HERE BE DRAGONS by CHARLIE MOUNT

---

“A brilliant and deeply perceptive play…Wonderfully written, beautifully acted. Bravo!” 

The last time I saw Charlie Mount on stage was eight years ago at The Whitefire Theatre again with his Martians, An Evening with Ray Bradbury. Isn’t it wild how time moves so quickly? Anyway, I loved his interpretation of Ray Bradbury and all his dreams and foibles. I bring it up not just to give some context to Charlie Mount and his work, but because The Martian Chronicles, and probably all of Ray Bradbury’s books, would, in his new play, Here Be Dragons, be almost certainly banned. 

Set in the Midwest, Here Be Dragons chronicles the semi-fictional story of a small school grappling with the death of a beloved teacher of bible studies, gunned down by a disgruntled citizen bent on protecting the world from education.

In the aftermath, the school council is meeting to decide whether or not to include “Intelligent Design,” which is basically creationism, in their upcoming semester. Fear has driven them to consider appeasing those more than a few religious extremists tucked away in otherwise quite normal neighborhoods. When the teacher was shot she was standing next to a child, who was unharmed physically, but he was of course, utterly traumatized. It is his mother who is at the forefront of this. A religious woman who finds herself in desperate need to ‘do something.’ And while I am sure we can all understand the reasons why she would embrace this, there is a battle ahead for her.

She brings with her the current expert on intelligent design. A man who purports to have scientifically proved that for man to have evolved from primordial goo, there could be no other explanation for it to have happened in the proposed timeline than for it to have been guided by the hand of god. Oh, and he also believes, of course, that Evolution is just a theory…unproven. He has created a syllabus on this nutty proposition, and it is this class that the school board must vote for. To rebut his position is another author, studied in his field and well positioned to examine this erroneous argument. His adopted brother and fierce critic of extreme religious doctrine taught in schools. They have debated before, but it’s been 20 years since they have been in the same room. So tensions are high!

The scene is set. The debate is on. And the stakes couldn’t be higher for the brothers, the school board and the parents of the little boy who now barely speaks. 

Although the writing is flawless and nuanced, it is the performances that make this play. Charlie Mount plays the sane brother and Jim Beaver the crazy one. Although, to be fair, he doesn’t play him as crazy and he is very convincing.

"Corine Shor plays the terrified mother who turns to her church for guidance and her husband, who couldn’t disagree with her more, is played by George Tovar, and their tension is palpable. Two wonderful actors with an intense connection.

"Everyone is really excellent. Embracing their roles and their disparate positions with glee. Teaching is such an often thankless job. Navigating politics, religion, kids, parents and the shameful lack of resources often makes me wonder why anyone would put themselves through it. But, also, I really can see how it might be the greatest job in the world.

This is a play about extremes. Ideas and theories aside, it’s a ruthless trick to give people “science” wrapped in superstition as if that somehow makes it more believable or easier to swallow. When we are put in positions of terrible stress and sorrow and impossible choices, those that stop offering solutions should be treated with deep suspicion. Life is not neatly explained away. Terrible things can and do happen every day…lately many times a day. So how perfect it feels to be given a blunt instrument to use when what we really need is to wait and to think and to feel and to love. It is only human to be reactionary, especially in a time of pain and feelings of futility and helplessness. But there lie monsters…or dragons.

"Here Be Dragons is a brilliant and deeply perceptive play about the frailty of people under pressure and how easy it is a destroy progress when you have all the power and none of the impartiality. Wonderfully written, beautifully acted. Bravo!

As Henry Drummond reminds us in Lawrence and Lee’s classic Inherit the Wind, “The Bible is a book. A good book. But it’s not the only book.” I remember the first time I heard this quote. I was sitting at the director’s table, taking blocking notes; for a southern girl raised in the church, this quote was quite a statement, and it took root. It became something that would ring in my ears any time a religious argument was brought up in the classroom or within our politics. In the past few years, the ringing has amplified.

Unfortunately, Inherit the Wind is still as relevant today as it was when it was released.  The play and subsequent film and TV adaptations fictionalize the Scopes Trial, working on multiple levels to discuss the conflict of the actual case—evolution vs creationism (or rather science vs religion)—but also as a metaphor to discuss McCarthyism. It is interesting to note that when Lawrence and Lee wrote about the Scopes Monkey Trial, the historical event was well behind them and easy to use as a metaphor for the ongoing communist witch hunt of their time.

However, in Here Be Dragons—self-dubbed “Inherit the Wind Round Two”—the fight against anti-intellectualism continues, and this time, our reality finds us not safely away from the issues but directly suffering from them. The religious ideals of the historical trial, fear of a repeat of the McCarthy era, and anti-intellectualism create a three-headed dragon, not unlike King Ghidorah. Charlie Mount’s new script brings these issues into the limelight and forces the audience to face them head-on.  

For some, humanity may feel like a lost cause. We turn away from the news and social media because it has become so overwhelming. Whether in the courtroom, in the streets, or speaking with our own family, the fight can feel insurmountable.

But as Mount’s characters say: it’s one worth fighting for.

