———–<.thom.>———–

THE GREAT WORKS PROJECT

a puppet play in many parts

Season 03, Episode 03

By Thomas Typewriter

(c) 2020

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FADE IN TO BLACK

From the bottom of the screen scrolls up the following text: “03-03”. It moves upwards, pausing a moment in the center of the frame, then continues upward, exiting the frame at the top edge.

FADE OUT

FADE IN

INT. THE UNROOM NOT.SEVEN

The unroom Not.Seven fades into view. A large room of an indefinable undiscernible size. A large wooden disc sits on the floor near what could be the center. Radiating out in waves from the wooden disc are rows of grey carpet squares. Spindly tall metallic lamps, with cords snaking off into the distance, stand at the ends of the rows. The lamps cast a soft light across the wooden disc and carpet squares, but not much else of the unroom. THE OUTER ONE sits on one of the carpet squares looking at a paper cut on one of their hands.

POV OF THE OUTER ONE

CUT TO CS OF THE PAPER CUT

The tip of the finger with paper cut is a translucent blue. Abstract text in a different shade of blue can be seen gliding over the changed area. A change, a glitching, appears to be spreading out from the paper cut. The Outer One stares at the paper cut for a few moments before the sound of TYPEWRITER KEYS CLICK CLACKING drift in from outside their focus.

TRANSITION FROM THE UNROOM TO THE TYPEWRITER ABSTRACT PUPPET STAGE

THE CAMERA TILTS BACK, RETURNING THE OUTER ONE’S POV GAZE TO THE WOODEN DISC.

The wooden disc sits empty. Unseen lamps over the disc turn on and the TYPEWRITER ABSTRACT PUPPET STAGE appears in the center of the wooden disc.

TRANSITION FROM THE TYPEWRITER ABSTRACT PUPPET STAGE TO THE MID-STAGE

THE CAMERA PANS INWARDS TOWARDS THE TYPEWRITER ABSTRACT PUPPET STAGE’S MID-STAGE AREA. IT MOVES IN TILL THE MID-STAGE’S CURTAINS FILL THE FRAME.

The Mid-Stage curtains open. Surprisingly the stage lights are already on.

MID-STAGE: DISHEVELED AND DAMAGED

THOMAS TYPEWRITER and a HELPING HAND stand center stage, surrounded by broken sets and scattered props. Thomas is trying to sweep up the mess into a dustpan held by the Helping Hand. He turns and looks at the camera.

THOMAS TYPEWRITER
(sweeping the floor) “Give us a moment to tidy this up will you.”

The curtains close and the sound of the stage being CLEANED AND RESTAGED can be heard. The curtains reopen, with the stage lights off. Once the curtains have fully opened, the stage-lights turn on with THE CLICK OF A LIGHT SWITCH TURNING ON revealing…..

MID-STAGE: EXT. OPERAHOUSE’S FRONT PORCH, DAYTIME

A wooden front porch runs across the width of the stage. A storm door sits off to the stage-right. A canoe sits in the rafters of the porch near the stage-left side. Various planters, all empty, sit on the hand rails. An outdoor thermometer can be seen next to the storm door. It currently reads 36 degrees Fahrenheit. THOMAS TYPEWRITER enters from stage-left. He walks along the length of the porch to the storm door. He RINGS the doorbell. No answer. He RINGS the doorbell a second time and waits. Still no response. Thomas looks around in confusion. He RINGS the doorbell a third time and waits.

TRANSITION FROM MID-STAGE TO HIGH-STAGE

THE CAMERA PANS STRAIGHT UP. IT MOVES UPWARD PAST THE TOP OF THE MID-STAGE SETS REVEALING THE CURTAIN OF CLOUDS BEHIND. THE CAMERA FOLLOWS THE CURTAIN OF CLOUDS UP TO THE HIGH-STAGE AT THE TOP. THE CAMERA STOPS ONCE THE HIGH-STAGE IS PROPERLY FRAMED.

