My Contemporary Timeline

Opening, Present day: no specified setting.

• The play begins with a rambling monologue from Essie
about her current hyperfocus of the internet. There are
no stage directions or setting, just Essie in the void.
Flashback: Essies just lost her job. Set at dinner with her
sister.
• Essie endures dinner with her sister and her sisters
boyfriend, neither of whom know how to breech the
topic of Essies decline in mental health.
Skip Forward: Essie at Liz's house. They discuss new jobs.
• Essie and childhood friend Liz talk about adult life
despite having outgrown eachother. Essie asks Liz how
she'd describe her for future job interviews.
Skip Forward: Essie at a job interview.
• We see a section of Essies first interview, Essie gives a
very well written speech about how this is the job for
her. It appears to be going well.
Flashback: Essie at coffee with an ex.
• Essie meets with an angry ex, Jack, to ask him about how
hed describe her for the interviews. We can infer from
this that she didn’t get the job.
Skip Forward: Essie at dinner with her dad.
• Essie remenisces on her ex-girlfriend. She discusses
finances and life with her Dad. When asked how
he'd describe her, he calls her smart.
Flashback: Essie thinks about her ex.
• Essie talks about her ex-girlfriend in a short snippet.
Skip Forward: Essie attends her sister's birthday.
• Essie tolerates conversation with her sister about
starting up a brooch business. Derek tries arranging
going for coffee with her. Essie thinks her sister
mustve told him to make more of an effort with her.
Derek's probably just being nice.
Skip Forward: Essie meets a friend from the old job.
• The friend says she was 'bubbly'. She tells him about
how they let her go, and diverges into an internal
monologue about how she felt like she was
becoming stones. She tells him her contract was up.
Skip Forward: Essie goes to another interview.
• She says all the right things, but when they ask her
what shes been up to since being out of work she
says 'job hunting'. Essie doesn’t get an offer.
Skip Forward: Essie goes out for lunch with Liz.
• Liz has invited Essie out for lunch because shes worried about
her. This escalates into an argument where Liz scolds Essie for
viewing herself as 'better' for not having a boring job and
subscribing to a simple lifestyle. Essie asks Liz how she is, we
find out that Liz's girlfriend dumped her. Essie tells her shes
lucky, in the grand scheme of things, something much worse
couldve happened. Liz gets upset and leaves.
Flashback: Essie talking to her girlfriend.
• We get a flashback of Essie and her ex talking about dog
names. It’s a comforting scene.
Skip Forward: Essie goes for lunch with her ex-girlfriend.
• Essie meets with Caroline, Caroline says the list of descriptive
words could be about anyone. Caroline says she forgives Essie
for what she did, and we realise it was Essie who caused the
end of the relationship. Essie shouts and Caroline leaves.
Skip Forward: Essie attends a final interview.
• Essie goes to another interview where they decide to hire her.
She runs. This is the climax of the piece.
After:
• Essie reads the list over and over manically.
Skip forward, present day.
• Essie spills her guts in a more unhinged version of the first
monologue in the play. She appears to be declining quickly.
Skip forward, Present day.
• Essie watches as a man screams down the phone on the train.
She feels she is him, and then reminds herself she isnt. She
forces herself to remember her hands are hers.
• She makes it back home at 4am and finds Derek stood outside
her house too, having been there since 10pm. (This the first
time we see another actor on stage). Essie and Derek have a
conversation about how Derek understands Essie, and has
been feeling very similar. He tells her he thinks she'll be
alright, and that she is real. Essie reaches out, making physical
contact, and they both say 'Okay' as the show ends.