She said she wanted her costumes to appear fuzzy to reflect how comfortable Homebody felt in her environment. At the end of the play, Homebody leaves London and Monsos said she had to find a trench coat that would transform Homebody and symbolize her departure. Monsos said selecting an appropriate wig for Homebody, who was to appear ordinary and plain, was a challenge as Ott Rowlands has an "artistic look."
Ott Rowlands is still wearing the same costume Monsos designed for the Toledo show.
The costume and the universality of the play remain unchanged each performance.
Ott Rowlands also pointed out that "Homebody" has a multicultural theme. She said there's a theme of commercializing cultural and she compared it to a traveler visiting Mexico and staying in the tourist sections while neglecting the lifestyle of the native people.
"When we, as Americans or Brits, touch a culture that way we corrupt it ... When we go to Alcapulco, we stay in the Princess Hotel and we have a great time," Ott Rowlands said. "But Mexico is not the Princess Hotel. We've totally corrupted the Mexican culture. It's messier. It's about humanity and people who are poor and places that are dirty and bombed out buildings in some parts of the world. It's not Disneyland. We've taken what was real and turned it into consumer appeal,"
Another theme that most people can relate to is Homebody's search for meaning in her life, she said.
"She's obsessed with Afghanistan, and language and she tries to find meaning in her obsessions. She's desperately looking to connect herself to life in a meaningful way," Ott Rowlands said.
Homebody eventually decides to act on her idea of moving to Kabul.
"She reaches a point where she won't survive unless she changes. Occasionally we do reach that point. I supposed it's like a drug addict who realizes the moment they've finally hit bottom and decides to change their life. But until then they do nothing," she said.
At the end of the play, "Homebody" leaves her London kitchen. Ott Rowlands said that while the audience is unsure of where she ultimately goes, Homebody decides to stop observing life and just live.
"Life is about getting wet and getting messy," Ott Rowlands said. "Here she is staying dry and she decides to live life. It's pretty cool."
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