GOLÁS
ENGLISH VERSION
2026
GOLÁS
A One-Act Play
By Benjamín Gavarre
© BENJAMÍN GAVARRE SILVA
Contact this address if you have produced it or wish to do so: gavarreunam@gmail.com
CHARACTERS:
GOLÁS: A small, glowing being with a stalk, wings, and five eyes.
ROSE 1: A proud and gossiping rose.
ROSE 2: Her friend, equally gossiping.
FERN: A nervous and fearful fern.
MR. PINE: A haughty, know-it-all pine tree.
GABRIEL: A small, curious, and sensitive boy.
SCENE 1
(The scene takes place in a garden. A rose bush, a large fern, and, in the background, a massive pine tree dominating the landscape are visible. In the center, a small green stalk protrudes from the earth. GOLÁS, with his five curious eyes, looks around as his wings flutter softly, emitting a faint glow).
ROSE 1
(Preening her petals with disdain)
Did you see that, darling? Not a single decent petal. Only those eyes... five of them! Such a lack of symmetry. It’s an offense to the garden’s aesthetic.
ROSE 2
(Snickering)
And that humming, Rose. It sounds like he has a mosquito trapped in his throat. Does he not know if he wants to be a flower or a pest? What an identity crisis!
FERN
(Trembling)
He gives me the creeps. Look at those wings. What if he suddenly detaches from the ground and starts biting? Shiny things always carry poison; I read it in yesterday’s dew.
MR. PINE
(With a voice like old thunder, clearing his throat)
Silence, inferior vegetation! I, who have seen a hundred autumns pass, will tell you what that... anomaly is. It is a "Nuisance Pest-Plant." A seed that got its manual mixed up. It is obvious his presence here upsets the balance of our illustrious hierarchy.
ROSE 1
Exactly! We provide fragrance, the Fern provides decoration, you provide watchfulness... But him? He just... glows. He’s an exhibitionist!
MR. PINE
(Leaning toward Golás)
Hey, you, five-eyed freak. In this garden, things either have roots or they have wings. You can't go through life pretending to be both. Do you have nothing to say in your defense before I ask the wind to tear you out?
GOLÁS
(With a soft, melodic voice)
I seek no defense because there is no crime in being. I am not a plant, though I love the earth. I am a traveler who stopped to rest. Soon, when my stalk regains its strength, I will leave this place to see the world beyond that gate.
MR. PINE
(Yawning arrogantly)
Beyond the gate? What delusions! Beyond there is nothing but concrete and oblivion. You are a bore, creature. I’m going to sleep; arguing with ignorance drains my resin.
(Mr. Pine falls asleep. The roses and the fern, in a collective gesture of contempt, close their petals and lower their leaves, sinking into a deep sleep. Golás remains alone, glowing faintly in the dark).
SCENE 2
(Night falls. A creak announces a house door opening. GABRIEL enters with a flashlight and a glass jar).
GABRIEL
(Tired)
"The worst homework in the world"... Science class is tomorrow and all I have is an earthworm that won't stop squirming. I need something incredible... something that will make everyone's jaw drop.
(He searches under stones. Suddenly, the beam of light falls on Golás. The boy stops dead in his tracks, amazed).
GABRIEL
Wow! What is this? It looks like a jewel with roots... or a butterfly that fell asleep in the dirt. It’s perfect!
(Without thinking, Gabriel pulls GOLÁS out. A dry crunch is heard. He puts him in the jar and closes the lid. GOLÁS hits the glass desperately).
GOLÁS
(Muffled voice)
The air... it stops. My wings have no room... I am fading...
GABRIEL
(Bringing the jar to his ear, turning pale)
You talk? Are you... are you suffering?
(Gabriel looks at the bottom of the jar. He sees the small piece of broken stalk and Golás's wings losing their shine. Realization hits him like a lightning bolt).
GABRIEL
You had a stalk... you were planted... and I pulled you out.
FINAL SCENE
(Gabriel runs toward a small pot near his bedroom window. With trembling hands, he fills it with moist earth and places GOLÁS in it with infinite gentleness. He sprinkles a few drops of water. The scene is bathed in moonlight).
GABRIEL
(Whispering)
Are you better? I’m sorry I pressed the soil too hard... I didn't want you to fall over again. I didn't know it hurt to be caught.
GOLÁS
(His wings vibrate with an amber glow, regaining strength)
Your hands are warm now. The garden soil was cold and full of words that weighed like stones. Here, the silence is different.I am Golás.
GABRIEL
(Ashamed)
I thought you were a thing. An object to show off at school. My name is Gabriel. I almost broke you completely for a science project.
GOLÁS
(Looking at him with his five eyes)
Everyone with roots fears those of us with wings. And those with wings sometimes forget that the body also needs a place to rest. You gave me back my place, little human. You saved me from the darkness of the glass.
GABRIEL
Will you stay with me? I can take care of you forever.
GOLÁS
(Softly)
My stalk will heal. And when it is strong again, my wings will take me to find the place where colors are born. But now my sap carries something new... something the roses and the old pine didn't have.
GABRIEL
What is it?
GOLÁS
(Brushing the boy's cheek with a wing)
It carries your name, Gabriel. Now I can tell the wind that a boy preferred my life over his trophy.
GABRIEL
(With teary eyes)
Then, you won't be alone when you fly.
GOLÁS
Never again. You will know that somewhere, there are five eyes looking for you from above. And I will know that down here, there is a heart watching over me.
(Gabriel rests his head on the window frame. GOLÁS begins to emit a melodious hum, a luminous lullaby that fills the entire room).
GABRIEL
(Closing his eyes)
Goodnight, Golás... fly high when you're ready.
GOLÁS
Goodnight, Gabriel... thank you for letting me take root in your heart.
(The moonlight intensifies as Golás’s glow grows, merging with the darkness in absolute peace).
CURTAIN (Very slow)
