An urban back alley. Midnight. Across the playing area stretches a rough wooden fence, with a raised platform in front of it. Actors on the platform will be understood to be "on" the fence.The players should be able to walk around that actual fence, and to conceal themselves behind it, at times.

In the dark, cast member approach the stage from separate directions, singing "Back Fence Choir" (below) as they do. In the singing, voices combine in various ways, with specific lines going to individual characters -- in solos, duets, etc. (One example is given below: Desiree sings the line that's obviously hers.).

 [ Click to hear first part of Back Fence Choir:]

  We gather in the alley,
  Under the midnight sky.
  We gather in the alley;
  You'll hear the reason why.

  We are the Back Fence Choir!
  Our leader is the moon;
  Lifting our voices higher,
  Till we are all in tune.

  We're here for choir practice
  Singin' it loud and strong,
  And the essential fact is:
  We practice all night long!
 
  Solo, duet and trio,  
  then a quartet (ooh, ooh)--
  We do it all con brio,
  and con amore, too.  [sung by Desiree]
  [etc.] 

By song's end they are all on the platform, and lights have come up enough to see them clearly.

Afterwards, the cats break into several groups. Jack and Murphy are in an upstage corner, talking quietly. Randolph sits alone, calmly watching the moon. Desiree is in center stage -- her natural habitat -- doing slow-motion stretching exercises, in skin-tight leotards. All the men are very aware of every move she makes (as they are throughout most of the show). Meanwhile, Olivia and Eleanor move downstage, and converse: