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{ reverein talent show }

REVEREIN TALENT SHOW

Welcome to the Reverein Talent Show! This log serves as a mingle thread where everyone is welcome to create their own top-levels and have their characters show off their talents on a glittering stage. If you desire snarky judges commentary or if your character would like a chance at prizes, applications for the Talent Show can be found here. They will be open until September 10th to allow new players a chance to have their characters join in the fun. If you DO NOT want to be judged and your character is not looking for a gig or to join Emet's theatre company, they are welcome to participate as a walk-on performance - no application necessary! Go forth and perform to your heart's content!

Voting and voting guidelines can likewise be found over here. Each audience member is allowed one (IC!) vote. Voting will close on September 13th and the winners will be announced in a separate subthread below. Deadlines may be extended depending on the number of votes and pacing for the log.

I. COME ONE, COME ALL!

Come one, come all! To not just one, but two entire nights all but guaranteed to be worthy of remembering for years to come. Now that the winds have calmed considerably, event flyers have returned in earnest advertising the Reverein Talent Show to be held on the evenings of the 5th & 6th of the month. If anyone should happen to be passing through the Riverside District, they might be approached by performers in bright, elaborate costumes. While it would be quite easy to mistake these performers as Dream Fair organizers, a few inquiries prove them to be representative from the theatre house and part of the talent show staff. These performers will prove most eager to answer questions about the event and will urge everyone to consider entering and sharing their talents before the rest of the town.

A. Bright Lights, How We Love Bright Lights. Whether ushered along or choosing to follow the crowd, the first thing of notice are the dazzling light displays. Faerie lights gather and disperse before the Grand Theatre House, illuminating its façade and the steps leading into its main reception hall. Should one linger within the light display, the colors will shift and transform depending on the guests' moods. Perhaps they turn blue in response to excitement, red if one happens to be attending with that certain special and significant other, or green to indicate the nervous energy that comes with imminent stage fright. If attendees should feel anything truly negative, however, the lights shining upon all who enter may just so happen to flicker out entirely in response.

B. Making Memories. Inside the reception area are a number of small booths offering snacks and drinks as well as unique memorabilia to celebrate the event. Of special note are small contraptions known as "dream lights", not much larger than a writing pen. By focusing one's emotions upon them, the colors of the dream lights can also be changed. Perhaps they might prove fun within the theatre? And indeed, the audience may choose to create a sea of color from their places in the stalls or focus on an appropriate color to cheer on their friends when they take to the stage.

C. Flower Power. Highlighting the entryway is a stunning floral display created by Isabela Madrigal. Mayhap the fragrance of its blossoms will relax and fill all who gaze upon it with happy anticipation for what is sure to come. Still more flowers can be found within the theatre house, highlighting small alcoves and seating areas and framing the stage itself in their brilliance. When combined with a soft white fog and the flickering of distant "starlight", the stage is transformed into a mystifying garden landscape.

II. REVEREIN TALENT SHOW

A. Opening Ceremonies. Once the audience has settled and the lights have been appropriately dimmed, both Emet-Selch and the theatre's director take to the stage. They welcome everyone, making a point to thank the promising talent who have offered their time, and bid all gathered to enjoy the proceedings. Emet-Selch's speech in particular is rather...grandiose and whimsical coming from a middle-aged man with dark circles under his eyes. A certain someone once suspected the Garlean of "taking the scenic route" whenever he chooses to speak, and indeed the man's opening speech sounds almost like a dramatic performance in and of itself. But he will not prove unduly long-winded. Indeed, the two of them soon return to their seats at the judges' table as the lights on stage shift once again and a positively jubilant young faerie flutters out to introduce each act.

B. So You Think You've Got Talent. Performers seeking the judges' approval and either a place in Emet-Selch's theatre company or a chance at earning themselves and their act a short term run at the Grand Theatre House have been asked to arrive to the venue at least an hour before showtime. Backstage, participants can be found tuning their instruments and poring over scripts one final time before being escorted one at a time onto the stage. Curiously enough, there is a distinct deficit of stagehands, and yet the stage and its settings seem to undergo a transformation each time someone new steps out upon it - as if it is morphing to suit their talent. Perhaps the young man in long white robes might know something about how this is achieved?

