Stage Poem by Daniel Trevelyn Joseph

Levels of awareness build drama on or off it,
Othello knows, and does not know we know,
Desdemona doesn’t know also we know
Iago knows of both parties’ awarenesses,
And builds the plot.
Audience is mostly aware, unless the playwright
Chooses otherwise.
It is the creator who controls others’ awareness.

There is a hierarchy in levels too;
He who knows is in a higher position
At home, in office, anywhere:
A little proud and haughty,
Whether she shows it or not;
The bird views from above, grand and sharp,
But the one beneath too, looking up finds
The soft under-parts exposed.

Awareness shines through many levels,
As in the sky above
Or the self within,
As bird or boar, but not found by Vishnu.
While all the time interplay
Of known and unknown forces
We call ‘leela’ in India
Goes on with or without sound effects,
Multiplying, eliminating awareness levels
Till Acts follow and the play is over.