Other Rose (![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} akycha) wrote,@ 2003-08-13 16:32:00 |
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Shadows on the Wall: Revolution, Movement the Second
Revolution, Movement the Second: "The Heartless Princess," A Production of Gathering Shadows Kashira Theatre, Ltd.
[Scene: The Chairman's Office. A-ko, dressed in a ragged Rose Bride dress and without glasses; B-ko, dressed in the tattered remains of a Student Council uniform, the slacks made into cut-offs and the braid hanging raggedly; and C-ko, dressed in her regular girl's Ohtori uniform, all step off the elevator. At first, the room seems empty. Then:]
Akio's voice: [seeming to come from the couches over on the far side of the room] To what do I owe this not entirely unexpected visit?
[A-ko looks at B-ko, who glances at C-ko, then steps forward.]
B-ko: [confidently] We're here to do a play, of course. We're the Drama Club, remember?
[C-ko nods briskly and steps back into the elevator, which slides silently open to receive her.]
A-ko: [clasps her hands together and leans forward] Oh, do say you'll watch it!
Akio: [sitting up on the couch and looking over his shoulder at them] Really? I hope it is better than your last attempt, which was rather pathetic.
B-ko: We shall certainly do our best.
Akio: Very well. I am sure it will be... entertaining.
[The elevator chimes, and the doors slide open again to reveal a huge box, under which C-ko's legs can barely be seen. Various bits of costuming and scenery poke out of the open top of the box. She staggers out of the elevator and puts the box down, whereupon the Shadowgirls burst into a whirl of activity, viz:
A-ko and B-ko immediately pull a black background depicting hills and a castle out of the box and set it up between the couches and the planetarium projector.
C-ko tosses costumes everywhere, then sets up a little black folding screen behind which the Shadowgirls can dash to dress.
A-ko rushes back and forth with armfuls of props - a sword, a chair, and, for some reason, a goldfish bowl.
B-ko sets up poles and strings a line for curtains.
C-ko fishes the inert Gir out of the box, pops his head open, and fiddles with something until his lights come on.]
Gir: Gir! Reporting for duty! Hey, did you know you've got a squirrel tail on your head?
C-ko: Gir, look at that. [Points to planetarium projector.]
Gir: Coooooooool! What is it? [Gets up and scampers towards the planetarium projector and vanishes behind the stage backdrop.]
After a final flurry of activity, C-ko comes out and stands center stage in front of the curtains.]
C-ko: Gathering Shadows Kashira Theater presents "The Heartless Princess!"
Akio: [applauds politely and ironically.]
[The curtain is pulled aside as C-ko scampers offstage. A-ko, dressed in the princess outfit from "The Tale of the Rose," and B-ko, dressed in the prince outfit from the same play, are standing onstage.
C-ko: [Offstage, narrating] Once upon a time, there was a beautiful but ordinary princess. She belonged to a small and out-of-the-way kingdom, so when a prince came to court her, she was naturally very happy.
[A-ko mimes delight, putting her hands in the air, as B-ko kneels before her and offers her a bunch of roses and a box of chocolates.]
C-ko: This prince completely stole the princess's heart away.
[B-ko dips A-ko into a romantic kiss, all the while holding a sword which looks remarkably like the sword of Dios behind her (B-ko's) back. Just as B-ko begins to bring the sword around, the scene cuts to Akio, who is sitting with one hand thoughtfully on his chin.]
Akio: [murmuring quietly] Effective, if a trifle inaccurate in the details.
C-ko: Then, unfortunately, the prince departed, and the princess was left without a heart.
[B-ko gallops offstage on a stick horse, and A-ko looks after her longingly.]
C-ko: The princess, now heartless, at first bemoaned her sorry state, without a heart and without a prince. Then she began to see the advantages of her position.
A-ko: [sitting on a throne, chin on fist, looking listless. Beside the throne is a small table with a bowl of goldfish.] I'm bored.
B-ko: [dressed in servant's livery, holds up platter of little cakes] Petit four, Your Highness?
A-ko: [sweeps the cakes off the platter, picks up the platter, and hits B-ko over the head with it in one graceful motion of her arm.] I'm slimming, you moron. Besides, they taste like straw. Send in the courtiers.
