Jamila Cleopatra Tabia Daae POV
Madame Giry shushes the rest of them as Raoul, still unaware of Christine, embarrassed by the impressed, overly adoring crowd, speaks.
"My parents and I are honored to support all the arts, especially the world-renowned Opera Populaire." Raoul says.
Carlotta moves forward aggressively.
"Vicomte, Gentlemen, Signora Carlitta Guidicelli, our leading soprano for five seasons now." Lefevre says.
There are polite bows from Andre and Firmin. Carlotta is not popular with her co-workers and performers.
Carlotta curtsies.
"Brava! Brava!" Her maid says.
Seeing that Carlotta is flirting with Raoul, Piangi asserts himself.
"And Signor Ubaldo Piangi." Lefevre says
Piangi bows.
"An honor, signor... I believe I'm keeping you for your rehearsal. I will be here this evening to share your great triumph." Raoul says and hopefully he will go away.
"My apologies Monsieur." Raoul says to Reyer.
More excited reactions as Raoul dashes off with Lefevre.
"Thank you, Monsieur Le Vicomte." Reyer told Raoul with attitude. "Er, once more, if you please, signor." Reyer asks Piangi. The rehearsal starts over.
"He love me. He love me." Carlotta said to the maid
"Thank you, sir, thank you indeed for the wonderful words, so inspiring and encouraging. Everyone's going to great encouragement from that. We'll do our very best, I promise..." Andre told Raoul
Christine and Meg still in the midst of the waiting ballet girls with me as I had listened to everything.
"He wouldn't recognize me..." Christine said, trying to hide her disappointment.
"He didn't see you." Meg says, trying to soothe my cousin.
"If you please." Madame Giry says.
The ballet corps, including Meg, Christine, and I dressed scantily as slave girls, begin our dance, sure to be a crowd pleaser. Andre and Firmin move closer - they are almost hanging over Madame Giry, leering at all of us.
"Monsieur." Madame Giry tells Firmin.
"We take a particular pride here in the excellence of our ballets, Messrs." Madame Giry says.
"I see why. Especially that little blonde angel?" Andre says, indicating Meg
"My daughter: Meg Giry." Madame Giry states.
Andre has an "oops" moment as Firmin leers on... Christine becomes prominent among the dancers.
"And those exceptional beauty? No relation, I trust?" Firmin asks, leering.
"Christine and Jamila Daae. Promising talents. Monsieur Firmin, very promising." Madame Giry states in a hard voice.
"Daae, did you say? No relation to the famous Swedish violinist?" Andre asks, curious.
"His only child. And niece... orphaned at seven and four when they came to live and trained in the ballet dormitories..." Madame Giry states.
They admire Christine's and Jamila's dancing and revealing costume.
"Orphans, you say...?" Firmin asked, salivating
"I think of them as daughters also. Gentlemen, if you would kindly stand to one side?" Madame Giry states coldly.
They turn their attention to a flirtatious, toothy ballet tart, as the ballet continues to its climax and ends. The chorus resumes.
"Hannibal's friends!" we, the chorus all sing
Carlotta is getting angry. The elephant, a life-size, mechanical replica, is wheeled on. Piangi is lifted (not easily) in triumph onto its back. The elephant's trunk suddenly rears and almost hits him. The trunk falls back down. Piangi almost falls off. Carlotta steams because the new managers pay no attention to her.
"The trumpeting elephants sound - hear, Romans, now and tremble! Hark to their step on the ground - hear the drums! Hannibal comes!" we sing
Furious, Carlotta almost screams her final note in their faces.
"All that they want is the dancing!" Carlotta says.
Christine POV
Andre, suddenly aware of Carlotta's rage, elbows Firmin, who is all over the ballet tart, and they applaud loudly. Lefevre returns to join them as two stagehands are revealed operating the elephant from within.
"Well, the Vicomte is very excited about tonight's gala!" Lefevre says.
