My all-time favorite speculative fiction author is Robert Heinlein. His decades-spanning career cast such a huge shadow that it would be hard to sum it up here. He’s probably best known for penning Stranger in a Strange Land as well as other notable works including The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, Time Enough for Love and Starship Troopers. While his later writing may be cringeworthy in today’s woke world (lots of male gaze stuff), overall his collective body of work is very progressive and though-provoking, highly individualistic but also compassionate, always probing the human condition.
\n\n
One of my top Heinlein picks is his 1960 novella “If This Goes On…,” which tells the tale of a Christian theocracy that has come to power in the United States and a Masonic revolution intent on overthrowing it. It explores media manipulation, power politics, the role of organized religion, and personal belief. As a bonus, the novella features a strong female lead named Magdalene, a nun who plays a key part in the plot to take the country back.
\n\n
As I was first conceiving the musical, I decided to employ the device of a protagonist delivering first-person admonitions to the audience to both open and close the story. The themes in the Heinlein story fit so well for a Revelation tale, and are always so top of mind for me, that the idea to title the opening piece after the novella naturally popped into my head. This one narrative choice unlocked several others going forward. While the story is totally different, the thematic overlap strongly suggested certain characters and situations. In hindsight, it was a very good choice.
