This Saturday, Sept. 30, 2023, Cloak & Dagger On the Air returns from its summer hiatus at 4 p.m. at Top of West Virginia Convention & Visitors Bureau, located at 3539 Main Street in Weirton (across from Ferguson Tire Pros).
Titled “Brave New World,” the troupe will present a thought-provoking episode in which they reimagine the 1956 CBS Radio Workshop adaptation of Aldous Huxley’s groundbreaking and chilling novel.
Also in the line-up: an adaptation of “There Will Come Soft Rains” by Ray Bradbury from a 1950 episode of Dimension X and another installment of Emily Penelope’s Fabulous Flights of Fancy titled “Operation: B-Mod Squad,” written by Pete Fernbaugh.
“In our fifth season, we reimagined the very first radio adaptation of 1984 by George Orwell,” Fernbaugh said. “A Brave New World further explores some of the same concepts in Orwell’s book, namely our willingness to succumb to oppression as long as our personal comfort is preserved.”
He believes Huxley’s story is even more relevant today, given how often politicians advocate for restricting free speech and the economic dominance of tech oligarchs.
“When Huxley revisited A Brave New World 25 years after its first publication, he expressed his fear that we were devolving into tyranny even faster than he had originally anticipated,” Fernbaugh said. “Now, it feels like we’re on the cusp of realizing his Brave New World sooner rather than later.
“Currently, we have two political parties who actively talk about restricting the free speech of their enemies or at the very least, imprisoning them. Forums of world leaders routinely discuss a world in which you will own nothing and like it. TikTok and other social media platforms are rife with influencers who want to suppress people and ideas that make them uncomfortable. The rise of AI, which is funded and controlled by the richest and most megalomaniacal people on this planet, is threatening to erode our independence as humans. Pharmaceutical companies flood the market with drugs that create legions of addicts. And most disturbing to me is our willingness to surrender critical thought and free will for the comfort and security of what is largely an illusion of freedom propagated by the state.
“Huxley, Orwell, and practically every other science-fiction author of the 20th century predicted where we are in 2023, and I think it would benefit all of us to be red-pilled by their fears and prophecies before we allow ourselves to be forever baited and hooked by power-hungry authoritarians. However, the clock is ticking, and society is becoming less aware of history and the big picture.”
Cloak & Dagger On the Air: Brave New World stars The Wayward Saints: Rob DeSantis, Bethany Fernbaugh, Pete Fernbaugh, David Gaudio, Robert J. Gaudio, Karissa Martin, Ralph Parissi, Abby Perry, Terri Perry, and Maura Danielle Reiff, with Lakin Weaver providing an original score and The Holy Foley Molies creating the sound effects.
Admission to “Cloak & Dagger On the Air: Brave New World” is free, although donations to help cover production costs are always appreciated. Light refreshments and water will be available.
Doors open at 3:30 p.m. with live music by R.J. Gaudio, Troubadour, who will perform pop, rock, and folk music favorites. The program will also livestream from The Ohio Valley Cloak & Dagger Facebook page starting at 3:30 p.m.
Top of WV CVB is located at 3539 Main Street in Weirton, W.Va., across from Ferguson Tire Pros. Ample parking is available behind the building, where there is an entrance. Individuals with mobility impairments may more easily enter through the building’s front entrance. Members of the troupe are more than willing to assist these individuals.
Cloak & Dagger On the Air is a monthly theatrical series from The Ohio Valley Cloak & Dagger Company that celebrates audio drama from all eras, particularly the fabled Golden Age of Radio.
By reimagining classic radio dramas and literary works, along with original stories written and produced by independent writer and actor Pete Fernbaugh, Cloak & Dagger On the Air strives to give audiences an immersive experience that engages the theatre of their imagination in creating a fully realized storytelling adventure. The Cloak & Dagger On the Air podcast completes the experience by presenting these stories in the way they were meant to be seen: by the mind’s eye.
For more information and for updates on our live and recorded productions, please visit The Ohio Valley Cloak & Dagger Company’s Facebook page.
