Chapter 22

Every single person there stopped -- and looked, at Carol. All I saw was the most ... beautiful image of a woman I’d ever seen in my entire career on the stage. The dress was a shimmering pale yellow, with full sleeves and a hemline to the tops of her shoes. Rather modest, but extraordinarily form fitting. And her Big Blue Eyes were glistening and looking straight at me.

All I could do was sing:

“Love comes and goes away,
You’re hurtin’ bad tonight.
Oh love comes and goes away
... I’m older—- ain’t I always led you right?”

I walked up to her and sang in her face, then the room emptied in my head and I grabbed her and really kissed the stuffing out of her.

The group of people, including the guys, and Jeff, were all crying and oohing and awing, and applauding. After a minute, Jeff came up to us ... we were still in a clinch ... and said, in a voice only we could hear, “This is your reason to push forward. I’ve been around people who’ve said they were in love with somebody for a very long time, but absolutely never, have I seen the kind of love, you two have for one another.”

“Oh, Randall, have you thought about that ‘other thing’ we discussed?” he asked.

“Yes, Jeff. I want to direct BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, with Marcus as my Assistant Director. I plan on pre-casting a few roles, but I’m ‘All In’.”

That made Jeff chuckle a bit.

“Might I ask who you are thinking of pre-casting?”

He shot me a wink and a smile.

“Well, this beautiful woman in my arms, I would hope to play Belle.”

That caused Carol to start kissing my face all over. Jeff leaned in and asked, “And, pray tell ... what part are you going to take, Randall?”

“I don’t know for sure Jeff. I’m waiting for some inspiration. If there was a way to play both Gaston and the Beast I’d do it, but, that’s impossible, so.”

“Nothing is impossible in the theatre, Randall,” Jeff said with a very strange look in his eyes. “OK, people clear the stage ... Adam and Milly, get back in your street clothes. We DO have a rehearsal to start in fifteen minutes.”

Carol and I, out of habit, both said, “Thank you, fifteen.”

Jeff was laughing as he walked away.

We changed back into our street clothes, Carol staying in her wig. She really loved it ... she would walk and turn quickly to see how it responded. She looked like a little girl who had just put on a brand new dress. She noticed that I had been watching her, and she walked up to me and said, “Kiss me, Randall.”

“Yes, Carol ... if you insist,” she did ... and I did, and we were really getting into it when Jeff walked by and said, “Save it for rehearsal, you two. I have a feeling about this show. Something tells me that, because of you two, this show may just break all of Santa Fe University’s records. Keep this to yourselves, but I’m looking at moving this to the Santa Fe Convention Center Stage, that holds 2,600 people. I’m asking about it on the q.t., so keep it under your hat ... or your wig, Carol.”

“Oh, Randall, that’s so exciting. Has that ever happened before?” Carol asked.

“Only one other time that I know of, honey ... when they brought in a couple of celebrity-types to star in a production of EVITA, but that was almost ... fourteen years ago. The Santa Fe Convention Center Stage is only eighteen years old. They built it to get National Touring Companies to come in, as shows were coming off their Broadway runs or preparing for them. This is a big deal, Carol.”

As we were vocalizing, in preparation for this afternoon’s rehearsal, Jeff came up to us and said, “The orchestra couldn’t be put together quickly enough to use them for the commercial filming tomorrow night, so Maurice and his synthesizer’s will have to do. Although he’s awfully good, I don’t dare tell him that, for fear he’d get a big head. You didn’t hear that from me, OK?” He chuckled as he walked on by.

“Oh, Jeff,” I yelled. He turned. “I’ve decided I wanted to play the Beast, but depending on who I get at auditions I’m going to leave open the possibility of doing both!”

Jeff gave a knowing smile, and hitting me on the back in approval, saying, “That’s what I thought, Randall. The Beast has more of an internal struggle, but he gets the girl, doesn’t he?”

Turning to Carol, but talking to Jeff, I said, “Yeah, there’s something about getting the girl.” I picked her up and twirled her around and Jeff left us laughing very loudly.

Rehearsal started, with Carol and the ‘Brothers’ going through ‘Going Courtin’ a few times, then the ‘Brides’ came up and they and Carol did her first blocking for ‘Wonderful, Wonderful Day’, another song that was added from the movie. Carol and the girls stood around Maurice and went over the song while he played. Carol probably knew this song already, but I think she was trying to ‘connect’ with the other girls.

Jeff had the girls stand around Carol and said, “Whenever you’re ready, Maurice,” who started and Carol started to sing:

MILLY Could have married long ago
I said “no” when fellers came proposing.
Bankers, teachers, preachers, too
Were among the men I could have chosen

Kept my feet on the ground,
Now I know where I’m bound.

He came out of nowhere,
Walkin’ through the door,
Lookin’ straight my way.
Wonderful, wonderful day.

He saw someone touch me
And he tossed him out
like a bale of hay.
Wonderful, wonderful day.

Can’t wait til I’m with him
In our cabin just for two.
Sheltered and secluded
Only trees near us
No one hearin’ us.

And so you’ll forgive me.
If I simply throw my chest and say:
“Wonderful, wonderful day.“