———–<.thom.>———–

THE GREAT WORKS PROJECT

a puppet play in many parts

Season 06, Episode 01
a prologue

By Thomas Typewriter

(c) 2024 thomas typewriter

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FADE IN TO BLACK

From the bottom of the screen scrolls up the following text: “06-01”. It moves upwards, pausing a moment in the center of the frame, then continues upward, exiting the frame at the top edge. Immediately following that text’s exit, up scrolls “a prologue” from the bottom of the frame. It scrolls upward pausing in the center of the frame before continuing up and out of the top of the frame.

FADE OUT
FADE IN

THE VELVET CURTAIN

MS OF THE VELVET CURTAIN

A velvet stage curtain fills the frame. From below the frame THE VELVET TOUCH emerges. Remember that the Velvet Touch is a Helping Hand that wears long fingerless fishnet gloves. Each of their fingers, except the pinkies, are painted with a black or dark shade of fingernail polish. The Velvet Touch gestures a greeting at the camera and then reaches below the frame for a large cue card. They show the blank side to the camera and then rotate it. On the back, the cue card has the following text written: “A story…” The Velvet Touch then flips the card back around and now the blank side has text on it. It has the following text written on it, divided into two columns:

“a saw blade… a wand…
a castle… a quill…
a light bulb… a shield…
a harp… an outsider…”

The Velvet Touch rotates the cue card one more time. The writing of “a Story” on the other side has been replaced. It now bears the following text: “…in a progression…”. The Velvet Touch sets the cue card down off-screen, below the frame. They then grab the edges of the Velvet Curtain, opening them to reveal a dark screen behind them.

PAN IN ON THE DARK BEHIND THE VELVET CURTAIN

FADE OUT TO BLACK

GRIGIO COLORI
(offscreen) “Fade into black. From the bottom of the screen scrolls up the following text zero, six, dash, zero, one

FADE OUT
FADE IN

EXT. THE LONG HILLS, DAYTIME

The Long Hills are a connecting region appearing as a hilly combination of flowering prairie and rolling grassy plains. GRIGIO COLORI and THE OUTER ONE walk along one of the hills towards the back of The Long Hills.

GRIGIO COLORI
“Can I ask you something?”

THE OUTER ONE
“Sure”

GRIGIO COLORI
“You like these plays? This Thomas Typewriter stuff?”

THE OUTER ONE
“Sure.”

GRIGIO COLORI
“What do you like about it? ”

THE OUTER ONE
“Well, it makes me smile. I’ve always liked puppets and science fiction, so there’s that. But, and I’ve wondered about this too, and I think there is also this other part of it. I think I identify with Thomas. Like how he struggled with sadness and loneliness but managed to write this silly epic anyway helped me feel a little better about my own struggles.”

GRIGIO COLORI
“That was something we did discuss and debate a lot. We, and by we I mean myself and the other characters in the story, wondered if anyone was enjoying it. Was anyone being helped by our story? We couldn’t tell being inside it. We hoped we were helping.”

THE OUTER ONE
“Sure. I think you were. Maybe not as many as Thomas hoped for. He made so much art just on his own, with little recognition. Just going in everyday and writing some more, painting a little more. Maybe that was why he was lonely.”

GRIGIO COLORI
“I’ve read the scripts. He was lonely long before then.”

THE OUTER ONE
“You’re probably right. There was one other reason I liked his stories.”

GRIGIO COLORI
“Oh, what was that?”

THE OUTER ONE
“The characters.”

GRIGIO COLORI
“Present company included?”

THE OUTER ONE
“Present company definitely included.”

GRIGIO COLORI
“Oh you charmer, am I blushing?”

THE OUTER ONE
“Maybe a little.”

GRIGIO COLORI
“Should I continue reading.”

THE OUTER ONE
“Yes, please.”

GRIGIO COLORI
(opening scriptbook) “Transition to the Typewriter Abstract Puppet Stage.”

THE OUTER ONE
“I always thought that was a crazy name.”

GRIGIO COLORI
(to the Outer One) “Me too.” (looking back at scriptbook) “Fade out then Fade in to a field of darkness. The sound of typewriter keys click clacking sound out from somewhere in the distance.”

