NARRATOR:
Ten days on the ocean
Nothing but the Atlantic
For as far as the eye can see
And the sound of sailing
Samuel Stratford
Stands on the bow at dawn
Watching the waves ripple and fade
As the lights of the world come on
He couldn’t help but imagine
What his younger self would say
He never could help but imagine
It was just his way

SAMUEL:
I could get used to adventure
This feeling of freedom, the beat of my heart
I could get used to adventure
After years of living at the beginning
Now I am ready to start

ROSE:
‘Morning, Samuel

SAMUEL:
Ahoy, Rose! Are we feeling better this morning?
ROSE:
Listen, just because I got sea-sick, doesn’t mean
I’m a bad sailor!

NARRATOR:
Rose and Samuel Stratford
Twins from New York City
First time on a boat in twenty years

HERSCHEL:
Your sister has gotten sick the last ten days

ROSE:
Thanks for noticing, John

NARRATOR:
Invited by John Herschel
Scientist of great renown
Successful in his myriad careers

MARGARET:
We’ve been sailing for ten days, Rose

ROSE:
Margaret, whose side are you on?
NARRATOR:
And Margaret Cavendish
Closer than she’s ever been
To something lost, but something near

ROSE:
Sailing for South America
For an experiment undefined

MARGARET:
There’s no time for second guessing
It’s too late to change our minds

SAMUEL:
Can’t stop now

ROSE:
Don’t look back

ROSE, SAMUEL:
Leave the past far behind

COMPANY:
I could get used to adventure
Charting a course for a future unknown
I could get used to adventure
By land or by sea
With good company
Together, we’ll make it our own
SAMUEL:
Ten days on the ocean
Ten days away from familiar shores

ROSE:
We’ve traded our printing press for a crow’s nest

ROSE, SAMUEL:
We’re not in New York anymore

MARGARET:
Ten days on the ocean

HERSCHEL:
Ten days of meals, of midnight talks

NARRATOR:
You learn a lot
When sharing a cot
Passing the time between docks

SAMUEL:
Thousands of miles from the Paper Stand

ROSE:
Leaving behind the things we wrote

HERSCHEL:
Not another word about your hoax
It isn’t welcome on this boat

ROSE:
Not even the lunar buffalo?

SAMUEL:
Or the bat-people?

MARGARET:
Don’t push your luck, Stratfords
On my rooftop
Before our ship set its heading south
You spoke of a quest, with me as your guest
Now can you share what it’s about

HERSCHEL:
It’s a secret
For three years, this plan has been concealed
We are on our way, and in less than a day
I promise you, all will be revealed
Until then
I trust you will use your imaginations

SAMUEL:
Rose is about to use her printing press plate

ROSE:
You’ve got that right

HERSCHEL:
Man your stations
The wind is at our backs
Our aim is strong and true
The die is cast, so scale the mast
Let’s show what we can do

ROSE:
Sailing for British Guiana
For an experiment undeclared

HERSCHEL:
There’s no time for second guess-
Wait, Rose, how did you know we were going to
British Guiana?

ROSE:
(laughs)

SAMUEL:
Can’t stop now

ROSE:
Don’t look back

ROSE, SAMUEL:
Leave the past far behind

MARGARET:
I could get used to adventure
Answering questions that nobody knows
I could get used to adventure

ROSE:
After years of waiting

SAMUEL:
The world was rotating

ROSE, SAMUEL:
Now I am ready to go

COMPANY:
I could get used to adventure
A galaxy brimming with new ports of call
I could get used to adventure
The journey we’re on
Between and beyond
Is the greatest adventure of all
(cheers)

NARRATOR:
The earth turns
At a thousand miles an hour
Chasing the sun away
The stars burn
The moon appears and glimmers
At the end of the day

ROSE:
Is the boat rocking more than usual?

HERSCHEL:
I don’t think so…

ROSE:
It’s very windy

HERSCHEL:
Miss Stratford, we’re sailing

NARRATOR:
Rose and John
Have come up with a routine
They spend evenings on the deck
Staring at specks of light