​Jess Chayes / theater director & artistic leader

Clementine and the Cyber Ducks

 

The Ontological-Hysteric Theater, May 2009

 

In the wake of an economic crisis that has sent the world reeling, The Assembly brings you a play that interrogates capitalism, desire, and the American Dream. Clementine and the Cyber Ducks is a dark comedic riff on the classic folk song set in California simultaneously during the 1849 Gold Rush and the 1990s dot.com bubble. Clementine moves West with her father to strike it rich. As she gets sucked into a series of schemes and scams, the world transforms into an irrationally exuberant American Dream-scape full of shotgun-wielding sisters, angry miners, and a steampunk chorus of deviant ducks. Welcome to California.
 

Directed by Jess Chayes

Text by Krista Knight
Scenic Design  Nick Benacerraf
Assistant Scenic Design Ethan Gould
Lighting Design Greg Malen
Sound Design Asa Wember
Costume Design Justine Lacy
Dramaturgy Stephen Aubrey

Cast: Edward Bauer (Brian), Ben Beckley (Clive), Siobhan Doherty (Duck), Cara Francis (Regina), Patrick Long (Duck), Emily Perkins (Clementine), and Jeff Seal (Duck)

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“Thankfully, playwright Krista Knight, director Jess Chayes, and the Assembly theater ensemble have complete faith in every aspect of their wacked-out concept—their comedy stems from the organic merger of the bizarre elements on stage, not self-conscious jokes about the anachronism of it all.”

–Eli Epstein-Deutsch, The Village Voice on CLEMENTINE AND THE CYBER DUCKS

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