I feel that heavy, low-pressure dread hanging in the air — you know how it feels just before a storm breaks.

This casual slide into American Fascism isn’t just headlines—it’s in the eyes of the neighbor who suddenly won’t talk to you, the quiet threat in every government form, the constant whir of surveillance overhead, the breathing on the other end of the phone.

They want us all to live like undocumented people — guilty, until proven lucky.

You can be a third-generation U.S. citizen like myself, and still be subject to masked black-shirt storm troopers grabbing you off the street, and throwing you into the nearest unmarked car and without pressing charges, shipping you off to a banana republic where you will remain until you die, and no one will ever know what became of you.

It’s getting hard to spark a joyful fire, when the air smells like fear and betrayal. But this is exactly the zone where art becomes defiance. Protest songs, bitter satire, surrealist theater—this is where they get their teeth and their strength. Grrrrrr!!!

If they want to shut us up, and they do nasty things to prevent us from having our say, well, golly — that’s the very cue we need to turn up the volume to “11”, and dance the wrong way down the street.

I include a rough layout for “Your Papers, Please” — a satirical Broadway-style protest song with echoes, stomp rhythms, and maybe an accordion if you’re feeling Klezmer defiance. I would expect any director to exercise creative control with the actual performance.

So here’s my latest musical showtune revue for your enjoyment. Best results happen when you get a group to read the lines LIVE on zoom, and play the songs as they come up.

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“Your Papers, Please”

A RADIO PLAY by E.J. Gold. Instructions on how to make this work will be given in today’s zoom meeting, but basically you divide up the parts and read them in.

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[No music yet. Quiet for one beat, then:]

NARRATOR: This play is about what happens when silence becomes safer than speech.

This casual slide into American Fascism isn’t just headlines—it’s in the eyes of the neighbor who suddenly won’t talk to you, the quiet threat in every government form, the constant whir of surveillance overhead, the breathing on the other end of the phone.

They want us all to live like undocumented people — guilty, until proven lucky.

It’s about laws that shift like shadows…
Names that vanish from the registry…
And people who were there—until they weren’t.

It’s not set in the past.
It’s not set in the future.

It’s set right after the moment you stopped paying attention.

You will meet no heroes here.
Only citizens. Clerks. Ghosts.

They sang, they spoke, they prayed—
Some loudly. Some softly. Some not at all.
And for that, they were… processed.

This is their story. And if you listen closely… You might hear your own footsteps echoing in the hall. Don’t turn away from the victims today. You could be next tomorrow.

[MUSIC UP]

Your Papers, Please

GATEKEEPER
I can’t let you in the synagogue if you’re not a member. It’s the High Holy Days as you know.

VISITOR
I’m not here for the service. I just need to give my friend Charlie a message. I’ll only be in there a minute.

GATEKEEPER (shrugs, glances around)
Alright… You can go in. But don’t let me catch you praying.

[MUSIC UP]

You Can Go In, But Don’t Let Me Catch You Praying

OFFICIAL (to a crowd)

We gather today to honor the sacred emblem of our nation.
A symbol of truth, unity, and unwavering loyalty.
Let us now recite the words that bind us all.

CITIZEN (softly)
It used to mean something, didn’t it?

STUDENT
It still means something. I just don’t know what.

CITIZEN
Feels like an echo. Not a flag. Just… an echo.

[MUSIC UP]

Echo of a Flag

FRIEND
Hey… you still here?

CITIZEN
They said wait. So I’m waiting.

FRIEND
Did they say why?

CITIZEN
No. Just that I should “stay available.”

[Pause]

FRIEND
You think it’s because of that thing you posted?

CITIZEN

I don’t know…Could be the thing I posted. Or the thing I didn’t post.
Or someone I used to know. Or how I looked at someone. Or… nothing at all.

CITIZEN (softer)
I just keep wondering…
Am I next?

[MUSIC UP]

Am I Next?

PRISONER 1
So… why were you thrown into this horrible prison?

PRISONER 2
It’s becaue I was for Dubchek.

PRISONER 1
Oh, really? That’s odd. They arrested me because I was against Dubchek.

PRISONER 3
You think you two have troubles? I AM Dubchek.

[MUSIC UP]

The Prisoners

GUARD
You. Prisoner. We are going to the Interview room. Move!

PRISONER 1
You don’t need that gun. I’m going. What’s it for?

GUARD
If you behave, it’s just questions. If you don’t… it’s still just questions.

INTERROGATOR
Sit.
We’re just here to chat.

[MUSIC UP]

The Interrogation Room

PA SYSTEM (distorted)
Red line railway service is delayed for one hour, due to unscheduled absence of train! Thank you for your compliance.

COMMUTER 1
Wait… wasn’t that Anna’s stop?

COMMUTER 2
Who?

COMMUTER 1
Anna. She rides this train every morning.

COMMUTER 2
Doesn’t ring a bell.

PA SYSTEM (cheerful tone)
Blue line inbound. Please stand clear of the truth.
Next stop… nothing to worry about.

[MUSIC UP]

Red Line, Blue Line

TEACHER

The class will come to order. Settle down please.

STUDENT 1
Wait — didn’t we read about the war last semester?

TEACHER 
Read what?

STUDENT 1
The — the war? The protests? The—
I thought there was a chapter on—

TEACHER
There’s no need to dwell on outdated material.
Focus on what we know now.

LIBRARIAN
And what we know… is … only what we’re given to know about.

STUDENT 2
This list was full of names last week — now I can scroll down about an inch.

TEACHER
Then we had a very efficient week, didn’t we?

[MUSIC UP]

The Day We Erased History

COWORKER 1
Hey… where’s Lena?

COWORKER 2
Lena? Wasn’t she on the morning shift today?

COWORKER 1
She hasn’t missed a day of work in years. She’s not in the factory. What happened?

COWORKER 2
Her coffee cup’s still warm.

COWORKER 1
No message. No notice.

COWORKER 2
No… nothing.

COWORKER 1
I don’t think anyone saw her go.

[MUSIC UP]

No One Saw Me Go

VOICE 1
They said we’d be forgotten.

VOICE 2
They said the files were closed. The songs were all unsung, the doors were locked against us.

VOICE 3
Yes, but we WERE here.

VOICE 4
We held protests when they were forbidden by law.

VOICE 5
We laughed when it was so dangerous you could be beaten mercilessly by the masked black shirts.

VOICE 6
We told stories about the true history, but they erased all that.

VOICE 1
Yes, but we WERE here.

[MUSIC UP]

We Were Here

ANNOUNCER

Well, that’s our show for this evening. Tune in again for more broadcasts from the Other Side. This is your announcer, ________________________________ bidding you a good night.

[CLOSE OF BROADCAST, SIGNOFF AND CLOSING MUSIC UP & OUT]

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Well, that’s the bare-bones of it. The rest is all about stage blocking, timing, projection, etc., the things that a director adds to the production. Meanwhile, enjoy it as a radio play, which is all it may ever be.

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See You At The Top!!!

gorby