B-ko: [scurries out, comes back in dressed as a courtier, dripping lace at "his" cuffs.] Your Highness! [Drops to her knees] The bloom of your beauty is the beautiful sun of my sky!
A-ko: [kicks B-ko firmly in the chest, sending her flying offstage] BOR-ing. Isn't there anything to DO around here?
B-ko: [enters again, this time dressed in a long cloak and a pointed hat with a star on the tip] Your Highness, it is written in the stars that one without a heart has no destiny.
A-ko: [gestures lazily at B-ko] Off with his head. [As B-ko exits, protesting, she absently dips her hand in the goldfish bowl and tosses the fish on the floor, where they flop about stiffly until their mechanism runs down.]
[While this scene is going on, C-ko rummages in the prop box and gets out a tangle of esoteric-looking cables. She trots off towards the planetarium projector and only just returns in time for her cue.]
Gir: [distantly] Wheee!
C-ko: [offstage, narrating] But eventually the princess began to tire of being without a heart. There were disadvantages.
A-ko: [sitting on throne, feet propped on B-ko, who is dressed as a servant and patiently waiting on hands and knees at her feet. She is reading a newspaper] I am so tired of all this tabloid crap about me being without a heart! There are plenty of other people in the same condition! [Tosses newspaper aside and kicks B-ko to her feet] Get me my wise man; I want to find out how to get my heart back.
B-ko: Your Highness, you had his head chopped off.
A-ko: Oh. Right. Get me a wise woman, then.
B-ko: [scurries off, then returns dressed in a hooded cloak, leaning on a staff. In a high, screechy voice:] What is it you want, Your Highness?
A-ko: Tell me how to get my heart back.
B-ko: [leans on the walking stick] Well... that depends, that depends. How did you lose it?
A-ko: Oh, some prince stole it and never gave me anything back.
B-ko: Well, if he stole it, you will have to steal it back. And if you mean to steal something, you had better ask a thief about it.
A-ko: Excellent advice! Don't chop off her head! Get me a thief, bring me an accomplished burglar at once!
B-ko: [exits and re-enters in a skintight suit with little cat ears, a tail, a mask, and a bag over her shoulder] I am the most accomplished thief in your Kingdom. I could steal the crown off your head, if I could get a fence to touch it.
A-ko: Then you are exactly who I want to talk to!
B-ko: What's in it for me?
[During this exchange, C-ko is busy at the back of the set plugging in cables, apparently to the back of the scenery. She gets back in time for her cue.]
C-ko: So the princess and the thief set out to find the prince, so they could steal back the princess's heart. But they ran into an unexpected problem. They found the prince, but did not know where he had hidden the heart.
B-ko: [to A-ko] In a box?
A-ko: [to B-ko] With his socks?
B-ko: Hidden under his bed?
A-ko: Tucked away in his business correspondence, turned inside-out?
B-ko: In a bud vase in plain sight?
A-ko: In a shoe that's much too tight?
[Both of them turn to face the audience, now, instead of each other.]
B-ko: In the glove compartment?
A-ko: On an earring?
B-ko: In a locket?
A-ko: In his pocket?
[They step off the stage, towards the couch with Akio on it.]
C-ko: [still offstage and out of sight, in her narrator voice] You see, the prince had quite a collection of hearts. He knew how to steal them and he knew how to hide them. But the princess and the thief were very determined.
B-ko: It would appear that we have quite a task. It is lucky that we are up to it.
A-ko: Indeed. We have so much to do. And so little time!
Akio: [laughing] But it would appear to be a hopeless task for the poor little princess. It's too bad, since fairy tales should have happy endings.
B-ko: But you forget...
A-ko: I don't have a heart.
B-ko: And I'm evil now, remember?
C-ko: [behind the scenery. She runs to the planetarium, flips a switch, and yells] NOW, Gir!
Gir: WOO HOO HOO! [Cables run from the planetarium to his head, and from his head to the back of the scenery the Shadowgirls are using for the present play.]
[Blue light runs along the cables, the scenery expands to fill the horizon, and A-ko and B-ko leap forward, laughing delightful evil giggly laughs.]
Akio: Wait! No--!