HIGH-STAGE: CURTAINS CLOSED

The High-stage curtains part. Once fully opened, the stage lights turn on, with the sound of A COMPUTER BOOTING ON, revealing…

HIGH-STAGE: INT. FOYER OF GRIM MANOR, DAYTIME

Welcome to the domicile of the current Grim Reaper of this reality, Grimson Grimaldi, and his family. An imposingly large front door sits in the center of the stage, flanked by cascading stained glass windows on either side. An elaborate staircase, with handrails made of various bones, runs along the stage-right side of the front door. On the stage-left side sits a large wall covered in various pictures of the Grimaldi Family. The staircase and the picture wall each have openings leading to other rooms in the house. A chandelier made of a large dinosaur skull covered in candles hangs above it all.
A silhouette of a figure can be seen through the stained-glass windows walking up to the door. The DOORBELL RINGS. A brief pause then it RINGS a second time. ELDRED GRIMALDI, eldest of Grimson’s seven sons, pokes his head out from the entryway under the stairs.

ELDRED GRIMALDI
(yelling upstairs) “Dad, Door!”

The DOORBELL RINGS again

ELDRED GRIMALDI
“Dad! Someone’s at the door!”

The DOORBELL RINGS a fourth time.

ELDRED GRIMALDI
(to self) “Just great, he’s still sleeping.” (Shouts) “Don’t anybody else bother themselves, I’ll get it.”

Eldred walks out and opens the front door. Outside he finds POSTMAN #33 FROM THE DEAD LETTER OFFICE waiting. Suppliers of the notices of who will die, the Dead Letters Office dispatches its fleet of postmen to the Grim Reapers of all the realities. Postman #33 hands him a package.

POSTMAN #33
“Thank you.”

Postman #33 turns and leaves. Eldred Grimaldi shuts the door. He opens the package and pulls out a scroll with “Updated Book of the Dead” printed on the outside. Unfurling the scroll, he takes a moment to read it.

ELDRED GRIMALDI
(to self) “Hmmm no Obsidian or Waxwings. Really thought they’d be on here after their ship blew up last season. Oh well.” (Shouts) “Anyone wanting to help collect the dead meet me out front in two minutes or else I am leaving without you.”

Eldred leaves through the front door. His silhouette can be seen through the stain-glass windows walking off stage-right.

Eldred Grimaldi’s six brothers race out from the other rooms and upstairs. EMHREN GRIMALDI, ENNER GRIMALDI, and EOVEN GRIMALDI run out from the entryway under the stairs. EPPLIS GRIMALDI, EQUES GRIMALDI, and ELDRITCH GRIMALDI emerge from the entryway by the family photos. If it helps, the birth order of the seven brothers from oldest to youngest is Eldred, Emhren, Enner, Eoven, Epplis, Eques and Eldritch. Eldred appears to be in his mid-twenties while Eldritch appears seven years old.

The silhouette of a carriage pulls up in front. The siblings run to the front door and open it. Eldred Gimaldi sits outside on THE CART OF SOULS pulled by a ghostly steer named SQUANDERED CHOICE CUTS. The brothers hop into the pile of hay in the back of the cart. Elder shakes the reins and Squandered Choice Cuts starts to walk pulling the cart off-stage. The front door swings closed with a loud SLAM.

THE GRIM REAPER GRIMSON GARIBALDI
(from off-stage, upstairs) “Boys, is there someone at the door?”

GRIMSON GARIBALDI, an unlit joint dangling from his skeletal mouth, enters at the top of the stairs. Dressed in a red bathrobe, he looks around.

THE GRIM REAPER GRIMSON GARIBALDI
“Must be hearing things.”

He walks down the stairs and over to the phone. He pulls out a coupon, uncrumples it, then dials the phone. RINGING RINGING…then CLICK as SHELDON SMALLBREADS, employee of the month at Pizza Squad take-out pizza, answers the phone.

