Why We Need Sci-Fi Theater Right Now

yes i am personally invested in this but hear me out

In the words of the great Gene Roddenberry, “…humanity will reach maturity and wisdom on the day that it begins not to just tolerate, but take a special delight in differences in ideas and differences in life forms.”

Needless to say, we have not reached that maturity. Not yet, at least.

If you’re not a Trekkie or sci fi enthusiast, or the child of one like I am, you might not be aware of the philosophies behind Star Trek and other science fiction classics that exploded the genre in the late 70’s. While sci fi of course existed long before then (all hail the mother of the genre, Mary Shelley, born 1797), it didn’t really come out of it’s nerdy/academic niche until Roddenberry’s Star Trek hit NBC.

And these classics began not necessarily with the idea that the future could be “better” due to technology and scientific discoveries, but that it could be better because people could be better. Asimov’s Foundation series, written and published about twenty years before this sci fi boom, contains a similar (if not differently phrased and presented) theme— that humanity is fundamentally flawed, but can be saved and changed through group effort and mutual aid. After all, Asimov says within the book: “Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent.” It is not necessarily a fundamental feature of being a human being, but perhaps is instead a weapon used by those who refuse to, or simply cannot, change.

I don’t have to tell you all how this applies to our current world. We all know about the deaths of dozens of people, such as Renee Good and Alex Pretti, at the hands of Trump’s ICE goons (I urge you to remember and know the names of the many people of color who were killed before these two as well). We have seen the rise of fascism in multiple Western countries over the last…god knows how long, that has really ramped up in the past decade. World War Three seems to have been brewing for multiple years, along with a potential Civil War in America after all of this, and it just feels like humanity will never reach that maturity Roddenberry so wonderfully imagined for us all in Star Trek.

But if we don’t imagine it, it will truly never exist.

Is all science fiction of the Roddenberry/Asimov/classic 70’s kind, where even amongst horrible circumstances, we see humanity mature and grow overall? No. But the heart of science fiction (at the very least the lasting kind) beats to the tune of a drum that says not only “what if”, but “why not” and “how”. Even bleak outcomes, such as those in Orwell’s 1984 or Huxley’s Brave New World, are bleak because we see throughout the story how things could be— how people can be good, noble, truly great when they care for the people around them. It’s when oppressive systems, run by greedy, cruel, or otherwise uncaring people, overpower these individuals or small groups that humanity continues its tailspin into hell.

So what’s the key here? Fucking caring.

Science fiction deals a lot with humanity and care. It imagines a world that is different— maybe in a similarly shitty way to how it is now, yes, but showing how giving a shit (whether present or not in the story) could and does change everything. And maybe some people will find that viewpoint reductive. That’s fine. But it’s what draws me to science fiction over and over again (along with great world-building and fascinating concepts, of course). It’s why I consume it so much, and it’s why I write it.

I think the prevalence and success of science fiction television, such as Severance, Pluribus, Fallout, and more, is a marker of how much people are craving these stories right now. The public definitely views television and movies as a prime place to get these stories— it’s definitely the most accessible for the most people, regardless of education level or monetary level (I’m not saying to pirate things but…I’m not a cop). But novels and plays are also phenomenal vehicles for important science fiction stories! And I would venture to say plays are the perfect science fiction medium for our current moment because now, more than ever, we need community. We need each other. And there is nothing like being in a big room full of other human beings, watching a story play out live.

When theater is done authentically, artfully, and with great heart, every person in that audience and on that stage feels it. Whether the play is a comedy, drama, tragedy, farce, whatever. Live performance draws us together in a way that I don’t believe any other storytelling medium can. Add in science fiction— where together we imagine a different world, perhaps a world in which we can show how humans could get better, or worse, and how we could sustain ourselves through it all— and you get a recipe for something uniquely special. A place were we can hear warnings, imagine impossible things, and consider how truly far we could go, all at the same time. In my mind, its a recipe for revolution. A revolution we desperately crave.

So yes, I think this present moment calls for more science fiction in the theater. Write your play about robotics, about space travel, or perhaps something entirely different. We need it right now. We need you.

That’s all for now folks! I really and truly hope life slows down enough for me to write a classic NPX post in the next week or two. But for now, enjoy these weird little treatises. I know I do.

And as always, if you need some feedback on a play, let me know! I’m truly always excited to read and to work with other playwrights. You can find me on Fiverr, or converse with me directly via email if you prefer.

Happy theatre-making!

~Brynn