A Fool's Paradise

by ~ScaryFairy

FADE IN:

INT. CHRISTINA’S LOUNGE - NIGHT

In an uninspiring rented flat’s lounge/dining room, lit only by light flooding from the adjoining kitchen and a computer screen, CHRISTINA is sat at a computer typing. She is a pretty, young woman with tied back scruffy brown hair, dressed in simple pyjamas. She yawns and pushes away from the desk, moving to go to the fridge for a cold drink. We see the computer screen and on it is a conversation box, heading this are the screen names “Phantom” and “*~Angel~*”. She sits down as the computer BEEPS and starts typing. Across from her the glowing digital clock says 1:23am.

FADE OUT

INT. CHRISTINA’S BEDROOM - MORNING

The alarm clock changes to 7:30am and BEEPS noisily. Light spills round the cheap curtains on to the double bed on which CHRISTINA lies sprawled across. Her hand fumbles over the alarm to find its button, silencing its unwelcome noise. She struggles out of bed in the same pyjamas, disentangling herself from the sheets. Staggering her way to the bedroom door, she shuts us out.

CUT TO

INT. HALLWAY OUTSIDE CHRISTINA’S FLAT - MORNING

CHRISTINA comes out of her apartment dressed in a sky blue shirt dress with a fashionable belt and heels, and locks her door. She drops her keys and manages to empty her handbag out over the floor. She looks at her cheap watch and GROANS. Gathering up her things, she rushes off down the uninviting hall to the stairs.

CUT TO

EXT. THE GREENMAN THEATRE - MORNING

The high street is busy with traffic and people in the early morning commuter rush, shops are opening and drivers are HONKING their horns energetically. CHRISTINA comes walking down the packed pavement quickly; she enters the contemporary theatre through its glass doors. There is a sign above the entrance saying “THE GREENMAN THEATRE”.

CUT TO

INT. THE GREENMAN THEATRE - MORNING

CHRISTINA comes through the door out of the early morning sunshine into the theatre reception. JANET, a young, enthusiastic receptionist is talking to a young man, RUSSELL. They both look as she enters. RUSSELL is wearing a suit and is in his thirties; he has light brown hair and is rather good-looking. As the glass doors SWING shut behind CHRISTINA the NOISE OF THE STREET is muffled, she doesn’t stop as she talks, and walks straight across to a stairway on the other side of the reception.

CHRISTINA
Hey Janet.

JANET
Hello Chrissy. Kellaway’s upstairs. Watch out.

CHRISTINA
Thanks.

CHRISTINA climbs the stairs and disappears from sight. RUSSELL watches her leave as if he half recognises her. JANET carries on typing purposefully.

RUSSELL
(Curiously)
Who was that?

JANET
(Absentmindedly)
Just Christina Galen; she’s our backstage manager.

RUSSELL
(Under his breath)
Galen, Galen. I recognise that name.

JANET knocks her pen on to the floor and disappears behind the desk, revealing the computer screen. There is a sinister face on there as an advertisement for a show, its eyes are piercingly sharp and stare right out at us.

CUT TO

INT. THE THEATRE DIRECTOR’S OFFICE - MORNING

MR. KELLAWAY, a grey-haired man in his late 50’s, is sat at his impressive desk TAPPING his fountain pen neurotically on the wood. There is a KNOCK at the door. He turns round and faces the door, clasping his hands before speaking.

MR KELLAWAY
(Sharply)
Come in.

CHRISTINA enters, shielding herself with the door as she surveys the room.

CHRISTINA
(Confidently)
Good morning Mr. Kellaway. Sorry I was a bit late.

Fully entering the room at last, and moving to stand in the centre.

You know how the traffic is.

MR KELLAWAY
That’s not what I wanted to talk to you about right now.

He curtly signals with his hand for CHRISTINA to sit opposite him.

We had a break-in last night in the props department.

CHRISTINA
(Surprisedly as she sits)
What?

MR KELLAWAY
(Unreasonably frustrated)
The props department. No money was taken at all but we’ve lost a fair few of the current show’s props. I need you to inventory the props and find out what’s gone.

CHRISTINA
(Regaining her composure)
Do they know who it was?

MR KELLAWAY
(Bitterly)
No clue. Don’t even know how they got in. Incompetent police work if you ask me.

There is a brief, uncomfortable pause between them.

CHRISTINA
Well I’ll go get on with it. Goodbye Mr Kellaway.

MR KELLAWAY has gone back to his neurotic tapping and staring into space. CHRISTINA, receiving only silence, leaves the office quickly before he can curtail her for being late.

CUT TO

INT. THEATRE HALLWAY - MORNING

CHRISTINA walks down a different corridor; its paint is peeling, and is in much worse shape than the rest of the theatre. She turns a corner and goes through a door to the left. There is a hand painted sign on the door saying “Prop storage”. There seems to be no one around.

