[3] Dashiell Hammett, who had been Hellman's lover for 20 years, helped her write the play and received 15 percent of the royalties.
Constance is overwrought with anxiety over the impending arrival of Nina and Nicholas Denery, who will spend the weekend at her house.
Sophie does not love Frederick, but she believes marrying him will be an acceptable way to end her dead-end existence in the boarding house.
The next morning, the house is scandalized by his presence in her bed, knowing that the neighbors can see through the window, and Sophie will be the talk of the town.
As Nina is leaving, Nicholas talks his way back into her heart, and she is happy to continue their destructive cycle by reuniting.
Revealing how sophisticated she really is, she consoles Nina to not think of it as blackmail, but so much as a premium to be paid for the privilege of continuing to play at happiness with Nicholas a little while longer.
He confesses that coming to her boarding house every year is a vain attempt to sustain the illusion of a dignified life that he does not actually live.
[1] Individual critics had mixed feelings about the play, finding the characters dislikable and the conclusion unsatisfying but still considering it her best work.
[6] For example, John Gassner was not satisfied with the play but nevertheless voted for it to win the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award.