Act 1 Summary

The Verge is a three-act play, originally produced in America in 1921, which addresses the plight of a creative, sensitive woman during the onset of the Women's Movement in the early 1900's. As Act I opens, the stage is set with an unusual-looking plant upon which a bright beam of light is directed. The beam is coming from the direction of a trap door in the floor. Everything else is dark and the sound of wind is heard, which creates an ominous atmosphere.

A buzzer sounds with a very definite pattern as if by code. Anthony, a middle-aged man, enters from the trap door and answers a telephone. By Anthony's answers, it is discernible that the weather is becoming more extreme, and that Anthony is to check the temperature in the room immediately, so the plants will not be placed in jeopardy. Anthony acknowledges...