written by Walt McGough and directed by Sofya Sobolevskaya

Concept of the Play

First of all, I would like to highlight several important points and reflections on grief that were essential for both my creative process and my understanding of the play. The first is that grief is a specific type of trauma directly connected to the loss of a close person. Another important aspect is the psychological symptoms of grief, which include dissociation and the loss of personal identity. People experiencing grief are unable to stop recalling the lost ones, and as a result, they cannot perceive the outer world without them. They remain stuck between the worlds of the living and the dead, unable to fully move on. Such individuals constantly think about those they have lost and attempt to reach them again.

It is also essential to mention the myth of the five stages of grief (Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression, and Acceptance). The most important point here is that acceptance, in its absolute sense, does not truly exist. There is no closure, as the human brain cannot simply forget a person. Since grief is a form of trauma, it leaves a lasting mark on the brain and cannot completely disappear. In the context of my play, I consider grief as a wave. At times it pulls back, allowing a person to feel more alive and capable of moving forward. However, the pain can return suddenly, rushing in like a powerful wave. In these moments, people experience intense grief again and lose their connection with reality.

This understanding of grief directly shaped my interpretation of the play and the development of its concept. First of all, Anthony is not a real person; he exists as a part of David’s imagination. I believe that David has no close people in his life with whom he can share his thoughts and emotions, which is why he creates Anthony as a way to process and understand his feelings. Throughout the play, David desperately tries to bring his daughter back. He argues with Anthony, accusing the office worker of doing nothing to find her. David refuses to accept Daisy, the last object connected to his daughter, insisting that it is not truly her and that a simple flower is not enough.

However, Anthony encourages David to tell the background story of the flower: how his daughter found it, brought it home, took a cup, and placed it inside. Through this therapeutic process, David finally accepts the flower and begins to leave. Yet in the final moment, he asks Anthony whether he has ever lost something important. Anthony responds, “All the time.” This suggests that the pain caused by the loss of David’s daughter can return, and that David will need to confront these emotions repeatedly.

For the staging of the play, I used only one table and two chairs. Since everything takes place inside David’s mind, he feels nothing but emptiness and pain, making additional objects unnecessary. Throughout the play, David attempts to reach his daughter in any possible way. In the first half, he moves constantly around the table, stepping in and out of light and shadow, symbolizing his inability to find a place for himself without her. In the second half, he sits across from Anthony and begins to tell the story of Daisy. Anthony becomes a guide, offering David a metaphorical ladder from darkness toward light. The ladder is narrow, long, and difficult to climb, but David must pass through it in order to continue.