The first time I encountered Xiaoyan Kang’s The Words of Ants was at Playwright’s Workshop during the fall of 2023. I loved the story of this secret women’s language, and the relationship between the last natural inheritor of the language and an outsider eager to prolong its life. I was intrigued by the discussion the show brings up about the extremely personal aspects of the language versus the commercial opportunity in the language. In the spring of 2025, the parts of the play that initially drew me in still capture my attention and imagination. The play also explores class differences, the distinction between rural life and city life, and the intricacies of how expected gender roles shape one’s place in society. Still, within each of these topics exists the internal conflict of the play that I found so compelling the first time I read the script – the question of the cost, and the benefit, of making something deeply personal and intimate accessible to the public.

But what draws me into the script is only one piece of the larger developmental process. Whenever I begin conversations with a playwright about a new work, I try to get a sense early on about what their goals are for the specific piece, both from a writing perspective and a process perspective. Xiaoyan was very clear about her goals, she wanted to use this process as an opportunity to really dig into the script. Both the cast and creative team have been extraordinarily supportive of the story, and, with their help, Xiaoyan has made extensive revisions to illustrate the complexities of her characters and their stories. I feel very honored to have worked on this version of the play, and I cannot wait to cheer Xiaoyan and her future teams on from the audience for all the workshops and productions to come.

🐜 🐜 🐜

Meredith