Chapter 2 - 'Librettising' Astrophysics to create The Flowering Desert
2.1 Introduction
2.4.e Developing the Character of the Exocomet: Xoe
Astrophysics itself is a heavily data-driven field, with a deep reliance on information being conveyed, and then deciphered, across huge distances in order to bring knowledge of our universe to light. This is reflected by Jung in the role the anima/animus holds in carrying messages out from the subconscious, and so the inclusion of a messenger figure became an important element in the story. Ultimately this messenger was embodied in the exocomet Xoe, who carries the news to Pantele that something else has observed it elsewhere in the galaxy (the Measurer). It is also a conduit between the timeline of the Measurer and the timeline of the TRAPPIST-1 system. Ultimately in the final Mélodrame it is Xoe who the Measurer thanks, in showing them how to conceive of life in a red dwarf system (below at p.11, lines 252-254).
Thank you Xoe
You reminded me - I believe
In life after all.
The messenger archetype is often represented through the trickster, as a fluid character always in movement. The symbol of Mercury is highly relevant here. Mercury as a metal is known in both liquid and solid forms, moving between the two. In this piece whenever Xoe appears they are always on the move, either coming or going. For example, at the start of scene 3 (below at p. 7. Line 160):
Xoe:
Back I trot, out I pop.
As a mythological character it is a winged messenger of the gods, and as a planet it is part of our solar system. In the Homeric Hymn to Hermes, Hermes is described by Apollo as being a ‘slayer of oxen, trickster, busy one, comrade of the feast’ (Homeric Hymns, 1914: online, line 436). It is clear from the tale of Apollo, Hermes and the theft of the cows, that Hermes is indeed the cunning trickster-god he came to be known as. This allows Xoe the scope of being representative of a trickster archetype, among other things. In Xoe’s opening poem they describe themselves in relation to this archetype (below at p. 2-3, lines 46-59):
Xoe:
I am the comet Xoe.
I am the two tailed trickster,
Dropping via counter steered descent,
To a mother star skirt’s brim.
Frozen stone exterior,
Radiate rays effervescent,
Excitement begin!
I am the comet Xoe.
I am the two tailed messenger.
Travelled far beyond this system’s edge,
In an ever-wiser spin.
With a motion pendular,
Path perturbed by planetary dredge,
Secret’s I’ve within.
The Homeric hymn also claims that Hermes “first invented fire-sticks and fire” (Homeric Hymn, 1914: online, line 110), making this god a fundamental part of the creation of life and connecting it to the Prometheus story. Hermes was also often represented as a phallic symbol. The Herma or Herm is a sculpture made from an upright cuboid of terracotta or stone with the head of Hermes on top, and male genitalia adorning the middle (see fig 11). Prior to Hermes being a protector of travellers, he also represented fertility and luck. As such the character of Xoe can also take on qualities relating to the animus, having their own hero's journey, particularly in relation to the theory of panspermia. For Jung the masculine is related to the first part of life through which the ego/hero rises out of the unconscious to find the maiden, helping to track Xoe’s path towards transformation during collision with the more feminine Pantele. As Xoe dives on their approach to Pantele, and to fulfil their role in the creation of life and habitability, they sing their triumphant aria. The presence of comets, and their potential to either destroy or create life has been studied in relation to the TRAPPIST-1 system (Kral et al., 2018), where it has been suggested that they might be vital in the replenishment of an atmosphere around the farthest planets in the system. The impact of comets has also been studied and shown to possibly produce hydrogen cyanide molecules, a component in the synthesis of amino acids, and important for prebiotic chemistry (Gersakines et al., 2004). Please go to timecode 00:23:14 (second half) (below is at p. 10, lines 220-237).
Mother Star:
Accelerate
Xoe’s triumphant aria
Xoe:
Be brave Pantele.
You are seeing clearly.
At last you found your magnetism
I am so proud of how you listened
Mother Star:
Sublimate
Xoe:
This final journey past Mother star
I noticed my tail
Mother Star:
Excel
Xoe:
I cannot brightly shine forever
There’s more that we can do together.
And so it is with this last plunge
My adventures all will be expunged
Mother Star:
Plunge
Xoe:
All elements for life can form
Though first they may seem toxic
Embrace your star and be transformed
Once inert now biotic
During this aria Xoe refers both to their own trauma for the first time (the burning of their tail) and to the event of panspermia which is about to occur. They reference the biological potential present in the coming together of Xoe and Pantele and the dissolution of their character and being in this last brave act (below at p. 11, lines 241-243).
Xoe:
And now for the final wound
I’ll meet you on your winds.
It’s time for life to begin!
