“Why does truth even matter?” - Octavian 

We live in an increasingly unstable time in history. Consequently, as theatre makers, we can produce new work that speaks to that struggle. Spells for Going Forth by Daylight lives in this instability. The people of Egypt are occupied by Roman forces; unable to exercise basic human rights and barred from an equitable share in society. History is rewriting itself in this moment. In Spells, we see a Rome dominated by religious nationalism and increasing amounts of propaganda surrounding a charismatic leader who craves the spotlight more than anything else. There’s a belief that patriotism is reflective of upstanding morals, that questioning your country is a bad thing, that contradictory voices are unwelcome. This shouldn’t feel unfamiliar to those currently engaged in American society, culture, and politics. The question the play poses is: How do we do anything about it when we have no agency? Cleopatra is dead. Removed to another realm and unable to continue the fight. The beauty of the play is that she fights anyways. 

“I never lived to be figure of courage for my people who are left in the fields harvested by their ancestors that are now on foreign soil.” -Cleo

–Josh Turner