SYNOPSIS
Act I Act II
SCENE 1
Begins with the spoken words "Previously, on The Media Lords." Followed by a recap of the events in Act I (Underture).
Begins with the spoken words "Previously, on The Media Lords." Followed by a recap of the events in Act I (Underture).
|
SCENE 2
A crowd on the street rejoices in their role as consumers who buy all the latest items that the media promotes. Lady Diva wanders among them, unnoticed now that her fame has left. Fourth Wall comments about the fickleness of her previous fans. Pap, Par, Azzi promote their show Mediastan Tonight (Prime Demographic). Lady Diva mourns the life she has lost (Diva's Lament). SCENE 3 A commercial interlude for The Glammy Awards' upcoming broadcast sponsored by Consolidated Media (The Glammy Awards Commercial). SCENE 4 Sir Mogul and Major Brands meet and contemplate how to manage the changing situation. They review a list of recent gaffes by Baron Anchor and declare that "his crazy talk has got to stop." They devise a plan to poison Baron Anchor with a potion, Scandalium, that will weaken his heart so that any shock will cause a heart attack. Then they will have Lady Diva restored to fame to provide such a shock. Sir Mogul says he'll have his Dark Minion handle it (Brands and Mogul Plot). |
Act II, Scenes 1 - 6 |
SCENE 5
Pap, Par, Azzi and Fourth Wall describe the lifecycle of a superstar where the media builds them up, tears them down and then builds them up again in a comeback (Lifecycle of a Superstar).
SCENE 6
Sir Mogul meets The Dark Minion in a seedy bar and hires her to poison Baron Anchor's wine and also persuade Lady Diva to attend a game show where she'll regain her fame. Sir Mogul provides her the poison and written instructions (Mogul Hires The Dark Minion).
SCENE 7
Fourth Wall comments about Baron Anchor's planned demise and the ruthlessness of Sir Mogul and Major Brands (Baron's Fate Seems Set).
Pap, Par, Azzi and Fourth Wall describe the lifecycle of a superstar where the media builds them up, tears them down and then builds them up again in a comeback (Lifecycle of a Superstar).
SCENE 6
Sir Mogul meets The Dark Minion in a seedy bar and hires her to poison Baron Anchor's wine and also persuade Lady Diva to attend a game show where she'll regain her fame. Sir Mogul provides her the poison and written instructions (Mogul Hires The Dark Minion).
SCENE 7
Fourth Wall comments about Baron Anchor's planned demise and the ruthlessness of Sir Mogul and Major Brands (Baron's Fate Seems Set).
Act II, Scenes 7 - 11 |
SCENE 8
The Dark Minion wakes in the morning to greet the marvelous day full of crime that awaits her (The Dark Minion's Delight). SCENE 9 The Dark Minion sneaks into Baron Anchor's dressing room and searches for his wine. She finds a decanter nearly full of wine and drinks all of it but one glass so she can properly apply the correct dosage of poison. Now tipsy The Dark Minion starts to leave but must hide when Baron Anchor and his Producer return. Baron Anchor and the Producer discuss which story to lead the newscast with, while The Dark Minion makes several attempts to sneak out - eventually succeeding. Baron Anchor pours a glass of wine, takes a sip and declares it has gone bad. He tells the Producer to have a new bottle sent to his set (The Poisoning Fails). SCENE 10 Fourth Wall notes how angry Sir Mogul will be when his plan fails and that it would be wise to avoid him when that happens (Collateral Damage). A commercial interlude, from "Citizens Solidified, a political committee of Consolidated Media", rails against an electoral proposition (The Proposition 56 Commercial). |
SCENE 11
An Audience waits outside the building where the game show I'd Sell My Soul For...? is televised, all hoping for a chance to be selected as a contestant. Lady Diva wanders unrecognized in the crowd. The Dark Minion approaches Lady Diva and says she's Lady Diva's biggest fan. Lady Diva is heartened to discover she has one remaining fan. The Dark Minion asks Lady Diva if she'd like to attend the show since she has an extra ticket. Lady Diva wanting to prolong her escape from obscurity accepts. An usher escorts them and indicates a specific seat for Lady Diva. The show begins and the Host spins two giant wheels to select a row and seat number for the first contestant. This has been rigged to select Lady Diva's seat. When Lady Diva takes to the stage she appears on camera for the first time since Baron Anchor banished her, thus breaking his spell and becoming recognizable again. The Host, taken off guard by her appearance, announces her by name. Lady Diva realizes that she has regained her fame and says she came here to announce her comeback plans and her return to TV (Game Show). The game show set transforms into The Lady Diva Show's set. Lady Diva revels in her comeback (Back on TV).
An Audience waits outside the building where the game show I'd Sell My Soul For...? is televised, all hoping for a chance to be selected as a contestant. Lady Diva wanders unrecognized in the crowd. The Dark Minion approaches Lady Diva and says she's Lady Diva's biggest fan. Lady Diva is heartened to discover she has one remaining fan. The Dark Minion asks Lady Diva if she'd like to attend the show since she has an extra ticket. Lady Diva wanting to prolong her escape from obscurity accepts. An usher escorts them and indicates a specific seat for Lady Diva. The show begins and the Host spins two giant wheels to select a row and seat number for the first contestant. This has been rigged to select Lady Diva's seat. When Lady Diva takes to the stage she appears on camera for the first time since Baron Anchor banished her, thus breaking his spell and becoming recognizable again. The Host, taken off guard by her appearance, announces her by name. Lady Diva realizes that she has regained her fame and says she came here to announce her comeback plans and her return to TV (Game Show). The game show set transforms into The Lady Diva Show's set. Lady Diva revels in her comeback (Back on TV).
|
SCENE 12
Baron Anchor is in his dressing room with the TV on in the background. On the Mediastan Tonight show Pap, Par, Azzi announce Lady Diva's return (Diva's Return Reported). This sends Baron Anchor into a rage and divorces him completely from reality. He vows to become the greatest newsman ever by broadcasting the apocalypse live (Anchor's Rage). SCENE 13 Fourth Wall bemoans what can happen when those we trust are insane (When The Trusted Go Insane). A commercial interlude promotes a personal robotic assistant from Acme Robots, a subsidiary of Consolidated Media (The Bot Bot Commercial). SCENE 14 On his newscast Baron Anchor announces that "they" have attacked Mediastan and that now is the time for all patriots to "arm and get 'em" to defend the homeland. The Audience rallies to the call and demands that Lady Diva become their Joan of Arc, which she accepts (Arm and Get 'Em). All continue to work themselves into a frenzy until the Director of this show, The Media Lords, enters and stops them mid-song. All the characters revert to the Actors who play their roles, except for Major Brands. The Director announces that audience testing |
Act II, Scenes 12 - 14 |
has revealed that the current ending is too dark, and he hands out some revisions. When some of the Actors ask questions, Major Brands tells them to shut up because he owns everything including this show, The Media Lords (Spoken Interlude). The singing resumes with a new supposedly happy ending while Major Brands stands to the side confident in his absolute power (Happy Ending).
