Backstage

[Administrator]

Many of the performers can usually be found back here...

[Prince]

Mary was out walking the streets, still dressed as a boy mind you, attempting to find somewhere to find employment. It was harder than she had originally anticipated. She finally decided she needed to take a break. She headed to the backdoor of caprice hall and just sat down on the stairs with a groan. She stretched her legs out in front of her towards the street and leaned back on the palms of her hands with a sigh. She closed her eyes and looked skyward. She sighed a little, and wished that something would just fall into her lap...

She opened her eyes again and started to get up with another groan. As she was standing she discovered that her shoes were untied, by stepping on them and then proceeding to fall forward, and scraping up her arm and face. "....oooooow." she said quietly. Great, now she might be bleeding... she should probably look and see... but there were no windows around. At the risk of being insane she walked over to the backdoor of caprice and gave a knock. If anyone answered they could probably at least tell her if she was bleeing... "hello..." she said quietly, not really speaking to anyone, just sort of to herself.

[Naomi Talbot]

Naomi grunted as she motioned for Charlie to get the back door-- when he only grinned at her she flashed him a killer smile and handed him the clothing. "Then you take this to Margie and ask her to fit you... you're going to be a prop tonight.." The scathing sound was followed by a pat on the cheek as she moved to door and opened up, staring at the girl covered in -- dirt and --

"If you are trying to be a boy," she said on a sigh, leaning against the door frame. "You failed, you didn't bind your breasts, you can't hide them and your face is far to feminine. So-- what can I do for you?" She was aggravated already but she tried. On a sigh, she motioned her in. "Come on in, you look a fright."

[Prince]

Prince wasn't exactly prepared for such a harsh truth. Entirely. She looked up from the pavement as Naomi looked over her features and blinked. That was all she could do. She'd never had anyone spell it all out like that for her before. It stung a little. She had always found herself rather convincing. Well, yeah, her chest had been a problem, but she thought she'd at least gotten to the point where it wasn't instantly noticeable!

When Naomi told her to come in Prince didn't hear it right away. She was still thinking about all the things she had just said, and that Prince had had to take in. Finally she snapped back to reality, and she had to double check what had just happened. Naomi appeared to motion her in so she dumbfoundly said, "...thanks," in a deep voice by reflex and just quickly stepped inside.

She quickly worked on shaking herself out of shell shock and said, "sorry I dun mean ta bother everyone, and I'm sure you're all real busy, I just..." she reached up and rubbed her face. Why hadn't she done that sooner? She must be out of it... or desperate. "Ah... I am bleedin'. Fantastic," she said. Well now here she was in the backstage of a theater, face bleeding, and arm where she had slipped and crashed on the pavement. So what was she to do? "...dun suppose you happen to have a bandage, would ya?" she asked hopefully. If nothing else, maybe Naomi could at least spare a scrap of cloth for her to put over the blood so that it wouldn't get everywhere. She was an absolute disaster. It was how she had been feeling lately too. Ever since she'd handed off leader, she hadn't quite felt in place anywhere, which had her roaming the streets like a lost puppy dog, as though she had no street smarts at all. She was smarter than this, she was better than this. But at that moment, she sure as hell didn't feel like as though that were true.

[Naomi Talbot]

Naomi grabbed her chin and gave her a once over with her eyes before sighing and turning, motioning for her to follow back to her own dressing room. She may not have headlined but she liked having her own space and the dressing room was better than an office. She didn't like the idea of an office, too stuffy for her. Tossing her hair out of her face she moved over to the basin and poured the water into the bowl, motioning for the girl to sit down. Hand on her hip she sighed and turned towards her once again, using the cloth to clean up her face.

"Now you must be Prince then." They'd never met, as often as Mary had come into the hall they'd never crossed paths but her eyes were direct and not always friendly. she worked on her face gently, motioning with her hand for one of the stage hands to bring her some disinfectant that would sting. But the sting meant it was working. "What's your christian name?"

