Juno and the Paycock

The entire play takes place in the Boyle tenement, which is only two rooms large, meant for four family members. In Act II, others living in the building crowd into this space, known as the living area, which also includes a fireplace and a picture of the Virgin Mary. For a small space, it’s full of life and lived “things.” While characters come and go, this tiny home is where all the big news happens, from the news of the will to the news of Johnny’s death at the end. The living room is a common location in plays of the Realism movement. In this particular play, the tenement also represents the economic status of the Boyles—their status quo, their faux increase in wealth, and then their decline into nothingness from which they will have to rebuild their entire lives. In Act II, the opening stage direction states that “the furniture is more plentiful and of a vulgar nature” (444). Everything in Act I has been dolled up with artificial flowers, colored paper chains, and more. Then, in Act III, everything gets taken away with Mary and Juno “sitting in a darkened room” with “most of the furniture gone” (456).