plot

• Who is the main character in "Things I Know to be True"?

  Bob Price
• What does Bob Price do at the beginning of the play?

  He stares at a phone
• Where is Rosie when she video-calls her family?

  On a train platform in Berlin
• Why does Rosie pretend to have a great time in Europe?

  She doesn't want her family to be disappointed
• Who does Rosie meet in Berlin?

  A beautiful boy named Emmanuel
• What happens to Emmanuel after Rosie imagines a future with him?

  He steals from her and disappears
• What does Fran remind Bob to do?

  Pick up their grandchildren
• How does Rosie feel about her experience with the boy she fell in love with?

  She fell in love with the wrong guy
• What does Pip reflect on in the garden?

  Important events in her life
• What does Pip announce to Fran?

  She is leaving her husband, Steve
• What does Fran accuse Pip of having?

  Another man
• How does Bob respond to Pip's decision to take the job in Vancouver?

  He encourages her to take it
• What does Fran worry about regarding Bob?

  He seems forgetful
• What does Ben arrive to do at the Price household?

  Drop off his laundry
• How does Bob feel about Ben's new car?

  He disapproves of it
• What does Rosie plan to do after returning home?

  Move out
• What does Pip confess in her letter to Fran?

  She is having an affair
• What does Fran do in the garden during Winter?

  She smokes a cigarette
• What does Mark remember doing as a child?

  Sitting in a tree observing family
• What does Mark reveal to his parents?

  He is beginning to live as a woman
• How does Fran react to Mark's revelation?

  She expresses anger and sadness
• What does Mark plan to change his name to?

  Mia
• What does Bob do when Mark leaves for Sydney?

  He weeps
• What does Ben do when he arrives agitated at home?

  He looks for his parents
• What does Ben confess to his family?

  He has stolen money from his company
• How does Fran propose to help Ben with his situation?

  By remortgaging the house
• What does Bob insist Ben must do?

  Tell his employers and go to jail
• What does Bob confront Fran about?

  Her secret stash of money
• What does Rosie plan to do a year after returning from Europe?

  Attend a creative writing course
• What does Fran suggest they do with the garden?

  Tear it up and start over
• What tragic event does Rosie narrate at the end of the play?

  Fran's death in a car accident
• How does Bob react to the news of Fran's death?

  He tears up the rose bushes
• What does Rosie reflect on after her mother's death?

  Her childhood ended that day
• What are the main themes of "Things I Know to be True"?

  • Family dynamics
  • Love and loss
  • Generational tensions
  • Personal identity and transformation
  • The impact of economic changes
• Describe the setting of "Things I Know to be True".

  • Contemporary working-class suburb
  • Located in Hallett Cove, Adelaide, South Australia
  • Central garden to family life
  • Reflects universal concerns and local issues
• Who wrote "Things I Know to be True" and when was it premiered?

  • Written by Andrew Bovell
  • Premiered in May 2016
• What societal issues does the play address?

  • Financial crisis of 2007-08
  • Loss of factory jobs
  • Sacrifices parents make for their children
• What is Bob's dream for his children?

  To have better lives than him
• How does Bob's educational background differ from his children's?

  Bob left school at 16, children have more education
• What does the movement of three children away from home signify?

  They seek independence despite advantages