As it dives it breaks into many tiny pieces, some of which burn up on entry and some of which eventually smack into the surface of Pantele. When they do this, they cause huge plumes to rise from the surface of Pantele and spread across the surface from the bright side of the “self” to the dark side of the “shadow”. “
During the early stages of the work it was noted by several members of the short story workshops and two of my collaborators that this moment, and in fact the whole of Pantele’s arc, could be seen as a loss of virginity. This reading of the story would mean the moment of Pantele’s individuation would be related to the fecundation of the planet by the comet. In order to steer away from representing the planet and comet through these gendered stereotypes we chose to make the voice of Xoe a female, in particular a high soprano, and we worked with the singer and director to think of this character more as an older sister or grandmother. The final collision was meant to appear not so much as a penetration but as a union. This helped us to shift the focus of anthropomorphism away from converting astrophysics into humans and closer to converting humans into astrophysics. The performers and characters can lose any reference to human categorisation such as male/female. As Jung himself acknowledges, the presence of masculine and feminine within the male and female psyche, as well as the importance of the syzygy and the confrontation of these opposing categories to an androgynous union, these character traits, drawn out of his archetypes, do not necessitate that the performer for any character be either male or female. It is exciting to be able to reframe these ideas of the masculine and feminine by applying them to such genderless objects as a comet. In such a moment we are allowing the properties of science to shape and question the way we see ourselves, alongside using human tropes to shape how we see the science.
At the moment of collision, despite Pantele’s seeming lack of control over Xoe’s actions, it was important that Pantele did not appear passive. In generating a magnetic field and surface temperature warm enough for life Pantele has already undergone a process of change which generated energy from within the planet itself. Reflecting on the movement and direction of the performance, were we to repeat the performance I would now revisit how Pantele is presented in the lead up to this moment, making her more active, perhaps even moving her from her central position, and showing how she is taking control of her destiny at this stage.
Being the same age as the system and the star Xoe also takes on elements of the archetype of the sage. It is wiser than Pantele due to both the distance it travels and the fact that it undergoes the trauma of being burnt and evaporated every time it comes near the star. It is able to guide Pantele through their journey of individuation, before becoming an active role in it at the end. This is particularly evident in Scene 3 where Xoe informs Pantele that there are two conditions necessary for Pantele to become of interest and have an identity in relation to the observer beyond the system. Please go to timecode 00:07:00 (second half) (p. 7-8, lines 164-174):
Xoe:
I’m so glad you asked
But it will be hard to do
(Xoe’s tone intensifies to signify an important message)
First –
Your mother’s grasp is strong
She holds and governs you.
But you can start to tame her-
Turn her weaponry to armour!
Second –
Alone you cannot manage
You need some added magic
That only comes with luck
(Returning to a lighter tone)
Habitability is hospitality and so far, you have none.
The meddling and ultimate demise of the trickster Xoe, a comet which collides with Pantele, reflects the commonly used reference to a cracked egg, for example in both the Finnu-Ugric and Hindhu creation stories. The use of an egg relates to a human understanding of the universe and creation in many ways. The energy and creative power that comes from within the egg links with panspermia and carrying the analogy towards reproduction. In the final cycle we returned to some elements of this idea as we directed Xoe to remove her hat and pass it on to Pantele. This would be both a shelling of Xoe’s own exterior and a crowning to glory for Pantele in one gesture. Having played with the ideas around the use of the egg for the moment of collision in the projections, we finally settled on using the concept of flowering, in an explosion of colour and shape on the dome. This was created using an animation developed between myself and Amy Bradley to represent Xoe, and Leon Trimble’s modular synthesisers, which distorted and refracted it as the comet breaks up in Pantele’s atmosphere. The animation itself was designed to show both the shape of the comet and incorporate the idea of things splitting, breaking up and becoming something new. Please go to timecode 00:27:00-00:29:00 (second half) to see the moment of collision at the end of scene 4.
2.4.e.i Developing Xoe through Collaboration and Performance
After initial vocal workshops in the first cycle we decided that Xoe should be light hearted, sung by a lyric coloratura soprano, and make use of the music generated from all the planets as it passes through the whole system in the story. Daniel suggested that as Xoe was partly based on Hermes/Mercury it should use a lot of music from planet b (closest to the star) as well as material from planet h (the furthest away) to show the distance travelled.
In the first cycle of explorations through performance Xoe’s movement was fluid and light, showing its freedom and agency in comparison to the servile and imprisoned existence of Pantele at this early stage in the story. However, as we progressed through the cycles we all agreed that this initial version did not match the music or research behind the character. We therefore changed the movement to become slower, more pained, and tired. Ultimately, we hoped to be able to combine the two by directing the singer to be quite bombastic in their vocal and physical expressions. Due to rehearsal limitations we had not yet reached the stage of this character being fully embodied by the performer, but with further work on future productions this is the direction we would bring the character towards.
In the final cycle we worked on the character of Xoe, giving her more presence by providing her with a stronger costume with a hat, makeup and a torch so she could light herself up from all around the space. This allowed her to sing from different points around the planetarium, and the use of the hat and makeup provided a different kind of characterisation which reflected the more fun and excitable parts of her character. We even had some giggles from the audience on a couple of her entrances, an encouraging sign which showed the audience were able to feel comfortable enough to not worry about taking the operatic elements of this quite jovial character too seriously. In the film of the dress rehearsal the hat was not yet complete, however you can see it below in figure 13.
