A young, newly married couple from Chicago drive Route 66 in 1950 for their honeymoon and stop at various roadside attractions all the way to California, singing a song about each attraction.

SYNOPSIS:

Jean and Ralph marry in June of 1950 and decide to drive Route 66 from Chicago to California for their honeymoon, but when they reach California, there’s a surprise decision they make.

The play opens in a chapel with their wedding ceremony concluding. The song “We’re Married” is sung with them celebrating their wedding, and they talk about their plans to drive Route 66.

The first stop is Lou Mitchell’s Diner in Chicago where they have breakfast, singing with the waitress.

Their journey takes them to the four-million-year-old Meramec Caverns in Missouri known for its spectacular caverns used by Jesse James as a hideout back in the 1800s. Together they sing about the beauty of the caverns.

After seeing the Meramec Caverns, they go to the Galloway Totem Pole Park in Oklahoma to see the 90-foot tall totem pole built by Ed Galloway, where they have fun singing as they count all 33 totem poles in the park.

Traveling through Kansas takes them through a heavy rainstorm as they watch out for tornadoes.

Once the rain clears, they stop at a stockyard cantina with cowboys in Texas. While Ralph goes outside to see the cattle in the pastures by the cantina, Jean is left with the flirtatious cowboys and sings a song that puts them in the place.

New Mexico brings adventure when they have car trouble and stay overnight in a tent behind a gas station in San Jon, where Ralph sings a beautiful song to Jean about the stars. Further into New Mexico, they stop at El Rancho Hotel, where movie stars have stayed while filming Westerns and meet a Hollywood location scout.

In Arizona, they stop at the famous town called Oatman with the history of Olive Oatman, the wild donkeys, and the haunted Oatman Hotel. Their visit to the Oatman Hotel leaves them wondering if a ghost pulled pranks on them, switching their sodas, or if it was the waiter, or maybe Ralph behind the shenanigans. Ralph sings a song to the supposed ghost called Oatie.

Finally, they reach California, where they find the Santa Monica Pier enchanting. They wish they could live near a beach with sunny weather after growing up in Chicago. Will their dream come true? The concluding song reveals the big decision they make.