Roots of the Earth

[ Felicia, with Lia at her side. Ensemble in the upstage shadows. Heartbeat tempo, world-tribal opening. ] Felicia Before there was a name for you, before there was a mirror, the earth was already learning your shape. From the cradle where the rivers sleep, from the bones the mountains keep, from the hush before your name was named, I have called you here, unashamed. [ Drums build. Felicia turns to Lia, then to the audience. ] You who carry weight you cannot name, you who run and yet remain, here is where the running ends — at the roots where breath begins. Felicia And Ensemble Come down, come down to the roots of the earth, where the old ones still remember your worth. Come down, come down where the seed still sings — you are the tree, and the tree is everything. [ Drums intensify. Ensemble dancers move through the audience aisles, swaying like trees. ] Drums. Heartbeat. Mother's hum. Long before the lonely came. Lay your fear here in the dark — soil knows what soil reclaims. Felicia, Addressing Lia Directly Little one — yes, you — I have known you longer than you have known yourself. Before the voices told you who to be, there was a voice that told you who you ARE. I am that voice. I have been waiting. [ AT 3:42 — all percussion stops. Felicia, alone, single contralto voice. ] I have called you here again. [ Six seconds of breath. Then full orchestra explodes back. ] Felicia And Full Ensemble Come down, come down to the roots of the earth, where the old ones still remember your worth. Come down, come down where the seed still sings — you are the tree, and the tree is everything. [ Outro — whisper, ensemble in unison. ] You were always home. We just had to remember the word. The word is a heartbeat. The heartbeat is yours. Welcome. T he drums settle. Felicia and Lia remain at the base of the tree. The ensemble withdraws into shadow. The audience is silent, leaning in. The song has ended, but no one has applauded — not because they shouldn't, but because they don't yet know that they can. This is exactly right. 24 Luis Miguel Gallardo ···