CEconcept

Concept Statement for //Words, Words, Words// //Words, Words, Words// is a comedic play by David Ives. It centers on three monkeys who have been put into a lab experiment in order to randomly produce //Hamlet.// The tone of the play is as absurd as the premise. These chimps are named after three prominent authors from the past: Kafka, Milton, and Swift. They unknowingly make witty jokes that make reference to these literary figures. The tone of the play stays relatively light, jumping around from intense desperation to gleeful absurdity. The actors must be able to portray this through constant energy, keeping the audience engaged and finding a way to make these monkeys somewhat believable and relatable. It takes place in a laboratory, so my idea for the set is very minimalistic. I imagine white desks with a white tire swing, and that is about it, except for a few fake shrubs or something that looks like a pathetic and failed attempt on the part of the scientists to recreate a piece of the monkeys’ natural habitat. The lighting should reflect the laboratory setting. It should be white and very sharp and bright. The costuming for the monkeys is clearly stated in the script as circus-looking attire with large ties and floppy hats, etc. I would not want to stray too much from that description.