Love and Information

Director’s Notes

Love and Information was written by prolific and inventive English playwright Caryl Churchill and was first produced in 2012. After fourteen years, it still feels timely and, at moments, even prescient. The play’s structure, a series of short and often emotional scenes, affords an experience not unlike that of scrolling through postings on a social media platform. The characters’ search for love and/or information is complicated by their histories, memories, conditions, and insecurities. And the impact that modern technology has on their quests, for better and for worse, is ever present. In short, an ocean and more than a decade may separate us from these characters, but I trust that you’ll recognize many of their circumstances and desires.

Allow me to share a few thoughts expressed by Yuval Noah Harari in his 2024 book, Nexus: A Brief History of Information Networks from the Stone Age to AI:

“…Information sometimes represents reality, and sometimes doesn’t. But it always connects. That is its fundamental characteristic.”

“Among humans, the precondition for cooperation isn’t similarity; it is the ability to exchange information. As long as we are able to converse, we might find some shared story that can bring us closer. This, after all, is what made Homo sapiens the dominant species on the planet.”

“Nobody disputes that humans today have a lot more information and power than in the Stone Age, but it is far from certain that we understand ourselves and our role in the universe much better. Why are we so good at accumulating more information and power, but far less successful at acquiring wisdom?”

And, on a perhaps more hopeful note, from the lyrics of the song “Nature Boy” – recorded by Nat King Cole in the early ‘60s:

“The greatest thing you’ll ever learn
Is just to love and be loved in return”

Special Thanks

President Connie Book, Provost Rebecca Kohn, Dean Hilton Kelly, Performing Arts Chair Fred Rubeck

Dramaturgy

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