Welcomeby Richard Stuart Dixon
© Richard Stuart Dixon, 2003
(Note: Performance of this play requires the author’s permission. Please contact Good School Plays for details.)
Production Notes:
• running time: approx. 40 minutes
• style: ensemble drama
• suitable for general audiences
• 19 characters (10 female, 9 male)
• black-box staging (no set required)
Summary of Script Content:
• “Alpha Omega” is an allegorical tale of rebellion against rigid dogma on an ancient space vessel that is beginning to malfunction.
(This play was first performed in February, 2003, at Gleneagle Secondary School in Coquitlam, British Columbia, Canada.)
∗Published Online by Good School Plays, March 31, 2016.
Go to:
Scene 1
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Scene 4
Scene 5
Scene 6
Scene 7
Scene 8
Scene 9
Scene 10
Scene 11
Scene 12
Scene 13
&&
CHARACTERS:
The Overgroup:
Alcyone, the Matriarch
Electra, her daughter
Shaula, the Truthkeeper
Hydrus, the Protector
Rastaban, the Protector (Hydrus’ brother)
Centaurus, the Sacred Elder
Lesath, his wife.
The Undergroup:
Gomeisa, Healer of Ailments
Mira, his wife
Alya, their daughter
El Muphrid, Creator of Diversions
Bellatrix, his wife.
Kornephoros, Grandfather of Lupus
Murzim, Provider of Nutrients
Sadalbari, his wife
Lupus, their son
Vul, Preserver of Cleanliness
Gemma, his wife
Nashira, their daughter
(NOTE: Everyone remains on stage throughout the play. The OVERGROUP are upstage from the UNDERGROUP. For small-group scenes, the required actors gather downstage. When the cast makes choral responses, SHAULA, the MATRIARCH, the SACRED ELDER, LESATH, and ELECTRA remain silent. When a small-group scene is interrupted by a choral response, the actors in that scene also remain silent during the response.)
Alpha Omega by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Scene 1:
(All the actors are seated in their groupings and are very still. NASHIRA is downstage, to one side.)
NASHIRA
(to the AUDIENCE)
The stars are cold and distant strangers without names in these lost regions. Our small vessel is everything in this formless endless nothing called space.
SHAULA
(to the assembled OVERGROUP and UNDERGROUP, hereafter called “the ASSEMBLY”.)
What is the name of our vessel?
THE ASSEMBLY
Alpha Omega.
SHAULA
From whence did we depart?
THE ASSEMBLY
Alpha.
SHAULA
Where shall we arrive?
THE ASSEMBLY
Omega.
SHAULA
Where is Alpha?
THE ASSEMBLY
This is Alpha.
SHAULA
Where is Omega?
THE ASSEMBLY
This is Omega.
SHAULA
The place of leaving, the journey, and the place of arrival are one and the same.
THE ASSEMBLY
One and the same.
NASHIRA
(to the AUDIENCE)
Our vessel drifts through a boundless labyrinth of invisible tunnels. We are the spaceship Alpha Omega.
SHAULA
(to the ASSEMBLY)
Who is our mother?
THE ASSEMBLY
Alpha Omega.
SHAULA
Yesterday, she gave us life. Today and tomorrow, we are her children.
THE ASSEMBLY
We are her children.
NASHIRA
(to the AUDIENCE)
The priestess Shaula leads us in prayer. She speaks for the Matriarch Alcyone…“she who keeps the ocean calm.”
SHAULA
(announcing the MATRIARCH)
Behold Alcyone the Matriarch.
ALCYONE
(to the ASSEMBLY)
Our mother, the spaceship Alpha Omega, speaks through me. I am her instrument of peace. Through my voice comes forth her voice of reassurance, her words of calm encouragement. All is well. Our mother, the spaceship Alpha Omega, is the air we breathe, the food we eat, the clothing we wear. All that we have had, have now, and will have, come from her. All is peace. All is well. Go forward into the labyrinth. Let your thoughts take you through the endless halls and tunnels of Alpha Omega, the twisting pathways that lead you away from here and back again. Go forward into the labyrinth of spaceship Alpha Omega.