"As, ah-ha-ha. Allora, allora, allora." Carlotta says
"I hope he is excited by dancing girls as your new managers... because I will not be singing!" Carlotta says and I sigh as she's being the typical diva.
She sweeps up grandly, followed by Piangi and her entourage.
"Lefevre... what do we do?" Andre asks Lefevre.
"Grovel. Grovel - grovel." Lefevre tells Andre.
"Right" Andre says.
Andre and Firmin dash across the stage.
"Signora please." Firmin says, begging and I hear Jamila scoff.
"See you later because I'm going now. It is finished." Carlotta tells them.
"World renowned artist and great beauty..." Firmin says, begging, again and Jamila growls. Carlotta slows down.
"Principessa! Bella diva..." Andre says, begging.
"Si, si, si..." Carlotta says.
"Goddess of song!" Firmin says.
"Evello." Carlotta says.
"Monsieur Reyer... isn't there a rather marvelous aria for Elissa in Act Three of Hannibal? Perhaps the Signora..." Andre says.
"Yes, yes, yes! Ma, no! Because I have not my costume for Act Three. Because somebody not finish it!" Carlotta says as she glares at the Russian costume designer.
"And, I hate my hat!" Carlotta says, sounding like a brat.
"But I wonder, signora, if as a personal favour if, you would oblige us with a private rendition? Unless, of course, Monsieur Reyer objects..." Firmin asks Carlotta, flattering her.
"If my managers command." Carlotta says.
"Ah." Firmin says.
"My diva commands." Reyer says with a sarcastic bow that has Jamila laughing out loud.
"Yes, I do. Everybody, very quiet. Sshhh!" Carlotta says, and seeing that she's never liked being shushed, I see Jamila about to go to where Buquet and his boys should be but I stop her.
"Monsieur, why exactly are you retiring?" Andre asks.
"My health." Lefevre says, lying.
"I see." Andre says.
"Sshh, sshh. You as well!" Carlotta told us.
"Signora?" Reyer asks.
"Maestro." Carlotta tells Maestro Reyer.
The introduction is played on the piano. Carlotta is performing solely for Firmin and Andre's benefit, who are relieved and pretend to hang on every word.
"Think of me, think of me fondly, when we've said goodbye. Remember me once in a while - please promise me you'll try." Carlotta sings horribly.
Eric POV's from the flies.
I smirk as I start to loosen the ropes, they are starting to twitch and the pulleys slowly loosening. There is a movement, me on the ramp.
Jamila POV
"When you find, that once again you long to take your heart back and be free. If you..." Carlotta sings
Meg screams. In the flies, a pulley suddenly gives. Buquet comes out of a shadow a look of horror on his face. He rushes forward.
The backdrop is plunging towards the stage. The ropes and pulleys are whirring madly and the counterweights shooting up towards flies. The counterweights hit the ramp knocking Buquet off his feet and grabbing a rope, he also plummets downwards.
The backdrop still plunges towards Carlotta's head. The backdrop crashes an inch behind her.
"Idiot! Oh my God, signora..." Piangi says to Carlotta
"Lift it up! Lift it up!" Piangi tells the performers.
Meanwhile, Madame Giry looks up. She alone sees a white envelope rimmed in black fall out of the darkness above. It lands at her feet. She picks it up. She knows who it is from.
"He's here... the Phantom of the Opera..." Meg tells Christine and I.
"Signora! Are you alright?" Lefevre asks Carlotta.
The drop is raised high enough to reveal upstage Joseph Buquet, holding a length of rope, which looks almost like a noose.
"Buquet! For God's sake, man, what's going on there?" Lefevre asks Buquet.
"Please, Monsieur, don't look at me: as God's my judge, I wasn't at my post. Please, Monsieur, there's no one there: or if there is, well then, it must be a ghost..." Buquet says and he smirks unpleasantly.
Carlotta's entourage try to calm her.
