Photo: Kat duPont Vecchio
From time immemorial, the planet Mars has loomed large in the collective imagination of humankind. One of our closest celestial neighbors, the so-called “red planet” has often been seen as a threat, as witnessed by the panic generated by Orson Welles’s famous radio dramatization of H G Wells’s The War of the Worlds in 1938. In our own day, Mars is serving as a stimulus for entrepreneurs like Elon Musk who is pushing for the SpaceX colonization of Mars. Though Astronauts Wanted is not “about” the Musk project, it is plausible to assume that Heloise Wilson had it in mind when she wrote the script for this engaging drama, with its occasional references to the “millionaires” behind the initiative.
In actuality, Wilson based her script on the Mars One project, a Netherlands-based space exploration initiative that started up in 2012 only to go bankrupt and liquidate in 2019. The original concept was to launch a team of robots by 2020, followed up by four humans in 2024.
Mars One was roundly criticized by aerospace industry officials and by academics, who termed it a “suicide mission” because of its neglect of safety considerations. The criticisms, however, did not deter the many would-be astronauts who volunteered for the project. In acknowledging their bravery, Heloise Wilson was paying tribute to the pioneering spirit that she sees in humanity, as exemplified by the fifteenth-century explorers who circumnavigated the Earth in the name of “God, gold, and glory.”
Photo: Kat duPont Vecchio
Astronauts Wanted is now playing at the Tank Theater in New York, one of the city’s leading venues for experimental drama. Skillfully directed by Saki Kawamura, the production foregrounds the stories of three pioneering humans who are being sent to Mars in the name of human progress.
Described by the producers as a “poetic multimedia piece,” Astronauts Wanted follows the trials and tribulations of three volunteers eager to be among the first human visitors to the red planet: Sol (played by Gibran Garcia, Tellulah (played by Marisela Grajeda Gonzalez, and Sorcha (played by scriptwriter Heloise Wilson). Also delivering a top-notch performance is the character of Mae (played by Regan Hicks), who lends her vocal talents to this ensemble, singing some plaintive songs, including “Five Hundred Miles From Home,” which helps create just the right sense of moodiness as the astronauts embark on their long interplanetary odyssey.
While there are plenty of references to the technical side of things, the show’s real value comes to light as the trio takes a deep dive into their own psyches, pushing the envelope of what it means to be human. Director Saki Kawamura has chosen to tell each of their stories via a series of short vignettes that allow motivations and personal histories to rise to the surface.
Photo: Kat duPont Vecchio
Kudos also to Lana Boy (set design), Bentley Heydt (lighting design), and Chase Kniffen (projection design). Working with a minimal set, the three have crafted a stunning visual environment. The only stage furniture consists of four cubes that serve as chairs for the cast and—in a final touching scene—as a catafalque for one of the women astronauts who perishes during the mission. Imaginatively. a large transparent floor covering is hoisted up to serve as a screen on which videos of the mission are projected.
Astronauts Wanted is a timely and well-crafted production that is riveting both for its narrative and visual elements, and for the new insights it adds to humanity’s long-standing curiosity about its place in the universe. It is a tribute to the intrepid spirit of women and men who defy all odds to move out of their comfort zones. Without doubt, it’s a simply Mars-velous theatrical experience.
Rating: A
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“Astronauts Wanted”