(The CAST remains still.)
NASHIRA
(to the AUDIENCE)
The priestess Shaula tells us we must not be troubled by the darkness that lies beyond the thin walls of our vessel, our ship, our home that is Alpha Omega. Within, we are expected to find solace in the Eternal Division.
SHAULA
(to the ASSEMBLY)
Who is the Overgroup?
THE OVERGROUP
We are the Overgroup.
SHAULA
Who is the Undergroup?
THE UNDERGROUP
We are the Undergroup.
SHAULA
The Eternal Division is the timeless assurance of order and stability.
THE ASSEMBLY
Order and Stability.
NASHIRA
Always we are told to observe our functions.
SHAULA
(to the ASSEMBLY)
Who leads?
THE ASSEMBLY
Alcyone the Matriarch.
SHAULA
Who protects the Matriarch?
HYDRUS and RASTABAN
We are the protectors.
SHAULA
Who heals?
GOMEISA, MIRA, and ALYA
We are the healers of ailments.
SHAULA
Who offers nourishment?
KORNEPHOROS, MURZIM, SADALBARI, and LUPUS
We are the providers of nutrients.
SHAULA
Who cleans?
VUL, GEMMA, and NASHIRA
We are the preservers of cleanliness.
SHAULA
Who recites in song and story?
EL MUPHRID and BELLATRIX
We are the creators of diversions.
SHAULA
Who keeps the truth?
THE ASSEMBLY
Shaula, the Truthkeeper.
SHAULA
I am the Keeper of the Truth.
NASHIRA
(to the AUDIENCE)
There is the one who is now old, and once was Patriarch. There he floats with his doting consort. He cannot hear and so is privy to the secret of the endless silence of space.
SHAULA
(to the ASSEMBLY)
The Sacred Elder is captured by silence. He will not hear us when we say his name.
THE ASSEMBLY
Centaurus.
NASHIRA
(to the AUDIENCE)
The Matriarch’s daughter, untouched by the weight of immediate duty, is a cleanly burning star high aloft, over even the Overgroup.
SHAULA
(to the ASSEMBLY)
Behold, Electra! Over all, over even the Overgroup!
THE ASSEMBLY
Electra over all.
NASHIRA
(to the AUDIENCE)
I am Nashira and this is the story of Alpha Omega.
End of Scene 1.
Alpha Omega by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Scene 2:
(NASHIRA is joined downstage by her father VUL and her mother GEMMA.)
NASHIRA
Father, I’ve been sent once again to awaken the cleaning machines in the Overgroup Sector.
VUL
Nothing unusual about that.
GEMMA
You have your duties, Nashira, so observe them.
NASHIRA
Father, Mother…I have something to say…something to report.
VUL
Something to report?
NASHIRA
Yes. About the cleaning machines. There’s something wrong with them.
VUL
The machines are the gift of our Mother, Alpha Omega, and are therefore perfect. How could there be anything wrong with them?
GEMMA
Think carefully, child. You have been given the honour of awakening the cleaning machines. If you do not wake them correctly, then you are at fault, not the machines.
NASHIRA
I know how to awaken them. The procedure is simple.
VUL
Then you’re talking nonsense. Now go about your duties.
GEMMA
And when you are finished, pay a visit to Gomeisa, the Healer of Ailments.
NASHIRA
I’m not sick.
VUL
Yes you are. You must be sick. And your illness is dangerous. Your mind is playing tricks on you.
GEMMA
Gomeisa will give you something to erase your dream about the cleaning machines.
NASHIRA
It’s not a dream.
VUL
Daughter, do as we say.
GEMMA
We are your parents. It’s our duty to correct your behaviour.
NASHIRA
Yes, Mother. I will go to the Healer.
(VUL and GEMMA return to their tableau. NASHIRA faces the audience.)
SHAULA
(to the ASSEMBLY)
Where do things go wrong?
THE ASSEMBLY
In our dreams.