C. For Whom the Spotlight Shines. After the final judged act has concluded for the evening, the theatre staff offer a reminder that walk-on performances are still being accepted! All one need do is sign up at the reception desk during intermission and make their way to a designated area outside in the gardens to be lead backstage once everyone else is yet again seated. No numbers are required. Indeed, this shall be your own personal moment to shine! Simply walk out on stage when your name is called and introduce yourself to the crowd. Staff members are available to help should you require any outside assistance. And as for volunteers? Well, you've a whole theatre full and ripe for the pickings! Everyone enjoys a little audience participation, right? ...Right?

III. INTERMISSION

A. Culinary Delights. During intermission the gardens behind the theatre are open and illuminated to guests who may wish to sit and chat while awaiting the second half of the show. Fireflies dance and crickets create their own symphony to mingle betwixt snatches of conversation and delighted merriment. A few grills have been set up and attendees are treated to a delicious display as ingredients are minced at record speed and whole fruits and vegetables transformed into intricately carved baskets and tiny sculptures of flowers and beasts. Who ever said it was poor manners to play with one's food, when the results dazzle the imagination? If anyone is truly feeling adventurous, they can even try "fusion" cuisine which manages to meld wildly different foods together into a single dish, some of which may look and smell a bit... eh, suspect... Do you dare?

For those less daring, there is also a candy artist set up in the corner gazebo, able to spin sugar into the shapes of (mostly) local wildlife. Anyone who comes to the booth is urged to try channeling dreamotion into the creation for a special surprise! And as promised, determining the corresponding emotion will cause the creatures to come to life.

Tea Mouse: reacts most strongly to feelings of curiosity and mischief.
Fairy Cow: reacts most strongly to feelings of serenity and happiness.
Coeurl (Tiger): reacts most strongly to feelings of confidence and friendly competition.
Moon Rabbit: reacts most strongly to feelings of affection and appreciation.
Spice Noodle (Dragon): reacts most strongly to feelings of bravery and loyalty.
Flower Snake: reacts most strongly to feelings of surprise and excitement.

B. Step Through The Mirror. The theatre is beautiful, is it not? There is something about it which - almost - seems too much like a dream, however. (Ironic, that!) The architecture matches none of the surrounding buildings, and the number of flourishes and embellishments within it seem needlessly ornate. Could something be hiding beneath all the glitter? If the talent show is not for you, mayhap a mystery would better suit your tastes. Is the theatre's current appearance the result of dreamotion? And if so, just who is expending so much energy for the sake of aesthetics? Could there be a more sinister plan afoot? Is this all an elaborate trap set up by a yet unannounced villain? Who knows! (But...probably not.) If anyone should happen to lean to long against a marble pillar or take an incorrect turn looking for the washrooms, they may just so happen to find themselves breaking through the illusion and into the theatre as it truly should appear. Still a lovely building, no doubt, but a far cry from the gilded metal fixtures and magical overlays that now adorn it. One might even discover some of the theatre students secretly and determinedly working away on revisions for the next installment of their beloved Sharktopusnado.

C. Stage Flight. Backstage everyone is in a flurry preparing for the next set of performances. The lighting needs to be re-checked, the flowers watered, someone's lost their left sock, and exactly ten minutes remain for an 11th hour dress rehearsal. In the midst of the disorganized chaos, a shrill voice rises above the crowd. It seems that one of the bird actors has escaped from its holding cage and has taken up refuge high in the vaulted ceiling amidst an intricate system of pulleys. No amount of coaxing or pleading will convince it to come down, and its trainer is in hysterics. The bird itself appears quite ordinary, yet according to them, the bird is an empath (of sorts) - anyone who attempts to touch it will be zapped with the bird's prevalent emotion. If the bird becomes frightened, anyone too close may scurry away in fear; if the bird is angered, one might forget their task and throw a tantrum instead (why is this bird so important anyway??). The key is to calm the bird down before approaching it. As the trainer tells it, the bird always responds to bad poetry and loves to have its neck feathers scratched. Oh, and its name is "Professor".

IV. AND THAT'S A WRAP

A. Smoke and Mirrors. Following parting words from Emet-Selch and the theatre house director, the lamplight swells and the doors are thrown wide. Pray leave with wonderful memories of all you have witnessed, or should you choose - linger a moment more. The night may be over for the audience, but it's now that the staff and crew members file out into the emptying theatre to begin tidying up and returning it to proper order. Pie filling is mopped up, the curtains are lowered, and the beautiful glittering ambience slowly fades, reverting the theatre to something still very handsome but far less fanciful than it had been a moment before. Any offers of help are gratefully accepted, as there's much yet to be done to get the venue looking as clean as a whistle. And what of the winners, you ask? They need only head over to the judges' table to claim their prizes where they will find one Emet-Selch looking both more pale and more tired than usual, yet also unmistakably pleased with himself.