Tilting her head she sighed, remembering doing this often enough for a variety of men in her life that had come and gone. So many that were rough and tumble, getting into fights and getting shot at for one reason or another. This was just something she'd gotten used too. "I'm Naomi, but I guess you know that don't you. You really don't look like a boy, you're cheek bones are too fine. You've got delicate bone structure like a bird." Now that some of the blood and dirt was starting to streak away Naomi decided it was true. The girl had fine bones, a bit thin but most street kids were. "Sarah!"

[Prince]

Prince simply followed and did as she was told. Following her to back to the dressing room she made sure to be very observant as she walked. She looked up towards the ceiling and investigated the fly system, looking at all the drops and such where the curtain rose towards. She looked around and made notes of props and costumes and people... there were a lot of people running around backstage, more than she had originally anticipated, though now that she thought about it, there were probably a lot of people who were needed to run a show, so she decided it was logical.

Could it be she was really so well known? She found it quite difficult to believe in all honesty. But this was still Queens after all, and the more she thought of it, the less of a shock it became. All the same, she was still a bit frightened of Naomi. For no logical reason, but mostly because Naomi was an adult, all the same, she was slightly afraid of telling her her real name. She decided to keep it simple... her first name was common as it was, and leaving off the middle and last (though, she was rather fond of her middle name, she could do without), would be safe enough.

And though Naomi was trying to be very nice, everything that came out of her mouth felt (and in some ways sounded) like an insult to poor Prince. She had always thought she was doing a fine job at being a boy! And a bird? She would have loved to gotten a word in edge wise. "Mary!" she said after Naomi said 'Sarah.' "My name's Mary," she said. She finally reached up and took her hat off. Her hair wasn't as long as it was, but it was down past her shoulders again. But only just. "An' thanks for all ya help," she added, meaning washing of the face and stuff, still she felt a bit childish at the moment, she was perfectly capable of washing her face herself. Better to play along though, do as she was told and such, avoid the trouble.

[Sarah Williams]

Sarah rapped sharply on the door to Naomi's dressing room once before just walking on in, a cigarette nestled between two fingers on her right hand as she took in the scene before her. "You rang?" She said to Naomi, raising an eyebrow at her friend as she found her bent over and working on the face of a delicate looking creature that appeared to be perched somewhat uncomfortably on a chair. It was a girl it seemed, pretty face with defined features, if a bit grimy even after Naomi's work. Dark hair tumbling down just past her thin shoulders and a hat clutched in one of her hands - she was a pretty enough thing, Sarah could see that.

"What do we have here?" She asked, taking a drag off her cigarette and eyeing the young girl again before turning her gaze to Naomi and lifting her shoulder in a questioning gesture. It wasn't often that Naomi shouted for her from her dressing room - Sarah's own was right next door and the walls were thin which was how she had heard her in the first place. So Sarah knew there had to be a reason and it didn't take much to deduce that the reason was the mysterious young thing watching them carefully. "Whose this? You picking up strays now Naomi?" Sarah's voice was light and she shot a smile over at the young girl, the barb a teasing sort considering Naomi wasn't prone to gathering street kids and the girl seemed able enough and well enough to be much more than simply a homeless street kid looking for shelter.

[Naomi Talbot]

Naomi looked at Mary Anne seriously for a moment, tapped her chin a bit. The girl was pretty that was true. Her eyes shifted as the door opened and her old friend and partner walked into the room. She motioned to her face, the way she was dingey and yet not. She started to clean off Prince's face again, moving into her arms as Sarah came to inspect her. She had a great face under all the dirt and Naomi for the life of her didn't understand why someone so pretty would pretend to be a boy. She could get farther in life using those dynamite looks.

"This is Mary, I found her at my door... looks a fright. For the life of me I'll never understand the need for pretty girls to be boys." She didn't, though she knew how hard it was to be a pretty girl, she didn't always understand the plight of it. She'd fought and scraped and battled to where she was. And had little regrets. "But, she came here she must have had a reason.." Her eyes turned to Prince, looking her over and giving her a, go on, kind of look. Tell us what you're after.