SHAULA
Where do things go right?
THE ASSEMBLY
In our waking moments.
ALCYONE
(to the ASSEMBLY)
All is peace. All is well. Go forward into the labyrinth, through the endless halls and tunnels of your dreams: the twisting pathways that lead you away from here and back again. Go forward into the dream labyrinth. The only journey is the journey of your dreams, for we are Alpha Omega, the place of endless arrival.
End of Scene 2.
Alpha Omega by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Scene 3:
(GOMEISA, MIRA, and ALYA go downstage)
ALYA
Father, why are we healers in the Undergroup?
MIRA
You should not ask questions that do not pertain to healing, child.
GOMEISA
Why ponder something superfluous, Alya?
ALYA
It’s not superfluous. The members of the Overgroup depend on us when they are ill. Shouldn’t we be their equals?
GOMEISA
Foolish, foolish girl. All our abilities as healers are given to us by our Mother, the Spaceship Alpha Omega.
MIRA
We are her agents, and it is a great honour to assist her in the administration of healing.
GOMEISA
All of us, Overgroup and Undergroup alike, depend on our Mother Alpha Omega.
ALYA
Then why is there an Overgroup?
MIRA
The Matriarch Alcyone is the flesh and blood incarnation of Alpha Omega. She is not one of us.
ALYA
But what about the others?
GOMEISA
They bear the high honour and heavy burden of protecting the Matriarch and preserving the Truth.
(NASHIRA joins them)
NASHIRA
I have been sent to you to receive treatment.
MIRA
What is disturbing your health?
NASHIRA
A dream.
GOMEISA
That’s easy to cure. Alya will help you.
(GOMEISA and MIRA return to their tableau and NASHIRA and ALYA face the audience. HYDRUS and RASTABAN address the ASSEMBLY.)
HYDRUS
From time to time the young ask questions.
RASTABAN
Naturally, they are curious and want to learn.
HYDRUS
Teach them how to ask the right questions.
RASTABAN
Then they will learn what is right.
HYDRUS and RASTABAN
Wrong questions create wrong answers.
HYDRUS
Do not let the distortions of your dreams affect your waking duty.
SHAULA
(to the ASSEMBLY)
Where do things go wrong?
THE ASSEMBLY
In our dreams.
SHAULA
When do things go right?
THE ASSEMBLY
In our waking moments.
ALYA
(to NASHIRA)
What is your dream about?
NASHIRA
The cleaning machines in the Overgroup Sector.
ALYA
That doesn’t sound very disturbing.
NASHIRA
In my dream, some of the cleaning machines fail to function correctly.
ALYA
What goes wrong?
NASHIRA
The restoration machines pick up objects and take them away for renewal. But when the objects are returned, a few are not cleaned or restored.
ALYA
(amused)
Forgive me, but that hardly sounds like a nightmare.
NASHIRA
Don’t you see? Alpha Omega is perfect. To dream that she is not is to dream of disaster.
ALCYONE
(to the ASSEMBLY)
Our mother, the spaceship Alpha Omega, is the air we breathe, the food we eat, the clothing we wear. All that we have had, have now, and will have, come from her.
THE ASSEMBLY
Yesterday, she gave us life. Today and tomorrow, we are her children.
ALYA
(to NASHIRA)
Perhaps your dream is not a dream.
NASHIRA
What do you mean?
ALYA
I will tell you a secret. One of the healing machines is not working properly.
NASHIRA
Perhaps I’m dreaming what you’re saying.
ALYA
(gently taking NASHIRA’S hand)
No, you are awake, and Alpha Omega is not perfect.
NASHIRA
Not perfect, like us.
(NASHIRA and ALYA regard each other solemnly for a moment. ALYA releases NASHIRA’s hand.)
NASHIRA
Do your father and mother know the machine isn’t working?
ALYA
Yes. But they pretend everything is fine. They just don’t awaken the machine anymore.
NASHIRA
They’re afraid.
ALYA
Yes. But I’m not.