C-ko: [calling out after them] Remember, it's always in the last place you look!
Revolution, Movement the Second: "The Heartless Princess," A Production of Gathering Shadows Kashira Theatre, Ltd.
[Scene: The Chairman's Office. A-ko, dressed in a ragged Rose Bride dress and without glasses; B-ko, dressed in the tattered remains of a Student Council uniform, the slacks made into cut-offs and the braid hanging raggedly; and C-ko, dressed in her regular girl's Ohtori uniform, all step off the elevator. At first, the room seems empty. Then:]
Akio's voice: [seeming to come from the couches over on the far side of the room] To what do I owe this not entirely unexpected visit?
[A-ko looks at B-ko, who glances at C-ko, then steps forward.]
B-ko: [confidently] We're here to do a play, of course. We're the Drama Club, remember?
[C-ko nods briskly and steps back into the elevator, which slides silently open to receive her.]
A-ko: [clasps her hands together and leans forward] Oh, do say you'll watch it!
Akio: [sitting up on the couch and looking over his shoulder at them] Really? I hope it is better than your last attempt, which was rather pathetic.
B-ko: We shall certainly do our best.
Akio: Very well. I am sure it will be... entertaining.
[The elevator chimes, and the doors slide open again to reveal a huge box, under which C-ko's legs can barely be seen. Various bits of costuming and scenery poke out of the open top of the box. She staggers out of the elevator and puts the box down, whereupon the Shadowgirls burst into a whirl of activity, viz:
A-ko and B-ko immediately pull a black background depicting hills and a castle out of the box and set it up between the couches and the planetarium projector.
C-ko tosses costumes everywhere, then sets up a little black folding screen behind which the Shadowgirls can dash to dress.
A-ko rushes back and forth with armfuls of props - a sword, a chair, and, for some reason, a goldfish bowl.
B-ko sets up poles and strings a line for curtains.
C-ko fishes the inert Gir out of the box, pops his head open, and fiddles with something until his lights come on.]
Gir: Gir! Reporting for duty! Hey, did you know you've got a squirrel tail on your head?
C-ko: Gir, look at that. [Points to planetarium projector.]
Gir: Coooooooool! What is it? [Gets up and scampers towards the planetarium projector and vanishes behind the stage backdrop.]
After a final flurry of activity, C-ko comes out and stands center stage in front of the curtains.]
C-ko: Gathering Shadows Kashira Theater presents "The Heartless Princess!"
Akio: [applauds politely and ironically.]
[The curtain is pulled aside as C-ko scampers offstage. A-ko, dressed in the princess outfit from "The Tale of the Rose," and B-ko, dressed in the prince outfit from the same play, are standing onstage.
C-ko: [Offstage, narrating] Once upon a time, there was a beautiful but ordinary princess. She belonged to a small and out-of-the-way kingdom, so when a prince came to court her, she was naturally very happy.
[A-ko mimes delight, putting her hands in the air, as B-ko kneels before her and offers her a bunch of roses and a box of chocolates.]
C-ko: This prince completely stole the princess's heart away.
[B-ko dips A-ko into a romantic kiss, all the while holding a sword which looks remarkably like the sword of Dios behind her (B-ko's) back. Just as B-ko begins to bring the sword around, the scene cuts to Akio, who is sitting with one hand thoughtfully on his chin.]
Akio: [murmuring quietly] Effective, if a trifle inaccurate in the details.
C-ko: Then, unfortunately, the prince departed, and the princess was left without a heart.
[B-ko gallops offstage on a stick horse, and A-ko looks after her longingly.]
C-ko: The princess, now heartless, at first bemoaned her sorry state, without a heart and without a prince. Then she began to see the advantages of her position.
A-ko: [sitting on a throne, chin on fist, looking listless. Beside the throne is a small table with a bowl of goldfish.] I'm bored.
B-ko: [dressed in servant's livery, holds up platter of little cakes] Petit four, Your Highness?
A-ko: [sweeps the cakes off the platter, picks up the platter, and hits B-ko over the head with it in one graceful motion of her arm.] I'm slimming, you moron. Besides, they taste like straw. Send in the courtiers.
