Ahh! Okay I am really excited for this one. Don't be fooled by the lightheartedness of the first few chapters, this story is going to be one drama bombed bumpy ride. Woohoo! I've for so much planned for this story. I've been cooking it up and mulling over it for at least a month. And for those of you who wondered, yes this story was somewhat inspired by Moulin Rouge, but I can assure you ot will be completely different. Okay, enough talk!
"And then Jackson, being the imbecile that he his, went up to this woman and asked her for a drink!"
Polite laughs erupted around them. No one really thought it was funny, of course, but that's what you did when you talked to Bustopher Jones, the most influential producer in New York. You laughed when you were expected to and kept quiet.
"And she was so angry she..."
Bombalurina couldn't help but zone out a little. This was about the sixth time she had heard this story, at this party alone. She supposed that it was her punishment for being his arm candy. But what else could she do? She was dating him, after all.
"... Well, after that, we went down to the golf lodge, and you'll never guess who was there! Keith Samuels! As you can imagine I..."
Heavyside, this story was dull. Bomba began to look around the room, curiously. The function they were attending tonight was in celebration of the kick off of the new revival of "Growltiger's Last Stand." It had been over 20 years sense it was last preformed on broadway, and the current directors, along with Bustopher, of course, wanted to bring it back to life. They would administer a few cosmetic changes here and there, but the idea was to return it to it's formal glory.
One of these changes was the fact that Griddlebone was no longer played by a white Persian. Instead, Bombalurina would be playing her. The directors thought that giving Griddlebone such a wild and rare color would add to her character. It didn't hurt that Bustopher had been quite enthusiastic about her audition, either.
Her eyes slid across the faces of a hundred or more cats, some faces were familiar, others not so much. The party was a mixer type thing, a celebration of the show before the work part began. People were catching up all around her, and asking who they were playing and so on and so forth. The actors wouldn't be formally introduced to each other until tomorrow, but many used this as a chance to get a head start on trafficking and meeting new people.
She spotted Rumpleteazer, a good friend from one of her previous shows. She was an amazing acrobat, and a great sport. Bombalurina knew she wouldn't be playing one of serious roles, as Rumple preferred to be in the character parts. She said it was the most fun. Bombalurina suspected that she would be playing one of the main Siamese.
Rumple was currently chatting with her brother, who was generally a carbon copy of herself. He had a playful attitude, and was pretty hot stuff in the step department. Bombalurina had gotten to know him perhaps even better than his sister. They were dance partners in her second show, "The Cats Meow." It was a jazzy little thing that hadn't lasted very long, but it was fun all the same. The pair would sometimes go our after practice and get a drink, or more often some midnight ice cream, and chat for an hour or two before they crashed.
In the corner stood a slim Cassandra, dressed in an Egyptian style dress that flowed to the floor elegantly around her ankles. She wore a smug, yet almost bored expression on her face as she leaned on the bar. She and Bombalurina never really got along. When ever Bombalurina got a job or a good review, Cassandra whined that it was only because she was dating Bustopher. Bombalurina just figured she was jealous she hadn't thought of it herself.
Bombalurina noticed that Cassandra was staring longingly at something, and she followed her gaze. Amidst a group of what seemed like chorus girls stood a strikingly handsome Tom. He stood with a certain aloofness that just screamed self-importance, and he was clearly enjoying the presence of the throng of giggling Queens.
Bombalurina recognized him as Rum Tum Tugger. He was a relatively fresh face on Broadway, and he was already collecting quite the fan club. She had heard pretty little about him until recently, as he was to play her counter part and romantic interest, Growltiger.
One of the Project Managers, Skimbleshanks, had shown her a picture of him earlier. Quite frankly she didn't have high hopes at first. Yes he was very handsome, but did he have the voice? She checked up on him, and sure enough, he did. Then she most certainly had high hopes. His voice was soft as silk, with a vibrato to send you in shivers. He had amazing tone quality, and a nice front voice. And that was an impressive compliment, coming from Bombalurina.
She watched amused as he lapped up their praises, and straightened his tie. He was clearly a shmoozer.
Naturally, Bombalurina decided she had to meet him face to face.
She gave Bustopher a light tap on the shoulder. He turned to face her.
"Yes, my dear?" He asked.
"I'm going to speak with a few of the other cast members." She said.
"Alright, but don't take too long, now. I was just about to tell everyone the story of when I had lunch with the great Rumpus Cat. Ooh!" His attention was diverted as a slim waitress passed by with a large plate of orderves. Bombalurina took this chance to give the group a curt nod and slip away.
A few of the chorus girls looked at her with apprehension as she approached, especially a little tortoise shell one. Tugger looked Bombalurina up and down with a charming smile.
"Well, if it isn't the fair Lady Griddlebone." He purred. Some of the chorus girls blinked in surprise, and looked up at her with new-found respect. Not the tortoise shell one, though.
"Please," she smiled back. "Call me Bombalurina."
