That Man and Mystery (rehearsal)

[Dillon Connery]

Still dressed in semi-formal Court attire due to the fact that he knew they were going to a kine sanctuary, Dillon caught himself staring up to the heavenly decor to cover his eye-rolling almost immediately upon his entrance with Martha. Phantom of the Opera to woo the Herald with, no doubt. Calloway, are you really that corny?

Then Dillon realizes that he himself is exactly that corny.

A little stab of jealousy later, the Gangrel Priscus doesn't take the petty way out by letting his demon dog snarl at Jim all evening. They are in a church, after all. Heeling the Beast, he puts on his most friendly grin and nods his greeting. He stays quiet though, not wanting to accidentally overlap Martha's chatter.

But dang it if he didn't get the feeling that he was becoming... not even a third wheel, more like a spare tire. No one said being the Herald's bodyguard would be easy, but he hoped it would be less awkward. Being six-foot-two (plus boots) and built like a cage fighter makes it hard for Dillon to pretend he's invisible when guys start flirting with little Martha.

He caught and returned her happy smile genuinely, though. That's all it took. If a little social discomfort had to be endured for him to be there to protect his friend and do his duty to the Domain, so what?

Cramming his envy securely in a mental box, as is his way, Dillon takes a step back to serve as an impromptu audience. There, in the back of his mind the spite would stay, with all of his other negative feelings. A bed for his Beast to roll in. Dillon doesn't do this until the box gets so full that it bursts: but only until he has an opportunity to break it over the head of someone who really deserves it.

[James Calloway]

"All right, excellent! And -- three-four!" Jim gave the organist a conducted two beat prep, and she came in with the iconic pipe organ opening. He was sure Martha would make her entry, and so he simply leaned against the cathedral's podium, a small smile on his face. He looked forward to seeing if the Herald was any good.

He assessed his Priscus for a moment, curious about how he was that night. Jim liked the stern Gangrel, and looked forward to speaking with him after the rehearsal ended.

[Martha Villiers]

  

Date		Action		Roll		Result
2012-02-12 23:09:04		Martha Villiers rolls 8 to rehearsing the song (10 Again)		5, 7, 5, 10, 4, 1, 3, 3, 4		1 success

Martha's bright and clear soprano voice comes in on time and with some skill. Her reading of the dynamics was incomplete though and she found that she hesitated over her reading of her second verse. As Jim did earlier, she pauses and, thankful this is a rehearsal, she studies the notation once more and gives some thought to the style of the organists playing and Jim's singing. Hoping to synchronize her work with theirs.

"Ah...thank goodness this is a rehearsal!" she offers meekly. Though clearly delighted she has found a challenge for the evening: to learn and be the mistress of this song.

[Dillon Connery]

Standing nearby, Dillon does his best to lend an ear to them both. But it's hard not to watch Martha, as well. Though they were likely engrossed in concentration on the performance, anyone looking will notice the Gangrel Priscus' lips very subtly following the words. He knows the song. Granted, it's probably just because he's seen the movie, but hey. Singing is the one musical pursuit he's actually had time to play with. Not master, or even get very good at, but definitely play with. Long hours on the road as an acting Legate and Hound demanded he do something to pass the time.

Dillon breaks into a lopsided, and friendly enough smirk as they finish the first run-through. "Sounds pretty good to me." His tone is light, obviously offering only encouragement to whoever takes it.

[Martha Villiers]

Martha looks over to listen to what Dillon had to say. Bashfully she nodded to accept his kind words. But she caught something else in his glance. Something that would deserve to be dealt with later. For now, she must content herself with offering a humbled ad bashful nod to Dillon...she gestures hurriedly to the book open in her hand...and back again to Dillon...hoping her smile communicates more to Dillon than simply the joy she shares at this moment.

As the music strikes up, Martha joins in with Jim. This time she gives it her all. The rehearsal had worked. It had allowed her to find the flow of the piece in a way she didn't before. As with most things in her Unlife, Martha approaches this with enormous effort...it is a test. Something to be overcome as well as enjoyed. Her efforts are not unrewarded.

Martha's clear singing voice, while lacking some of the technical polish and proficiency of a fully trained singer, allows for a strong enough performance. Her bright blue eyes share her love of the song and genuine joy of the moment with Dillon and Jim.

  

Date		Action		Roll		Result
2012-02-13 03:15:49		Martha Villiers rolls 11 to Sing the song (10 Again, WillPower)		10, 6, 3, 6, 6, 4, 6, 7, 5, 9, 9, 4		3 successes

[James Calloway]

Some slight Martha bits inserted with Chrisie's permission.

"Thank you, Mr. Connery." He smiled at his Priscus as Martha and the organist begun the next take of the tune.

The pair sang through the song, their voices combining and seperating at the right time to make a beautiful and intense rendition of Phantom of the Opera. The dynamic was most interesting indeed as the pair passionately sung, especially once they hit the combined sections of the song. James' voice was absolutely outstanding -- his will and focus burning within to perform masterfully, he needed no Awe tonight. Tonight, his voice was all Calloway.

Those who have seen your face draw back in fear
I am the mask you wear were Martha's lines, before Jim chimed in with an emphatic, "It's me they'll hear!" Then, together, their voices rose in song: My spirit and your voice in one combined, the Phantom of the Opera is here inside your mind...

Their harmonies resonated throughout the huge cathedral hall before entering into the organ solo between verses. James re-entered, a big smile on his face. This was absolutely fantastic; he was having a great time.

In all your fantasies, you always knew
That man and mystery
Were both in you
And in this labyrinth, where night is blind
The Phantom of the Opera is there, inside your mind...

And then there was the incredible soprano line, the operatic singing that could so easily go so wrong... and yet, Martha was able to hit the notes. She was working hard, but she was there, and Jim smiled as he omitted the Phantom's spoken commands -- Sing, my angel of music! In a real performance, he would of course deliver them, but there was no reason to do so in a rehearsal, especially not one quite so charged. After all, such things might be... awkward.

As Martha closed the song with the screaming high note, he gave her a big grin, allowing silence to fall over the church.

  

Date		Action		Roll		Result
2012-02-13 03:39:08		Jim Calloway rolls 11 to Sing, my angel of music! (10 Again, WillPower)		10, 6, 10, 5, 6, 3, 3, 8, 8, 10, 2, 4, 10, 3, 8		7 successes

[Martha Villiers]

Wide eyed, Martha shivers slightly. It wasn't everyday you got to hear singing like that...let alone particpate in the performance. She blinked. Nodded to Jim to acknowledge his awesome performance...nodded to the organist too...everyone had played their part in this song. Another, gentle and graceful nod was offered to Dillon for his encouragement. She fell very silent as she gave careful thought to the music...the beauty of it...and what she could learn from having performed it.

[Dillon Connery]

Martha's cute gesturing and bright smile makes Dillon grin heartily. He nods back to her before the singing starts, albeit a little weakly. The performance itself, however, wipes all expression from his face. This is uncommon for the Gangrel.

Pretty much thunderstruck, his few claps following the short silence afterwards are powerful. "Wow. Just... wow."

[James Calloway]

Jim runs his tongue along the inside of his teeth and simply smiles politely. "Thank you, Mr. Connery." His face cracks at Dillon's reaction, becoming a big happy grin. His Priscus seemed to have truly enjoyed the performance. He shrugs modestly and says, "Well, looks like we've got that song down pat, don't you think, Miss Villiers?" The organist was grinning, and nodded to Martha as well, a smile on her aged face. It wasn't often that performances like that came together, especially not in such a hall with amazing accoustics for such a powerful song. "Perhaps we'll get to perform sometime."