Karter Dolan

Directing II
Emily Cherry
4 February 2018

Hand to God ​Analysis (Full Show)

I. Interpretation

A. The spine of the play is Tyrone. He is what forces the action of the play almost
entirely. Additionally Tyrone is a physical manifestation of the inner conflict
within Jason as he deals with the death of his Father and the world around him.
B. The theme of the play is if we as a society try to repress “negative” thought and
emotion then it will manifest regardless to devastating effect.
C. Problems in mounting a full production​ ​of ​Hand to God​ are numerous. There is
lots of stage combat to consider, including combat that is sexual in nature. You
need someone to create several well crafted puppets. The actor playing
Jason/Tyrone must be able to hand both parts simultaneously. You may need a
dialect coach due to the Southern setting. You need a set that can be destroyed
and reassembled for every performance. Additionally the negative light that
religion is painted in could cause controversy, especially for a North Dakota
audience.
D. Discussion of Character
1. Jason
a) Wants to be able to express his anger and other “dark thoughts” in
order to get over the death of his father.
b) Jason is described as “blonde and slight and slightly afraid”. This
is a brief but apt description. He should be meek looking,
inoffensive, just your average shy teenager.
c) Jason begins just as Askins describes him, a reserved, shy young
man unable to truly express himself. This inability of expression
leads to an inability to grieve the loss of his father. Through the
 events of the play Jason finds his voice and is able to express his
thoughts and desires and through that expression begin to grieve
and to heal.
d) Jason is like a wounded bird. Unable to fly or really express itself
in anyway. He is helpless and alone. Towards the end of the play
we see him begin to heal. And while perhaps not quite ready to fly
yet, he is at the very least on the mend.
2. Tyrone
a) Wants to force Jason to confront the darkness inside him in order
to help him past the death of his father and neglect of his mother.
b) Tyrone is initially unassuming, your average sock puppet.
However once he is ripped in half and then mended he becomes
more “demonic”. As physically imposing as a puppet can be,
including teeth and a high sex drive.
c) From the opening monologue we know that something is “off”
about Tyrone however we aren’t quite sure what. In his first few
subsequent appearances he is again more or less inoffensive. It
isn’t until we see him alone with Jason that we begin to see the
commanding, abrasive, verbally, and physically abusive Felt
monster that he is.
d) Tyrone is like a rabid dog. He is scary, imposing, and
unpredictable while still maintaining a cute-ish exterior.
3. Margery
a) Wants to distract herself with church in order to avoid confronting
the loss of her husband.
b) Askins gives very little about Margery aside from her being an
“adult”. As for me I see her as a middle aged (mid 40’s) woman.
She appears to be the prototypical white, Christian, southern lady.
It is a mask that hides her grief and her anger.
 c) Over the course of the play we see Margery break from the good
Christian mold she is in at the beginning. By the end we have seen
her have violent sex with a child and emotionally abuse her son.
But despite that she, like Jason, seems to be on the mend by the
end of the play. She had confronted her grief and it appears that
she will be better for it.
d) Margery a porcupine. She can be violent and painful but it’s all a
defensive mechanism. Underneath her quills she is hurting and
crumbling.
4. Pastor Greg
a) Wants Margery’s love in order to overcome his own loneliness.
b) Greg is “A nice guy. In slacks”. Going further I see him as a
middle aged man (mid to late 40’s or early 50’s). He should have
an awkward air about him. Can be short or tall, but should not be a
very physically imposing figure.
c) Pastor Greg begins wanting almost exclusively the love and
affection of Margery. But through Jason’s struggle he finds
purpose in simply helping their family without needing a romantic
incentive.
d) Pastor Greg is like a lemur. Cute and inoffensive, but just a little
creepy. Too fluffy and without negativity to be a real person.
5. Jessica
a) Wants Jason’s love in order to escape a feeling of solitude.
b) Jessica should look like your average teenage girl. Not unattractive
by any means but not a Covergirl either. She should physically
match Jason in terms of height and general size. Their looks should
compliment one another.
 c) At rise Jessica seems to want little more than to not be at Church
puppet practice. As the play develops we see her relationship with
Jason blossom to the point of a explicit puppet sex scene.
d) Jessica is like an owl observing from a perch. She is often times
more removed from the action of the play than are other characters,
but there is a knowing wisdom about her as well.
6. Timothy
a) Wants Margery’s love in order to compensate for the lack of love
from his parents.
b) Timothy is “in all black”. Your stereotypical high school emo kid.
Long black hair, perhaps covering one eye. Piercings perhaps.
Anything that gives an anti-establishment vibe would be in
Timothy’s wardrobe.
c) Timothy goes from your typical trouble child to kid in way over
his head. His involvement with Margery shifts him from being a
stereotype to being a kid caught up in problems far beyond him.
d) Timothy is like a bearded dragon. He may look fierce and
intimidating but he’s really just a kid. He is all show but with little
to no bite to back it up.
II. Analysis
A. Jason is the show’s protagonist. He wants to be able to express his anger and other
“dark thoughts” in order to get over the death of his father.
B. Tyrone is the show’s antagonist. He wants to force Jason to confront the darkness
inside him in order to help him past the death of his father and neglect of his
mother.
C. The major conflict is between Jason and Tyrone. While both have the end goal of
Jason getting over the death of his father it is Tyrone’s methodology that creates
the conflict. He is the exact opposite of Jason. He is crass, sexual, violent, and
 uncontrollable. The fact that he is all these things and attached to Jason’s hand is
where the problem lies.
D. The inciting incident of the play is the death of Jason’s father. While not shown in
the script his death is what drives Margery to create the puppet group, which leads
to the creation of Tyrone, and so on and so forth.
E. Margery rejecting Pastor Greg, Margery and Timothy having sex, Margery
kicking Jason out of the car, Jason tearing Tyrone, and puppet sex are several
examples of important events leading up the plays climax.
F. The climax occurs on page 105 when Jason “brings it down” (in reference to the
hammer). This is the last we see of Tyrone and Jason’s way of physically best-ing
his puppet alter ego.
G. Tyrone. He is both a character and a symbol. A character in the sense that he
drives much of the action and is a psychical presence in the show. But a symbol
because in reality he is nothing more than a physical manifestation of Jason’s own
thoughts and desires.
The religious posters are also symbols. They are all throughout the set and are
representative of the choke hold religion has on these characters lives.
The swings that Jason and Jessica chat on are also symbols. They highlight that
these characters are still children, even though they are going through adult
feelings and issues.