the play opens in rainbow valley, missitucky, near fort knox, home of a mixture of black and white tobacco sharecroppers. the local sheriff and buzz collins, front man for local senator billboard rawkins, demand the locals pay their taxes or else have their land auctioned off. the sharecroppers want to wait for woody mahoney, their union leader. woody's mute sister susan the silent communicates through dancing that woody will bring the money, while a boy named henry translates her dance for collins and the sheriff. the sheriff begins the auction, but the sharecroppers refuse to listen and drag him and collins off to meet woody ("this time of year").