"Signora, please... These things do happen..." Andre told Carlotta.
"For the past years these things do happen." Carlotta tells Andre. "And did you stop them from happening? No!" Carlotta tells Lefevre. "And you two - you're as bad as him. "These things do happen!" 'Ma... until you stop these things from happening, this thing does not happen! Ubaldo! Andiamo! Bring my doggy and my boxy" Carlotta tells Firmin and Andre.
"Amateurs!" Piangi says.
"Bye-bye and ciao." Carlotta tells them.
"Now you see. Bye-bye, I'm really leaving." Carlotta tells them.
Carlotta storms out, sweeping up her fluffy lapdog. She is followed by Piangi and her retinue (seamstress, hairdresser, maid). Piangi is caught by his cape but undoes it.
"Gentlemen. Good luck. If you need me, I should be in Australia!" Lefevre says after a pause and leaves.
The company looks anxiously at the new managers. Firmin looks accusingly at Andre.
"Signora Guidicelli, she will be coming back, won't she?" Andre asks Reyer and I have to chuckle.
"You think so, messieurs? I have a message, sir, from the Opera Ghost." Madame Giry says, revealing a letter with black border. The other girls twitter and twirl in fear.
"Oh God in heaven, you're all obsessed!" Firmin exclaims.
"He welcomes you to his opera house." Madame Giry says.
"His opera house?" Firmin asks.
"- and commands that you continue to leave Box Five empty for his use and reminds you that his salary is due." Madame Giry continues as if she hasn't been cut off.
"His salary?" Firmin asks, bewildered.
"Well, Monsieur Lefevre paid him twenty thousand francs a month." Madame Giry says.
"Twenty thousand francs?" Firmin says, stunned at the number
"Perhaps you can afford more, with the Vicomte de Chagny as your patron?" Madame Giry tells Firmin.
Reaction to this from the ballet girls. Christine, I see, is comforting Meg.
"Madame, I had hoped to make that announcement public tonight when the Vicomte was to join us at the gala. Obviously, we shall now have to cancel as it appears we have lost our star!" Firmin tells Madame Giry
"Yeah, but surely there should be a, um..." Andre says, trying to think.
"Understudy!" A singer tells Andre.
"...understudy?" Andre asks.
"Understudy? There is no understudy for "La Carlotta"!" Reyer cries out.
"A full house, Andre. We shall have to refund a full house!" Firmin tells Andre.
There is a pause.
"Jamila Daae could sing it, sir." Madame Giry says and all attention turns to me.
"What, a chorus girl? Don't be silly." Andre says
"She has been taking lessons from a great teacher." Madame Giry tells them.
I look terrified. The older ballet girls are glaring at me.
Eric POV
From the flies, I am still watching.
"Who?" Andre asks Jamila
"I don't know his name, Monsieur." Jamila says.
Madame Giry knows.
"Let her sing for you, monsieur. She has been well taught." Madame Giry says.
"All right." Andre or Manager 1 says. "Come on, don't be shy... Come on. Come along. Just, just..." he tells Jamila
"From the beginning of the aria then, mam'selle." Reyer tells Jamila.
The entire company watches as Jamila nervously move centre stage:
"Andre, this is doing nothing for my nerves." Firmin or manager number 2 says.
"Oh, she's very pretty." Andre says and I growl.
Reyer gives Jamila two bars then:
"Think of me, think of me fondly, when we've said goodbye. Remember me once in a while - please promise me you'll try. When you find that, once again, you long to take your heart back and be free if you ever find a moment spare a thought for me..." Jamila sings with her angelic voice
As she sings, we see everyone's reactions; Reyer, Madame Giry, Christine and Meg encouraging, Andre and Firmin beginning to smile, the Stagehands, chippies and painters downing tools to listen, and some of the older ballet girls gnashing their teeth. Other stagehands and performers appear in the wings to listen to Jamila. The entire population of the opera house is spellbound by Jamila's voice.