CUT TO

INT. PROP STORAGE - MORNING

It is dark and dingy in props storage with piles of unnerving props, lots of masks, wigs and strange objects. It’s a mess, which CHRISTINA picks through carefully, treading over fake hands and a beaten up wax figure. She sighs, not looking forward to the job ahead of her. Hearing a CREAK, and seeing a cobweb-covered rocking chair disturbed, she freezes.

CHRISTINA
(Nervously)
Hello?

CHRISTINA hears a SCRAPING noise and starts to back towards the open door. She surveys the huge prop room and sees nothing. She turns and looks out the door behind her, as she does the door swings closed and from behind the door a dark figure lolls towards her. She shakes her head before LAUGHING, obviously used to this sort of occurrence. The figure comes into the light and is revealed to be wearing jeans and shirt and a very fake waxy Frankenstein mask. A gruff LAUGH is heard from behind the mask.

CHRISTINA
(Laughing)
Tom! You fool!

TOM
(Growls)
Frankenstein no like you. Grrr… (In his normal voice) Er… yeah... so you’ve come to help me, have you?

CHRISTINA
(Seriously)
Yep. I’ve got the prop lists all ready to start checking.

TOM
Let’s go then, honey.

TOM, a young stage hand, picks up a feather boa and throws it round his shoulders whilst winking at CHRISTINA who has put on a beret. She puts a red rose in her mouth.

CHRISTINA
(Muffled by the rose)
Oui, oui!

FADE OUT

INT. PROPS STORAGE AFTERNOON

CHRISTINA and TOM are digging through the mess. He sits down and wipes the dust from his forehead. CHRISTINA throws a beanbag at him, and he topples dramatically from the beer keg he’s sat on. She wears the rose from before, behind her ear. The room is still a wreck, although a lot of stuff is now more orderly placed at the sides.

CHRISTINA
(With mock severity)
That’ll teach you to sit down on the job!

TOM
Yeah all right! Don’t get your knickers in a twist. (Mutters jokingly) Slave driver.

TOM is hit by a fake eyeball, and he screeches like a girl as it lands in his lap. CHRISTINA laughs loudly from underneath her sombrero. They giggle for a second before returning to the task. Tom, however, is fed up.


TOM
This is going to take hours. Why do these foolish actors have to use so many props? And why do we keep them? Most of these props are from before even Kellaway was here!

TOM picks up random props ranging from a rather large whisk to stuffed animals, and throws them down unsympathetically.

TOM (CONTD.)
Which is a very, very long time by the smell of this room. And what kind of (sarcastically) ‘depraved lunatic’ would break into our prop department?

TOM stops, seeing CHRISTINA holding a locket; she is staring at it bewilderedly. He moves behind her to look. She removes the rose and places it on her lap.

TOM
That must have been for an important play, it looks real.

CHRISTINA
(Bewilderedly)
It’s mine. How on earth did it get here? I haven’t worn this since… I can’t even remember. It should be at home. Look, it’s got my dad’s old picture in it and there’s me when I was a baby.

TOM
Are you sure you didn’t wear it in once, and drop it or leave it around?

CHRISTINA
Fairly sure. And surely it would be broken if it had fallen off, see (indicating to the unbroken chain), there’s no break at all.

CHRISTINA puts the necklace on and slides it under her jumper. They both go back to work, with much less zeal than before.

CUT TO

INT. THE AUDITORIUM - LATE AFTERNOON

A rehearsal is taking place. A few people are scattered around in the seats watching five actors; two men and three women, perform a scene from a play. CHRISTINA is just off to the side of the stage in the wings checking the props.

FEMALE ACTOR #1
Poor fool. He makes me laugh. He will never know of our love!

MALE ACTOR #1 and FEMALE ACTOR #1 leave the stage wrapped in each others arms, laughing maliciously. MALE ACTOR #2 stands up as if having just overheard the conversation. He moves to the front of the stage, fists clenched, glaring at the audience.

MALE ACTOR #2
She will pay for this humiliation. I gave her everything, the malicious bitch.

DIRECTOR sat in the audience stands up.

DIRECTOR
Cheryl and Clare you need to stay completely still. Excellent Tom, but perhaps try cold hatred rather than passionate rage during your last line? Ok?

MALE ACTOR #1 and FEMALE ACTOR #1 pass CHRISTINA working as we hear the director talk in the background. CHRISTINA finishes reorganising the props table and turns to watch the stage. She stands in the wings, just visible to the audience. MALE ACTOR #2 repeats himself, adjusting to the orders of the director accordingly.

MALE ACTOR #2
She will pay for this humiliation. I gave her everything, the malicious bitch.

