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[0:16] Jonathan Cook: Greetings and welcome back. This is Gather by the Ghost Light, original stories for radio theater. I just want to start by giving all of you a quick thank you. I started this podcast a few months back, beginning of summer, and I didn't know what to expect. But a lot of you guys are tuning into this, and I've received a lot of positive feedback from you guys out there. And I just want you to know that I appreciate you reaching out and thank you from the bottom of my cold heart for listening. Now, let's get back to what you're here for. In today's story, you're going to meet a stage actress named Lana Barnes. Talented, professional, the type of actress that any theater would want working for them.

On this night, Lana has just finished performing in a well-known play written by a playwright named Theodore Janus. What she doesn't know is that on this night, Mr. Janus was in the audience watching her perform and is now waiting by the stage door to meet her. Gather around the ghost light, sit back and enjoy. This is a play by Theodore Janus, performed by Rebekah Robeson, Pepper Wren, and Jonathan Cook.

[1:23] Claire: Hey girl, you were so amazing tonight.

[1:26] Lana Barnes: I don't know. It felt a little off.

[1:31] Claire: Quit being humble and take the compliment.

[1:34] Lana Barnes: Thanks, Claire. Only one more show to go.

[1:37] Claire: I know. I'm gonna miss it so much.

[1:39] Lana Barnes: Me too. But hey, cast party at least this tomorrow night after the show.

[1:44] Claire: I'll be there. But I can't hang tonight. Steve's off early and is swinging by to pick me up.

[1:48] Lana Barnes: Bomber.

[1:49] Claire: I know. Well, we'll see you tomorrow then.

[1:51] Lana Barnes: See you tomorrow.

[1:53] Claire: You're amazing.

[1:54] Lana Barnes: No, you. Good night.

[1:57] Claire: Good work. Sleep well.

[1:59] Lana Barnes: I'll most likely kill you in the morning.

[2:07] Theodore Janus: Good evening.

[2:09] Lana Barnes: Hi.

[2:10] Theodore Janus: I uh enjoyed your performance tonight.

[2:12] Lana Barnes: Oh, thank you. It was a great cast, and you were terrific.

[2:16] Theodore Janus: Thank you so much. We've all been working really hard on this one. We appreciate you coming out.

[2:21] Lana Barnes: You're welcome. I can imagine the rehearsal schedule was very demanding. And you closed tomorrow, right? Your final performance?

[2:27] Lana Barnes: Yep. Last one. I'm gonna miss it.

[2:29] Theodore Janus: So what's next for Lana Barnes?

[2:44] Lana Barnes: Auditions for the realistic Joneses in two weeks. Fingers crossed.

[2:47] Theodore Janus: Oh yeah, that's a good one. So are you going for Jennifer or Pony Jones?

[2:52] Lana Barnes: I'd be fine with either of them, really. My preference would be Jennifer, though.

[2:56] Theodore Janus: You've been acting for a long time, I take it?

[2:59] Lana Barnes: Yeah, when I can.

[3:00] Theodore Janus: Miss Barnes, your talents have not been wasted.

[3:03] Lana Barnes: Thank you. I'm curious though. Tell me, what's it like to become someone else?

[3:09] Theodore Janus: To become a character created in a script.

[3:12] Lana Barnes: Well, it's exhausting to be honest. But they say that being exhausted after a show means you're doing something right.

[3:22] Theodore Janus: Yeah, it takes a lot of energy to maintain the focus, I'm sure.

[3:25] Lana Barnes: Exactly. This is gonna sound stupid, but I've always viewed acting as a kind of quantum leap. You remember that old TV show? It's like I'm jumping into all these different people at various points in their lives. I become them. And then after the play closes, I leap into my next role. Dr. Sam Beckett, setting things right that once went wrong. I've been a harlot. A leader in La Resistance. A Southern Belle. I've been a lesbian punk rocker. Yay! I've even been a Catholic nun for crying out loud. Each role brings its own challenges, but it's always fun.

[4:04] Theodore Janus: I can see that.

[4:05] Lana Barnes: What?

