Edward Gorey was a man of many contradictions, personalities, talents, and pseudonyms. This play attempts to explore the vast universes of him and, by extension, us all.
You’ll need at least nine actors, one for each of the nine versions of Gorey. His Noms de Plume:
TED As known by his family, and friends in NYC.
SINJUN Gorey in High School.
PIXIE At Harvard, and Boston. Early to mid-twenties.
EDWARD As known by family and friends in his Cape Cod years.
OGDRED WEARY EG’s Bitchiest Queen. Or Queeniest Bitch.
GARROD WEEDY At his most pretentious. Or most mocking of pretention.
MRS. REGERA DOWDY A quite Prim Old Woman from the 19th century.
D. AWDREY-GORE A quite Prim Famous Mystery Writer; LOVES murder.
MADAME GROEDA WEYRD A turbaned, feathered mystic.
Whichever Gorey appears in a sketch wears Gorey’s iconic big bushy beard. (Some sketches have all nine; you’ll need nine beards).
Whoever isn’t ‘it’ in a scene is in the ensemble and fills out the remaining parts. See individual sketches for doubling.
There should be many Goreys: Tall Teds, short Sinjuns, Old Ogdreds, Young Weedys, Af-Am Awdrey-Gores, MENA Madames, Pansexual Pixies, trans Edwards and bi-racial Regeras. (I’ve listed cute alliteration, but don’t take these specifics literally. Show Gorey’s – and humanity’s – extremes and all flavors in between. The bodies of the cast should reflect the full spectrum.)
Additional actors may be used to fill out the chorus/ensemble roles.