Motive and Intent

originally posted June 5, 2006

When I adapted the Tallux play and had it staged in the very theater that bears his name, my purpose was two-fold. Firstly, I wanted to prove to myself that such a thing, being a playwright, was not beyond my ken. The finest of poets produced plays, song dramas mostly. I was not hesitant that I could manage it. I merely wondered if I might manage it well. Secondly, I wanted a vehicle to promote the business venture that I set out upon some thirteen months ago. I felt I was successful in both pursuits. The Merchant of Ko-ro-ba was well received, if grudgingly, by those of Ar who patronize the theater. Too, it attracted the attention of Merchant and financier Vesutto of Venna who negotiated an exclusive run of my next work in the smaller, upscale theaters of his city.
The Fall of Agamedes ran for several months in Venna. Two minor rewrites during this time kept the production fresh and sold every seat available the entire tour. Through Vesutto's connections, famed Locutius and well-regarded but highly underrated Nikos of Tyros were signed to long term contracts to play the title role of Agamedes the Warrior and Julian the Assassin, respectively. This was, as it turned out, an extended dress rehearsal for the one night only, Fair of En'kara showing at the base of the black Sardar. Locutius and Nikos of Tyros switched roles in the two-man play. Where energy bulbs lit the Vennan production and a small cadre of Musicians scored the action, the great amphitheater of the Fair was lit with massive torches and a full orchestral pit with no fewer than thirty chairs, not including the players of wide-skinned drums that employed massive, leather-wrapped mallets to pound out their deep, hollow beats. With this play, my goal was to be considered a 'Playwright of Gor'. I wanted to succeed or fail on a world stage. Let my fellows from the icy scapes of far off Torvaldsland to the scorching Tahari praise or jeer me as one. I think it was well-regarded.
Now, a guest of Clark of the House of Clark, I am penning a third work. This work may be my most ambitious simply for the scandal it might cause. Inspired mainly from the diaries and recollections of my slave, the girl Joy, it will detail events primarily regarded as 'the second knowledge'. I am putting the coffle to work in this endeavor. Some will paint. Some will sew. Original art by more than one girl will be prominently displayed. Most of them will be called upon to assume a role, having been cast parts. I have, myself, with the assistance of skilled laborers, fashioned props and set pieces. I do not have a title as yet. I am sure it will come to me as I write the final scenes, as the final stitches are sewn for the elaborate costuming, as the last of the paint dries before it will be staged before an audience. I wonder how it will be greeted. Serious drama, of course, does not employ slaves upon the stage. Women, generally, are not involved at all. The parts of women are played by men. I have ignored, too, many the accepted conventions of proper, contemporary theater. The costuming, while elaborate, will not be exaggerated. Actors will not break into song to narrate the events of the play. There will be no 'larger than life' characters or masked characters or anything of the sort. I am striving for authenticity. Of course, what I purport to be authentic may be accepted or simply dismissed as impossible. The hall I have chosen to stage the play, by no coincidence, is most often used for the vending of girls. I have had the block removed and the sawdust swept away. What remained was the heavy velvet curtain and a worn, wooden floor, polished by the heels of thousands of marketed sluts. Perhaps if the work is found offensive, scandal may be avoided by my generous host, Clark of Thentis, by the venue in which the heresy is portrayed.
Who decides what is orthodox, what is acceptable? It is said that this very question was put forth by Scormus of Ar, the fiery, indomitable Player, in the throne room of treacherous Belnar, once Ubar of Brundisium. He asked of fellow Player, Teminides of Cos, "Is it not true that today's orthodoxy is little more than yesterday's heresy triumphant?" He spoke, of course, about Kaissa, The Game, but I think his words apply more broadly to life. There might be a Poet in Scormus of Ar, whatever the color of his robes.