The Trumpestiad: A Sad American Comedy

Copyright © 2020 Richard A. Pundt.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents, organizations, and dialogue in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

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Interior Image Credit: Clayton Chambers

ISBN: 978-1-4808-9685-7 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4808-9686-4 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4808-9687-1 (e))

Library of Congress Control Number: 2020918674

Archway Publishing rev. date: 10/13/2020

CONTENTS

Foreword

Cast

ACT ONE: The United States White House Pre-Rally

ACT TWO: The Domain of Hades Known as Hell

ACT THREE: The United States White House Post-Rally

About the Author

FOREWORD

For centuries Greek Tragedies have found a place in the libraries and the hands of people across the globe. One popular such tragedy is the Greek play of Alcestis, who was the wife of the Thessalian king, known for his hospitality, King Admetus. The king, who treated the Greek God Apollo to great favor when Apollo had been exiled from Olympus, is granted the right to live past his time of death, if he can find a substitute for him when the time comes. Although King Admetus cannot find a substitute, his wife, Queen Alcestis, agrees to go in his place. Later Heracles brings Alcestis back from the underworld.

Perhaps, one of the best renditions of this story, aside from the original by Euripides, is the three-act play on the subject by Thornton Wilder. In Wilder’s play, The Alcestiad, the story does not change; however, the dramatic portrayal is vividly told. Interesting dialogue is presented in The Alcestiad relative to the presence of Apollo, the god of healing, song and the sun, when he is disguised as a herdsman. What is clearly puzzling is why the god Apollo would allow one member of a devoted marriage die for the other if Apollo truly loved them both, which was supposedly the case. But, of course, it is a Greek tragedy. As in all of Wilder’s works, the story is refreshingly retold.

Thornton Wilder is so well-respected and his writings so well-regarded that people will often show great affinity for his work and for him. For example, the famous actor Gene Wilder (real name Jerome Silberman) thought so much of Thornton Wilder that Silberman chose the name Wilder because of his admiration for Wilder and his work, Our Town. He chose the name Gene from another stage character. Since I, too, am fond of Thornton Wilder’s writings, it is fair to say that Wilder’s Alcestiad influenced the concept for The Trumpestiad.

The Trumpestiad, was the result of my rereading of The Alcestiad. It is my intention to present through The Trumpestiad a satirical rendition of the circumstances placed in motion by the Donald Trump Administration that deserved a visit from the Greek God, Apollo. So, now, as always, the Greeks have their Greek Tragedies, and we Americans have our Sad American Comedy.

As an additional point, a re-reading of The Oresteia was helpful to me in the sense that it was the goddess Athena who devised the first known jury of twelve when she was called upon by Orestes and, likely Apollo, to come to the aid of Orestes when, after he had been set free from the Furies by Apollo, the Furies again find Orestes. The Furies initially hunted Orestes down for murdering his mother, Clytemnestra, who, in turn had murdered Orestes father, Agamemnon. The string of murders were all matters of revenge for multiple triangles of love along with the intervention of the gods. Athena set up the first trial by jury as she determined that violent retaliation must end. It happened that Athena, herself, broke a tie vote by the jury, therefore, Orestes was not killed. From that point forward, at least in Greek Mythology, it was determined that all trials were to be settled in a court by a jury instead of allowing for personal vengeance.

Perhaps because of the principles of justice set forth in the Oresteia, and the knowledge of our Founding Fathers of historic concepts of justice, trials in the United States render justice through a jury of peers. In The Trumestiad, Apollo is inadvertently contacted by Donald Trump through a misspelled tweet. When Apollo arrives at the White House, he overhears an argument between Donald Trump and Uncle Sam. Ultimately, Apollo decides to call forth twelve of the attendees at a Trump rally to be formed as a jury that must determine whether the Pillars of Truth can be returned from Hell where they were sent by Donald Trump.

