At the start of Scene 1, it is nearly one in the morning, and Catherine, who is 25, is sitting on the front porch, “exhausted, haphazardly dressed. Eyes closed” (5). Her father, Robert, who is in his fifties and has a “rumpled academic look” (5) startles her. Catherine tells Robert that his student, Hal, is still at the house, going through Robert’s study. Noting that it is after midnight, Robert wishes Catherine a happy birthday and points to a bottle of champagne. They pop the cork, and Catherine drinks from the bottle. She tells Robert, “This is the worst champagne I have ever tasted” (6). Robert hopes Catherine has birthday plans, but she tells him that she has no friends to take her out. Robert suggests a girl who Catherine hasn’t been friends with since third grade, and then he suggests Catherine’s sister, Claire. Catherine tells him, “She’s in New York. And I don’t like her” (7). Additionally, Claire won’t be in town until the following day. Robert offers, “My advice, if you find yourself awake late at night, is to sit down and do some mathematics” (8).