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["Watching me work? Why?"]

[He can't imagine it would be terribly interesting. He's done little more than sit and scowl and scribble, after all. (Seeing as he still refuses to admit he was a hair's breadth from slipping into slumber.) Yet at least Unnamed seems to have enjoyed himself thus far, and even found several performances to be excited about.]

["I also liked the 'blanket dance'." he admits, though he remains suspicious of the impish grin Madhuri cast him as she exited the stage. And in fact most of the acts have been quite well-planned, some of the performers going so far as to conjure up dreamotion even beyond that which Themis has provided for the perfect effect.]

["It will be difficult to choose a winner."]

Edited 2022-09-15 15:24 (UTC)

[ "Watching fun," he answers, and it's as simple as that. He's spent his whole undead life watching people do a whole lot of nothing. So getting to see them do stuff? Is something that's never going to lose its marvel. He could watch people living their lives forever.

"What is 'winner'?" he asks, tilting his head at the unfamiliar sign. "Is it good?" ]

[Well, if the boy says so then far be it for him to deny it. Yet explaining what a "winner" is may prove a bit more complicated.]

["Most times it is good. It means you are very, very good at something. Better than other people. Sometimes being a winner means you get a reward. A treat."]

[Emet-Selch considers for a moment, then lifts a finger above his head. Distant theatre lights flicker, but on the table before them two simple humanoid figures appear, chasing one another down the length of it.]

["Have you ever been in a race? The person who runs fastest is the winner." He points at the shade which has already reached the far edge of the wooden surface.]

["Or played games? Or seen two people fight? The person who is better, stronger than the other person is the winner." Such words are accompanied by other brief visions, of children playing tag and hiding behind trees, of two warriors facing one another in battle, of a victor standing before a crowd with a trophy and flowers and all gathered waving their arms in jubilation.]

["The winner we pick will get to put on more shows here because they are very good at what they do. The winner everyone else picks will get a reward because they are well-liked."]

Edited 2022-09-16 15:20 (UTC)

[ That's a lot of explanation with a couple of words he doesn't quite grasp the meaning of, but Unnamed follows well enough. A winner is someone who does something better than someone else.

Definitely the most interesting part of the explanation is the conjured illusions. Unnamed watches those with awe--the last scene in particular. ]

Ouuhhh...

[ "I only played games." And it wasn't as if it was a competition at the time so he can't really speak to what a competition feels like, but Emet-Selch's explanation does raise a question.

"Why is the winner lots of people like not doing more shows? If people like, they can do more!"

It makes more sense in his head for the crowd favourite to be the one to perform more rather than getting a one-time prize. That way they can show off their skill and everyone else can come and see them a lot. ]

[Seeing as Unnamed appears quite captivated by his illusions, Emet-Selch allows the last of them to linger a few seconds longer than necessary just so that he can watch a moment more as the visions of people continue to wave enthusiastically and throw flowers.]

["Most games have winners. Some games even have very big winners. Other times, people agree to just have fun with it and not worry over who wins or who loses."]

[To the question, however, Emet-Selch sits up a bit straighter, head tilting in consideration. It does, quite honestly, make a great deal of logical sense - what the boys says. The performance enjoyed the most overall would no doubt bring in a larger and more enthusiastic audience, but. Like it or not, it also makes sense to allow those who run the theatre and those with experience in the arts to have the final say and to make known their own judgments. After all, the winner will be using their space and representing them.]

[Emet-Selch isn't quite certain how to explain all this in simple terms, however.]

["Some people are putting on shows for their friends, for fun. They may not want to put on more. In the end, the people who take care of the theatre get to decide who puts on shows there."]

["But. Maybe the judges and everyone else will like the same show. Who can say?"]

[ The flower-throwing is especially interesting to him. He doesn't understand why people would do that at the end, the the visual is beautiful. He wonders if he can make some flowers and throw them too--

Right, focus. ]

Ouh...

[ For fun...that makes sense. If they don't want to do it all the time, winning a regular job wouldn't be a very good prize. The other one is much better.