SHELDON SMALLBREADS
(voice over)“Hello and thank you for calling Pizza Squad, the only pizza place that offers pizza as a topping choice. How can I help you today.”

THE GRIM REAPER GRIMSON GARIBALDI
“Do you honor coupons that are found under my fridge?”

SHELDON SMALLBREADS
(voice over)”What?”

THE GRIM REAPER GRIMSON GARIBALDI
“Like, I dropped a grape and it rolled under the fridge. I would of let it go, but it was the last grape and I was really into grapes that day, so I rolled the fridge out, got a broom and dustpan because it was all dust and stuff and found a coupon stuck to the floor in something sticky. Never did find that grape though. Man, I could really go for some grapes now. Anyway, I can’t read the expiration date and it is really crinkly. Like is there a maximum amount of crinkleness before it is unacceptable? Is it okay if part of it is still sticky?”

SHELDON SMALLBREADS
(voice over)”Uhhhhh…”

THE GRIM REAPER GRIMSON GARIBALDI
“And lastly does it have to be a Pizza-Pizza coupon? This one I found is for a free burger at Star Sprinkles. Burgers, Pizzas, they’re both round, so that works right?

SHELDON SMALLBREADS
(off-stage) “Uhhhhh…what.”

The stage-lights turn off with the sound of A COMPUTER BOOTING OFF while the High-stage curtains close.

TRANSITION FROM HIGH-STAGE TO MID-STAGE

THE CAMERA PANS DOWNWARD, TRANSITIONING FROM HIGH-STAGE TO MID-STAGE. IT MOVES DOWNWARD ALONG THE CURTAIN OF CLOUDS, OVER THE TOP OF THE MID-STAGE SETS, AND FINALLY STOPPING FRAMING MID-STAGE.

MID-STAGE: EXT. OPERAHOUSE FRONT PORCH, DAYTIME

THOMAS TYPEWRITER stands in front of the front door waiting for someone to answer. Having already tried the doorbell three times, he knocks on the door. No answer. He knocks again. Still, no answer. He leans in attempting to peer through the window in the door, hoping to spy someone in the house, when….

OPHIDIA OPERAHOUSE
(off-stage) “Thomas is that you?”

Thomas looks around.

OPHIDIA OPERAHOUSE
(off-stage) “Over here.”

Thomas turns and looks over the rail. He spots Ophidia off-stage and waves.

THOMAS TYPEWRITER
“Yeah, it’s me.”

OPHIDIA OPERAHOUSE
“What are you doing here?”

THOMAS TYPEWRITER
“I came here to see you. (looks around) Should I go down there or are you coming up here.”

OPHIDIA OPERAHOUSE
“Stay there, I’ll be right up.”

Thomas waits. The front door opens and Ophidia steps out. They hug.

OPHIDIA OPERAHOUSE
“Sorry about that. I was downstairs animating and I couldn’t hear the doorbell. Were you waiting long.”

THOMAS TYPEWRITER
“No, not long”

OPHIDIA OPERAHOUSE
“Good. So what did you want to talk about.”

Thomas kneels down onto one knee. He reaches up, taking one of Ophidia’s hands in his.

OPHIDIA OPERAHOUSE
“Are you about to do what I think you are?”

THOMAS TYPEWRITER
“Well, this is very stereotypical, so yes. Ophidia,…”

ZOOM IN ON THE COUPLE

THOMAS TYPEWRITER
“Ophidia…no one wants my scripts, I am broke, I am not getting any younger, You can definitely do better, but…”

Thomas pulls out the jewelry box.

THOMAS TYPEWRITER
“So, what do you say?”

OPHIDIA OPERAHOUSE
“I say that’s a horrible proposal.”

The stage-light turn off with the sound of a LIGHT SWITCH CLICKING OFF. The Mid-stage curtains close.

FADE OUT