[4:06] Theodore Janus: Your quantum leap analogy. In a way, that's exactly what you're doing. Like tonight, you leaped into a frail artist that beautifully died from some unexplained illness.

[4:16] Lana Barnes: Good times, huh?

[4:17] Theodore Janus: It was lovely. Did you get a chance to see any of the other shows we did this season?

[4:21] Lana Barnes: I'm not from here.

[4:23] Theodore Janus: Oh. So what do you do?

[4:26] Lana Barnes: I write.

[4:27] Theodore Janus: Professionally?

[4:29] Lana Barnes: No offense. I just know a lot of writers.

[4:32] Theodore Janus: Oh, sh. Sorry.

[4:33] Lana Barnes: No, no, it's fine. Actually, I could kind of be compared to Sam Beckett as well. Not the fictional one, the playwright. I write plays. Hi, Theodore Janus.

[4:46] Lana Barnes: Wait, wait, wait, wait. You're Theodore Janus?

[4:51] Theodore Janus: Yes, let's see here. Um, there it is. Right next to the written by in your program here.

[4:57] Lana Barnes: You wrote my play.

[4:58] Theodore Janus: I wrote my play. I mean that you wrote this play I'm acting in.

[5:03] Lana Barnes: Oh my god, I'm so sorry. I had no idea.

[5:06] Theodore Janus: It's okay. I know the scripts don't usually have pictures of the playwrights or anything, so well, I'm honored to meet you. I love this play.

[5:13] Lana Barnes: Thank you. Did you mean everything you said earlier about my performance as Krista?

[5:19] Theodore Janus: You were wonderful.

[5:20] Lana Barnes: That really means a lot to me.

[5:22] Theodore Janus: Did it not mean anything before?

[5:23] Lana Barnes: No, no, no. It did. But to know that it's a compliment coming from the man who wrote the words to this charming story is, I don't know, it's sort of a higher level of awesomeness, I guess.

[5:38] Theodore Janus: I love that she's written in such a free-spirited way.

[5:41] Lana Barnes: I only wrote the words. You gave her a soul. Does Frank know you're here?

[5:45] Theodore Janus: Who's Frank?

[5:46] Lana Barnes: The artistic director of the theater.

[5:48] Theodore Janus: Oh, well, I usually don't let the theater staff know when I'm attending my plays. People tend to get a little nervous.

[5:55] Lana Barnes: Understandable. Directors sometimes have their own vision of a playwright's work.

[5:59] Theodore Janus: Yeah, sometimes. I really hope that our interpretation was at least close to what you had in mind.

[6:06] Lana Barnes: Close enough. There's this one thing though. A request, really.

[6:11] Theodore Janus: I know, I know. I missed a line during the wine glass.

[6:15] Lana Barnes: No, no, it's not that.

[6:16] Theodore Janus: I wait. Did you?

[6:18] Lana Barnes: I didn't even notice.

[6:20] Theodore Janus: I guess I covered well. The thing is that I don't want to see Krista die again.

[6:27] Lana Barnes: I'm sorry?

[6:29] Theodore Janus: I've seen this play produced many times over the years. Different theaters, different cities, and I've had to watch Krista die over and over again. You know, I always know it's coming. I know exactly when, but it still tears me apart every time. For once, I want to see her live.

[6:47] Lana Barnes: Of course. I'm sure that everyone in the audience is with you on that. We all wish that she'd survive.

[6:51] Theodore Janus: I want you to make it happen.

[6:55] Lana Barnes: You want me to?

[6:55] Theodore Janus: I want you to make Krista survive.

[7:03] Lana Barnes: But she dies at the end.

[7:04] Theodore Janus: She doesn't have to.

[7:06] Lana Barnes: You want me to change the story?

[7:08] Theodore Janus: I can't do that.

[7:09] Lana Barnes: Actually, you can. There's nothing stopping you. When Krista's lying motionless in Mark's arms at the end, there's nothing stopping you from opening your eyes, standing up, and letting everyone see that she's alive and that everything will be okay.

[7:21] Lana Barnes: But I can't do that. My director would freak out.

