In Tennessee Williams" Sweet Bird of Youth, Chance Wayne is a hustler/actor who teams up with Alexandra Del Lago, a washed up actress, in hopes of starting a Hollywood career of his own. Along the way, he finds himself back in his hometown. During his stay he rediscovers his love for his hometown sweetheart, Heavenly, whose heart was broken when he left her to find fame. His attempts to gain back Heavenly's love deeply angers her father, who will stop at nothing to rid Chance from Heavenly's life.
The first scene of the play begins with Fly, the butler, tending to Chance Wayne's requests: "Open the shutters a little. Hey, I said a little, not much, not that much"! (Williams 18). Unbeknown to Chance, Fly actually knew him before he became his butler: "I waited tables in the Grand Ballroom when you used to come to the dances on Saturday nights, with that real pretty girl you used to dance so good with, Mr. Boss Finley's daughter" (Williams 19). Chance didn't like the idea that someone already knew that he was back in his hometown, so he tells Fly to leave him alone and gives him money to not mention anything about him being there. .
Soon after talking will Fly, George Scudder, Heavenly's soon to be groom, dropped by for a visit with Chance to tell him the news and to give him fair warning that he should be leaving St. Cloud before her father and brother found out that he was there. After talking with George, Chance finds the Princess waking up from her drunken stupor, and she doesn't recall who he is. Chance has to convince her that she hired him to drive her. It takes a while but she finally recognizes him.
The next day after Chance pleasures the Princess with a wonderful night; he borrows her car to make a trip to find Heavenly. He stops in at the cocktail lounge. There he is trying to find out when and where Heavenly will be. Before he had the opportunity to leave the Princess comes stumbling down the stairs looking for Chance: "She looks as if she had thrown on her clothes to escape a building on fire" (Hart Crane 1962).