THE OUTER ONE
“That’s a sound we know all too well.”

GRIGIO COLORI
“True. That and light switches.”

FADE OUT
FADE IN

A FIELD OF DARKNESS

From off-stage the sound of TYPEWRITER KEYS CLICK CLACKING. Unseen lamps turn on in the dark and illuminate the suddenly appearing TYPEWRITER ABSTRACT PUPPET STAGE

THE OUTER ONE
(off-screen) “You ever think we have all these different ways of the Typewriter Abstract Puppet Stage appearing because Thomas gets bored of writing the same thing?

GRIGIO COLORI
(off-screen) “I know I would.”

TRANSITION FROM A FIELD OF DARKNESS TO THE TYPEWRITER ABSTRACT PUPPET STAGE

LS OF THE TYPEWRITER ABSTRACT PUPPET STAGE

PAN IN ON THE TYPEWRITER ABSTRACT PUPPET STAGE. AS THE CAMERA MOVES CLOSER MOVE IN ON THE MID-STAGE AREA.

TRANSITION FROM THE TYPEWRITER ABSTRACT TO THE MID-STAGE

The mid-stage curtains open and we continue moving inward. The mid-stage is undecorated. We move through it towards the Curtain of Clouds. The Curtain of Clouds part.

TRANSITION FROM MID-STAGE TO BACK-STAGE

BACK-STAGE: THE CONCURRENT DISTANCES

THE CAMERA PANS THROUGH THE OPEN CURTAIN OF CLOUDS UNTIL PROPERLY FRAMING THE BACK-STAGE BEHIND THE CURTAINS

Fog rolls across the bottom of the stage, with a background of nebulous degree. The landscape looks like a lost or unformed realm just outside dreams. VARIOUS DREAM-BUBBLES float across the stage both stage-left to stage-right and stage-right to stage-left. After a few moments, NETTE, ONDE, and AVEN along with the AEOLIPILE enter stage-left. They walk to the center of the stage and look around.

AVEN
“Do you see her?”

ONDE
“No.”

NETTE
“She could be anywhere. All this fog is messing up my vision.”

AVEN
“It is only going to get worse as we move more downdream.”

They look around while Aeolipile dances with a Dream-bubble in the background.

ONDE
“What do we do?”

AVEN
“I do not know.”

NETTE
“There has to be something we can do. We just need to think of something. Figure it out.”

They rub their faces in thought when a light bulb appears over Nette’s head. Aven and Onde turn and look at her. Nette reaches up and pulls down the light bulb. She then reaches into her pocket and pulls out another light bulb. She looks at them and smiles.

NETTE
“I’ve got an idea.”

AVEN
“We noticed.”

NETTE
“Did you bring anything with you? What supplies do you have?”

ONDE
“We left in a rush so we didn’t pack much.”

NETTE
“Fine. That’s fine, what do you have.”

ONDE
“I have some scrapwood and a few nails.”

AVEN
“I have some wire and colored glass.”

NETTE
“That will have to do. Ladies, while I will always advocate for solving your own problems, sometimes you need to ask for help. And sometimes you need to do both.”

Nette points at the Aelophile. Aven and Onde turn and look at the Aelopile dancing with the Dream-bubbles. Nette then points at the items in her hand. Aven and Onde turn and look at the items in her hands. Nette gestures between Aelophile and the lightbulb in her hand. Light bulbs pop on over Onde’s and Aven’s heads. Nette walks over and removes the bulbs, adding them to the other two she is holding.

CAMERA PANS OUTWARD

The Curtain of Clouds closes.

TRANSITION FROM BACK-STAGE TO MID-STAGE

THE CAMERA CONTINUES PANNING OUTWARD MOVING THROUGH THE MID-STAGE AREA AND OUT FROM THE TYPEWRITER ABSTRACT PUPPET STAGE.

TRANSITION FROM MID-STAGE TO THE TYPEWRITER ABSTRACT PUPPET STAGE

LS OF THE TYPEWRITER ABSTRACT PUPPET STAGE

The Mid-stage curtains close. The unseen lamps over the Typewriter Abstract Puppet Stage dim and turn off.

FADE OUT