top of page
RATCATCHER – PAST SIMULATIONS
[I DREAMED I SAW JOE HILL LAST NIGHT, SPRING 2017]
ESSENTIALS
WISE WORDS
"There are no limitations to the self except those you believe in."
--Jane Roberts/Seth
READINGS
CURRENT WORK
PAST
SIMULATIONS
I DREAMED I SAW
JOE HILL LAST NIGHT
Fall 2017
I Dreamed I Saw Joe Hill Last Night concerns a potentially calamitous dilemma faced by a young Latina labor organizer on the eve of a strike by her farm worker union members in Salinas, CA, nicknamed the "Salad Bowl of the World."
​
​
The young Latina's name is Mirelia Chavez, and her great uncle was Cesar Chavez, legendary organizer of California's farm workers, many of whom were (and are) undocumented. With the uncertainty arising from the election of Donald Trump to the United States presidency, California's farm workers are in a panic, and the support Mirelia can usually count on (from city government and law enforcement) has deserted her, fearing Federal retaliation.
​
Residents' fear and the involvement of gangs (supporting all sides in the labor dispute) could very well lead to bloodshed during the strike, something that would undo all the progress she and her famous uncle had achieved.
​
In desperation, Mirelia searches her family's library, stumbling across a crumbling page tucked away in a very old Bible. To her astonishment, the paper appears to be the last will and testament of Joe Hill, venerable labor organizer among the early Wobblies in the Western United States. Hill was executed by firing squad for two murders that almost all commentators (then, and since) agree he could not possibly have committed, in the process becoming a mythic hero to generations of unionists everywhere.
​
Even more strange, the document speaks of a mysterious visit to Hill during the night before his execution by an elderly Mexican woman summoned by his friends to perform a Santerian ritual to establish him as (non-biological) ancestor, one who could inspire those in the labor movement forever. Following a visit to her cousin, a Santeria oloricha, Mirelia returns home to fall into a deep sleep, where she travels to several dreamworlds, guided by the spirit of Joe Hill. Awakening from her deep sleep, she finally learns what Joe (and her uncle Cesar) have been trying to teach her, and what she must do.
​
Fun Facts and Trivia
​
-- This was the first time the simulation was taught to a class comprising exclusively Honors students (at this university, representing the top five percent of GPAs). Earlier course memberships had been either exclusively graduate students, undergraduate students, or a mixture of the two.
​
​
-- Two of the most important participants in the final simulation (and the rehearsals leading up to it) weren't even registered for the course! Sabrina Fleming, who had some experience in live theater, and Tanner McCracken, who was friends with one of the registered class members, wandered into our class meeting area downstairs in Honors housing, and asked if they could hang out with us! Both were so impressed with what we were doing that they volunteered to help out the rest of the semester. Sabrina was invaluable in production design, blocking, and line rehearsal, while Tanner ended up playing three different minor roles (!) in the final performance.
​
​
bottom of page