Al

Al is one of Gene's friends and fellow musicians, who is also married to Patsy for a short time. Al is a real ladies man, even trying to pick up Terry when he first meets her even though she is with Gene. At this point, in 1953, Al is already having an affair with Patsy while she is married. After their marriage breaks up and Patsy is dating Ziggy, Al gets jealous. On one of their gigs, Al plays a tape of Clifford Brown, the ill-fated trumpet player, for Gene and Ziggy, and they are all moved by the performance. By the end of the play, in 1985, Al has had a mini-stroke and has switched to playing drums, a less strenuous form of music playing.

Clifford

Clifford is the play's protagonist and narrator, and he is also the son of Gene and Terry. The play begins in 1985, with Clifford...