thebackstage | It's Curtains Act 2 Test Drive

1) CURTAINS UP

You’ve just woken up in a small dressing room, which is certainly not where you went to bed last night. Actually, do you even remember going to sleep…? Regardless, this isn't where you last were, and if you leave your room you’re going to find a lot of other people in the same state.

Go out and socialize! Most of these people may be strangers, but you’re gonna all have to get used to one another. And who knows? There may actually be a familiar face in the crowd.

2) THIS PETTY PACE

By now, you're acquainted with everybody here and you're slowly growing bored. Bored enough to kill? Hopefully not. You'd better try to find something else to do. You can always go hang out with your castmates, or maybe try and whip something up in the kitchen! There’s also a music room to keep you busy! I sure hope you like music.

3) BREAK A LEG

Comedies are fun and all, but that’s not quite what we’re about here. You’ve all just been handed this week’s motive. What do you make of it? Is it one that might actually tempt you to kill, or did you get off lightly this time? Either way, maybe you’d better look around the room and see who else is having a rough time.

4) CURTAIN

It was bound to happen eventually. Someone is dead, and now it's time to go off and investigate. Were they close to you? Are you, perhaps, feeling guilty? Either way, it's probably best not to leave anyone alone right now.

5) CUE MUSIC

Feelings in a murder-opera can get pretty gosh darn intense. Sometimes you’ve just got to let it out. And hey, if you sing a song about whatever’s going on in your head, maybe someone will hear and come help you? Either way, this is a musical – there’s not really any reason not to sing.

[Mod Note: The song mechanic is meant to be fluid and simple. You do not have to produce your own song lyrics, nor are you required to use show tunes (although we do encourage it!). If you want to rewrite existing lyrics to fit the situation, go for it! Anything goes - if Mumford and Sons expresses your character’s current emotions, then break out the banjos. We want to keep the musical mechanic as fun and simple as we can to encourage our players to use it as much as they like.]

6) WILDCARD

Make up your own prompt!

--

Questions, comments, concerned? Reach the mods on plurk at

slothbless (Lynny) and

lluosogrwydd (Lu) and at our public mod plurk

stagemanagers. Our official Act 2 FAQ can also be found here!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

['Cause(!) of the whole, y'know, being dead thing, Beetlejuice isn't really accustomed to the feeling of a warm bed.

Or warmth.

Or beds.

Which is why the feeling of flesh and hideous hideous senses is enough to make him freak out (evenmoreso than usual) and leap from that far-too-clean mattress. Staring at the room around him, he slowly starts to piece together the situation. Slowly. Slowly...]

Holy crap! It's my very own prompt!

[DUN-DUN!]

And such an original choice for a song to parody!

[Ol' Beejay leaps in to the hallway, singing to no one in particular but certainly singing. Content simply to fill the readers' heads with an earworm and possibly inspiring them to sing along in a grimy Alex Brightman impression.]

HEY FOLKS-!
I'M IN A ROLEPLAY!

DON'T KNOW WHAT THAT IS?!
WELL, THAT'S OH-KAY!

NOW LET'S SING ALONG AND START ON THE WHOLE
Y'KNOW
MUR-DERGAME THING!

YOU'RE DOOMED, YOUR MUSES TENFOLD!
ONE DAY TAGGING, THE NEXT YOU'RE DEATHROLLED!
CAN'T WAIT TO SEE THESE CASES UNFOLD-
THERE MIGHT BE TWO CULPRITS!
THE WHOLE MURDERGAME THING!

[A girl emerges from another room. She has red hair and is wearing a blue and black dress. She listens for a bit. Then she starts singing, in a beautiful voice, to the same tune as if it were the most natural thing in the world...]

MY NAME IS ARIEL
I'D LOVE TO PLAY ALONG
WHAT IS MURDER AND
THE WHOLE MURDERGAME THING?

HOW DO YOU PLAY?
CAN YOU SHOW ME THE WAY?
CAN YOU, CAN YOU BE MY GUIDE TO
THE WHOLE MURDERGAME THING?

YOU MUST UNDERSTAND,
THIS IS ALL SO NEW.
I CANNOT BELIEVE I AM FINALLY HUMAN. CAN YOU?

[Oh, Ariel. You are so innocent and naive. You have no idea what you are in for. She knows what death is, but apparently does not know what murder is. This should be good.]

[iiiiiiis that a...human?

Bismuth has no sense of smell, which is for the best, but even the visuals here are pretty janky. What's this dude's deal. What's he even talking about. What.

Okay, first things first: if this guy isn't involved with whatever brought them here somehow, maybe he should quit yelling about murder.]

Hey...
Maybe tone it down?
Don't know who's around...

[You know, if he weren’t so engaged in a fourth wall-breaking musical number, he would probably be incredibly enthralled by attempts to engage him in conversation and overjoyed by the fact that people can see him!

He is, however, far more concerned with doing a number. When’s he gonna have the chance to do this again?!]

Free advice, purple. Total dick move to interrupt a character introduction.

You’reeee
You’re gonna be fineeeeee
On the other side—

DIE DIE GONNA DIE YOU’RE ALL GONNA DIE!

...it's Bismuth.

[Character introduction? Bismuth folds her arms, looking a bit annoyed - but okay, maybe they can have a conversation after whatever-this-is ends.]

Fine
Just do your thing
Whatever this is...

[Is this another one of Sadie and Suspects' shows? The tone's not quite right, but the makeup job on this guy would definitely fit. Maybe a separate act, one of those big multi-talent things?]

Games can relieve a lot of stress,
But no one's yet explained the rules?
Is this the show, is are we just fools?
Can you tell me before we exit stage left?

[Oh, look, a gullible kid! He’s making a mental note of "easy mark" before returning to a fourth wall-breaking performance. BJ knows he can only get away with this here.]

HEY, DON’T REJOICE!
DON’T HAVE A CHOICE!
(YOU’RE READING THIS IN MY SINGING VOICE!)

[HEY NOW, THAT IS not an entirely unfair assessment, honestly.]

Hey! There's always a way, is this really a play?
Not sure how we're backstage, didn't mean to stay!

[Lydia would recognize that voice anywhere. That scratchy, wheezing, gravelly trainwreck of a tenor is burned into her brain right now; that's what happens when you have a whole duet with the man, after all.]

This can get a gal all stressed!
"We should've scared way more breathers,
Now we're stuck in this show-stealer!"

Can't you show us what comes next?
I won't be freaked
Stay in my seat
Is it true we do this bullshit, like, seven times a week?

You know, for being a supposedly all-powerful ghost or whatever, you're looking just as mortal as me right now, Beetlejuice. Did whatever brought us here get your ecto-swhatsits into a bunch?

Edited 2020-06-14 20:12 (UTC)

It's Curtains Act 2 Test Drive

beetlejuice | beetlejuice | beeeeeeeeeeeee-

Re: Beetlejuice

TLEJUICE

no subject

no subject

Candlejack?

I’m gonna need more rope!

no subject

SCUSE ME, SORRY TO BARGE IN