More from Walking the Volcano director Elaine Vaan Hogue

Walking the Volcano is comprised of eight short plays that, together, make one play.  In each of the short plays, we meet a couple--a man and a woman--who are deeply and irrevocably connected.  They fall in love, bond and make a pact, experience betrayal, try to grow up together and admit their mistakes, declare a truce, renew their relationship "dance", experience the shattering of the "fantasy" of their relationship, declare war and break apart--and finally, meet each other again while facing death, reconcile and forgive one another.

The play is about the sexual combat that men and women pursued during the 1960's--the generation that Jon came of age in--combat, chase, risk, and challenge are all part of the game.  The men are full of bravado, the women are sassy--these are qualities that Jon found very attractive.  Together, their passions, like a volcano, erupt over and over again.  These are passions that most of us usually keep inside.  But these characters must risk, again and again, because risks make life more meaningful.  We all have aspects of these characters within us.  Old forms drop away to make way for the new.  It is very difficult to be tender in a world that is antagonistic toward tenderness.  In allowing themselves to experience tenderness, they open the door to experiencing their fierceness.  In the end, we know and understand that there is a cosmic connection between these two people.

Elaine Vaan Hogue
Director, Walking the Volcano