"How very nice to meet you." He said, nodding to her. "I suppose you know who I am already."
"Oh yes. I've heard much about you, Mr. Rum Tum Tugger."
"I certainly hope it's good things." He said, raising an eyebrow.
"Mostly." She teased. There was a cough to her right, and Bombalurina turned to see the chorus girls looking at her.
"Oh! I'm sorry. Who might all of you be?" Bombalurina asked.
"I'm Etcetera," said the perturbed tortoise shell. "This is Electra, Victoria, and Jemima." She said, pointing to the others as she said each of their names.
"Well, nice to meet you!" Bombalurina smiled. She didn't recognize any of their names, and they all looked fairly young, especially the short one. Jemima, was it? They were probably pretty new to the business.
"Hello there, Tugger. Ladies." Came a voice from behind them.
"Oh, hey, Munkustap!" Bombalurina grinned at him. Munkustrap was one of the most revered directors in New York. He had done projects all over Broad and had even earned a Tony or two. Bombalurina had done her last show with him, and they got to know each other pretty well. She had brought her sister, Demeter, to the party at Sardies on the opening night of the show, and they had hit it off almost instantly. Bombalurina brought her to a couple more parties, and the rest was history. They had been dating for almost two years.
He was also a brother of the Rum Tum Tugger. There were some rumors going around that part of the reason Tugger got cast was because if his brother directing it, but Bombalurina knew that they weren't true. Munkustrap would never put someone in a show unless they really fit the role. Even if he did, the handsome Tom was obviously perfect for the part, anyways.
"Are you ready for the read through tomorrow?" Munkustrap asked. The group nodded.
"It's really a great script, Munk." Tugger enthused. Bombalurina nodded in agreement.
"The edits the writers made are absolutely wonderful! It really adds depth to the characters." Bombalurina added. "Growltiger's Last Stand" was always her favorite musical growing up. She idolized Griddlebone like most little girl idolized a Disney princess.
"How is your sister, by the way? I haven't had a chance to call her yet today." Munkustrap said.
"Still sick." Bombalurina replied. "She can't keep a single thing down."
Munkustrap frowned. "That's too bad. Maybe I'll send her some flowers later." He looked past them and into the sea of people. "Ah, got to go. Skimble needs me for something. I'll see you all tomorrow for rehersal!" He said, the disappeared into the crowd.
Bombalurina turned her attention back to the chorus girls, having almost forgotten they were there, only to find that one of them had left, and the other three were looking rather bored. Bombalurina supposed they weren't used to these kinds of parties. She felt sympathetic for them. It took her five or six of Bustopher's long-winded get-togethers to master the art of pretending you're having fun.
Etcetera stood on her toes and whispered something into Tugger's ear. He nodded, the three girl quickly departed, no doubt to look for something more interesting.
"So," Bombalurina began, "are they friends of yours?"
"Who? Those girls? Nah, I just met them fifteen minutes ago. They were really quite riled up to meet me. Especially that tortoise shell, Etcetera." He said, grinning.
"I see. You've already accumulated quite a fan base, haven't you?"
"What can I say, I'm irresistible." He purred, placing a hand on his chest. Bombalurina rolled her eyes.
"And humble, too." She muttered.
"You mean honest." Tugger corrected, earning a snort from Bomba.
"You really are something, aren't you?" She said, shaking her head at the ground.
"Exactly right!" He agreed.
A waiter passed by, carrying a tray full of champagne. Bombalurina quickly grabbed two flutes and gave the second to Tugger, which he accepted gratefully.
"How have we never met before?" He asked, taking a sip of his drink. "After all, my brother is dating your sister."
Bombalurina shrugged. "Well, we've both been busy with shows the past couple of years. I'll tell you, though, you've made quite an impression on my sister."
Tugger raised an eyebrow. "Oh? And what did she say about me?"
"That you're a vile creature who deserves to get beaten to a pulp." She said nonchalantly, as she drank from her flute. Tugger laughed.
"Well, I certainly hope that hasn't swayed your opinion of me."
She looked him up and down. "Oh, don't worry. I'm reserving all judgement until I get to know you. After all, we are going to be spending at least the next year and a half making eyes at each other."
She felt a tap on her shoulder and turned to see a tired looking Bustopher.
"I think it's time we leave, dear. It's getting rather late. You know I don't much care for staying up past 1:00. I'll drop you off at your apartment." He said, with a yawn. Bombalurina nodded, and turned back to Tugger.
"Well, I'll see you tomorrow at the read through."
"It was delightful to finally meet you." Tugger said, smiling at her, and then nodding to Bustopher. "Thank you for the great party."
"Anytime my boy! Now, let's be off, Bombalurina." He said, holding out his arm, which she took graciously.
"Goodbye." She said, and waved as she and Bustopher exited the room. She was filled with a feeling of excitement and anticipation. The cast for the show was great fro what she could tell, as was the rest o the crew and team. There was going to be something something wonderful about this show, something different from any other show she had been in. She could feel it in her bones.