Tom Lake

Lara, Joe, and their daughters gather for dinner, a ritual that Lara worried wouldn’t happen anymore. Nell asks Joe what he thought of Peter Duke. The girls aren’t satisfied when Joe responds that he liked Duke. He remembers that Duke could walk on his hands and brings up Sebastian, Duke’s brother, a tennis player that almost went pro. After distracting his daughters from their actual question without them realizing it, Joe excuses himself from the table.

Lara’s story resumes. At Tom Lake, Lara began rehearsals immediately, as the cast had been waiting for her to arrive. She was introduced to Uncle Wallace, who hugged her and set her at ease, and the director, Mr. Nelson. They did a table read, and the cast and crew were excited to realize that she already knew the part by heart. During the reading, however, Lara realized that she wouldn’t be able to play Emily forever—in fact, this might be the last time because of her age.

In the present, Lara’s story is interrupted by a call for Maisie in her capacity as vet. Emily leaves to go home, and Nell helps Joe in the barn. Lara has always thought her lack of talent ended her acting career, but now thinks maybe she just wasn’t brave. However, she feels lucky, not regretful, about the end of her acting career.

Lara’s story resumes. After rehearsal, Duke offered to show her Tom Lake. He told her that the director, Nelson, was famous, and all the actors hoped he would take them to his next play. Then Duke kissed her, and offered her a cigarette—her first—and they went to her room.

In the present, Joe and Lara suddenly have the house to themselves. He asks where she’s gotten to in the story. She regrets starting to tell it, but he reminds her how persistent the girls were. They go upstairs, leaving a light on for the girls.

The next morning, Lara finds a box of eggs in the kitchen—payment for Maisie’s vet skills. Nell, who had spent the night in the little house where Benny and Emily live, tells Lara that they are getting married. Lara feels stung at not being told—Emily hasn’t shared so many other things. Although Nell is grateful they are all safe during the pandemic, she is struggling because her interests and education don’t give her a purpose on the farm, like Maisie’s and Emily’s do.

Maisie and Emily are already in the orchard, picking. When Lara and Nell come out, Emily is defensive about keeping her engagement a secret. She cries, upset about the uncertainty of the pandemic and the orchard’s future. She wants to use the pandemic as an excuse not to have a traditional wedding, asking the others not to tell Joe until she and Benny can talk to him. Then, to change the subject, Emily asks whether Lara wanted to marry Duke. When Lara says no, they don’t believe her.

Lara’s story resumes. The morning after they first slept together, Lara and Duke woke up just in time for morning rehearsal. In the hallway outside her room, they met Pallace, an actress, singer, and dancer in Cabaret, another Tom Lake production. Duke explained that Pallace was also Lara’s understudy. Lara asked why Pallace didn’t step in when the first actress playing Emily left. Pallace told her it’s because she is Black; Tom Lake wanted to be a progressive theater, but couldn’t imagine casting a Black woman as Emily.

The cast was eager to rehearse. Uncle Wallace was missing, so they used his understudy, who was so bad that Lara began to doubt the production.

In the present, when Lara’s daughters protest she is too hard on the understudy, she reveals that he had the part because he was a wealthy donor. They also ask about George, but Lara doesn’t even remember him. She wants to explain that the events of life accumulate, and many things are forgotten, until you can’t remember that you ever wanted something different.

Lara’s story resumes. Uncle Wallace drank while he worked, but his performance didn’t suffer. The entire company knew about Lara and Duke’s relationship. During breaks, they swam in the lake with Pallace. One day, a man Lara didn’t recognize yelled to Duke from the shore.

In the present, Emily interrupts the story, knowing that this is Sebastian, Duke’s brother. Sometimes Emily’s comprehensive knowledge of Duke’s life bothers Lara, but she sets it aside. Everyone called him Duke’s brother Saint Sebastian, even to his face. Emily tells them about Duke and Sebastian’s sister, who died when they were young, and Lara begins to doubt what she knows about Duke.

Lara’s story resumes. Duke was thrilled by Sebastian’s appearance and introduced him to Lara and Pallace. After her own rehearsal, Lara watched the rehearsal of Cabaret, amazed by the charisma of the dancers—charisma that reminded her of Duke. Pallace asked Lara whether Sebastian had said anything about her after she left.

In the present, Lara and her daughters discuss whether dating an actor is a good idea. Lara says it didn’t hurt her, although inside, she wonders. They debate the merits of Duke versus Sebastian, and discuss Sebastian’s failed tennis career.

Lara’s story resumes. That summer, Sebastian coached tennis and worked at the local yacht club, where he was a legend for having once played John McEnroe. He spent his time off at Tom Lake, visiting Duke and playing tennis while the cast and crew watched. Lara realized that Pallace was in love with Sebastian, but thought that Pallace and Sebastian’s relationship was a summer thing, while she and Duke were different—they were going to move in together in LA. Lara was sure her agent could find work for Duke.

A week away from opening Our Town, they began rehearsing for the next play, Fool for Love. When he was there, Sebastian watched Duke closely, as if waiting for something to happen, which made Lara watchful as well.

In the present, Lara’s daughters protest when she refers to Duke as “crazy.” Emily says Duke wasn’t, but Maisie and Nell object to the judgment and diagnosis the derogatory word implies. Lara brings up examples of his behavior: He punched out windows and put a cigarette out on his arm.

Benny and Joe arrive for dinner, and they realize that Joe knows about the engagement. They set the table with good linens and glasses to toast. When Lara wonders aloud if Emily is pregnant, Emily announces that she and Benny aren’t going to have children. All Emily wants to do is save the farm. Nell chimes in that she also doesn’t know if she wants to have kids.