Synkroniciti is thrilled to welcome back New Zealand playwright Rex McGregor, formerly featured in our “Birds” issue, with another witty comedy, Zany Planets. “The stars move across the sky in an orderly fashion. But sometimes the planets stop and go backwards! This doesn’t make sense to young Niclas Kopernik (known today as the one of the fathers of modern astronomy, Copernicus). He seeks help from Hypatia, an astronomer who lived a thousand years earlier.” Hypatia is a fantasy that the young astronomy student has dreamed up to get his mind off of the beautiful Matylda Kaminsky. When Kopernik’s mother fears he is going mad–all this science and talking to himself–she sends in Matylda, who has recently taken holy vows to become a nun, to distract him. It’s a clever piece that explores feminism and the dangers of organized religion, which stifles creativity, inspiration and knowledge in the name of conformity. Rex also teaches us a bit of science regarding planets in retrograde, all the while entertaining us enormously. Laughter opens up the human mind and Rex is an expert at harnessing that energy.
Experience Zany Planets in Synkroniciti’s November 30th issue, “Space,” Vol. 5, No. 4, available for purchase here: https://synkroniciti.com/the-magazine/purchase-individual-issues/.
Rex McGregor is a New Zealand playwright. His short comedies have been produced on four continents from New York and London to Sydney and Chennai.