Much like where the Foundling Father finds himself at the beginning of Act I, Lucy and Brazil find themselves in the replica of The Great Hole of History. The replica is significant here because with slavery and the long-standing history of oppression, black people in America don’t really have a history or identity that they can celebrate in the same way white America celebrates their founding fathers - thus exists a hole in their history. However, to cement this idea of lack of identity and ownership, The Foundling Father was forced to create his own replica of the "hole" so he could experience ownership. Now in Act 2, even after Lucy and Brazil lose their Foundling Father, they are still forced to reckon with the replica. Replica carries the connotation of cheap, knockoff, not as good as the real thing. Thus exists this cycle of repetition of loss - no ownership, losing a loved one - and only a replica of something to show for it.

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I feel as if Julia (at the time we meet her in the play) is the character who is associated with traits of fragility. She has this seemingly strange connection with the animals around he, but most notable of her connections is her connection with Fefu, who speaks about her on page18 (contradicting her current fragile state) saying that [Julia] was afraid of nothing.. She knew so much..." So in a lot of ways, it seems like Julia was a lot like Fefu is now. Fefu seems fearless and independent, and thematically it seems that those traits come with a cost - Julia's being a wheelchair. It's interesting how Julia speaks about this unknown force wanting to "kill Fefu" as well -- the unknown force is unhappy about Fefu's fierce independence. It seems like with independence and strength and knowledge, as a woman in this world, you shall be suppressed in some way.

This line here harks back to the beginning of the play with Agnes' very first line about how she might lose her mind at any moment. The title here plays heavily into the high risk of dropping out of sanity. According to (and implied from) Agnes, sleep is the "delicate balance" that we have to keep ourselves from going stark raving mad. She has always believed that she will lose her mind (mentioning it in her very first and very last lines) but sleep is the one thing that keeps her from going crazy. This also seems like a direct reference to the fact that because Tobias didn't get any sleep last night, he went raving mad in his multi-page "aria" (pg 159-162) in which he absolutely loses his mind. So in a very literal way, sleep is the one thing holding a thin, delicate balance between madness and sanity.

In a way, Wilson is a "hidden space" in the play due to the fact that we never see him and so much mystery and power is given to this mysterious man. I can't help but feel the strong connection these lines have to Beckett's Waiting For Godot because of the terribly similar details in both plays. Just like Godot, Gus and Ben discuss Wilson and immediately place him into a position of power above them. As the play continues and we get more details about the grim circumstances these men find themselves involved in, I can't help but also think of the other hidden space - the "speaking-tube" - as Wilson. This might also because I'm thinking of Martin McDonagh's film, In Bruges, where two hitmen are waiting out in Bruges and their boss calls and asks the senior hitman to kill the other hitman. So by manifesting Wilson into existence at this point in the play, I imagine that Wilson is there at the end of the play on the other end of the speaking tube, giving Ben the same instructions to shoot Gus.

At the beginning of Act three when the story is halted because seven of the actors have fallen ill due to food poisoning, we experience theatrum mundi. The "volunteers" who are described as friends, dressers, maids, and even the captain of the ushers join the theatre piece and this gives the illusion that they don't need to be the rehearsed actors that had been rehearsing for this piece, since it seems they've simply come to act from their other roles in the theatre (which also exist beyond the physical stage, so theatrum mundi is emphasized here).

Here, Joan speaks to how the weather is frightening. These lines in particular answer Fuchs' questions referring to climate and mood. In comparison to the climate and mood created by Churchill in the first act, now the climate in this world consists of thunderstorms which contributes to the overarching mood of fear throughout the third act (arguably the entire play). This is a particularly interesting clue about the world from Churchill because it sets the foundation for Joan to eventually question climatic elements such as light and darkness which elaborates upon the tone of fear in her monologue.