SODOM AND TOMORROW

By Derek Strahan

God has been visiting Earth in the guise of media magnate Jay Hovey (known to all as JH). He has been gathering evidence about human aptitudes to decide whether or not the species needs to be re-engineered or superseded. As a media mogul He is well placed to gather the necessary data. To finalise His research He has invited a representative group of humans, drawn mostly from the staff of His media empire, to a weekend get-together at His country estate to discuss a theme for a future edition of His lifestyle magazine “Enjoy”. In this project He is being assisted by His lawyer, Luke Fier, alias the Devil, and his maid, Veneria, alias the goddess Venus. When God discloses that the theme under discussion is Sodomy, his guests reveal a wide range of reactions according to their beliefs, sexual preferences and lifestyle choices. Little do these humans know that the outcome of their weekend discussions will decide the fate of the human species.

Being human, non-stop talk of sex, sin and sodomy provokes various behaviours. Mike, a young Reverend is revealed to be a closet gay, when he is seduced by James, the young male partner of Elvis, a gay Sales Manager. Tension arises between Eleanor, the Magazine’s lesbian editor and Cutie, her young friend, who shuts herself away for most of the weekend in the library reading up on sexuality in religion – thus empowering herself to ask God some awkward questions. Two mismatched married couples Len and Maggie, and Dan and Virginia are drawn into clumsy experiments with sodomy, and end up switching partners. Tension grows between Lilian, God’s respectable wife and Tamara, his super-model mistress, especially when she reveals she is pregnant – by God.

Veneria/Venus, finding herself overworked providing hospitality to all these fractious guests, grows impatient and calls in some extra help. The weekend is gatecrashed by Bacchus and his followers. In the ensuing Bacchanal, God, the Devil and Venus are revealed as deities, to the aston

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Oct 15, 2011
• ISBN: 9781618423306

Derek Strahan

Derek Strahan is a Springfield resident and the author of the blog "Lost New England." He is a graduate of Westfield State University with degrees in English and regional planning, and he teaches English at the Master's School in Simsbury, Connecticut.

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Strahan

PREFACE TO THE PLAY

DON’T BLAME THE BULGARIANS

It is commonly thought (if it is thought about at all) that the word bugger is derived from Bulgarians and that this is because Bulgarians were unduly fond of the practice of buggery. Further investigation reveals that, in fact, the origin of this slur against the Bulgarian nation dates from the 10th century when it was in fact directed against a Gnostic religiopolitical sect called after its leader, a priest called Bogomil.

The Church in that era habitually accused heretics of being also perverts so the only factor connecting buggery to Bulgaria is the fact that Bogomilism began in Bulgaria and then spread outward through the Byzantine Empire reaching as far as England, hence the wide circulation throughout Europe and beyond of the term bugger. Gnostics were regarded as heretics because, being dualists, they believed in the complete separation of matter and spirit. They further believed that the world, a manifestation of matter, was not created by the true God but by a deluded demiurge, called Jehovah; and that the Wise Serpent was the true intermediary between humans and the real Creator of the universe!

This play has nothing whatsoever to do with Bogomolism or Gnosticism except by inference, due to the presence in the cast of this play of both God and the Devil. The Devil of this play welcomes the endorsement given him by the Gnostics – though whether or not our Devil is the Wise Serpent is not made clear.

Neither is this play about buggery, except by inference, and only because that word eventually became synonymous with sodomy to denote anal sexual intercourse; which is misleading (or at least confusing) since the word sodomy did not originally denote that act, at least not exclusively. The term was originally used (and sometimes still is) to denote any sexual act that does not advance, or that seeks to subvert the true and proper purpose of sexual intercourse, namely the propagation of the species.

True as the above may be, neither is this play directly about sodomy, although the word Sodom is in the title. Since the title is a play on the grouping of words Sodom and Gomorrah, you would be right to deduce that the primary reference of the word Sodom in the title is to the city of Sodom. Both Sodom and Gomorrah were presumed to have been destroyed by God as punishment for the sinful ways of two cities’ inhabitants. This play does contain a lively discussion about those biblical events, but only in the context of a group of contemporary humans contemplating a possible re-visiting upon them of the wrath of God in respect of their own ongoing sinfulness. But this play is not primarily about human error. So what is it about? 