(producing a small vial and offering it to NASHIRA)
Take this liquid. Tell your parents it’s medicine to erase your dream. But it’s just water. Whatever you do, don’t betray my secret.
NASHIRA
(taking the vial)
I won’t…I can’t, for we both share the same unspeakable truth. Thank you, Alya.
(NASHIRA and ALYA go to their places in the ASSEMBLY.)
End of Scene 3.
Alpha Omega by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Scene 4:
(SHAULA addresses the ASSEMBLY.)
SHAULA
Centaurus the Sacred Elder, who once was Patriarch, is speaking.
THE ASSEMBLY
Centaurus.
CENTAURUS
(speaking quietly to LESATH, his consort)
Where are we?
LESATH
(to the ASSEMBLY)
He asks where we are.
THE ASSEMBLY
Alpha Omega.
CENTAURUS
(to Lesath)
Where did we come from?
LESATH
He asks where we came from.
THE ASSEMBLY
Alpha.
CENTAURUS
(to Lesath)
Where are we going?
LESATH
He asks where we are going.
THE ASSEMBLY
Omega.
ALCYONE
(to the ASSEMBLY)
The only journey is the journey of your dreams, for we are in the place of endless arrival.
THE ASSEMBLY
Alpha Omega.
(KORNEPHOROS, MURZIM, SADALBARI, and LUPUS go downstage.)
LUPUS
Father, I watch the machines that prepare food.
MURZIM
Why state what is obvious?
KORNEPHOROS
I watched the machines prepare food when I was your age, Grandson.
SADALBARI
And someday your children will watch them, Lupus.
LUPUS
Perhaps not.
MURZIM
But you must have children. Each of us must have someone to replace us.
KORNEPHOROS
Your grandmother and I had two children, one to replace each of us.
SADALBARI
You would not be here, Lupus, if your grandfather Kornephoros had not sired Murzim.
ALCYONE
(to the ASSEMBLY)
One becomes two and then becomes one again.
SHAULA
(to the ASSEMBLY)
The child, once grown, must make a new child to replace the one that is gone.
THE ASSEMBLY
One must always return to one.
LUPUS
(to his family)
I am not speaking of children. It’s the food machines.
MURZIM
What of them?
LUPUS
They are becoming noisy, like Grandfather’s stomach.
KORNEPHOROS
Noisy like my stomach?
SADALBARI
Don’t be ridiculous, Lupus. The machines are no more noisy than they’ve ever been.
MURZIM
You must not make trouble, Lupus, by suggesting perfection is imperfection.
LUPUS
I apologize. The machines are perfectly noisy.
KORNEPHOROS
Cheeky boy! Do you want to be ejected?
RASTABAN
The penalty for heresy is ejection.
HYDRUS
(to the ASSEMBLY)
If you cannot accept the perfection of Alpha Omega, the endless perfect vacuum of space should be your home.
SHAULA
(to the ASSEMBLY)
Just as the body must sometimes expunge toxins, so must our Mother Alpha Omega sometimes expunge those among us who spread the disease of doubt.
THE ASSEMBLY
Doubt is a dream. We are awake.
MURZIM
My son, we do not want to lose you. Please speak carefully in the future.
LUPUS
Very well, Father.
(MURZIM, SADALBARI, and KORNEPHOROS return to their tableau.)
End of Scene 4.
Alpha Omega by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Scene 5:
(NASHIRA and ALYA go downstage to join LUPUS.)
ALYA
Did you tell them?
LUPUS
Yes.
NASHIRA
What did they say?
LUPUS
That the food machines have always been noisy.
ALYA
See? No one is interested in the truth.
ALCYONE
(to the ASSEMBLY)
All is peace. All is well.
SHAULA
I am the Keeper of the Truth.
HYDRUS and RASTABAN
The penalty for heresy is ejection.
THE ASSEMBLY
Doubt is a dream.
NASHIRA
(to ALYA and LUPUS)
If anyone knew we were meeting like this, we’d be arrested by the Protectors.
