Tongues (play)

Tongues (play)

Tongues is a 1978 play by Sam Shepard and Joseph Chaikin. "Tongues" is a series of monologues set to percussion and meant for one actor. Shepard and Chaikin had previously agreed to do a piece surrounding the concept of the voice, and nearing completion of the piece, decided it required some kind of musical accompaniment. It was first performed at the Magic Theatre in San Francisco, by the playwrights themselves: Chaikin provided the voice of the speaker, and Shepard as the director and instrumentalist. The play is written so that actors who wish to perform the piece can experiment with the stage directions, which are minimal aside from the percussion directions.

Plot Summary

The play is set on a bare stage, with a single chair draped in a Mexican blanket for the speaker. The stage is essentially black, except for the blanket. The sole character is the speaker, who begins telling the story of a nameless man. The speaker then goes on to impersonate different people such as a mother, a worker, and a "voice to a Blind One". A highlight of the play is described as the "Hunger Dialogue" in the script, which involves a contradictory exchange between two characters (both played by the speaker). The voice for each character are made distinct from each other only by the tone the speaker uses for each.


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Tongues — Студийный альбом Esham …   Википедия

  • The Birds (play) — The Birds Rider and birds Laconian calyx ca. 540 B.C. The Dramatis Personae in ancient comedy depends on interpretation of textual evidence.[1] This list is developed from D.Barrett s translation.[2 …   Wikipedia

  • Monday (play) — Monday is an award winning one woman stage play written and performed by Actress and Playwright Gloria Idahota Williams and directed by Ellie Joseph. The play was produced under the Theatre company Freedom Tongues and developed as part of the… …   Wikipedia

  • Exiles (play) — Infobox Book name = Exiles title orig = translator = image caption = First edition of Exiles , 1918. author = James Joyce illustrator = cover artist = country = Ireland language = English series = subject = Famous writer returns to Dublin after… …   Wikipedia

  • Homey Don’t Play — EP …   Википедия

  • Tongue (disambiguation) — Tongue can refer to:Terms*tongue, the anatomical organ *A shoe part that covers the foot underneath the laces. *Part of a trailer tow hitch attachment *Any large or long physical protrusion on an automotive, a machine part or any other part that… …   Wikipedia

  • King Crimson — This article is about the musical group. For the character in novels by Stephen King, see Crimson King. King Crimson King Crimson, 1982, l r Robert Fripp, Adrian Belew, Tony Levin, and Bill Bruford Background information …   Wikipedia

  • Say Anything (band) — Say Anything Max Bemis of Say Anything Background information Origin Los Angeles, California, U.S. Genres …   Wikipedia

  • David Upton — Born October 30, 1989 (1989 10 30) (age 22) Sydney, NSW, AUS Height …   Wikipedia

  • List of rock instrumentals — The following is a list of rock instrumentals, including live performances and drum solos, organized by artist name. 0 9 =3= *Bramfatura =311= * Blizza * Cali Soca * Color ( Transistor ) * Dreamland ( Enlarged to Show Detail 2 ) * Old Funk *… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”