Better late than never...
Okay, I've been a bit lazy of late, but I promised another excerpt for those of you waiting patiently for the full screenplay, and here it is: AIAOY (including reprise and chandelier). For those of you following along, this scene picks up immediately after the "Il Muto" excerpt posted a while back. Enjoy!
INT-OPERA UPPER LEVELS-NIGHT
Christine and Raoul continue their ascent.
EXT-OPERA ROOF-NIGHT
The very pinnacle of the building. It is a clear night, the moon throwing pale light and deep shadows over everything. Christine and Raoul emerge, coming to rest beneath the statue of Apollo. Raoul is out of breath; Christine is almost hysterical.
RAOUL
Why have you brought us here?
CHRISTINE
Don’t take me back there!
RAOUL
We must return…
CHRISTINE
(pacing restlessly)
He’ll kill me!
RAOUL
(trying to calm her)
Be still now…
CHRISTINE
His eyes will find me there…
RAOUL
Christine, don’t say that!
CHRISTINE
Those eyes that burn…
RAOUL
(taking her hands)
Don’t even think it…
CHRISTINE
And if he has to kill
A thousand men…
RAOUL
Forget this waking nightmare…
CHRISTINE
The Phantom of the Opera will kill
And kill again!
RAOUL
(gripping her shoulders, trying to talk sense)
This Phantom is a fable!
Believe me,
There is no Phantom of the Opera!
Christine is almost oblivious to Raoul’s existence. She sinks down beneath the statue of Apollo.
CHRISTINE
My God, who is this man…
RAOUL
(almost to himself)
My God, who is this man…
CHRISTINE
…Who hunts to kill?
RAOUL
…This mask of death?
CHRISTINE
I can’t escape from him…
RAOUL
(sitting down beside her)
Whose is this voice you hear…
CHRISTINE
I never will!
RAOUL
…With every breath?
CHRISTINE/RAOUL
(clinging to each other)
And in this labyrinth
Where night is blind,
The Phantom of the Opera is here,
Inside my/your mind…
RAOUL
There is no Phantom of the Opera!
Christine pushes away from him angrily, rising to her feet.
CHRISTINE
Raoul, I’ve been there!
To his world of unending night,
To a world where
The daylight dissolves into darkness…
Darkness…
Raoul looks as if he might protest, but Christine persists.
CHRISTINE (Con’t)
Raoul, I’ve seen him!
(shaking with the memory)
Can I ever forget that sight?
Can I ever
Escape from that face,
So distorted, deformed,
It was hardly a face in that darkness…
(distant, haunted)
Darkness…
Christine’s mood becomes calmer, almost wistful. She moves further away from Raoul, the moonlight casting her shadow across the roof. Behind it, the shadow of a man appears, reaching for her…it almost looks like the Phantom’s spirit.
CHRISTINE (Con’t)
But his voice filled my spirit
With a strange, sweet sound!
In that night,
There was music in my mind…
And through music,
My soul began to soar…
The camera returns to Christine-there is, of course, only Raoul standing behind her.
CHRISTINE (Con’t)
And I heard
As I’ve never heard before…
RAOUL
What you heard
Was a dream and nothing more…
CHRISITNE
(reflective, sorrowful)
Yet in his eyes,
All the sadness of the world…
Those pleading eyes
That both threaten and adore…
RAOUL
(embracing her, gently)
Christine, Christine…
But as Christine delights in his arms, she hears, very faintly, the Phantom’s voice calling her…
PHANTOM (V/O)
Christine…
CHRISTINE
(alarmed)
What is that?
Christine and Raoul part, looking around them for the source of the sound. Raoul sees nothing. But Christine does…a slight movement of shadow, by Apollo’s plinth. Perhaps it is only a trick of the light…or is it? She draws closer to the statue…
RAOUL
Christine!
Christine turns and sees Raoul, his eyes filled with adoration. A beat as they gaze at each other, silently acknowledging the affection between them.
RAOUL
No more talk of darkness,
Forget these wide-eyed fears
I’m here, nothing can harm you
My words will warm and calm you
He crosses to Christine; she smiles, looking away shyly.
RAOUL (Con’t)
Let me be your freedom,
Let daylight dry your tears
(cupping her chin)
I’m here, with you, beside you,
To guard you and to guide you
CHRISTINE
Say you’ll love me
Every waking moment
Turn my head
With talk of summertime…
Say you’ll need me
With you now and always,
(clasping Raoul’s hand)
Promise me that all
You say is true,
That’s all I ask of you…
RAOUL
Let me be your shelter,
Let me be your light,
You’re safe, no one will find you,
Your fears are far behind you
Christine walks towards the edge of the roof, looking out over the city spread beneath them.
