The Sparrow

Act One

The citizens of Spring Farm, Illinois, are gathered at a PTA meeting to discuss the return of Emily Book, the only child to survive second grade ten years before when a school bus was hit by a train. The town is conflicted; Emily was sent away after the accident, and after her grandmother could no longer care for her. Coach Adams refers to the deceased students as a “ghost class”--when Emily returns, she will be the only senior at Spring Farm High School. Principal Skor and Dan Christopher (the biology teacher) are planning coursework for Emily that will align with state standards for graduation; the only question is where she will live. Joyce McGuckin speaks up and offers her home. Finally, the principal asks for a vote to make Emily’s return official in the PTA minutes.

It is the Illinois countryside. The Driver and Emily pass cornfields, then silos, then barns, and finally homes. The Driver parks in front of Spring Farm High School, but Emily wants to return to St.