B-ko: [scurries out, comes back in dressed as a courtier, dripping lace at "his" cuffs.] Your Highness! [Drops to her knees] The bloom of your beauty is the beautiful sun of my sky!
A-ko: [kicks B-ko firmly in the chest, sending her flying offstage] BOR-ing. Isn't there anything to DO around here?
B-ko: [enters again, this time dressed in a long cloak and a pointed hat with a star on the tip] Your Highness, it is written in the stars that one without a heart has no destiny.
A-ko: [gestures lazily at B-ko] Off with his head. [As B-ko exits, protesting, she absently dips her hand in the goldfish bowl and tosses the fish on the floor, where they flop about stiffly until their mechanism runs down.]
[While this scene is going on, C-ko rummages in the prop box and gets out a tangle of esoteric-looking cables. She trots off towards the planetarium projector and only just returns in time for her cue.]
Gir: [distantly] Wheee!
C-ko: [offstage, narrating] But eventually the princess began to tire of being without a heart. There were disadvantages.
A-ko: [sitting on throne, feet propped on B-ko, who is dressed as a servant and patiently waiting on hands and knees at her feet. She is reading a newspaper] I am so tired of all this tabloid crap about me being without a heart! There are plenty of other people in the same condition! [Tosses newspaper aside and kicks B-ko to her feet] Get me my wise man; I want to find out how to get my heart back.
B-ko: Your Highness, you had his head chopped off.
A-ko: Oh. Right. Get me a wise woman, then.
B-ko: [scurries off, then returns dressed in a hooded cloak, leaning on a staff. In a high, screechy voice:] What is it you want, Your Highness?
A-ko: Tell me how to get my heart back.
B-ko: [leans on the walking stick] Well... that depends, that depends. How did you lose it?
A-ko: Oh, some prince stole it and never gave me anything back.
B-ko: Well, if he stole it, you will have to steal it back. And if you mean to steal something, you had better ask a thief about it.
A-ko: Excellent advice! Don't chop off her head! Get me a thief, bring me an accomplished burglar at once!
B-ko: [exits and re-enters in a skintight suit with little cat ears, a tail, a mask, and a bag over her shoulder] I am the most accomplished thief in your Kingdom. I could steal the crown off your head, if I could get a fence to touch it.
A-ko: Then you are exactly who I want to talk to!
B-ko: What's in it for me?
[During this exchange, C-ko is busy at the back of the set plugging in cables, apparently to the back of the scenery. She gets back in time for her cue.]
C-ko: So the princess and the thief set out to find the prince, so they could steal back the princess's heart. But they ran into an unexpected problem. They found the prince, but did not know where he had hidden the heart.
B-ko: [to A-ko] In a box?
A-ko: [to B-ko] With his socks?
B-ko: Hidden under his bed?
A-ko: Tucked away in his business correspondence, turned inside-out?
B-ko: In a bud vase in plain sight?
A-ko: In a shoe that's much too tight?
[Both of them turn to face the audience, now, instead of each other.]
B-ko: In the glove compartment?
A-ko: On an earring?
B-ko: In a locket?
A-ko: In his pocket?
[They step off the stage, towards the couch with Akio on it.]
C-ko: [still offstage and out of sight, in her narrator voice] You see, the prince had quite a collection of hearts. He knew how to steal them and he knew how to hide them. But the princess and the thief were very determined.
B-ko: It would appear that we have quite a task. It is lucky that we are up to it.
A-ko: Indeed. We have so much to do. And so little time!
Akio: [laughing] But it would appear to be a hopeless task for the poor little princess. It's too bad, since fairy tales should have happy endings.
B-ko: But you forget...
A-ko: I don't have a heart.
B-ko: And I'm evil now, remember?
C-ko: [behind the scenery. She runs to the planetarium, flips a switch, and yells] NOW, Gir!
Gir: WOO HOO HOO! [Cables run from the planetarium to his head, and from his head to the back of the scenery the Shadowgirls are using for the present play.]
[Blue light runs along the cables, the scenery expands to fill the horizon, and A-ko and B-ko leap forward, laughing delightful evil giggly laughs.]
Akio: Wait! No--!
C-ko: [calling out after them] Remember, it's always in the last place you look!
