"It's about time, it's about-"
Falsettos has been on my mind the last week which got me wondering, we never got actual dates of certain events in the musical. I've spent my day trying to figure out the dates of dates from act two. Please remember that this are just my HCs and you are free to have your own opinion on it.
Doctor Charlotte is reading HIV/AIDS coverage in the media during Something Bad is Happening. We know the year is 1981 in act two, but let’s try and narrow it down to months. The first coverage in the media was around July 1981. The New York Times came out with a report called Rare Cancer Seen in 41 Homosexuals on July 3rd, marking one of the very first articles about the disease ever. Something that is essential to the date is to know how people looked at the disease. When Charlotte pulls Marvin aside to speak to him, she says that it’s something that kills, it’s contagious and it spreads from one man to another. I think it’s safe to assume that the illness is assumed to only target gay men at this point. On September 24th 1982, the term AIDS was used for the first time, starting to abandon the view it only affects homosexuals. This means the events of the musical had to be before September 24th 1982 and after July 3rd 1981. Dr. Charlotte’s got multiple magazines when talking about the newfound illness so it had to be a little after July 3rd 1981, but not months after that certain date. Seeing she’s a doctor, she’s on top of the news concerning illness. It can't be more than give or take a month.
Something else that’s essential in this study is Jason’s age. In act two it is specified that the boy is 12 and a half, this is unusual to me seeing a boy Bar Mitzvahs at age 13. Let’s say Jason is born in 1968, making him twelve/thirteen in 1981. Looking at the clothes during Days Like This, we can assume the weather is a little chilly, I’d guess around the fall season, if you look at the fashion in 1981, this could be correct. Fall is from September to December, I think it’s around the middle seeing it’s not hot enough for the characters to be wearing shirts and shorts, but not cold enough to wear warm sweaters. Most of them are wearing layers so they could’ve adjusted to the weather. I think it’s fair to say Days Like This takes place in the month October. We know Whizzer doesn’t have much time left during the song so his stay in the hospital wasn’t more than a few weeks if not days. At the beginning of act two (Falsettoland/About Time), I’d say it’s in the early months of spring, basing that speculation off of Whizzer’s outfit, a pink polo, jeans and a blue sweater. I think it’s safe to say this is April. If Jason is 12 and a half in April 1981, it means he turned thirteen in October. One should have a Bar Mitzvah on a Saturday closest to their birthday. In 1981, all Saturdays in October were: October 3, October 10, October 17, October 24 and October 31 so his Bar Mitzvah would’ve taken place on one of those dates.
Something Bad is Happening takes place around July 1981
Act two starts around April 1981
Jason was born in 1968 (Making him 56/57 today)
Jason’s birthday and Bar Mitzvah was in October
Jason’s Bar Mitzvah could’ve been on October 3, 10, 17, 24 or 31.
(NOTE!! My last wish is to offend religion, so if I got any customs wrong, please tell me)