HAS GOD BECOME ANNOYED AGAIN?

This play explores the possibility that God has indeed become, once again, Fed Up with the Human Race, and is considering cancelling it. After all the care He took with Creation, He is puzzled by how inept humans are at achieving happiness and what a sorry mess their lives are at every level of existence, personal, social and political. He is now trying to determine where fault lies. He is prepared to allow that humans might not be entirely to blame. He is prepared to concede that although His Plan is Entirely Perfect in theory, certain glitches may have occurred in the process of transferring Eternal Truth to Temporal Co-ordinates (and that perhaps the Gnostics had a point). So far He has identified two main Problems, both of which devolve from the existence of Free Will, without which there could be no Fun and Games, since everything would be boringly pre-ordained. But with Free Will have come two Unintended Side-effects.

Firstly: God has observed that the application of Free Will produces unending Conflicts of Interest leading to Very Bad Temper Tantrums of all kinds.

Secondly: There is the problem of Pleasure, which God thought was one of His Better Ideas, as He thought it would enable all beings to enjoy His Creation, through the Enhancement of Consciousness, and thus be Eternally Grateful to Him.

However, in many respects God’s plan has not worked out all that well, and He has come to feel that perhaps some of His earlier retributions were, shall He say, over-reactions? It is clear that Humans very quickly became adept in separating Stimulus from Function, through the invention of Games. Nowhere is this disjunction clearer than in area of Sex where Humans devote a disproportionate amount of time to devising ways to enjoy the Pleasure of Sex, without incurring the Burdens and Responsibilities of its Function, namely Reproduction. Control of Behaviour by Rules, whether Ten or more, has clearly proven to be a Complete Failure.

And God now perceives that, as before in Sodom, one particular Bodily Part is central to this dichotomy, namely the Anus. Frequent usage has proved that this anatomical device works perfectly well as part of the Autonomic Nervous System; but Humans, particularly Male Humans, persist in treating the anus as an Analogue for the Female Sex Organ in persons of either gender in their search for ever more intense forms of Pleasure. This, then, is the question God asks Himself. Is the human addiction to Sodomy the fault of God? Is it the result of a simple Design Flaw, namely the Placement of the Anus? But where else could it have gone, God asks Himself? Should God now reject the Human Model of Sentient Life, delete it from Creation, and return to the Drawing Board?

SO WHAT IS THIS PLAY ABOUT?

As our play opens, God has been hard at work in his Heavenly Workshop trying to overcome design flaws in the human form, while simultaneously re-visiting Earth this time in the guise of media magnate Jay Hovey (known to all as JH). He has been gathering evidence about human aptitudes to decide whether or not the species needs to be re-engineered or superseded. As a media mogul He is well placed to gather the necessary data. To finalise His research He has invited a representative group of humans, drawn mostly from the staff of His media empire, to a weekend get-together at His country estate to discuss a theme for a future edition of His lifestyle magazine Enjoy. In this project He is being assisted by His lawyer, Luke Fier, alias the Devil, and His maid, Veneria, alias the goddess Venus. When God discloses that the theme under discussion is Sodomy, His guests reveal a wide range of reactions according to their beliefs, sexual preferences and lifestyle choices. Little do these humans know that the outcome of their weekend discussions will decide the fate of the human species.

Being human, non-stop talk of sex, sin and sodomy provokes various behaviours. Mike, a young Reverend is revealed to be a closet gay, when he is almost seduced by James, the young male partner of Elvis, a gay Sales Manager, who interrupts their garden tryst just in time. Tension arises between Eleanor, the Magazine’s lesbian editor and Cutie, her young friend, who shuts herself away for most of the weekend in the library reading up on sexuality in religion – thus empowering herself to ask God some awkward questions. Two mismatched married couples Len and Maggie, and Dan and Virginia are drawn into clumsy experiments with sodomy, and end up switching partners. Tension grows between Lilian, God’s respectable wife and Tamara, his super-model mistress, especially when Tamara reveals she is pregnant – by God.

