Tarek Ali Hassan
Theatre
24-October-2020
I - the thing
the thing the
thing the thing!
oh the thing
the thing is IT
the thing and nothing but the thing
long live the thing
hurrah for the thing
what is the thing?
the books say
the thing is ......THE THING
and the wisdom of
the ages
...and sages
worn out pages cages museum pieces
masterpieces THE THING
the thing IS
the thing is our SALVATION
permutation castration
the thing is the isness that is not
before the essence of
the meaningfulness of reason
before
existence existing apple
cart before
the apple
donkey before the horse
cart
after the
equi-histamopholous oblong
wheel was invented
(pythaphagoranamus 2)
THE THING IS MYSTERIOUS
the thing the
thing the thing
oh the thing what is the thing?
LET US SPEAK
ABOUT THE THING
........................PATIENTLY
think
see
hear
let us read
let us write
LET US FIGHT
about
the thing
for a month
a year
a century
or
two
or
four
or
eight
or
ninety eight
or eighty four
the thing the
thing the thing
oh the thing
sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh sh
be composed
contained
comely
demure
BE GRAVE
AND WORSHIP
the thing
PATIENTLY
Kara wesha wesha wesha
wesha wesha wesha wesha
wesha wesha wesha wesha
(prayer)
.....,......,........,...,......,
.....,.....,....;......,.....;...
....,....;....;....,....;....,...
..and then
LET US SPEAK
of
IT
over tea
butter
scotch
or L.S.D.
or
what is the fashion today
with it?
the thing the
thing the thing
oh the thing
what is the
fashion with IT
the thing
today?
II - water music on bodiesburg
let the fear of
death fill the earth with death
said the defeated giant
on his death bed as transcending
human consciousness resolved all fear and terror
I will bring back
the terror of death for to fill the earth with death he insisted on his death
bed
AND IT WAS SO!
and the dead
giant laughed I can not die I Nosferato shall never die
MORE!
and was made again
in the minds of
men
a lie
MORE!
and was made again
with the flesh and blood of men
in the minds of
men
a lie
MORE!
....and
their children
MORE!
...and they
danced in the graveyard
MORE!
...and they
feasted
on pus entrails and blood
MORE!
they learnt to
dance.....
of modified joy
and the dead giant re-invigorated
laughed
MORE!
MORE!
MORE!
...and they
celebrated
...a modified festival
for they had made
A MODIFIED MAN
on
bodiesburg..
LONG LIVE THE SUBSTITUTE!
we fear not life!
we fear not death!
for we are dead
before we live or die..
..for a lie
on
bodiesburg
and the dead
giant laughed
my conquerors
slaughter themselves and their children
for fear
of me!
for fear of a picture
a delusion
murmured
Osiris and a blossoming tree
A PICTURE
IMAGINED
A TERROR BORN OUT
OF DARKNESS
LET THE SUN SHINE
IN
…………………………………
would that men could
listen to flowers speaking
and seeds
and
shoots and roots
and
leaves
and
children
A PICTURE! A DELUSION
but they danced
and drank a toast and would not listen
on
bodiesburg
for they had made
A MODIFIED MAN!
LONG LIVE THE SUBSTITUTE!
they cheered
.....and they played
water music..
as they pretended to dance
III - march of the modified men
LONG LIVE THE
SUBSTITUTE
the plastic substitute
the automatic substitute
the polished substitute
the illustrious electronic
picnotic monochromatic
the photographic
substitute
the predictable substitute
the four legged substitute
the four walled substitute
the four wheeled substitute
the colored screen
substitute
the accepted
acknowledged
safety tested
government standards
international seminar
the LEGAL substitute
LONG LIVE THE
SUBSTITUTE!
we are the
plastic men the automatic men the polished men
the illustrious
men the electronic men the controlled men
the accepted men
the acknowledged men the government standards men
the safety tested
men the international seminar men the heroic men
THE LEGAL
men!
do dodo
do.. (trumpet)
let us
STUDY
the thing!
we ARE legal men
the thing the
thing the thing
oh the thing
let us
discuss
the thing
let us forever...
be
devoted
to
the thing
(tears..
are app...
..ropriate..
..at this point)
let us
think
upon the thing
the REAL
thing
do dodo
do.....dododosoldomi so..............l
(trumpet)
? ? ?
? ? ?
? ? ?
? ? ?
LET US FIGHT
for the thing
the REAL thing!
Hurrah for the faithful
Hurrah for the brave
COME AND FIGHT
for the thing
the REAL thing
do dodo
do....dododosoldomi sol.......... (trumpet again!)
We are the plastic men the automatic
men the
polished men the illustrious men the
electronic men
the controlled men the accepted men
the acknowledged men
the government standards men the
safety tested men
the international seminar men
the LEGAL men
and we
FIGHT
for the thing!
do dodo do..
dododosoldomi
sol.. (trumpet)
LEGALLY
do dodo do.. (trumpet yet again)
IV- scherzo
the BLACK ages are over now
and the dark ones too
... and those
terrible times
far far away -in
OTHER lands-
of tyranny ...
are over now ..