Unnamed nods, satisfied with the explanation.

"I like shows. I can come watch more after today?" Because it would be a shame to have all this only once--and if that's the case, he needs to get back out there and watch! ]

[How endearing of him. If Emet-Selch weren't so tired, he might even look a little pleased at hearing this. Should even one person come to appreciate the theatre, he thinks, this will all have been worth the effort.]

["Yes, Nanashi. Of course you can. That is what the theatre is for. There will be many, many more shows after today."]

["Perhaps a few of them will even be mine. Later on. After I have found my actors."]

Auh!!

[ Oh heck yes, sign him up for more shows. Nanashi is all about comign back here to see more, especially if Emet-Selch has made it. He just has one question:

"What is 'actors'? I can help look! I can look all night all day." ]

[Emet-Selch is tired, yes, but in light of such exuberant enthusiasm he might crack just the tiniest of smiles.]

["Some shows tell stories through music and words, through signs and dance. The people who play in those shows are actors."]

[He chooses the word "signs" rather than "gestures", to signify that the movements have meaning attached to them and aren't simply people wiggling around ad libitum.]

["Like the dreams we walk into. Actors get to pretend to be different people and put on special clothes during these shows. For fun."]

[ Very clever! It helps a lot with his understanding of the whole thing--and he soaks up each explanation like a sponge.

"I went into a dream. Dragons! Bad dragons. Fall from sky. Second dream had smiling faces, but faces were wrong. It was a bad dream."

So...yes. Up to this point, both dreams Unnamed has entered have kinda sucked. THANKS TRAHEARNE, THANKS AKECHI. ]

[~~Akechi, seriously... must trouble follow you everywhere?~~]

[The dreams Nanashi describes don't seem so terrible from their basic descriptions alone, but he's certain a little nuance might turn them into something altogether terrifying; arduous to navigate through.]

["Were you frightened?" he finds himself asking.]

["These shows would be like good dreams. Some parts sad, some parts happy, but fun most of all. For both the actors and the people who watch them play."]

Edited 2022-10-17 16:18 (UTC)

[ "Yes," he answers honestly. He doesn't know anything other way to answer; he's yet to figure out lying--which is probably a good thing, really. "We fell long time." And that was scary--he's seen people fall from high up and not move again after, or move very badly. Like their bodies broke.

"Fun is good! I like fun. If your shows fun, lots of people come! I know." He can't imagine anything else. ]

[Emet-Selch studies him a bit more sharply at that, though all things considered his companion seems none the worse for wear. His soul still shimmers beneath his focused gaze, a light blue he'd liken to cerulean.]

["A good thing you are unharmed. Most people would have had a very bad time of it, falling from so far." He presumes it's due to the nature of this world, and also to the nature of the boy's body. 'Tis a puzzle he has yet to fully unravel.]

[As for his hypothetical future shows, he can only hope that everyone else's reception is just as positive. He mulls for a moment, and since Nanashi would likely be a member of this hypothetical audience...]

["What do you think makes a show fun?"]

[ This...is a question he likes. Now that he has the means to communicate and words to put to how he feels, he doesn't have to worry about being understood or whether he'll have the mime something and hope for the best. He can just talk, as it were.

And he has a lot to say.

"Fun show has...moving! Lots of moving. Pretty colours. Dance. Like dancing lots! Dancing favourite. Like music too but deaf. Dream-music hear. Once." That was thanks to wonderful, wonderful Alastor. He'll have to ask the demon if he'll have another dream like that. ]

[Emet-Selch listens patiently, and at once he knows exactly the sort of show that someone like Nanashi would enjoy the most. One which checks off all of the boxes, one which would prove a challenge to produce, and yet would incorporate all of the different talents he's witnessed as well as Reverein's not insignificant number of musicians, singers, composers...]

Ah. Musical theatre, in other words.

["That is a very helpful list. I now know the type of show you would like most. It is called--" and here he spells it out: M-U-S-I-C-A-L T-H-E-A-T-R-E. "This show has dance and music and lots of movement. Lots of emotion. Lots of color would be possible too."]

[Yet that last little tidbit does have him quite interested as well. Although he certainly has no qualms communicating via sign language, it is intriguing to hear that in dreams Nanashi is capable of "hearing" music.]

["You can hear dream-music? Different from signing, or awake-music?"]

