NEW "A Play for Naomi" [PG13] VOY 2/4
Juli17
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Tom stepped gingerly among the bright flowers and trees, yellow
brick paths, and gnomelike thatched houses that made up the set
of Munchkinland. He looked toward the holographic background,
now a vista of bright green and yellow fields dotted with more
colorful little gnome houses. In the midst of it all was Dorothy's
weathered gray farmhouse, plopped haphazardly in the middle of
Munchkintown. It had fallen from the sky perfectly, but then it was
a holographic house rather than a set. No sense in inviting real
disaster.
The cast was gathered in small groups talking among themselves
as Tom waved his arms again and raised his voice a little to be
heard above the general din. "Okay, everyone, let's get started on
the next scene!"
"Who died and made you director, Tom?" Harry teased, as he
came up beside Tom.
"Someone who forgot to spread the word, since I'm being ignored,"
Tom groused. This time he resorted to shouting, "HEY!"
That got their attention, and in a few moments they'd all gathered
around him, ready for their next direction, some looking eager and
relaxed and others looking less so, and one in particular looking
mutinous. Tom thought again that despite her frown she did look
pretty cute in that blue checked gingham pinafore, with those blue
ribbons tied around her pigtails…
When B'Elanna's gaze collided with his and her eyes narrowed
dangerously, he immediately dismissed his lascivious thoughts and
repressed the grin that threatened to take over his face whenever
he saw her in that outfit. He valued his life, after all, and it would
be hard to direct with his arms broken. "Okay, let's move on."
The moving on was a slow process and a couple of minutes later
Tom sighed. "B'Elanna, please don't throw Toto."
B'Elanna glared at the little dog standing where he'd landed after
she'd flung him, in a small stand of bright yellow flowers. The little
beast was still yapping. She glared with equal ferocity at her
director. "Then make it stop that noise."
"It's a good thing that dog is animatronic," Harry whispered to
Chakotay from the sidelines.
Tom heard and shot Harry a quelling look, then looked at B'Elanna
again. "He's a neurotic little dog, B'Elanna. He's supposed to bark
a lot." Tom reached for the animatronic ball of fur as he spoke and
Toto growled at him and yapped again. Tom picked the dog by the
scruff of the neck and handed him to B'Elanna. A low threatening
rumble erupted from B'Elanna's throat as she snatched Toto out of
Tom's hand and stuffed him back in the basket she was carrying.
"Don't worry, B'Elanna, you growl much better than Toto," Tom
said, then stepped quickly out of her way before she could stomp
on his foot. "Seven!"
Seven, who had retreated during the ruckus, perhaps looking for a
way to escape, now moved forward. Before she'd taken two steps
she stumbled, and with difficulty regained her balance before she
toppled over. Everyone moved quickly out of the path of her
enormous dress.
"Seven, how come you can walk fine in five inch heels, but you
can't take two steps in that dress?"
Seven gave Harry a look cold enough to freeze molten lava,
proving once again to those who still had any doubt that the
women on Voyager were much scarier than the men. Then she
readjusted the massive shimmering satin and silk folds of her
dress over the gigantic hoop attached to her waist.
"That dress does rather hide her best assets, doesn't it?" The
doctor mused in low tones to Harry.
"Shush," Harry warned, though he did notice that Seven looked
like a walking wedding cake. Still, it didn't hide all her assets,
since the neckline was appreciably low—
"Hit it, Seven."
Seven had caught on to Tom's stage slang, and she took up her
position again and began to sing where she'd left off. "Come out,
come out, wherever you are, and meet the young lady who fell
from a star. She fell from the sky—"
"Smile, Seven. Extend your arms in invitation to the Munchkins.
Look cheerful. Benevolent."
Seven gave her director a long cool look. Then she bared her
teeth, stretching her lips as far as she could. It was a frightening
sight, and Toto took immediate refuge back inside his basket.
"She fell very far, and Kansas she says is the name of her star."
"And Kansas she says is the name of her star—uumph! Oops,
sorry, Mr. Director."
Dozens of flowers were trampled and one tree was knocked
sideways as Neelix made his entrance among a dozen other
holographically created Munchkins.
Tom sighed. "It's okay, Neelix. Let's move on."
They moved through the wind switching, the house pitching and
the hinges unhitching, and Neelix quickly got back into character
as the Munchkins danced and banged drums and banged drums,
celebrating that the witch was dead and that she'd gone below
where the goblins go. Then they welcomed Dorothy/B'Elanna to
Munchkinland.
"We represent the lollipop guild, the lollipop guild, the lollipop guild.
And in the name of the lollipop guild we wish to welcome you to
Munchkinland."
B'Elanna managed to roll her eyes only a little as Neelix finished
his ditty and bowed deeply in front of her in his red striped tights
and bright yellow shorts. "Yeah, whatever."
"B'Elanna…"
B'Elanna huffed. "Fine." She clasped her hands together. "You
are all so wonderfully kind," she gushed, her voice suddenly
quavering with gratitude. Then she turned quickly to
Glinda/Seven, who'd been watching the scene with a definite
impression of disinterest, though now her eyebrows raised to her
hairline as she looked at Dorothy/B'Elanna with apprehension.
"This is such a tremendous welcome! I don't know what to say!"
Seven backed up a step, as if she expected further evidence of
B'Elanna's sudden apparent mental disassociation to manifest
itself. B'Elanna turned her simpering gaze from Seven to Tom.
"Okaaay?"
Tom found his voice. "B'Elanna, that was actually very good." He
gave her a genuine smile. "You were perfectly in character. You
have talent."