[7:24] Theodore Janus: Let him.

[7:25] Lana Barnes: And I'd never work in this town again if it got out that I made such a major change at my own free will.

[7:29] Theodore Janus: Let it be Krista's free will. I created her. She should have her own free will. But instead, she's always been bound to the words on the page. Let her be free just for once.

[7:39] Lana Barnes: Why did you write her death in the script if that's not what you wanted?

[7:43] Theodore Janus: Because that's her story. Her fate. Her tragic biography laid out for people to harmoniously feel sympathy.

[7:51] Lana Barnes: Then what are you asking me to do?

[7:53] Theodore Janus: I'm asking you to give me one moment. Just one moment where I don't have to see things end the way that I wrote it. A moment where Krista defies the fate handed to her and rises livelier than ever. Don't make me watch her die again.

[8:08] Lana Barnes: Is this some kind of weird joke or something? I mean the best I can do is talk to Frank and see if he'd be cool with this.

[8:18] Theodore Janus: No, no, you're not getting it. Just listen. All the times I've seen this play, it's like I'm visiting a system of parallel universes. You know, I see the same story again and again, but the people change. It's still my characters, Mark and Krista, but they're different. The way they look, the way they behave, the way they move and speak. I've even seen one version where they changed Mark's character to a female. The only thing that remains constant, the only thing is the story and the words they say. The words that I wrote. Krista will continue to die every time this story is told. It doesn't matter how the actors interpret the characters. She will always die.

[8:58] Lana Barnes: You seriously want me to change the ending?

[9:02] Theodore Janus: Just once. Tomorrow night. Your final performance.

[9:06] Lana Barnes: Look, what you're asking. People are counting on me to do things as we rehearse them. My director, my co-star, the entire technical team. They'll be furious. Do you understand the decision you're asking me to make?

[9:20] Theodore Janus: Yes.

[9:21] Lana Barnes: I can't do something like that without getting some type of approval.

[9:25] Theodore Janus: I approve.

[9:26] Lana Barnes: From the theater. It's their paying customers who are sitting out there.

[9:29] Theodore Janus: Have you ever felt the urge to do something that felt completely unnatural? Something that you knew just wasn't in the cards for you. To go against the grain of fate and alter the script you star in?

[9:40] Lana Barnes: All the time.

[9:41] Theodore Janus: Give Krista her chance. Give her this one world, this one timeline where she doesn't die. Not like this.

[9:48] Lana Barnes: But if I do, how does this play out? You want me to pretend like Krista's illness has just vanished and she magically gets better? That's going to completely transform the impact the story has on people. They won't get it. Everyone loves the story as it's written. As do I.

[10:07] Theodore Janus: Then why are you asking me to do this?

[10:09] Lana Barnes: Because Krista. This version of Krista is she needs a savior. You gracefully quantum leap into her every night, and you can be her savior. You can be a presence behind the scenes of her life that guides her away from that icy grip of death.

[10:23] Theodore Janus: You speak of her as if she's a real person.

[10:26] Lana Barnes: She's nice meeting you, Lana Barnes.

[10:33] Theodore Janus: Nice to meet you too. Have a good night.

[10:37] Lana Barnes: So you'll be at the show again tomorrow?

[10:40] Theodore Janus: Third row.

[10:41] Lana Barnes: I'm sorry in advance if I disappoint you.

[10:43] Theodore Janus: You don't have to apologize. I know it means a lot to you, but I can't promise that I can do what you want me to.

[10:51] Lana Barnes: I know. Good night.

[11:02] Narrator: In the darkness, a man is heard crying. The lights come up, and Krista now lies motionless in Mark's arms. With tears, he holds her close and he prays loudly for her to be okay. He prays, hoping that God will answer him. Lights fade. End of play.

[11:40] Jonathan Cook: And if you like what you've heard today, please subscribe and stay up to date on when we'll be dropping our next episode. I'd also like to invite you to take a listen to another radio theater program called The Short Play Podcast, produced by Marty Matfis. It's currently available across all podcast platforms. As always, stay safe, and I'll see you next time we gather by the ghost light.