Layers by Gary Rodgers - Theatrefolk

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Layers

Recommended for High Schools

Layers

by Gary Rodgers

Step inside Robin’s world as he grapples with his conscience and his anti-conscience. And then deeper still as the writer tries to figure out an ending... which he may not be able to do if he’s not actually the writer.

 About 35 minutes

Times given are approximate and do not include intermissions/scene changes/breaks

 17
2M | 1W | 14 Any Gender, Doubling Possible

Simple set

 36 pages

Comedy Experimental Form

"Wait... so now Sedrick is talking to you? She's stepping outside of the play within a play to talk to the playwright? What is with that?"

Step inside Robin’s world as he grapples with his conscience and his anti-conscience. And then deeper into a world of misinformed theatrical anthropologists from the 25th century. And then deeper still as the writer tries to figure out an ending... which he may not be able to do if he’s not actually the writer.

This is not just one play. It’s a play within a play within an onion within a cabbage. Layers is filled with, well, layers. Characters and story overlap and cabbage gets thrown. Make sure you read to the very end because it’s not the writer who writes the final word...

17 Characters
2M, 1W, 14 Any Gender, Doubling Possible
LAYER 1 [A] 12 lines
Overly pleasant and cheerful.
LAYER 2 [A] 10 lines
Equally as pleasant and cheerful as Layer 1.
LAYER 3 [A] 7 lines
Serious and intelligent.
CONSCIENCE [A] 24 lines
Respectable, moral and rather naïve.
ROBIN [M] 64 lines
A typical awkward teenaged boy who is in love with Mona.
ANTI-CONSCIENCE [A] 21 lines
Manipulative, mischievous and unethical.
KNOWLEDGE [A] 18 lines
Follows Quote and is obviously under her control. He despises Quote and nags her relentlessly.
QUOTE [A] 11 lines. lines
Gives many physical gestures to Knowledge to direct his movements. She governs him but is quite annoyed by his incessant nagging. She speaks only in quotes.
ART [A] 54 lines
A regular pot user, rough around the edges, tough and streetwise. She often speaks incoherently or repeats herself as though she is high, however, this is not to be overdone.
CRAFTY [A] 54 lines
Art’s drug buddy, she is equally tough, streetwise, and stoned.
MONA [W] 9 lines
Typical teenaged girl, has been waiting for Robin to ask her out.
PROFESSOR LIVINGSTONE [A] 60 lines
Pompous and pretentious, she is Sedrick’s superior and supposed mentor, though terribly perturbed by Sedrick’s lack of experience and expertise.
SEDRICK [A] 43 lines
Apprentice to Professor Livingstone, longs to become an advanced dimensionality anthropologist. Has endless admiration for Professor Livingstone and Lord Master Hamdenburg.
LORD MASTER FRONZ HAMDENBURG [A] 35 lines
She is Professor Livingstone’s colleague and is equally pompous and pretentious.
WRITER [A] 38 lines
Nervous and jittery, easily spooked, looks as though he may have fallen asleep at his desk last night while writing a play.
ADVISOR [M] 54 lines
Confident and usually in control, offers Writer advice and his thoughts regarding his play.
PLANT [A] 37 lines
An unsuspecting audience member.

Subgenres
Farce Fantasy Avant-garde Experimental form

Settings
Abstract setting Present day

Dress
Contemporary costumes Elaborate costumes Fantasy costumes Period costumes

Audience
Pre-teen Teen

Features
Gender neutral cast Character study Physical comedy Stage combat Variable gender breakdown

Set
Simple set Interior set

Cautions
Drugs Adult themes Onstage murder

Themes
Adolescence Relationships Peer pressure Self-image Theatre Depression

Other uses
Competition Class work

Prop List

4 wooden boxes (multi-colored), 1 or 2 office chairs, Office type desk with desk items (mugs, pens, papers etc.), Laptop computer (preferably one that can take some abuse), Pots, Cabbage, Ladder, Large bag of chips, Feather boa, Onion, Tree, Magnifying glass, Skull, Light bulb

Production Photos

Multimedia

Related Titles

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