Walls (and One Dirty Window) Blues 7. I Gotta Right To Sing the Blues 8. It Makes My Love Come Down 9. I've Got A Date With A Dream 10. Kitchen Man 11. Lover Man 12. New Orleans Hop-Scop Blues 13. Nobody Knows When You're Down and Out 14. Reckless Blues 15. Rough and Ready Man 16. Take It Right Back 17. Take Me For a Buggy Ride 18. These Foolish Things Remind Me Of You 19. Wasted Life Blues 20. When a Woman Loves a Man 21. Wild Women Don't Have The Blues 22. Willow Weep For Me CAST: 1 man, 3 women • The Girl with a Date - Energetic, bright, range of emotions but a hidden bitterness • The Lady from the Road - Warm, beautiful, African-American--she is the blues (Late 50's to early 60's) • The Man in the Saloon - Charming, slightly dangerous, an underappreciated singer • The Woman of the World - Stylish, seductive, a survivor fallen on harder times
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