Veneria/Venus, finding herself overworked providing hospitality to all these fractious guests, grows impatient and calls in some extra help. The weekend is gate-crashed by Bacchus and his followers. In the ensuing Bacchanal, God, the Devil and Venus are revealed as deities, to the astonishment and consternation of the assembled humans, who become even more concerned when it dawns that the real topic under discussion is not a life style issue for a pop magazine, but the survival (or not) of their very own species.

HOLIDAYING IN HELL AND HEAVEN

The Devil has been enjoying the humans’ consternation and has been avidly contributing to the theological debate that ensures. As a former (now fallen) angel he is well informed on all biblical issues. In particular his commentary on the fall of Sodom has provoked doubts as to the rightness of that act of retribution. To assist the humans in their task of self-assessment, God and the Devil, in a rare instance of collaboration, take the humans on quick tours, first of Hell, then of Heaven, so that they can explore their options. But this only inflames the humans’ confusion and dismay.

Now God’s guests turn on God and assail Him with a litany of their complaints, dissatisfactions and disbelief. They begin to doubt that God is who He says He is. Demanding proof of His powers they ask for a transformation, in their anger asking Him to change Himself into something repellent. God obliges by transforming Himself into an alien creature from another world, a Blob, which dies within one minute of its manifestation. Panic! They have killed God! But the Blob disappears and God returns briefly, as He explains, to provide them this time with a body to account for His disappearance. Before finally departing He promises that He will not destroy humanity, not on this occasion. He finds them all much too amusing.

The Devil is furious. He had anticipated the Apocalypse and his gaining custody of all human souls at his holiday resort Lucifer’s Hideaway, excepting those few souls who prefer to work in the administrative offices of the Universe, namely Heaven. He morphs into the traditional appearance of Satan, activates his escape route and vanishes into a pit which forms in the middle of the Living Room issuing flames and sulphurous smoke, thus damaging the expensive parquet floor. James, curious, goes into the pit, and Elvis, hurrying over to pull him out, pauses, aghast, at the edge of the chasm. Freeze action. The end?

If this play proves popular, as well as edifying, it is intended that there should be sequels: God in Hell followed by The Devil in Heaven. That should about do it.

CAST OF CHARACTERS 

JAY HOVEY - God, known by numerous names, some beginning with ‘J’. Currently manifests as a media magnate now in His 50s. Known as ‘JH’, He has parlayed His media and press interests to create an international conglomerate. He can afford to indulge a few publishing whims on the side which are not mainstream - but is unable to refrain from exercising editorial control - believes that even niche markets should make a profit. If a loss is made it should be in the cause of market exploration - even a tax loss venture should ultimately open the way to greater profitability. His current whim (which serves His real underlying purpose) is to confront the real issues involved in gender politics by an in-four-face, cover-to-cover theme treatment on sodomy in his lifestyle mag, ENJOY, ostensibly to boost circulation. He has invited a dozen or so guests to his country estate for a weekend of brainstorming to prepare the new edition. No one knows what the topic of discussion will be, except Jay Himself. In His eternal persona runs Administrative Offices for the Universe in timeless premises known as Heaven.

LILIAN HOVEY - The Magnate’s wife, in her 40s. A life of unlimited wealth is marred by her disapproval of the methods her husband uses in acquiring and maintaining it. The resort to yellow journalism and trashy magazines is the worm in the glowing, golden apples of prosperity.  The more her husband is accused of scandal-mongering, the grander Lillian becomes in her manner, dress and opinions. She doesn’t attend Jay’s brainstorming sessions.  But sometimes she hovers. . She occasionally consents to having sex with her husband. She does not suspect that her husband is God, and would be most annoyed to find out that this is so, and that he had been hiding this from her.

LUKE FIER - The Adversary, alias the Serpent, the Devil, Lucifer, Mephistopheles. Also a lawyer, specialising in media and the arts, manifests as mid-40s. Of subtle mind, he enjoys employing logic and lateral thinking to subvert all established norms of thought and behaviour, yet remains of the establishment because of his unique ability as a legal trouble shooter. Runs Lucifer’s Hideaway, a timeless holiday resort for souls temporarily bodiless.