LUPUS
Why should anyone know? We’re careful.
ALYA
Even if they caught us, they couldn’t eject us until we’d had children.
SHAULA
(to the ASSEMBLY)
The child, once grown, must make a new child to replace the one that is gone.
THE ASSEMBLY
One must always return to one.
NASHIRA
(to ALYA and LUPUS)
But this is so serious. The Overgroup must know something is wrong.
ALYA
They’ll never admit to it. Their power depends on the illusion of perfection.
LUPUS
We are young, and so we seek real truth, not the manufactured Truth of Shaula the Priestess.
NASHIRA
The Matriarch’s daughter is young. Perhaps she would support us.
ALYA
Ha! That girl is kept in isolation and is groomed by the Overgroup to become the next Matriarch. She’s one of them, and is incapable of independent thought.
SHAULA
(to the ASSEMBLY)
Behold Electra!
THE ASSEMBLY
Electra over all, over even the Overgroup!
ELECTRA
(to herself)
I am a cleanly burning star high aloft, over even the Overgroup.
LUPUS
(to NASHIRA and ALYA)
We have no power and no chance, stuck in the damned Undergroup.
ALYA
Well, no one’s going to have any power if this ship, “Our Mother”, deteriorates to the point that she can no longer keep us alive.
NASHIRA
So you think Alpha Omega is just a big machine, a huge piece of equipment, and not our living creator?
ALYA
All I know is that nothing is perfect. That’s been proven to us by the malfunctioning machines. And we’re not dreaming. So the whole system is a lie.
LUPUS
If anyone but us heard you say that, you’d be ejected right now even if you don’t have a child to replace you.
HYDRUS
(to the ASSEMBLY)
If you cannot accept the perfection of Alpha Omega, the endless perfect vacuum of space should be your home.
THE ASSEMBLY
The penalty for heresy is ejection.
NASHIRA
(to ALYA and LUPUS)
I’m going to find a way to talk to Electra. I must. I can see no other way to proceed. The Overgroup must wake up and face the truth.
ALYA
Do what you must. But remember that the Overgroup could easily make you betray us all.
LUPUS
What difference does it make? Alpha Omega is dying anyway, and we will all die with her.
ALYA
If you do get a chance to speak with Electra, pick your words carefully.
(NASHIRA, ALYA, and LUPUS return to their groups.)
End of Scene 5.
Alpha Omega by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Scene 6:
(EL MUPHRID and BELLATRIX go downstage)
SHAULA
(to the ASSEMBLY)
The Reciters of Song and Story will speak for us.
BELLATRIX
Once long ago, at the very beginning of things, there was a beautiful living world.
EL MUPHRID
Vast and varied, it blossomed with all manner of miraculous beings.
BELLATRIX
And the most miraculous beings were the ones who looked just like us.
EL MUPHRID
They built great shining structures and marvelous devices of all kinds.
BELLATRIX
But they could not stop. They kept building and building and inventing more and more things.
EL MUPHRID
And the things they built began to choke and strangle the beautiful living world.
BELLATRIX
And so a few of the clever beings built a vessel that would carry them away from the dying world.
EL MUPHRID
And a few, a very, very few of the clever beings went aboard the vessel, and the vessel left the world, now sad and dark and choked with poisonous things.
BELLATRIX
And the beings on the vessel had children, and then died, and then their children had children, and died in their turn.
EL MUPHRID
And the beings on the vessel forgot the world their ancestors had left behind.
BELLATRIX
The vessel itself became the only world they knew.
EL MUPHRID
But always, they were careful, very careful, to leave the vessel undisturbed, for something inside them warned them that their ancient ancestors had paid a terrible price for tampering with the very thing that gave them life.
BELLATRIX
And so they drifted through endless space, in the safe embrace of their wonderful vessel.
(EL MUPHRID and BELLATRIX return to their place in the UNDERGROUP.)
SHAULA
(to the ASSEMBLY)
This story reminds us that it is not for us to meddle with the way things are. Our Mother, the Spaceship Alpha Omega, knows best what is good for us, what keeps us alive.
