As part of an ongoing research program, the authors investigated the use of single-voiced narration and multi-voiced characterizations/monologues in a formative evaluation study of an instructional lesson on information processing. That lesson employed a design based on the use of content-related metaphors and a metaphorical graphical user interface. The results suggest that single-voiced narration is at least as effective as multi-voiced characterizations/monologues, and may in some ways be superior. Analysis of the findings is linked to Laurel's dramatic model with proposed enhancements to the lesson's design to increase its conformance to that model.