Crumbs From the Table of Joy

Ernestine is the play’s 17-year-old protagonist and narrator. She is looking back as an adult and her memories make up the action of the play, so the actor who portrays her might appear or be costumed in such a way that makes her age ambiguous. She is shyer and more obedient than her younger sister, and she finds it difficult to make friends. She demonstrates her thoughtfulness throughout the play, making observations that aren’t necessarily apparent to the others. For instance, she recognizes how grief manifests in each family member, and she sees her father’s questionable actions as attempts to stop the overwhelming sadness of their mother’s death.

The text describes Ernestine as plump, and she eats with grateful relish when given food as if she is only used to getting crumbs. Ernestine also loves movies, occasionally interjecting her movie-inspired fantasies into the narrative as imagined revisions of difficult moments. Ernestine finds escape in the films and a sense of equity in the audience when she sits between two white girls and they share the experience of the movie. Ermina claims that Ernestine wants to be a movie star, but this seems to be a fading childhood dream as Ernestine recognizes that the romantic roles she wants to play are for white women.