Four months later, Bob has returned to Chicago following his heart attack, Gwen having arranged for everyone involved with the show to be accommodated financially during the hiatus. Beyond Bob feeling like he has lost his edge in being cut off from his vices, especially drugs, most specifically Dexedrine, Bob continues to have a different vision for the show than Gwen. While Gwen has always wanted to stay true to the way it was originally envisioned as a comedy, Bob wants to delve into what he sees as the true nature of the characters who are murderers and liars. But what Bob probably has the most issue with is Gwen herself, who he feels is at least ten years, if not more, too old to play the role of an ingenue, let alone being physically able to handle the choreography he has in mind. Gwen challenges Bob in who between the two actually "owns" the show. The critics and public may be the arbiters in the end. With these problems between Bob and Gwen, two earlier periods in the entity that is Fosse/Verdon are shown, the first of Gwen first learning of Bob's infidelity, and the second during their decision to have a child.
—Huggo