ALCYONE
(to the ASSEMBLY)
Our mother, the spaceship Alpha Omega, speaks through me. I am her instrument of peace. Through my voice comes forth her voice of reassurance, her words of calm encouragement. If your dreams disturb you, remember that you will always awaken in the quiet perfection of Alpha Omega. She provides us with the labyrinth of dreams, her gift for our curiosity. Let all your questions and doubts remain within your dreams, and they will be answered with the reassurance that all is perfect when you finally and fully awaken.
THE ASSEMBLY
All will be answered when we are finally awake.
End of Scene 6.
Alpha Omega by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Scene 7:
(ELECTRA goes downstage)
ELECTRA
(to herself)
I am a shining star floating high over the Overgroup, for I am the daughter of the Matriarch. One day, our Mother, the spaceship Alpha Omega, will speak through me and I will enter into the final and highest place of perfection.
(NASHIRA approaches ELECTRA)
ELECTRA
(to NASHIRA)
What are you?
NASHIRA
Please don’t be afraid.
ELECTRA
How have you risen so high so as to float with me over all?
NASHIRA
I am Nashira, a cleaner from the Undergroup. I can move freely as I observe my duties.
ELECTRA
I do not at all understand you. What you say is beyond comprehension.
NASHIRA
Please, I must tell you something that is true.
ELECTRA
I know what is true.
NASHIRA
Do you know that Alpha Omega is sick and dying?
ELECTRA
I am dreaming.
NASHIRA
No, please…you’re awake.
(gently taking ELECTRA’S hand)
See?
ELECTRA
(drawing back)
I am awake.
NASHIRA
Electra, the machines that keep us alive no longer work properly. Every day they become less and less reliable. We must try to find out why, or Alpha Omega will become a dead world.
ELECTRA
You are speaking, and I am listening, but I cannot make sense of your words.
NASHIRA
Try to understand. You must.
(HYDRUS and RASTABAN go downstage and take NASHIRA by the arms.)
HYDRUS
(to NASHIRA)
You are under arrest for heresy.
RASTABAN
You will be taken before Shaula, the Keeper of Truth, for judgment.
ELECTRA
I am dreaming.
RASTABAN
Yes, you are dreaming.
HYDRUS
Only dreams take us to where things go wrong.
ELECTRA
I dream while floating over even the Overgroup.
RASTABAN Yes.
(ELECTRA returns to her tableau and HYDRUS and RASTABAN throw NASHIRA to the floor and return to their positions in the OVERGROUP.)
SHAULA
(to the ASSEMBLY)
All will be answered when we are finally awake.
THE ASSEMBLY
The dream is the question. The awakening is the answer.
End of Scene 7.
Alpha Omega by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Scene 8:
(GEMMA and VUL go to NASHIRA)
GEMMA
Nashira, what have you done?
VUL
Gemma, don’t.
(quietly)
They will be listening.
NASHIRA
Why did they let you visit me?
GEMMA
We were ordered to come and see you by the Protectors.
VUL
Are you all right, Nashira?
NASHIRA
Remember when I tried to talk to you about the cleaning machines?
GEMMA
We sent you to get medicine to erase your dangerous dream.
NASHIRA
Yes, you did the right thing, Mother.
VUL
But you did take your medicine, didn’t you?
NASHIRA
No.
GEMMA
Nashira, why did you disobey us?
NASHIRA
You tried to look after me, to help me survive.
VUL
Of course we did. I don’t understand.
NASHIRA
That’s best. It would not be good for you to understand.
(HYDRUS goes to them.)
HYDRUS
(to GEMMA and VUL)
That’s enough. Return to your duties.
(GEMMA and VUL return to their place in the UNDERGROUP.)
HYDRUS
Nashira, we know about your friends.
NASHIRA
The ship is dying, Hydrus. You’re not a fool. You must know.
HYDRUS
What I know is not important. Alpha Omega is infinitely wiser than I shall ever be. If a few systems are not doing what they normally do, it is simply part of an unfolding plan, not an indictment of the ship’s perfection.
