SLEEP MEETS DEATH

A GREEK DRAMA

SLEEP MEETS DEATH

CAST

MORPHEUS

THE GOD OF SLEEP

THANATOS

THE GOD OF DEATH

MOTHER NIGHT

TIRESIAS, A SAGE

FEMALE CHORUS

SCENES  ELYSIUM AND EARTH

Opens with Greek Classical Music CD supplied.

CHORUS :

The Gods of Sleep and Death, met one silvery winters day,

Sleepy, dozy Morpheus and grim Thanatos were twins

They’d met to enjoy some cut and thrust, in verbal play,

Every word was couched in broad smiles and hearty grins,

( Shots of two young men laughing and joking)

Then their dreaded, Mother, Queen of Night appeared upon the scene,

And what she had to say was definitely not serene!

MOTHER NIGHT APPEARS

Sons, stop your idiotic foolish chatter will you please!

Your stupid ideas of humour are like some disease,

What I have to tell you is most critical and grave,

 Please think, how my worldly kingdom we can save,

Those earthling mortals are plotting a revolution,

To cast off my yoke of government as a solution

For their many deserved sufferings and multiple ills,

I want you to find a way to keep them meek and mild,

At the moment they’re threatening to get quite rough and wild!

THANATOS

I could have them slaughtered quick as a lightening flash,

As dreaded God of Death this is my universal role,

We’ll give them all a noxious plague, they’ll fall in a mighty crash,

Then Mother you can start a new race again, obedient and whole.

MOTHER NIGHT

No, no, my most morbid murderous blood thirsty son,

This is not what in any way that I desire to be done!

Morpheus, perhaps you are a better, much wiser man,

Can’t you think up some more intelligent plan?

MORPHEUS

I’ll weave a magic spell of dreams for them instead,

In which these muddled mortals will be meekly led

To weakly graze in shadows grey, like sheep at play.

Compare these two states, attend well to what I say!

Brief is the sleeping dream that you enjoy in bed,

But a waking dream is stable, and stays until you’re dead.

Listen! Learn some real truth, that’s my well tried way;

All feels real to the sleeping dreamer’s satisfaction,

But the stuff of dreams is merely a mental reaction!

I’ll hypnotise them so that they dream their life away,

They’ll be peaceful and never revolt by night or day!

MOTHER NIGHT

“Thank you son, my dear, for having such a great idea,

If they’re sent to sleep  by Thee, where’s my need to fear?”

Tell me how you’ll achieve this miraculous feat,

To listen to your plan will be a most delightful treat!

CHORUS

What you’re about to hear is quite a novel scheme,

So draw close and lend your most attentive ear!

He’s going to put them into a state of dream,

Then their wicked Mother will feel free of fear.

MORPHEUS

In my great magical cinema show,

As wizard director I’ll deftly dim the light,

Plot a soap opera to project for them tonight.

Like puppets they’ll act on the silver screen below.

They’ll think they’re the sole doer’s of their acts,

Ignorant of all real cosmic truths and facts!

CHORUS

But one wise Sage whose own true Self does know,

As earth’s patrons settle down for this epic sight

To thrill their feelings with shock, horror and delight,

Warns them way down on  planet earth below,

The dangers of this hypnotic magic picture show.

Scene :Earth

Opens with trumpet music

Tiresias speaks

Lantern, screen and slides, that  flow

Are emanations from the senses and the mind.

The show you’re watching is a shadow play,

In each human’s will, a spool unwinds his day.

As knowers of the Real, you’re like the blind.

So stop reacting! There’s a much wiser way;

In your blissful, Conscious Self, be still and stay!

All objects are soap bubbles in the mind,

Each being’s driven by One Almighty God!;

He causes clouds to weep and mountains nod.

Consciousness strives through senses five to find

The magic of a dream fit to trick the blind.

For each instrumental part unwinds

Through assonant chords and dissonant notes.

The whole concerto grosso together floats,

Performing ethereal music of the spheres,

For the lone enjoyment of  His celestial ears.

Yet we’re more than piano rolls of sound,

We flow from continuo, a monochord profound,

Played by a virtuoso, improvising with cosmic force,

From the vast silence of His infinite resource.

This life of ours is a bewildering dance

Whirled by a wild Dervish God divine,

Drunk on vintage Dionysian wine,

Wildly turning, nothing left to chance.

Upon the mellow pipes of circumstance.

He choreographs a play of space and time,

Every glance upon Earth’s stage is His rhyme.

Universes glide through His mystic stance.

With rolling drums of thunder, mark His stamp;

(SOUND THUNDER)

In symphony of spheres, hear His tune.

Effulgent Sun shines as a beacon lamp,

His finger ever points towards the silver Moon.

He’s the Alone, whereby all things are done;

Divine dancer, dancing, and the dance are one.

ELYSIUM

MOTHER NIGHT

My son’s, did you hear what Tiresias said, we can’t have that

He’s warning them, now your clever plan will fall down flat!

THANATOS

Don’t worry only a few will understand and wake up from sleep

The rest will go on dreaming  under Morpheus’s clever spell,

Don’t worry Mother all will be well, very, very well!

They’ll carry on living in the same old way, harmless as grazing sheep.