Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

A San Francisco Bay Area native and graduate of U. C. Berkeley, Chris is an avid and voracious reader. Never stop learning.

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GASTON LEROUX'S PHANTOM OF THE OPERA

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Contents

SCENE 1 "A Duel to the Death".....................................3SCENE 2 "Company Meeting".........................................4SCENE 3 "Manifestation"...........................................14SCENE 4 "Ghost Stories"...........................................15SCENE 5 "Hung, Flung, and Sung"...................................24SCENE 6 "The New Margarita".......................................34SCENE 7 "Doctor's Orders".........................................39SCENE 8 "Box Five"................................................55SCENE 9 "A Bittersweet Rendezvous"................................59SCENE 10 "A Visit to Box Five"....................................69SCENE 11 "Of Horses and Hearses"..................................72SCENE 12 "Ultimatum"..............................................84SCENE 13 "Carlotta Croaks and a Smashing End".....................93SCENE 1 "Masquerade Ball".........................................103SCENE 2 "Aftermath"...............................................109SCENE 3 "The Enchanted Violin"....................................117SCENE 4 "The Lair"................................................125SCENE 5 "Mifroid Arrives".........................................132SCENE 6 "Dark Caverns"............................................138SCENE 7 "A Wedding Macabre".......................................141SCENE 8 "Barrels! Barrels!".......................................143SCENE 9 "Scorpion and Grasshopper"................................148SCENE 10 "The Living Corpse"......................................151SCENE 11 "Requiem"................................................153

Chapter One

"A Duel to the Death"

(At rise, we see the interior of the backstage area of a grand old theater in France. It is the Paris Opera House, circa 1885. It is also known as the National Academy of Music. The backstage is represented by a red velveteen grand drape, the backside of flats set at either side of the proscenium, yellowed and cracked billboards from previous operas, suspended sand bags, heavy roping stretched above from one end to another, a table littered with props, a full costume rack, rusty old metal buckets, a fire axe, lanterns, and a few cracked and yellowed posters from past seasons. A prompter's chair and music stand upon which is attached a lit lantern is situated backstage right. Backstage right serves as a "dressing room" with a couple of make-up tables, chairs and vanities.

High above red velvet curtaining, furthest away from the audience, we see the upper portion of a grand chandelier, presumably hanging directly over the stage. The whole area is dark, mysterious, and tinted with the patina of antiquity. It is certainly a place we can believe is haunted by ghosts of operatic performers long gone, long dead.

Suddenly, fast-paced orchestral music starts in and two men burst into the backstage with swords. It is Raoul and The Persian. In an explosive, exciting, and positively terrific duel, the men fight their way from the rafters and catwalk to the boxes, and from the dressing room spot back to the center of backstage. All the while they shout threats and epithets back and forth in French. Then, at the climax of the swordplay, Raoul "kills" The Persian. The death is dramatic, underscored by musical crescendo and riddled with stage blood. The dead man lies prostrate on the floor. Raoul is victorious. A beat and then out from the wings comes all the members of the company, most notably, the two new managers of the opera house. Everyone is applauding the impressive display of derring-do.)

SCENE 2

"Company Meeting"

MERCIER

Bravo! Bravo! My dear Raoul!

RAOUL

Merci beau coups, Monsieur Mercier.

MONCHARMIN

Absolutely splendid!

FIRMIN

An impressive display of derring-do, young man.

LACHENEL

I suppose you can get up now, young man.

THE PERSIAN

Merci beau coups, Messieurs. I thought you'd never ask.

MONCHARMIN

What may we inquire is the occasion of this little exhibit?

RAOUL

As I am a naval officer, I have been trained in the martial art of swordsmanship. With my friend as a partner in this exhibition, I have decided to present the company with a gift. As I am no actor, singer, performer, I felt that I might bestow your talented company members with a skill of mine own.

MERCIER

And you, Sir? Have you fancies of becoming a performer in the grand tradition?

THE PERSIAN

Oh, no, Monsieur. I, too, live vicariously through the works of your operatic performers.

FIRMIN

From whence do you hail?

THE PERSIAN

From Persia do I come in earnest intent to observe and learn from the tradition of your opera.

PHILLIPE

An announcement! My brother, Raoul, the Visconte de Chagney and myself do hereby sign on as your patrons of the company. We shall fund this season as our first endeavor of philanthropy of the arts and sciences of operatic performance.

(Applause. Then, Joseph Buquet, the principle stage hand, an old and haggard sort with an eye-patch, steps forward.)

BUQUET

Well, this is an eye-opening development! Funding for the arts is alive and well! With any luck, we may be able to finance the replacement of my patch with a finely-blown glass marble!

MERCIER

Ahhhh, Monsieur Bucket.

BUQUET

That's Buquet.

MERCIER

Oh, mais oui, of course. We will certainly do what we can to purchase a brand-new eyeball for you.

BUQUET

Much thanks to you, my dear Monsieur Mercier.

MERCIER

Well, on behalf of our benefactors and Le Government Francais, as Acting Manager, I feel it my duty to make another exciting announcement. As you all know, our previous and beloved managers, Monsieur Debienne and Monsieur Poligny have retired. It is my esteemed privilege and pleasure to formally introduce to you all our new managers, Monsieur Armand Moncharmin and Monsieur Richard Firmin.

(Enthusiastic applause. The managers smile and take a humble bow.)

MERCIER

Tonight we present a special performance in their honor ... Our very own Opera Compane Le Roi shall perform Seasons, an operatic revue. The greatest scenes from the greatest operas in history! With a bonus of dance by our very own Corps de Ballet.

(The five ladies of the Corps de Ballet curtsy. Enthusiastic applause.)

MONCHARMIN

While we appreciate your warm welcome, we were never told why your first two managers, Messieurs Debienne and Poligny have resigned.

MERCIER

Well, it's difficult to say. Salary, exhaustion, ... Who can say why anyone resigns?

BUQUET

I can tell you why they resigned!

(Lights gradually fade to an eerie glow. Dark mysterious music eases in and plays gently beneath the following monologue.)

BUQUET

This house of opera is haunted by an evil presence. The apparition manifests itself as a spirit of malevolence. So much blood has been spilled in the dark history of this building. And no one knows why the presence is here, yet many, including myself, have seen the image of this demon stalking the house from the stalls to the pit. From the cellars to the rafters ... Monsieurs, beware. The very sight of him will cause a loss of sanity. He is extraordinarily thin and his dress-coat hangs on a skeleton...