VENERIA 1, VENERIA 2 (same person) exceptionally beautiful, immortal, She is Aphrodite/Venus/Isis, incarnate as the Maid at the Hovey country estate. Being a Goddess, she is able to be in several places at once, and often is. In her present incarnation she bears a resemblance to Marilyn Monroe. As a maid she is absent-minded, easily distracted and clumsy. This is because, being the embodiment of the Eternal Feminine, she finds it burdensome to be encumbered with a mortal body, however beautiful. She finds it difficult to adjust to her current disguise, which involves performing menial duties. Jay won’t sack her, despite Lilian’s frequent requests that he do so.

TAMARA - A model, on her way to becoming a supermodel. Highly intelligent, she is trying to come to terms with the duality of being a person and a product. She is also Jay’s current mistress, is pregnant by him, and is concerned to ensure that she gets child support. Her concern intensifies after she learns that her lover is God. Should she carry through to term? Or will she abort the Son of God? (She’s had the ultrasound to determine the sex of the foetus).

CUTIE PYE - real name Gertrude which she hates, so has retained her schooldays nickname. Cutie drives guys crazy because, as well as being luscious in lipstick, she is also overwhelmingly lesbian by inclination and practise. Guys just don't do it for her, although she is adept at leading on for advantage. Being flirtatious just comes naturally, because she loves approval.  All of that aside, she has a retentive memory, a filing cabinet mind, and has chosen to make herself indispensable to Eleanor Crosland - as her PA.  Being PA came first. Being Eleanor’s live-away but stop-over partner came second. It is worth mentioning here that Eleanor is allowed to think that she is in charge in this relationship.

ELEANOR CROSLAND - A neo-feminist of the kind that enrages Germaine Greer. In her opinion the major battles for equality have been fought and won and it is time to enjoy the fruits of victory.  This makes her an ideal editor for a lifestyle magazine called ENJOY which is aimed equally at females and males of the post-feminist/post-snag, post-postmodern generation. However, though her literary agenda is feel-good, Eleanor is no soft touch herself.  What she enjoys is having power and exercising it. Cutie knows this. Her power resides in acting out the dependent female role, to Eleanor’s controlling male role. No, they are not co-dependant. Cutie is in charge! It is Eleanor who is expendable ...

ELVIS HUGHES - Advertising Sales Director for ENJOY, mid-30s, gay, motor mouth, adept at laying on charm to bring in clients - intuitive about saying the flattering thing - and equally talented at saying the cutting thing to amuse but only in chosen company when the wounds he inflicts won’t hurt his own interests.  He is a proselytising gay, and used to prefer cruising to being attached but then he met James. His main priority in life is to maintain the income necessary to support his chosen life style. Next priority is to maintain his own self-esteem by putting down others. He is intelligent and combative. He is not comfortable about being so fond of his current partner.

JAMES McDONALD - late teens, a beautiful young toy boy, from a wealthy family.  His is gay partly out of inclination, but also to spite his over strict Protestant parents. He is the current partner of Elvis, and the relationship is more complex than either realises, since James is as much a de facto child as a toyboy.

REVEREND MIKE HOLDEN - A TV Evangelist whose business is salvation, whose primary product is heaven, which he peddles to the insecure.  He is the prototype forgiveness salesman/moral standover merchant, who operates through fear. The more sins he can define, the more moral terror he can invoke, the richer he will get. His public persona is invaluable to Jay Hovey as a resource for his various publications. The Reverend Mike can always be relied upon to articulate the views of the religious right, and provoke squeaks of outrage from liberals. The Revered Mike is particularly down on gays, and is never lost for a biblical quote to reinforce his views.  The Reverend Mike is a suppressed gay who is about to find himself!

MARRIED COUPLE 1 - THE MEDIA COUPLE: DAN & VIRGINIA HARVEY run a weekly Home & Garden TV program called HANDY HOME HINTS, and are icons of mainstream culture, contracted to one of Jay Hovey’s free-to-air TV channels. Unsurprisingly the happy couple act which endears them to millions on TV is just that - an act, which they maintain for the money. Their main problem is a libido gap. It is Virginia who wants more than she gets.  She is fretting to break out and do her own fashion show.  She is bored with recipes and garden nooks, whereas Dan is in his element, and can’t understand what the problem is. From Virginia’s point of view, the problem is him - in bed and out!

MARRIED COUPLE 2 - THE AVERAGE