I mean, You Know

“I mean, you know” is a book to be read quietly alone. It also functions as a score for a performance. The book/play takes place within a few hours of one day inside the minds of seven characters who co-inhabit the same building. This musical/theatrical setting juxtaposes interior narratives of disparate characters into various arrangements: solo, duo, trio, quartet, sextet, and septet. The characters are: Sasha, the artist; Violone, who is confined to a wheelchair and speaks through her violin; Myron, the mystic guilt-ridden millionaire; Ace Monroe, a British-born radio talk show host; Little Tracy, the toddler; Angelica, an African-American house painter and mother; and Trombonio, who speaks only through his trombone. 

Published in 1983, i mean you know further developed Lehrer’s interest in prismatic characters, musical structures, and his approach to using typography as a means of creating psycho/acoustic translations of speech and thought on the printed page. This book/performance score celebrates those synaptic gaps and utterances between thoughts and speech that bridge our sometimes imperfect search for meaning (i mean) and a desire to connect with others (you know).