CHRISTINE
All I want is freedom,
A world with no more night,
Raoul stands behind her, embracing her fondly.
CHRISITNE (Con’t)
And you, always beside me
To hold me and to hide me…
As the lovers walk across the roof, arm in arm, the camera looks down on them from above. It’s as if we’re seeing the POV of someone watching from a high vantage point. Perhaps that’s exactly what it is…
RAOUL
Then say you’ll share with me
One love, one lifetime
Let me lead you
From your solitude
Say you need me
With you here, beside you…
Raoul faces Christine, going down on his knees.
RAOUL
Anywhere you go,
Let me go too…
Christine,
That’s all I ask of you!
CHRISTINE
(joyfully)
Say you’ll share with me
One love, one lifetime
Say the word, and
I will follow you…
Christine helps him to his feet and embraces him, taking shelter in his arms.
CHRISTINE/RAOUL
Share each day with me-
Each night, each morning…
CHRISTINE
(almost pleading)
Say you love me…
RAOUL
(tenderly)
You know I do…
CHRISTINE/RAOUL
Love me,
That’s all I ask of you…
They kiss-a soft, almost chaste kiss, the kiss of first love in its purest form. Relief and bliss wash over their faces as Raoul takes Christine up in his arms and spins her around.
CHRISTINE/RAOUL
Anywhere you go,
Let me go too…
Love me,
That’s all I ask of you
They kiss again and again, laughing, all care in the world forgotten. But Christine pulls away, as if suddenly stricken with guilt.
CHRISTINE
I must go!
(apologetic)
They’ll wonder where I am…
Wait for me, Raoul…
RAOUL
Christine, I love you…
CHRISTINE
(softly, secretive)
Order your fine horses,
Be with them at the door…
RAOUL
And soon, you’ll be beside me!
CHRISTINE
(smiling, but with a trace of sadness)
You’ll guard me and you’ll guide me…
They leave, but the camera remains, panning up to the statue of Apollo…and as we draw closer, we see a hand with an onyx ring curl around the edge of the sculpture. Gradually the Phantom emerges and climbs from his perch, clinging to the statue as if he will collapse without support, tears in his eyes, a man heartbroken and betrayed.
PHANTOM
I gave you my music,
Made your song take wing…
And now, how you’ve repaid me,
Denied me and betrayed me
He was bound to love you
When he heard you sing…
(dropping to his knees)
Christine…Christine…
DISSOLVE TO:
INT-UPPER LEVELS-CONTINUOUS
Christine and Raoul, side by side, descend back into the building.
CHRISTINE/RAOUL
Say you’ll share with me
One love, one lifetime…
EXT-OPERA ROOF-CONTINUOUS
PHANTOM
No…
He presses his hands to his ears, trying to shut out the sound of the lovers’ voices, but still they drift up to us.
CHRISTINE/RAOUL (V/O)
Say the word and
I will follow you…
PHANTOM
(lower, angrier)
No…
A change comes over the Phantom: his body tenses, his fists clench, his eyes burn not with tears but with wild and terrible fury. It’s like watching a wave about to crash…
CHRISTINE/RAOUL (V/O)
Share each day with me,
Each night, Each morning…
The wave breaks. From the Phantom’s lips there emerges an awful, frightening cry, neither fully animal nor human. An angry, wounded, vengeful sound, the sound of a man descending irrevocably into madness.
PHANTOM
(rising to his feet, a terrible specter)
You will curse
The day you did not do
All that the Phantom asked of you!
He turns, the swirl of his cloak filling the screen…
DISSOLVE TO:
INT-AUDITORIUM-NIGHT
The performance of “Il Muto” has resumed, with Christine as the Countess and Meg as Serafimo. The Countess is trying to hide Serafimo from Don Attilio in a very physical-comedy heavy scene, and the audience is enjoying it, laughing uproariously.
But the darker, more sinister laughter of the Phantom is heard, filling the auditorium. Christine’s eyes dart around fearfully. Meg looks up and screams, pointing at the chandelier, which has begun to sway dangerously.
ABOVE THE CHANDELIER
The Phantom goes after the counterweights, loosening them with mad determination.
IN THE AUDITORIUM
A few crystals drop into the house, a forbearer of things to come. The audience rushes for the doors, the cast scatters. Only Christine is still, rooted to the spot with horror and grief. Raoul runs against the mob, racing to her side…
ABOVE THE CHANDELIER
The Phantom loosens the final counterweight.
PHANTOM
Go!
AUDITORIUM/ABOVE THE CHANDELIER (INTERCUT)
The following happens in quick succession:
The chandelier begins to fall, threatening those still trying to get to safety…
The gas lines to the chandelier snap and burst into flames, which lick around the Phantom like the fires of Hell…
Raoul reaches Christine’s side and pulls her, sobbing, offstage…
Audience members duck for cover as the chandelier crashes to the ground with a final burst of flame, splintered wood and shattered crystal flying everywhere.
