The play opens in 1884 at the London Hospital on Whitechapel Road. Frederick Treves, a surgeon, introduces himself to hospital administrator Carr Gomm as the new lecturer of Anatomy. Gomm welcomes Treves, reciting that Treves is 31 years old and has published two books and commenting that he is pleased to see someone so deserving making strides in a distinguished career. Gomm promises that despite the poverty and shabbiness of the area, London Hospital receives patients with a great variety of illnesses and is “the greatest institution of [its] kind in the world” (1). Additionally, Treves will find plenty of interesting medical cases in the hospital because “places cruel to life are the most revealing scientifically” (1) and Treves only needs to contribute to the continued prestige of the hospital. Gomm muses that by the time Treves turns 40, he will be earning 100 guineas for each patient, which he calls “an excellent consolation prize” (2). Treves, who is thrilled with his life and prospects, doesn’t understand why that would be a consolation prize.

At a storefront on Whitechapel Road, Ross stands in front of an advertisement featuring an illustration of a man with the head of an elephant.