Take your seat in Poe Theater in Newcastle where you will enter a world created in E.M. Forster’s short story, “The Machine Stops,” performed with exquisite perfection by Heartwood Theater Company. Written in 1909, as science fiction, in the 21st century it is more a cautionary tale, one that will affect your thoughts and emotions long after the curtain call.

Enter a world in some unknown future when humans no longer live above the earth, but far below individually, in a room located among a myriad of tunnels. Communication among people is limited to screens, perhaps similar to say, today’s laptops. No physical contact – save for acts of procreation – is permitted.

Each small room contains a chair and a table; plus one more table for a remote console covered with buttons for music selections or phone calls to, for example, your child who had been placed on the other side of the Earth in his or her own room. Yes, children are taken from mothers after birth and taken to the Public Nursery. Mothers have limited time with them as they grow up.

Life necessities – food and drink, sleep, bathing; reading material, music – the very air they breathe – is provided and controlled by “The Machine.” Need information about any topic from childhood to religion? Need guidance for a medical issue? Are you depressed? Rest easy. It’s all addressed in “The Book” generated by The Machine.

In the Heartwood production audiences travel through the history of mankind with The Machine in a brief, but brilliant, dance sequence (portrayed by nine actors: Rebecca Tomasello, Katelyn Prior, Sophia Mansfield, Addie McCafferty, Natalie Friel Roosevelt Bishop, Jay Morris Long, Tryston Lambert and Tim Cunningham) as it gathers and stores the information. Aiding in this visual are two narrators (Honora Boothby and Joe Lugosch) who reappear many times during this play.

The walls of each solitary room, the world over, are covered in lights and buttons controlling the atmosphere, the levels of “air” within. And there’s one more thing each room has: a kind of humming sound, not one that could remotely be described as pleasant, but it is constant. This “hum,” as well as the entire “sound”track, was created by Sophia Scott.

These are the surrounds for Vashti (Nanette Fraser), mother of Kuno (Jonah Daiute), born with a curious and inquisitive mind (and yet was still allowed to live). Kuno needs to know what lies beyond the rooms and the tunnels. What is like above in the place where the air is poison, the Earth formerly occupied by humans, decimated. Travel is permitted, but must be authorized and a special breathing apparatus assigned. To do so without authorization could find an individual sentenced to homelessness; so saith The Book.

Vashti does not want Kuno to do this. It is possible for those who follow The Book's rules, but Kuno wants to explore on his own and his way. And so the journey for both begins.

An interesting addition to this dark tale: Both Vashti and Kuno’s emotions and memories, perhaps buried or partially erased; that inner voice that cannot be supressed, are given human form by Emily Sue Barker for Vashti and Soren Barker for Kuno. Soren also portrays Kuno during his temporary “escape.” 

This thought-provoking adaption of Braley’s is complemented by Niall Lessard’s brilliant choregraphy. Thanks to his creative talents The Machine’s movements are fluid, surreal and Dream-like.

Scott's staccato musical score heightens the emotions audiences will experience in this dystopian world.

Costuming, lighting and set design stem from Braley’s unlimited imagination. Ryan Kohnert headed up set construction and is the light and sound operator,; production installation - Letitia Munson and Leslie Garnett; costumes - Rosemary Campbell and Heidi Kopishke.

Is this a cautionary tale for humankind in the 21st century? Could E.M. Forster’s science fiction story written over 118 years ago become reality? Might the internet, computers, iPhones, Facebook, TikTok, artificial intelligence (such as Alexa), birth “The Machine?”

Think about it: We are less social, we prefer texting rather than speaking to one another; we prefer to access entertainment by streaming in our homes rather than going out. Some of us are already building our rooms.

Read the short story if you’ve a mind to. But definitely see this Heartwood production, Braley’s adaption of Forster’s sole science fiction short story.

"'The Machine Stops' has been four and a half years in the making," Braley said. "With collaborators Niall Lessard and Sophia Scott and this wonderful cast, we've been able to achieve the vision of this original play. I hope audiences appreciate Forster's story as told in our artistic approach. We're grateful to be able to do this work in such a supportive community."

Performances began July 17 and run through the 25th. Shows are at 7:30 p.m. July 17 and 18, 23-25. There is one 3 p.m. matinee on the 18th. Purchase tickets, $30/adults and $5/students through college, by calling 207-563-1373 or info@heartwoodtheater.org.

Poe Theater is at 81 Academy Hill Road in Newcastle. Get there.