NASHIRA
You are cleverer than me, but I know you’re wrong.
HYDRUS
That’s why you are being held here while I am free.
NASHIRA
What will become of my friends?
HYDRUS
They have already been made to accept medical treatment. They have no memory of any of this.
NASHIRA
Is that what you will do to me?
HYDRUS
No, Nashira. You’ve gone too far. You must prepare yourself for the harshest judgment.
(HYDRUS returns to his place in the OVERGROUP.)
End of Scene 8.
Alpha Omega by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Scene 9:
SHAULA
(to the ASSEMBLY)
Centaurus, the Sacred Elder, he who once was Patriarch, speaks.
THE ASSEMBLY
Centaurus.
CENTAURUS
(to Lesath)
I remember always my childhood.
LESATH
He recalls his childhood.
CENTAURUS
I was always alone.
LESATH
He was alone, as is the way for the child of the Matriarch, who is the child of Alpha Omega.
CENTAURUS
To be alone is to remain perfect.
LESATH
He was untouched by doubt because there was no one to test his faith.
CENTAURUS
I was alone waiting to become the voice of Alpha Omega .
LESATH
Only by being alone could he prepare to be the incarnation of Alpha Omega.
SHAULA
Electra, the daughter of the Matriarch, who is a shining star over even the Overgroup, must be alone.
THE ASSEMBLY
Electra, our shining star, must be alone.
ALCYONE
I am the Matriarch Alcyone. Through the Sacred Elder Centaurus, Alpha Omega created me. Through me, Alpha Omega created Electra. Each in turn has been, is, and will be the voice of our Mother, the Spaceship Alpha Omega. In our solitude, the Patriarch and I learned to listen to her voice. Now Electra must learn.
SHAULA
Let no one ever again disturb the solitude of Electra.
THE ASSEMBLY
Electra, our shining star, must be alone.
End of Scene 9.
Alpha Omega by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Scene 10:
(GOMEISA, MIRA, and ALYA go to NASHIRA.)
GOMEISA
Soon you will face judgment, Nashira.
MIRA
We are here to offer you comfort.
GOMEISA
(offering NASHIRA a small vial)
This little vial contains a liquid that will make it easier for you to stay calm when you face Shaula.
NASHIRA
I don’t want it.
ALYA
She’s stubborn, Father. I wonder why?
MIRA
That’s a legitimate medical question, Alya. Why don’t you want the medicine, Nashira?
NASHIRA
A clear mind is a valuable thing.
GOMEISA
Though she is young, she no longer talks like a child.
ALYA
She’s dangerous.
NASHIRA
Alya, have you really forgotten?
ALYA
I am awake, Nashira, and I’m thankful for it.
MIRA
We’ll leave the medicine with you in case you choose to use it.
GOMEISA
It would be a good idea for you to take it.
NASHIRA
There are no good ideas on Alpha Omega.
(GOMEISA, MIRA, and ALYA return to their place in the UNDERGROUP.)
End of Scene 10.
Alpha Omega by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Scene 11:
(KORNEPHOROS, MURZIM, SADALBARI, and LUPUS join NASHIRA.)
KORNEPHOROS
There she is. I wonder if she’s hungry?
MURZIM
She doesn’t look hungry.
SADALBARI
Are you hungry, Nashira?
NASHIRA
No.
LUPUS
Are you afraid, Nashira?
KORNEPHOROS
What sort of question is that, foolish boy?
MURZIM
What do you know of fear, Lupus?
SADALBARI
My lad, you are to speak only of food.
NASHIRA
Lupus, have you forgotten too?
LUPUS
Don’t be afraid, Nashira.
KORNEPHOROS
We must get that boy out of here. The girl is obviously not interested in food.
MURZIM
If I was you, I’d eat to preserve my strength, Nashira.
SADALBARI
Oh, leave her be.
(KORNEPHOROS, MURZIM, and SADALBARI begin to leave. LUPUS remains with NASHIRA.)
