Jesus's Cures

Casting

• Chris Carpenter
• Jamie Schreiber
• Maria - Eve Matthews
• Karl - James Popadopoulos
• Michelle - Andrea Skala
• Karen - Tamasa Valappil
• Pat - Philip Harrison
• Robert - Jude Fairchild
• Lily - Simone Cylima
• Will - Frank Bartholemew
• Linda - Pearl Skala
• David - Judah Isaacson
• Benjamin - John Popadoupolos
• Officer Moore - Barry Magdalene

Setting

As Buruli Ulcer, river blindness, drug-resistant malaria, and several strains of anti-biotic resistant bacteria spread through the United States the uninsured get more and more desperate. Rumors spread that Chris Carpenter is distributing free drugs that are more effective than most of what the hospitals have. The sick flock to Chris in droves, demanding cures.

Characters

Cast

Chris Carpenter

You and Jamie are here at the school, yet again handing out a bandaid for a gaping wound. People come ask you for medicine, and you explain the causes of the diseases while Jamie sends them away with pills. For months now, you have been giving out medicine and warnings. You're starting to run low on medicine and your warnings aren't doing any good.

You want to help people, you want to cure the uninsured. You saw too many children suffer from incurable illnesses. What you want even more is for people to listen to you. You tell everyone who comes for your drugs about the environmental collapse. You tell them the cause of their suffering, but they don't want to listen. You're fed up. What good is it to cure these people today if they only drown in a flood next week? If they won't listen to you, what good does curing them do? They want you to save their sight, their limbs, their lives, but they don't care about saving themselves! They don't care about saving their planet!

Jamie Schreiber

Chris has amazing medicine that cures diseases the doctors don't know how to cure. You don't know where she got it, but you're happy to help distribute it. After she talks to each person, you give them the medicine that will heal them. She wants to talk about the environment, and that's very important, but these people are suffering. The most important thing here is that each person get what they need.

Horde

• Maria - Your two children are suffering from some strange disease. You never saw anything like this back in Mexico. They're coughing all the time. You don't speak English very well, and you didn't want to take your children to the hospital because you are afraid that you would be deported.

• Karl - You heard about all these funny tropical diseases, and you wanted to know if this weird rash you have on your shoulder was some funny tropical disease. It's kinda itchy, so if they could make it go away, you'd really like that.

• Lily - Three months ago, your eyes started to itch. You thought it was just the smog, so you ignored it. You didn't have money for a doctor anyway, what with your kids needing food. It's gotten worse since then, and it's starting to affect your sight. Maybe this Chris Carpenter can help you.

• Karen - Your son at home has malaria, and it won't respond to treatment. You have the money, and you had all the best doctors see him. You normally don't think much of miracle workers and street corner charlatans, but, at this point you have no other hope.

• Pat - There's one of those ugly looking ulcers on your arm. You heard there's a treatment, but it's expensive. Maybe Chris can give you something for it.

• Robert - You got a nasty gash on your arm, but you didn't have insurance, so you just cleaned it out and hoped. Now it's infected, and you still don't have the money, so you're coming to this street corner miracle worker. Maybe she's got an idea.

• Michelle - You're, well . . . a lady of the night. A few weeks ago, something started itching and hurting pretty bad down there. You've heard that there is some sort of nasty tropical thing that some of the other whores have picked up, and you're afraid that this might be the same thing. If you have to, you'll go to the hospital, but you'd really rather not. You heard about this Chris lady, and you hope she might be a little more sympathetic.

• Will - You have so many health problems, you don't even know where to start. Your shoulder has been aching for weeks, you've got this nasty cough, and you're pretty sure that blemish on your leg is Buruli ulcer. You need to get Chris to look at all these problems and fix them. You're always coming down with something nasty, but the doctors just send you away. You don't know why.

• Linda - Last week, with no warning, all your hair started falling out. You have no idea what is causing it, but your hair is your pride and joy. You have to fix the cause before you lose it all.

• David - Hey, this is a great freak show. All these people lining up with ailments real and imaginary, and some crazy hippy giving them snake oil and platitudes. Crazy nutjobs who think the world is going to end. Crazier people who come to someone like that for medicine.

• Benjamin - Your boyfriend came down with tuberculosis, and they won't let him out of the house. They say that it's drug resistant and contagious, but you just want to see him. Maybe if you come with medicine they'll let you in.

• Officer Moore - You have heard stories about this Chris Carpenter distributing medicine on the streets. She isn't a licensed doctor or pharmacist, and some of that medicine is probably controlled. This could well be practicing medicine without a license, and endangering these poor people. You need to investigate.