Joel D Hirst

Dreams of the Defeated Joel D Hirst

A new play set in a totalitarian regime, "Dreams of the Defeated" tells the dystopian story of a young man's rebellion against the stifling control of a brutally repressive state. Arrested for his activism and his leadership of the September Seventh resistance movement, the prisoner is charged with rebellion, conspiracy and destruction of property, and murder. Those, however, are only routine charges, because the final indictment lays bare the state's fear and true aim; ..".worst of all, the prisoner is charged with the most heinous thought crimes imaginable. Betrayal of our party values, challenging the morality of our dear leaders, rebellion against the Perfect Order and conspiracy to deny the deity of the founder. If found guilty, the prisoner will be (...) executed, with his body cut into pieces and sent to the regions as a lesson to those who imagine there to be another way."Act I finds the prisoner in jail, locked in a fierce debate with himself and the demons of doubt that have come to haunt his soul, as he is prepared for his last defense against the accusations of the state and its 'Perfect Order'. Act II is set in a courtroom where he is confronted with the state's charges against him as he seeks to make his final defense a lasting avowal of his right to live free. "Dreams of the Defeated" is a triumphant proclamation of freedom in the face of tyranny.