Edited 2022-10-25 14:39 (UTC)

[ Musical Theatre...whatever that is, it sounds exciting. Unnamed nods vigorously and his desire to see it is plain on his face. Dance, music, lots of moving and colour...! All of his favourite things (now it just needs a hero like Featherman and it'll be perfect--).

"Not hear awake-music," he admits. "Only feel. Yellow Glasses says BUZZ feeling." He's been able to touch both his own and someone else's throat while they spoke to experience it as well. "Dream-music like..."

How does he explain it? It's the same way he can speak and hear in dreams without actually talking--he and others just "know" things, as if they were natural in the dream itself.

"Like knowing. Just know it! Understand?" ]

[As much as Emet-Selch might like to claim otherwise, he would suppose there's no way around including a worthy hero in his production. Unfortunately the likes of Featherman remain a mystery to him.]

[Emet-Selch spells it out for him: v-i-b-r-a-t-i-o-n. And explains that this is the word for the "buzz" feeling he has with waking music.]

[As to the rest, he considers a long moment, then at last he nods.]

["Yes, I do understand. Knowing. Different people talk in different ways - with hands, with lips, even inside their heads - yet you still know what they want to say."]

[ Clearly, he and Futaba need to introduce Emet-Selch to the wonder that is Featherman.

'Vibration.' Another long word!! Why do they makes words so long?? Signing without finger-spelling is so much easier... But he'll probably need to learn that eventually anyway when it comes to reading. Bah!! At least what comes after is more palatable. Unnamed nods.

"Yes! That right! I understand. I do that in dreams. I hear music in dreams like knowing." ]

[(Clearly. His reaction alone would be priceless, though not necessarily complimentary. Emet-Selch isn't a big fan of heroes, you see, and unless Featherman proved sufficiently amusing to watch... but then again, who knows? His tastes can, after all, be quite surprising as well.)]

["I see. Then one day we must find a dream with lots and lots of music. With many sounds. I think you would like it. Different instruments have different vibrations. Played together, they are very good."]

[ "Yes please! Like dream like that!" Boy, would he ever. Just the talk of other instruments--which he knows about (to a degree) thanks to Dohalim. He still doesn't know the difference in sound between them, but this dream sounds like a great way to get some clarity.

"If you have that dream, bring me please!" ]

["If I can do so, I will bring you," he signs. He'd like not to promise before testing such a thing himself. Although Emet-Selch has walked into dreams some few times, he has yet to try to fashion one at will, being more focused instead on bending the energies here to other, more tangible purposes.]

[Still. Perhaps such an exercise is long overdue.]

["I will tell you when it is time. But now. The shows will start again soon. There will be lots more before the night is over."]

Edited (wrong word lol) 2022-10-26 19:39 (UTC)

[ "Okay! I understand." He gives Emet-Selch a thumb's up, already looking excited by the prospect. "I watch shows too. You have fun!"

He's looking forward to both the dream and the shows, now. ]

[Emet-Selch's mouth thins into what might be a smile, and he nods his head before making a show of stretching and rising slowly - oh-so-slowly - to his feet. His papers are gathered, his sleeves dusted off. Yet before he turns to leave, he adds one more thing:]

["Oh, I will. If you are not tired, be sure to stay for the end. There will be a little surprise before the magic is over."]

[ (Into what is totally a smile, your stoic demeanour can't fool him Uncle Grumpus). Especially when what follows on the heels of it is the promise of--

"Surprise? What surprise??"

TELL HIM?? ]

[Tsk tsk.]

["If I tell, it will not be a surprise." That's how surprises work, after all! If he reveals his hand now, he'll rob himself of a positive reaction from the crowd. Emet-Selch is not vainglorious, yet he does so prefer it when things fall into place at the proper moment - and performances are all about timing.]

["Wait and see. I think you will like it." Assuming Emet-Selch has it in him to perform one last little bit of magick before he inevitably ushers everyone out so he can allow the glamours surrounding the place to fade and himself to - at last - rest.]

[Likely the man will just manage it with a little help from his brethren - a spectacle extending from the stage over the entire crowd as the night draws to a close. Fragments of light that fall as rain, their mirrored surfaces glinting with every color of the visible spectrum. But such is mischief for later, and a secret he plans to keep until the instant it comes into play.]

Edited 2022-11-07 19:51 (UTC)

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{ reverein talent show }

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