INT-OPERA UPPER LEVELS-NIGHT
Christine and Raoul continue their ascent.
EXT-OPERA ROOF-NIGHT
The very pinnacle of the building. It is a clear night, the moon throwing pale light and deep shadows over everything. Christine and Raoul emerge, coming to rest beneath the statue of Apollo. Raoul is out of breath; Christine is almost hysterical.
RAOUL
Why have you brought us here?
CHRISTINE
Don’t take me back there!
RAOUL
We must return…
CHRISTINE
(pacing restlessly)
He’ll kill me!
RAOUL
(trying to calm her)
Be still now…
CHRISTINE
His eyes will find me there…
RAOUL
Christine, don’t say that!
CHRISTINE
Those eyes that burn…
RAOUL
(taking her hands)
Don’t even think it…
CHRISTINE
And if he has to kill
A thousand men…
RAOUL
Forget this waking nightmare…
CHRISTINE
The Phantom of the Opera will kill
And kill again!
RAOUL
(gripping her shoulders, trying to talk sense)
This Phantom is a fable!
Believe me,
There is no Phantom of the Opera!
Christine is almost oblivious to Raoul’s existence. She sinks down beneath the statue of Apollo.
CHRISTINE
My God, who is this man…
RAOUL
(almost to himself)
My God, who is this man…
CHRISTINE
…Who hunts to kill?
RAOUL
…This mask of death?
CHRISTINE
I can’t escape from him…
RAOUL
(sitting down beside her)
Whose is this voice you hear…
CHRISTINE
I never will!
RAOUL
…With every breath?
CHRISTINE/RAOUL
(clinging to each other)
And in this labyrinth
Where night is blind,
The Phantom of the Opera is here,
Inside my/your mind…
RAOUL
There is no Phantom of the Opera!
Christine pushes away from him angrily, rising to her feet.
CHRISTINE
Raoul, I’ve been there!
To his world of unending night,
To a world where
The daylight dissolves into darkness…
Darkness…
Raoul looks as if he might protest, but Christine persists.
CHRISTINE (Con’t)
Raoul, I’ve seen him!
(shaking with the memory)
Can I ever forget that sight?
Can I ever
Escape from that face,
So distorted, deformed,
It was hardly a face in that darkness…
(distant, haunted)
Darkness…
Christine’s mood becomes calmer, almost wistful. She moves further away from Raoul, the moonlight casting her shadow across the roof. Behind it, the shadow of a man appears, reaching for her…it almost looks like the Phantom’s spirit.
CHRISTINE (Con’t)
But his voice filled my spirit
With a strange, sweet sound!
In that night,
There was music in my mind…
And through music,
My soul began to soar…
The camera returns to Christine-there is, of course, only Raoul standing behind her.
CHRISTINE (Con’t)
And I heard
As I’ve never heard before…
RAOUL
What you heard
Was a dream and nothing more…
CHRISITNE
(reflective, sorrowful)
Yet in his eyes,
All the sadness of the world…
Those pleading eyes
That both threaten and adore…
RAOUL
(embracing her, gently)
Christine, Christine…
But as Christine delights in his arms, she hears, very faintly, the Phantom’s voice calling her…
PHANTOM (V/O)
Christine…
CHRISTINE
(alarmed)
What is that?
Christine and Raoul part, looking around them for the source of the sound. Raoul sees nothing. But Christine does…a slight movement of shadow, by Apollo’s plinth. Perhaps it is only a trick of the light…or is it? She draws closer to the statue…
RAOUL
Christine!
Christine turns and sees Raoul, his eyes filled with adoration. A beat as they gaze at each other, silently acknowledging the affection between them.
RAOUL
No more talk of darkness,
Forget these wide-eyed fears
I’m here, nothing can harm you
My words will warm and calm you
He crosses to Christine; she smiles, looking away shyly.
RAOUL (Con’t)
Let me be your freedom,
Let daylight dry your tears
(cupping her chin)
I’m here, with you, beside you,
To guard you and to guide you
CHRISTINE
Say you’ll love me
Every waking moment
Turn my head
With talk of summertime…
Say you’ll need me
With you now and always,
(clasping Raoul’s hand)
Promise me that all
You say is true,
That’s all I ask of you…
RAOUL
Let me be your shelter,
Let me be your light,
You’re safe, no one will find you,
Your fears are far behind you
Christine walks towards the edge of the roof, looking out over the city spread beneath them.
CHRISTINE
All I want is freedom,
A world with no more night,
Raoul stands behind her, embracing her fondly.