Hurrah ! man at
last is FREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
to think
upon the thing
or to view
and review ….. the thing
for it is now -at
last-
an ENLIGHTENED age !
it IS an
enlightened age
and free
if only we
could
guard ourselves ...
from treason and crime
from enemies and slime
from subversion
perversion permutation
…… from hackers
and from grime
let's always rid
the house of criminals
and in it stay
FREE
at last
enlightened and FREE for to think
upon the thing
IV-(b) scherzetto
the CRIMINALS are
dying
or are dead
dum da da da
................. (trumpets and
drums)
they are always
caught -thank God-
by the faithful
the dedicated
the SELFLESS
by philosophers
.. and
by the book
dum da da da
................
but they struggle
at their execution
and
hurt our feelings so
and it is their
LEGAL execution
the tasteless
brutes
they shake the
foundations of our legal house
the tasteless
brutes
our free and legal house
where we stay and
think
upon the thing ..
oh they hurt our
feelings so the tasteless brutes
but tolerant we must be
and full of legal charity
for such is
the W I C K E D nature of man
and lucky are we
who can stay legal and clean
for to think
upon the thing
THE CRIMINALS ARE DEAD
thank God
Hurrah
dum da da da
...................(trumpets and drums)
V-
purification of the body politic
homage to
the legal stake or cross
THE CRIMINALS ARE
DEAD
thank God
Hurrah
dum da da
da..................(trumpets and drums)
..and a criminal
said
as he slowly died
impaled on a legal stake
my kiss is
for the child
the criminal child
for to live
and love
his criminal
self
or for to
CHOOSE
not to be
a
philosopher
or a king..
the age is
liberal
and WE are free
even a CRIMINAL man
is allowed a defence
(if it is short)
“I asked a tree
about the thing
..and she
blossomed
so
did I..?”
......and died with the
others
on a legal stake or
cross
we are open
we are free
we shall
deliberate upon the matter
we shall
deliberate upon the thing
(for it
becomes men
who are enlightened and free
to be
devoted
.....to
the thing
..................
and even
hear
a criminal's defence
...every
now and then..)
LET US DELIBERATE
UPON.....
.....
..... this thing
MORE!
let us deliberate
and think
or perhaps exude a
BOOK or two
or three
.....or a
thousand and three
or better still a web site
and a search engine
for our age is
enlightened and free
AND A -L I T E R A T E
!
AND E- L I T E R A T E
!
VI - expiation and praise
tum ta ta
ta..tata tatatata ta....
(trumpets and drums)
let's make
yesterday's criminals saints today
tum ta ta ta..
tata tatatata ta.......
WE ARE GUILTY
so the prophets
say
AND WICKED TOO
tum ta ta ta......
let's relieve some guilt
redress some wrong
when it is safe
oh how elevating
to the soul
let's have them in glass coffins
preserved
with flowers and holy
colours
their flesh is marble cold now
oh
lovely marble clean
with formaline
their blood is stagnant now
like a
summer lake
summer lake
stagnant
oh how elevating to the soul
oh how safe!
let us STUDY these great men and women
in glass boxes
marble clean
summer-lake
stagnant
formaline
safe
...............SAINTLY
and when we have
finished
we shall write a book
or
two
or
three
or a
thousand and three
the thing the
thing the thing
LONG LIVE the
thing.............................SAINTLY
tum ta ta
ta......
VII - finale con brio
with a slightly criminal coda
(quickly
recanted)
Man Man! lucky
man
enlightened and free
jump man
dance man
and rock with glee
YOU ARE R I C H E R
by a thousand books
or a thousand and three..
and a billion electronic sites
the thing as seen through a purple
light
the thing as seen through a laser
beam
the thing reduced to its atomic
make-up
the thing reduced to its sub-atomic
make-up
the thing temporal extemporate secular
and ex-temple
the thing as seen through professor
von Bronkenheusen's
lanolin shampoo just pay five more dollars and get
the next installment
WISDOM about the thing
statistics about the thing
vital statistics of the thing
supra-vital statistics of the thing
true and false about the thing
true and false about statistics of
the thing
a thousand ways to the thing
a thousand and one ways to the thing
on the logical basis of the thing
on the criticism of the logical basis
of the thing
the true road to the thing
on the nature of the thing
another true road to the thing
the biochemical physico-magnetic
socio-economic religio-panoramic
optico-fantastic psycho-mydriatic
manquo-palambotic celico-psychedelic
relationships of the thing
the thing the
thing the thing
Hurrah
THE
THING
HURRAH for MAN
enlightened and FREE
the
criminals die
(legally
without fuss)
and the shelves of
knowledge
grow richer
WITH BOOKS
hurrah
and
thousands of BOOKS
Hurrah
on
THE THING
..and a barren
tree walked to the mountain of books
...and asked to read
about
the thing
..I once knew
the thing
-she sighed-
..I BLOSSOMED
but I
forgot
or I am
afraid..
RESPECT MY
WEAKNESS!
PLEASE!
LET ME
READ........
.......or WRITE.......
or
perchance FIGHT?
for the thing
PLEASE !