Emerald Green
Music, Lyrics, and Book by James Olm
During a blizzard, in a Minnesota nursing home, four elderly residents must negotiate and reconcile the harsh feelings between each other, by reflecting on their own personal, haunted, and forgotten pasts. A beautiful, uplifting story of hope and love through the often “forgotten and tossed away” generation – our beloved elderly.
Roles
- 5 women
- 3 Males
Rated – G
Tech Rating – Simple to Elaborate
Song Recordings
Synopsis
It’s the early 2000’s, in Bloomington, Minnesota, close to Christmas at the Clearhaven Nursing Home. Samuel Howard, a resident, is sitting in the entryway watching the beginning of another day. He’s noticing the weather is getting worse – cold and snow – much to the nurse, Camilla Jackson’s dismay. Samuel continues to observe from his bench, (“Sittin’ on This Bench” – which continues through the rest of the scene) commenting as the rest of the morning unfolds.
Resident Althea Berglund complains about her breakfast and the staffing. Resident Clarence Brown skips breakfast so he can get upstairs to visit his dementia-consumed wife, Emily. Althea criticizes him for doing that, much to Samuel’s irritation. Clarence asks if Samuel wants to join him, but Samuel refuses, saying he’s busy today.