Mount sets the play not in a courtroom, but in a small classroom, such as could be found anywhere in the US. Like many US classrooms, this one has been darkened by gun violence. The tiny school board of 3 hold a mock “trial” in which they will decide about the new curriculum, one they hope will lead to less violence; it is a decision that will affect the entire country. To make their decisions, they will hear from two experts: Robert and Jerome.

Charlie Mount stars as the optimistic but frustrated Robert fighting for science, while Jim Beaver stars opposite, fighting for pseudo-science and a re-definition of science allowing for creationism to be taught. For his script, Mount makes the leads two brothers instead of close friends, amplifying their conflict and creating a level of connection and empathy between them, highlighted by their strong performances.

I found myself often frustrated by the trial, by the arguments, by everything going on, but that’s how it should be. I wasn’t the only one. I saw and heard those around me frustrated with the faith-based arguments that forget the very basic principles of our nation. Audible groans and uncomfortable shifts in the seats surrounded me as it was proclaimed once again that the United States was founded as a Christian nation. Tension built swiftly as the story progressed.

As it should. Stories like this are meant to call attention to these issues, to make you feel frustrated, ashamed, angry and maybe (hopefully?) ready to stand up and do something about it. A lot of these feelings and frustrations play out in the character of the Board Secretary performed by Scottie Nevil, who in many ways provides a vessel for the audience trying to understand what they can do. She tosses classic books away right in front of the board to help drive home what they are doing. Literally throwing Shakespeare in the trash. She brings up maybe the best point of the play in the final moments. I won’t spoil it for you here, but it is something that requires attention and repair.

The play is also chock full of literary, film, TV and historical references that will resonate with those familiar and hopefully lead others to a search engine. The comedy brought to this heavy topic and subject helped to take some of the edge off. The timing of the board members interrupting and trying to move along the arguments and act like judges allowed for some moments to breathe and laugh.

All three school board members gave distinctive performances: Anne Leyden’s stand-and-deliver style was unique and entertaining, Meg Lin had a very good chemistry with Scottie Nevil, and John Combs bumbled about in a very entertaining way.  It was also impressive that they managed to make it all work within a single setting. Minimalist, but effective.

As Mount’s character points out, there are dragons among us. Those who hoard wealth, power, and intellect are working hard to keep it that way. But like the heroes of old, we too can take up our swords—whatever form that may take—and win back what is ours. We have to keep fighting for science, reason, and art. We have to fight for that which makes us human, that which ties us together. Here be dragons, sure, but a united community will always be stronger in the end.

Written by skilled playwright Charlie Mount, HERE BE DRAGONS takes ideas posited in “Inherit the Wind” and moves them to 2026 in his world premiere of this intense and thought-provoking new play. HERE BE DRAGONS presents Mount as author, director, and actor as he examines arguments supporting – and also opposing – evolution vs. intelligent design while two estranged brothers fight it out to the bitter end.

The place is a high school classroom somewhere in America, and the time is now. Just a month ago, a teacher was shot and killed in this room in front of terrified kids. Why? She was teaching a class on Bible Literacy, a forum to discuss how key Biblical concepts and philosophies – and even language – have found their way into literature and our society at large. However, many in the community feel that any study of the Bible must include spiritual and even supernatural opinions advanced by the Christian faith in a town composed largely of Christians.

Why is the school board meeting in this very classroom, where blood is still visible on the floor? Gordon Sayers (John Combs), Sheila Fremont (Meg Lin), and Fran Walker (Anne Leyden) have come together to discuss the issue of evolution vs. intelligent design in order to decide on a replacement curriculum for the murdered teacher’s class. As it turns out, there are a few uninvited guests, including parents Ava Lee (Corinne Shor) and Teddy Lee (George Tovar), whose traumatized son was standing next to the teacher when she was shot; Jerome King (Jim Beaver), author of a book which developed a curriculum for intelligent design; Robert Bell (Charlie Mount), his estranged brother and vocal opponent to mixing science and religion; and equally vocal Mila Young (Scottie Nevil), the Board secretary there to take minutes. A full house with a full agenda indeed. And what makes a decision by this local, small town school board so important? It seems that the school grounds have attracted hordes of national and international media and hundreds of protesters picketing for and against separation of church and state. The decision reached today may have repercussions around the globe.

Director Mount has done a pithy and engrossing job of formulating his characters with all their halos and/or warts. The cast does a yeoman’s job of entering into the spirit of the tale as they fight for their viewpoint against their opponents’ ideas. Having two brothers with conflicting beliefs is also an intriguing twist to the plot, and Beaver and Mount represent them with passion.

HERE BE DRAGONS is a timely and absorbing study of issues many thought had been resolved decades ago – and which resurfaced within the past several years with the rise of the current political climate. While many of the terms have been streamlined and modernized for today’s society, they strongly reflect back on philosophies espoused by many conservatives almost 100 years ago. Mount is a powerful writer, and he has done his homework in formulating HERE BE DRAGONS. While the play may be overly intellectual for many theater-goers, it nonetheless presents a powerful picture of controversies resurrected so many years later. BTW, what inspired the current play title? Think St. George.