Director's Concept Statement

When Qui Nguyen conceived of She Kills Monsters, he drew upon fond memories of his tight-knit group of geeky outsiders, led by a DM named Chuck. In order to help Nguyen understand English and American culture, Chuck used their real-world bullies and crushes to inspire characters in their campaigns.

With that inspiration in mind (and other factors listed below), my vision for this production is simple: look inside the “monster” to see the humanity within. Additionally, the production will look as though it sprung from the creative sketches and imagination of teenage Tilly.

For costume design, I’ll avoid piling on the fantasy makeup & prosthetics for the non-human characters like Lilith, Kaliope, Orcus, etc. Not only would this ease the practical challenges of quick-changing in and out of characters’ alter-egos in the fantastical realm of New Landia, but the audience could easily recognize the humanity of the real-life inspiration for each character. This made for more believable moments whenever Agnes recognized Lily at The Gap, seeing through Gabbi & Tina’s cloying scheme, or remarking to Chuck about Ronnie, “You really didn’t do much to make him different.” However the characters in the D&D adventure would have enough elements to suggest their respective identities. Gone are the color-changing eyes, bloody fangs, and other special effects; instead, we will make use of easily removable horns, wings, and Elven ears over simple dark base costumes with a single bit of armor and LARP weapons being the highlight. Agnes repeatedly mentions how little Lilith & Kaliope are wearing, so that makes their costumes relatively simple.

The scenic design will make use of a unit set, as scenes are relatively short and the playwright suggests performing without any blackouts or scene changes. Projections on the top third of the cyc above the set will give more of a sense of each setting, from Chuck’s gaming shop to Tiamat’s Castle of Evil, and only a couple small set pieces will be brought onstage when needed, such as a clothing rack and folding table for the Gap. A couple platforms on the upstage corners give levels and variation to the action, painted in neutral colors to allow the more vibrant costumes & lighting to show through. I’m drawn to the shapes of the 5-6 dice used in D&D campaigns, as well as the maps. Removing the labels on each map, the platforms will have a soft covering that extends outward with the maps painted on muslin, abstractly suggesting the game coming to life; upstage of each platform will be a collage of those 2-dimensional shapes: triangle, hexagon, octagon, diamond, etc.

Lighting will also be used to draw focus to smaller group scenes in various areas, such as the upstage area where the Gap scenes take place. Dynamic color and intensity changes will be used for in-game moments of monsters and magic: Tillius using a spell to restore Agnes’ hit points, the climactic confrontation with Tiamat, etc. Speaking of Tiamat, rather than create an overly expensive dragon puppet for a 60-second fight, each “head” will be an enormous version of the D&D dice that opens as if it were Tiamat’s “mouths.” Sound design will draw heavily on the 80s/90s music mentioned throughout the script.

Lastly, I challenge you to look beyond the stage directions; after all, those are carried over from previous productions or sometimes the playwright’s “wishful thinking,” and She Kills Monsters is no exception, as Nguyen describes flying succubi, elaborate fight scenes, and more spectacle. For example, in his stage directions, Nguyen describes Tiamat vs. Agnes as “the greatest fight ever to be seen on a theatrical stage.” Is it necessary to actually see that, or could the stakes be raised to a point where the audience can visualize the greatest fight ever, but in their mind’s eye? If the actors believe it, the audience will too. My minimalist (by comparison) approach will encourage actors & audiences to use their imagination right along with Agnes as she embarks on her adventure.