November 8, 2009

The Apes of Wrath: Humans Re-enact Frans de Waal's 'Chimpanzee Politics'

Franz B.M. de Waal

Chimps and humans behave in similar ways, Frans de Waal concluded in "Chimpanzee Politics." Now the book is the basis for a play in which people play apes—as people.

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Franz B.M. de Waal

Chimps and humans behave in similar ways, Frans de Waal concluded in "Chimpanzee Politics." Now the book is the basis for a play in which people play apes—as people.

By Simmi Aujla

After plotting for months, two male chimpanzees stage a nocturnal attack on their leader, ripping off his fingers, toes, and testicles and seizing control of the colony. But when a dominant male chimpanzee feels he may lose power, he throws himself into a moat surrounding the colony and dies.

The chimps' stories, chronicled by the primatologist Frans B.M. de Waal, have inspired a new play, Hominid, that opens this week at Atlanta's Out of Hand Theater. The production,