They Extract!

by Eppchez !

In this physical and lyrical exploration "commodity", oil is long over and new technologies have made emotion extraction a key energy source. Vera returnes home to the company town built up around Emotus, where this energy is mined from human workers. Everything seems changed, but perhaps things were always this precarious. Her father, once a head engineer at Emotus was left a fragile, paranoid wreck in the...

In this physical and lyrical exploration "commodity", oil is long over and new technologies have made emotion extraction a key energy source. Vera returnes home to the company town built up around Emotus, where this energy is mined from human workers. Everything seems changed, but perhaps things were always this precarious. Her father, once a head engineer at Emotus was left a fragile, paranoid wreck in the aftermath of an unexplained accident at the company, which resulted in her mother's death. Through her clumsy investigation to piece together Pop-pop's trauma, Vera meets Woolen, one of Emotus' most productive loving mines. First meet-cute then honey mooning, falling in love with Vera casts whole new light on Woolen's work as they struggle to produce for Emotus in the wake of their growing feelings for Vera. Pop-pop rises to the occasion of his hallucinations and his truth but Vera can't get any answers until it's too late. Emotus minds the bottom line and sacrifices must be made to keep production up.

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They Extract!

Recommended by

  • Samantha Marchant: They Extract!

    Fascinating world building! Harvesting love and not being able to keep it is heart breaking. I enjoyed a lot of the word choices like “soap bubble day.” I would love to see how this all moves on stage.

    Fascinating world building! Harvesting love and not being able to keep it is heart breaking. I enjoyed a lot of the word choices like “soap bubble day.” I would love to see how this all moves on stage.

  • Cheryl Bear: They Extract!

    An incredible exploration of human emotion when the life force is being sucked out for the sake of production. Well done.

    An incredible exploration of human emotion when the life force is being sucked out for the sake of production. Well done.

  • Carl(os) Roa: They Extract!

    Something I’ve always appreciated about Eppchez’s writing style is that ey’re able to portray complex emotional states in an effective way. All the characters in this world show the oxymorons, unspeakable thoughts, and difficult-to-communicate ideas that we all carry in our minds, but don’t know how to express. The love story in this play isn’t a simple one, and every moment between Woolen and Vera feels rooted in a compelling and satisfying mystery.

    Something I’ve always appreciated about Eppchez’s writing style is that ey’re able to portray complex emotional states in an effective way. All the characters in this world show the oxymorons, unspeakable thoughts, and difficult-to-communicate ideas that we all carry in our minds, but don’t know how to express. The love story in this play isn’t a simple one, and every moment between Woolen and Vera feels rooted in a compelling and satisfying mystery.

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Development History

  • Type Workshop, Organization Wesleyan Second Stage, Year 2014

Production History

  • Type Workshop, Organization Alma's Engine, Year 2016