CAST

APOLLOAn Elegant and Godlike Presence

DEARTHAn Ambivalent Blandly Dressed Entity

TRUMPAn Orange Blob with a Yellow Top

KELLY ANNABlond Woman of Middle Age

UNCLE SAMNormal Figure with Top Hat & Striped Pants

FOXA Sneaky, Cunning, and Rapid Creature

MOSCOW MITCHA Small Dark Figure with a Ushanka

FRUITY RUDYA Small Twisted Figure with Bulging Eyes

BLACK BARRA Stupid and Overbearing Attorney General

HADESThe Greek God in Control of Hell

ETHICSABeautiful and Pure Creature

INTEGRITYA Beautiful and Pure Creature

HONESTYA Beautiful and Pure Creature

LOYALTYA Beautiful and Pure Creature

COURTESYA Beautiful and Pure Creature

REVERENCEA Beautiful and Pure Creature

HONORA Beautiful and Pure Creature

JUSTICEA Beautiful and Pure Creature

JOE CONSTRUCTA Middle-Aged Construction Worker

Dr. ALTHEA MEDICAn Intelligent Young Woman M.D.

MR. BIG JEANSA Seasoned and Rugged Farmer

MISS LILITH RULERA Bright Young Elementary Teacher

EARNEST CRAFTA Labor Union Worker

FATHER DOUBTAn Elderly Man of the Cloth

WILBER REEVEA Government Employee

FOUR SEASONSA Native American Tribal Leader

PROFESSOR PROBEA Research Scientist

AGENT JANE BLONDEA Well-Known Intelligence Officer

APHRODITE GAIAA Maitre d’

S.H. CONSULARA Life-Long Diplomat

ACT ONE

As the curtain opens, the scene starts with what was a beautiful and sunny day on the south lawn of the U. S. White House in Washington D.C. As the sun begins to set in the west to the left of the stage, the White House appears in a yellowish hue in the background of the south lawn that opens to the audience. As the sun casts a yellowish-white light upon the White House, there is a rustling in a grouping of bushes near a tree to the left front of the stage. A Party Awning trimmed in white and red to the right front of the stage is displayed with a campaign sign that in large red letters reads, Trump-Taking America Back..

Off to the left of the stage, Apollo, the ancient Greek God, who is dressed in a flowing and full-length white robe with a bright blue sash over his left shoulder, partially appears near the upper part of the open curtain to the left of the stage. Initially, he peers out over the scene with his one hand shielding his eyes as he assesses the situation. He then starts to descend while partly obscured by the curtain and appears to float down along the curtain by a tree near the bushes and lands on the lawn below. As he reaches the level of the stage, he starts to manipulate a handheld electronic devise which he carefully examines and bewilderingly shakes his head as he holds the electronic device up toward the light.

Apollo takes several steps toward the center of the stage but stops to look inquisitively at the audience when he hears the rustling in the nearby bushes. Diverting his attention from the audience and toward the bushes, he observes an ambivalent and bland figure dressed in various shades of gray and brown struggling to free break free of the bushes. Apollo raises his free hand, points to the bushes and issues a command in a most authoritative voice.

APOLLO:

Bushes…I direct you to release whomever you have trapped there!

(Immediately, the ambivalent and bland figure, stumbles forth from the bushes. As the figure attempts to gain his balance, he drops an electronic device and is startled to see Apollo. He backs away from the bushes while grasping his electronic device from the ground. He then addresses Apollo, who stands over the figure in a commanding position.)

DEARTH:

Good Heavens, Apollo! What brings you here from your heavenly abode… to, of all places, the White House in America? Why aren’t you in Greece where you belong? They can surely use your help right now.

APOLLO:

Dearth? I’m surprised to see you. You, who are lacking in presence of substance, and typically deficient in every way, now present a viable image? Although you are a noun, it is indeed a rare event to see you personified. As Apollo, I must know the meaning of this. I hereby command you to tell me what you doing here? Furthermore, why have you taken the form of a living entity?

DEARTH:

True. Typically, I represent the lack of anything substantial. I’m not sure that I have ever been personified before. However, I received a tweet on my electronic device here. It said, RT@WhiteHouse. Dearth should come to all Non-Trumpians. Rally Tonite at White House. So, here I am.

APOLLO:

Now, that is odd. I too received a tweet from this location and my tweet said…here, let me bring it up.

(Apollo fiddles with his electronic device.)

Here it is. It was also a tweet from the White House. It said, RT@WhiteHouse. It’s just Fake News again! Don’t they realize that their great president has saved the country. I beseech Apollo to come with me.

DEARTH:

Listen! Someone is coming.

APOLLO:

Let’s step back by the bushes.