[Prince]

Prince felt like one of those animals at the zoo the way these women were treating her. She felt as though they were staring at, her analyzing every little physical detail, and if she'd let them, they'd dissect her right to the core, she had no doubts. It was rather frightening, having the feeling of being interrogated and trapped, and that was all Prince was getting out of this situation at the moment. All the same, running would look bad, being difficult would be even worse, and attacking would be the worst plan of all. Even though those were the things she wanted to do, as the woman spoke a thought occurred to her.

In all honesty, the original plan was to stop the bleeding, and that had been her one and only goal. But at this point, she was in a rather prime position. And Prince figured... she might as well give Naomi what she wanted, and for that reason, she told the woman what she was really after, though it hadn't been her original intention. But she saw so many people running around back stage doing things, and only a couple had been in costume to look as though they were actors, that meant a lot others had to just be workers.

"I came by lookin' for employment," she said as nicely as she could muster at the time. "Nothin'... on stage or nothing, I know you probably got more actors than you can handle at the time anyway..." Prince took a breath and swallowed. "I thought you might be able to use a hand pullin' curtains, or... organizin' things or mendin' clothes." She looked at the two women. "I can uh... go up and fix lights, and I can read and write too," anymore, that was a marketable skill, "an I uh... well I can do anythin' really. Jus right now lookin' for a job and a place to live, I'll eventually need 'em both, but lookin' in no particular order." The job would definitely help with the living situation though. So, Prince put on her best and nicest smile, and tried to look appealing rather than appearing to be a wild animal or a scared pet lost on the street.

[Sarah Williams]

Sarah watched this exchange quietly, occasionally taking a drag of her cigarette and blowing the smoke out slowly. The girl was pretty, that much was clear now that she was cleaning up a bit and she spoke well enough, if a bit roundabout. Though Sarah presumed that had more to do with the undue attention she was being paid at the moment than any real shortcomings. She seemed able bodied, willing and Sarah knew they could generally always use an extra set of hands backstage considering how unreliable some of their current help could be. "Nothing on stage?" Sarah asked finally, narrowing her green eyes slightly as she studied Mary, she had the face for it and a voice that carried well now that she was speaking up. Sarah was up to her eyes in dancers and performers as it was, but she'd be willing to make room if the right person came along - but they had to want it and it didn't seem like that was especially Mary's cup of tea.

Sarah finally lifted her eyes away from Mary and looked over at Naomi and sent her a little half shrug, tilting her head slightly. "Wouldn't hurt to have a good set of hands and eyes back here some nights," She suggested, taking another thoughtful drag of her cigarette before continuing, eyes flickering back to Mary for the moment. "You know how crazy things get and the guys can let it get to be a mess back here - solid girl like this might be just what we need."

[Naomi Talbot]

"Would save me from having to strangle Annabelle a second time for losing her dress wouldn't it?" the girl had potential if molded properly and Naomi had never been the kind of woman that looked an opportunity in the mouth and scoffed at it. After all, opportunity was how you survived. Tilting her head she looked away from the girl for a moment and around her dressing room, letting the cloth in her hand fall away from the girl's face. "I suppose we could always use one more hand around the place and you've got a solid voice on you."

A voice that could be applied in other avenues but Naomi didn't like to think about those kinds of things. If you didn't want it, she had no use for that. Their line of work may not be high brow but it was competitive. "What do you say to a trail run? You do good work and we like what we see, we hire you on. If not we part ways with no hard feelings?" Well at least not Naomi's part. She was crass and a firm taskmistress with a heavy hand to bark orders. But she was giving her a chance, if she could take it.

[Prince]

Prince had to practically stifle her excitement. She nodded diligently. She could take orders, she could dish 'em out, she could do just about anything that Naomi would want her to do. "Well, um I suppose if you need me on stage for somethin' I'd give it a shot," she said. For a moment she forgot about her father, forgot about being searched for and forgot all about the fact that having her face on stage would be a bad thing. Though she thought, really, what would she do on the stage? Announce an act here or there? "I can play the piano," she added. It had been a while, but she could probably get back into the grove with enough practice.

