Character Relationship Map: Auld Lang Syne

Characters

• Steven (played by J.T. Arbogast) — protagonist

  Steven is a theater-maker who has spent years sacrificing money, time, and intimacy to keep the theater alive. He hopes Sadie's agent will turn his script into a lucrative film adaptation, but ultimat...

• Bryce (played by Blake DeLong) — supporting

  Bryce is one of the friends at the New Year’s celebration and Jodie’s partner. He and Jodie announce that they still love each other but are ending their relationship because they do not want to have...

• Jodie (played by Elisabeth Hower) — supporting

  Jodie is one of the friends at the New Year’s gathering and Bryce’s partner. Although they still love each other, they end their relationship because they disagree about having children. During the ga...

• Sadie (played by Lucy Walters) — supporting

  Sadie is one of the friends at the New Year’s celebration, where she becomes emotional during the group’s tense discussion of relationships and the future. She impulsively tells Jodie that she deserve...

• Vanessa (played by Kimberly Dilts) — supporting

  Vanessa is Steven’s wife and his partner in running the theater. She refuses to ask her parents for financial help and reveals that she feared she might be pregnant, a possibility that frightened her...

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Bryce → Jodie (Former Romantic Partners) — They part despite continuing affection because they disagree about having children and the future they want.

  Bryce and Jodie announce that they still love each other but are ending their relationship because they do not want to have children together.

• Steven → Vanessa (Family Spouses In Crisis) — Their shared commitment to the theater has left them financially and emotionally depleted, bringing their marriage to a breaking point.

  Vanessa accuses Steven of making decisions for both of them and neglecting their marriage. They discuss the fear of a possible pregnancy and the exhau...

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Sadie → Jodie (Social Supportive Friend) — Sadie responds to Jodie's insecurity with an impulsive expression of support and encouragement.

  When Jodie fears abandonment and worries that people value her mainly for her appearance, Sadie becomes emotional and insists that Jodie deserves love...

Story Analysis

As a struggling theater faces closure, a New Year's gathering exposes the friends' fears about love, family, work, and starting over.

Plot Progression

1. Four Days from Collapse — Steven and Vanessa face the final days of their fundraising campaign. Their discussion reveals their exhaustion and competing hopes for saving the theater.
2. A New Year Separation — The friends gather for New Year, where Bryce and Jodie announce their breakup despite still loving each other. Their disagreement about children leads into a broader debate about family and the future...
3. Fears Beneath the Party — The friends' conversation exposes Jodie's insecurity and the group's dissatisfaction with their lives. Vanessa's disclosure that she feared she was pregnant brings her and Steven's private strain into...
4. Closing the Theater — Steven and Vanessa's argument reveals the depth of their exhaustion and conflict over their marriage. Steven then announces the theater's closure and possible bankruptcy, leaving the friends to face a...