Director's Concept
‘What error drives our eyes and ears amiss?’-Antipholus of Syracuse (2.2.190)
Concept Statements
  • At the heart of The Comedy of Errors is the search for identity--both true and mistaken identity.
  • The quest for a family reunion is driving the action of the show. 
  • Action is a tightly woven, precise, silly farce.
  • This show should feel removed from our own reality so as to examine identity and family from a distance.  We are telling a story not a reality.
  • The characters’ identities are defined by how they describe themselves within the world of the play. We will discuss whether this is less important than the way that their identities are created by the way others perceive them.
  • The one-word description of this show would be: zany
World of the Play
  • The ‘twins’ should be created through the use of costumes, rather than how much the actors look like each other.
  • The violence in this show should be played in the same tone as the violence of a Three Stooges movie. There should be lots of lazzi with props and a few with the location (the drop, the blocks, etc.) this show is set.  This may also include sound effects for the slapstick violence.
  • Would like this show to be in thrust format for two reasons:
    • To facilitate the change in locations as they travel to and from schools and venues
    • To facilitate interaction with the audience members
  • We are drawing heavily on influence from the beach party films of the 1960s for costumes, props, and setting.
  • Every cast member will double another role during the play.  2 actors will be in charge of sound and will understudy the other roles. 1 male and 1 female understudy.
  • The lighting will be shared light as the show takes place in one location on one day.  No major light changes should be needed. 
  • Music should be reminiscent of the Beach Party Films of the 1960s and should be recorded to be played along with the show for transitional purposes.  Sound effects for violence will be created live.
  • We will cut the script to a 45 minute version of this show.  We will primarily use Shakespeare’s text (as I believe the kids are smart and this show will be a great introduction into the language of Shakespeare) while still leaving room for some improvisation with comedy and modern lines from the actors.
Major Dramatic Question
  • Will the family be reunited and will proper identities revealed?
Conflict Analysis
  • Climax:  The moment that Egeon is about to be killed and is begging for money from Antipholus of Ephesus who he believes to be Antipholus of Syracuse.  
  • Protagonists:  While Antipholus of Syracuse has more depth and more detail than Antipholus of Ephesus and it could be argued that he is the clear protagonist, it would be amiss to dismiss the action of Antipholus of Ephesus.  I plan to make both of them the protagonists.
  • Opposing Forces: Timing (mis-timed entrances and exits of characters); social (conflict between Ephesus and Syracuse); nature (storms and a big rock, two sets of twins). 
Influence of the World of the Play
  • 1960s Beach party films
    • Often the parents were minimally in the play and the teenagers were left to sort out the shenanigans on their own.
    • Often ignored some of the more serious social, economic, and thought-provoking issues surrounding this time period.
    • I like the aesthetic of the bright colors and silhouettes of the clothing worn during this time period.
    • Often were used to showcase certain singers or bands of the time
    • Stock actors and comedic guest stars
    • Occasionally they even included some unrealistic elements (like mermaids, parachuting, and kidnapping a teen idol)--They are explicitly works of fantasy
    • Films frequently refer to unfulfilled or unconsummated love
    • Sub-culture of the California surfing-scene
    • Cult-following years after films came out--nostalgia for the 1960s playing a large role in its followers
    • Teenagers in the films are often searching for their own identities in a world made up of adults and strange characters
Applying this for Young Company Audiences
  • Style: Silly, fun, energetic, fast-paced
  • Workshop: 
    • Discussion of identity--What makes you YOU?
    • What ‘errors’ do we make about others’ and our own identities?
    • ‘Errors flow from biases and passions that reflect a particular sense of self or world’
History of The Comedy of Errors
  • Was one of Shakespeare’s earlier works (1594)
  • Borrowed heavily from Plautus’ Menaechmi
  • Shakespeare’s shortest play with 1787 lines (the average in Elizabethan England was 3000 lines)
  • Mediterranean influence--Syracuse (modern day Sicily) and Ephesus (modern day Turkey)
  • Precursor to plot devices like storms and shipwrecks and separated siblings like in Twelfth Night and Tempest
  • Didn’t gain redemption as a play until mid-twentieth century
Cast/Crew/Ensemble Work Goals
  • To strengthen their testimonies as it relates to the creation of art and the gospel of Jesus Christ.
  • To discover a clearer understanding of our own identities as divine human beings.
  • To create a spirit of unity and collaboration in the creation of the show.
  • To elicit future audience members through this storytelling and art form.
  • To support more under-represented peoples on stage as performers and creators.
  • To produce a high-quality theatrical production through staging, acting, design, and education.​