SADALBARI
Lupus, come along. Stop standing there like a dolt.
(LUPUS joins them and they return to their tableau.)
End of Scene 11.
Alpha Omega by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Scene 12:
(EL MUPHRID and BELLATRIX join NASHIRA and tell her a story.)
EL MUPHRID
Once there was a world that was ruled by a leader called a queen.
BELLATRIX
She had a daughter, who was called a princess.
EL MUPHRID
Among the people, there was a girl who thought that something was wrong with the world.
BELLATRIX
She thought the princess would agree with her.
EL MUPHRID
So she sneaked into the place where the princess was alone, learning how to be the queen.
BELLATRIX
She told the princess that the world was falling to pieces.
EL MUPHRID
The princess was frightened of the girl and her terrible words.
BELLATRIX
But the princess’s guards came to her rescue and arrested the girl and locked her in a room alone.
EL MUPHRID
The girl felt ashamed for frightening the princess.
BELLATRIX
She realized that there was nothing wrong with the world, except her.
EL MUPHRID
When she was taken before the queen, she begged for forgiveness.
BELLATRIX
Which was a wise thing to do. Because if she had kept on complaining about the world, the queen would have had the girl’s head chopped off.
(BELLATRIX and EL MUPHRID return to their tableau.)
End of Scene 12.
Alpha Omega by Richard Stuart Dixon, Good School Plays.
Scene 13:
(NASHIRA is standing before the ASSEMBLY.)
SHAULA
Nashira, you have disturbed the peace and order of Alpha Omega. Do you have anything to say?
NASHIRA
No.
SHAULA
Do you want to apologize for your errors?
NASHIRA
No.
LUPUS
I have something to say!
SADALBARI
Shut up, stupid boy!
SHAULA
(to SADALBARI)
Let him speak.
LUPUS
Nashira knows the truth.
SHAULA
If she knows the truth, she will apologize.
LUPUS
The truth she knows requires no apology.
RASTABAN
Be careful what you say, boy.
HYDRUS
Remember your place, Lupus.
LUPUS
I am remembering. And I remember that Alpha Omega is falling to pieces.
SHAULA
Go and stand with Nashira.
(LUPUS joins NASHIRA)
SHAULA
Nashira has lost her last chance, Lupus. But you still have yours. Do you want to take back what you just said?
LUPUS
No. What’s the point? Alpha Omega will soon be a deathtrap anyway.
(ELECTRA joins them.)
ALCYONE
Electra! What are you doing? You must not walk among us!
ELECTRA
I am not dreaming. This is the truth. This is what is right. Alpha Omega is perfection, and so this girl’s words are perfect and pefectly true. We must try to correct the failing machines.
(ELECTRA returns to her place in the OVERGROUP.)
SHAULA
Nashira has corrupted Electra, the daughter of the Matriarch. We will do what we can to save her. Nashira and Lupus, you must be kept away from us. You are dangerous contaminants. You will be placed in a pod that will be tethered to Alpha Omega, and you will remain tethered until you make two children, who will be taken from you. Then you will be cast adrift, which is, after all, what you really want.
THE ASSEMBLY
The punishment for heresy is ejection.
End of Scene 13.
Epilogue:
(NASHIRA and LUPUS face the AUDIENCE and NASHIRA addresses them.)
NASHIRA
Lupus and I were placed in the pod, and for a long time we trailed behind Alpha Omega, attached to her by a long tether that served as an umbilical cord. One day, the tether parted, and we drifted away from the ship that had been our world. We watched her become smaller and smaller through the tiny viewing port in our pod, and suddenly she became a brilliant bursting light, like an exploding star, and was gone. And now we find ourselves drifting towards a huge sphere, a new world, stretched out beneath us, blue and green and many other colours. Our pod seems to know what to do, for we are descending slowly and carefully. And slowly and carefully, we will see if this new world will welcome us, the only survivors of Alpha Omega, a lost ship that vanished in a great burst of perfect light.
END OF THE PLAY.