CHRISITNE (Con’t)
And you, always beside me
To hold me and to hide me…
As the lovers walk across the roof, arm in arm, the camera looks down on them from above. It’s as if we’re seeing the POV of someone watching from a high vantage point. Perhaps that’s exactly what it is…
RAOUL
Then say you’ll share with me
One love, one lifetime
Let me lead you
From your solitude
Say you need me
With you here, beside you…
Raoul faces Christine, going down on his knees.
RAOUL
Anywhere you go,
Let me go too…
Christine,
That’s all I ask of you!
CHRISTINE
(joyfully)
Say you’ll share with me
One love, one lifetime
Say the word, and
I will follow you…
Christine helps him to his feet and embraces him, taking shelter in his arms.
CHRISTINE/RAOUL
Share each day with me-
Each night, each morning…
CHRISTINE
(almost pleading)
Say you love me…
RAOUL
(tenderly)
You know I do…
CHRISTINE/RAOUL
Love me,
That’s all I ask of you…
They kiss-a soft, almost chaste kiss, the kiss of first love in its purest form. Relief and bliss wash over their faces as Raoul takes Christine up in his arms and spins her around.
CHRISTINE/RAOUL
Anywhere you go,
Let me go too…
Love me,
That’s all I ask of you
They kiss again and again, laughing, all care in the world forgotten. But Christine pulls away, as if suddenly stricken with guilt.
CHRISTINE
I must go!
(apologetic)
They’ll wonder where I am…
Wait for me, Raoul…
RAOUL
Christine, I love you…
CHRISTINE
(softly, secretive)
Order your fine horses,
Be with them at the door…
RAOUL
And soon, you’ll be beside me!
CHRISTINE
(smiling, but with a trace of sadness)
You’ll guard me and you’ll guide me…
They leave, but the camera remains, panning up to the statue of Apollo…and as we draw closer, we see a hand with an onyx ring curl around the edge of the sculpture. Gradually the Phantom emerges and climbs from his perch, clinging to the statue as if he will collapse without support, tears in his eyes, a man heartbroken and betrayed.
PHANTOM
I gave you my music,
Made your song take wing…
And now, how you’ve repaid me,
Denied me and betrayed me
He was bound to love you
When he heard you sing…
(dropping to his knees)
Christine…Christine…
DISSOLVE TO:
INT-UPPER LEVELS-CONTINUOUS
Christine and Raoul, side by side, descend back into the building.
CHRISTINE/RAOUL
Say you’ll share with me
One love, one lifetime…
EXT-OPERA ROOF-CONTINUOUS
PHANTOM
No…
He presses his hands to his ears, trying to shut out the sound of the lovers’ voices, but still they drift up to us.
CHRISTINE/RAOUL (V/O)
Say the word and
I will follow you…
PHANTOM
(lower, angrier)
No…
A change comes over the Phantom: his body tenses, his fists clench, his eyes burn not with tears but with wild and terrible fury. It’s like watching a wave about to crash…
CHRISTINE/RAOUL (V/O)
Share each day with me,
Each night, Each morning…
The wave breaks. From the Phantom’s lips there emerges an awful, frightening cry, neither fully animal nor human. An angry, wounded, vengeful sound, the sound of a man descending irrevocably into madness.
PHANTOM
(rising to his feet, a terrible specter)
You will curse
The day you did not do
All that the Phantom asked of you!
He turns, the swirl of his cloak filling the screen…
DISSOLVE TO:
INT-AUDITORIUM-NIGHT
The performance of “Il Muto” has resumed, with Christine as the Countess and Meg as Serafimo. The Countess is trying to hide Serafimo from Don Attilio in a very physical-comedy heavy scene, and the audience is enjoying it, laughing uproariously.
But the darker, more sinister laughter of the Phantom is heard, filling the auditorium. Christine’s eyes dart around fearfully. Meg looks up and screams, pointing at the chandelier, which has begun to sway dangerously.
ABOVE THE CHANDELIER
The Phantom goes after the counterweights, loosening them with mad determination.
IN THE AUDITORIUM
A few crystals drop into the house, a forbearer of things to come. The audience rushes for the doors, the cast scatters. Only Christine is still, rooted to the spot with horror and grief. Raoul runs against the mob, racing to her side…
ABOVE THE CHANDELIER
The Phantom loosens the final counterweight.
PHANTOM
Go!
AUDITORIUM/ABOVE THE CHANDELIER (INTERCUT)
The following happens in quick succession:
The chandelier begins to fall, threatening those still trying to get to safety…
The gas lines to the chandelier snap and burst into flames, which lick around the Phantom like the fires of Hell…
Raoul reaches Christine’s side and pulls her, sobbing, offstage…
Audience members duck for cover as the chandelier crashes to the ground with a final burst of flame, splintered wood and shattered crystal flying everywhere.