All the same, "Yeah, I'll do whatever. Trial run, audition, you name it," she said as she reached for her hat again and started to twist her hair up to hide it, as was an old habit of hers. "No matter what, no hard feelin's," she promised. Just giving her a shot was more than she could have ever hopped for, so if it turned out she couldn't hack it, she wouldn't complain. She would at least know what she wasn't able to do. It would be a learning experience either way. Prince had forgotten all about the blood, the scratches, and the pain. As soon as her hat was on, and her hair was up, she'd be ready to go!

[Sarah Williams]

"We'll hold off on stage for now," Sarah mused, tapping a few ashes from her cigarette as she kept her green eyes steady on Mary. She seemed to be a shrewd enough girl - smart and willing to work to prove herself. They were admirable traits when it came to their business and goodness knows they could use some help backstage - most nights it was a mess and Sarah didn't have the time to be chasing after the girls or scolding the guys. "But keep up the piano, might come in handy with some new numbers." Sarah's mind was already whirling with possibilities, crafting some new dances and music in her head as she looked at Mary and then back at Naomi before shrugging. The arrangement would work out for Sarah just fine, if Mary proved to be an utter disaster it would be easy enough to cut ties.

Her eyes fell back on Mary just in time to see feminine hands twisting her hair back up on top of her head, the hat prepared to go back in place and Sarah tilted her head. "Why do you do that?" She asked, her eyes narrowing slightly as she had a feeling there must be something to this pretty waif like girl running around dressed as a boy - for it was clear she was getting to the age where her looks like matter, at least a little. "Pretty girl like you shouldn't be hiding," Sarah stepped forward and leaned over to touch Mary's chin, tilt her head a little so she could get a better look at her. "You got features most women would kill for, sugar."

[Mona Lisa]

Mona moved easily through the crowded backstage area--an ease born of practice. She needed to find someone to repair her costume for one of tonight's performances, preferably a seamstress from the costume department, but she couldn't seem to find any of them. Her costume wouldn't even be ripped if it hadn't been for that little runaround-kid that had snagged it on a hanger and if she ever caught him messing with her things again, she was liable to slap him. Only reason he had got away free this time, was because he had slipped away too fast and it hadn't been worth the effort to chase him down. Especially if it meant she might have scuffed her new heels.

When she reached Naomi's dressing room, glittering costume in hand, she paused for a moment outside the door to listen to her and Sarah talking with a new girl. She was glad to hear that the girl was to be a stagehand and not a performer, that meant one less person she had to beat to get the solos. Mona got a good amount of the solos, both dancing and occasionally singing, because she was good at what she did. Not good enough to be a headliner like Sarah yet, but, given time, she would rise to the top. She was sure of it.

Rolling her eyes as Sarah complimented the girl's features, Mona stepped through the open doorway, rapping twice on the door, "Hey Naomi, ya got a sec?"

[Naomi Talbot]

When Naomi noticed her fiddling with the hat she reached out and took it from her, not being at all gentle about it but she didn't mean to be that way. Setting the hat aside she nodded her agreement with Sarah. "She's right, you're pretty this hat doesn't do a damn thing for those cheek bones of yours." She had a wide smile too, and the way she spoke left something to be desired but that could be taught too. She wrinkled her nose a bit at the girl and grabbed a brush handing it to Sarah and nudging Mary into her chair. "Lord help us you just need to be cleaned up and you'll sparkle. I could never understand some girls desire to be lookin' like a boy. Never made a hair of sense to me.."

She turned her head when she heard her name, nodding and moving towards Mona. "It's not Annabelle again is it? Cause I'm libel to strangle that girl with the curtain rope." She did actually like Mona, she was determined, she was ambitious and she wasn't above doing something to get a solo. Truth was it was a cut throat business they were in and if you weren't strong you didn't get anywhere. She admired The woman's tenacity. "Come in Mona I want you to meet our new stage hand... Mary this is Annabeth, but we call her Mona. Mona darling this is Mary. She'll be working back stage for a trial basis."

Folding her arms, Naomi considered the girls and moved back behind Mary and looked at her in the mirror. "You've a good face on you, why do you hide it?"