CHRISTINA looks round and sees RUSSELL sat in the stalls watching the actors. She stares for a second, checking him out, then disappears backstage. RUSSELL glances to the wings as CHRISTINA disappears, as if he knew she was watching him.

FADE OUT

INT. CHRISTINA’S OFFICE - LATE AFTERNOON

CHRISTINA is sat reading at her computer in her small office. The blinds are down and there is an orangey glow creeping round them from the sunset. She yawns and shakes her head to wake herself up. On the computer screen her mailbox is open; it shows a long list of emails from Phantom. The mouse moves to open an attachment on a new email from the Phantom. It changes to an empty email screen, we hear her typing and an email quickly appears. “Hi, I will read your script tonight if I can. Angel.” She sits back and sends it. She opens an attachment and prints it. The printer begins to produce pages of a script, the title page appears first. On it is written “A Fool’s Paradise”; it is quickly covered by another page of script. One line stands out especially; “A young woman screams”. CHRISTINA is oblivious. She starts piling papers together and gathering her possessions up ready to go home. She finds a fake rose from the play’s props in her desk, then realises her phone is missing. The printer is still noisily PRINTING.

CHRISTINA
(To herself)
My phone? What - it was just… (Sighs)

She goes to leave but there is a KNOCK and the door opens. RUSSELL pokes his head round the door, not waiting for a reply.

CHRISTINA
Hi, can I help you?

RUSSELL
Hi, I’m Russell Forster-Smyth.

RUSSELL extends his hand and she falters before taking his hand and shaking it confidently.

CHRISTINA
Christina Galen.

RUSSELL
I hope I wasn’t interrupting your work?

Looking round interestedly as if he would have come in whether she’d been working or not.

CHRISTINA
Not at all, I was just finishing.

RUSSELL
Janet the receptionist told me I’d find you here. You left your phone in the props department, I have it here.

RUSSELL pats the pockets of his designer jacket for a couple of second, then pulls out CHRISTINA’s brightly coloured phone and holds it out for her.

CHRISTINA
(Surprised)
Oh! Thank you very much! I was just looking for this.

RUSSELL
(Slightly sarcastic)
Love the cover.

CHRISTINA
(Laughing)
It was a present. It’s quite hideous first but it’s grown on me!

RUSSELL has half turned to go, but the friendly gesture of the returned phone has broken the ice, and CHRISTINA stops him by speaking.

Are you heading down to reception?

RUSSELL
Yes, if I can find it. This is my first day at the theatre and it’s…

CHRISTINA
(Interrupts)
…A bit of a maze?

RUSSELL
Exactly.

CHRISTINA
(Cheerfully)
Well I’m going that way, so I can show you.

CUT TO

INT. THEATRE HALLWAY - EVENING

RUSSELL comes out of the office followed by CHRISTINA. She locks her office door and they proceed down the corridor. Someone is watching from the other end of the corridor, unnoticed by the pair as they disappear from view down the stairs to reception. The figure turns swiftly and walks quickly the other way.

CUT TO

INT. THEATRE RECEPTION - EVENING

CHRISTINA and RUSSELL enter, talking animatedly to each other. There is no one around in the reception area. Through the glass doors the street is quiet apart from cars and the sun has set.

RUSSELL
(Enthusiastically)
My father was an investor in the theatre, and now he’s gone I’m taking over, and I’ve always loved theatre so I’ve decided to play a much more active role in this place. I really want to see this place brimming with people again.

CHRISTINA
(Despondently)
Well it could definitely do with improving; we’ve been loosing money recently. Most of the good plays get played in the Vic and the Stage-way.

RUSSELL
(Coaxingly)
Perhaps we could continue this conversation some time? I need to get familiar with this place and your knowledge would be extremely useful.

CHRISTINA freezes as she goes to speak, looking over his shoulder as she hears a CREAK from back up the corridor. He looks at her slightly worriedly, not having heard the noise at all.

RUSSELL
Christina?

CHRISTINA
Um, sorry - I thought - I heard something. But, yes, that would be a great idea.

RUSSELL
Are you free tomorrow night? We could go for a meal, if you like?

CHRISTINA
Yeah, that’d be lovely! Oh no, wait, I’m working, um – I don’t suppose tonight would be alright? Otherwise it’ll have to wait a week or so, I’m afraid.

RUSSELL
(Brightly)
Tonight is fine.

The conversation becomes muffled and we see a hand pressing against the wall in the shadows, as if suppressing anger. The knuckles have turned white. CHRISTINA and RUSSELL leave through the glass entrance doors, and go their separate ways. The hand drags along the black wall, scraping its fingernails maliciously along the paint. The unseen figure goes up to the large glass wall at the front of the theatre. They breathe on the glass, and write CHRISTINA in the condensation. It fades slowly away, as FOOTSTEPS are heard receding into the distance.

FADE OUT