B'Elanna looked unsure whether she wanted to accept Tom's
sincere encouragement, but she didn't give him her usual mutinous
glare either. Tom glanced down at his director's padd. "Okay,
next is…aah, yes. Neelix."
Neelix nodded eagerly at Tom's cue and palmed the small control
just under his sleeve. A moment later a poof of orange smoke
appeared. Too large a poof, Tom realized, as the cast began to
cough and wave their hands in front of their faces. Tom caught
Neelix's gaze, and the Talaxian gave him a contrite nod to confirm
that he would take care of this latest problem also. And as the
smoke finally cleared, a figure dressed in black appeared.
She was hunched over, her black rags gathered around her, and
she slowly threw her hands out, fingers extended and curled, and
made a slow pirouette, spearing everyone with her piercing gaze.
Then her eyes in her green painted face narrowed into slits, her
nose wrinkled and her lips curled up into a sneer, revealing her
pointed yellow teeth. "Whooooo killed my siiiister?"
No one spoke for several silent moments, though most of the cast
did finally manage to close their mouths and look away,
concentrating their gazes somewhere among the eye burning
foliage.
Yikes. If she'd seemed competent in the more reserved role of the
snotty, bad tempered Miss Gulch, Captain Janeway was
completely in her element as the Wicked Witch of the West. She'd
obviously watched the vid he'd passed out. More than once. Tom
noticed that B'Elanna was still staring at Wicked Witch/Janeway
with a look of astonishment.
"Cat got your tongue, girl?" Janeway spat, devouring the scenery.
The rest of the cast watched as Janeway delivered her lines,
carrying B'Elanna and Seven along, who both said their lines on
cue, if with somewhat less exuberance than Janeway. Though
once the holographic Wicked Witch of the East's shriveled legs
disappeared under the house, and Glinda/Seven placed the also
holographic ruby red slippers on Dorothy/B'Elanna's feet, Seven's
performance jumped up several notches.
"You have no power here," Glinda/Seven told Wicked
Witch/Janeway with what could only be termed as unbridled
smugness. Then she waved her wand imperiously. "Begone,
before somebody drops a house on you too."
Wicked Witch/Janeway's eyes narrowed until they were all but
closed, and she looked at Glinda/Seven for several seconds longer
than strictly necessary. "Fine, I'll go," she finally spat. "But I'll be
back."
Then she turned abruptly and pressed her face close to
Dorothy/B'Elanna, and even B'Elanna couldn't help but
automatically back up at the sudden aggressive invasion of her
personal space. "But I'll get you my pretty," Wicked
Witch/Janeway hissed, and Dorothy/B'Elanna held her ground this
time and glared back. Wicked Witch/Janeway pulled back and
looked at Toto peeking out of his basket. "You…and your little
dog, too!" she added with evil glee, pointing her finger
threateningly at Toto, at which point the little furball promptly shot
out of the basket just far enough to bite it.
"Ouch!" Janeway jumped back, out of character, and stared at the
drop of blood oozing from her finger. Those animatronic teeth
were sharp.
"Bad dog," B'Elanna muttered, then shoved Toto's head back into
the basket. She gave the captain an apologetic shrug.
"Uh, sorry, Captain," Tom said as Janeway waved her finger to
alleviate the sting.
Janeway shook her head. "The tricks of the trade, Tom."
"I'll take care of that for you in sickbay for you, Captain," the doctor
said from the sidelines.
Janeway nodded, and then glanced at Neelix, who belatedly
recalled his cue and pressed the control under his sleeve again. A
large poof of smoke appeared and Janeway made her exit, leaving
a spreading cloud of haze and hacking actors behind her.
"Neelix. The smoke next time."
Tom dismissed the cast then. He'd—they'd—had enough for one
rehearsal.
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During the quick review of several scenes from the previous
rehearsal B'Elanna only threw Toto out of his basket once, Seven
stumbled twice in her dress, and the poof of smoke didn't choke
anyone. And the yellow brick road number, which Tom had the
entire cast sing as a chorus, went off reasonably well.
"Follow the yellow brick road,
Follow the yellow brick road,
Follow the, follow the, follow the yellow brick road…"
Neelix was scampering in front of Dorothy/B'Elanna with the other,
holographic, Munchkins, who had popped up from behind bright
flowers and trees and their miniature thatched houses to join in the
chorus. And amazingly, B'Elanna was skipping, if not with
enthusiasm for the musical number, at least with an apparent
eagerness to get out of Munchkinland.
"…If ever oh ever a wizard there was,
the Wizard of Oz is one because, because, because, because,
because, becaauuse…
because of the wonderful things he does.
You're off to see the wizard,
The wonderful Wizard of Oz."
As the chorus finished and Dorothy/B'Elanna skipped her way
offstage, Tom gave the cast a ten minute break while Neelix dealt
with the change of scenery with a minor glitch or two Tom could
only hope would be cleared up by the time of the performance. In
the meantime he had other problems.
"I believe you misrepresented my part."
Tom sighed. "Tuvok, I said you'd be playing a wizard, and you
are."
"I envisioned a traditional classic character of Earth literature such
as Merlin. This character is not a wizard, he is an inept man
masquerading as a wizard."
"You should be glad you have a real part," the doctor groused.
Tom hadn't realized the doctor was right behind them as they
negotiated the new set, avoiding a fencepost that separated the
yellow brick road from the saffron, magenta, and kelly green fields
of the Ozian landscape.
"I'm stuck playing a bit character, Uncle what's his name…"
"Henry," Tom supplied.
"All I get to do is pat Dorothy's hand at the beginning and end, and
hope Lieutenant Torres remembers to stay in character and
doesn't punch me in the nose for it."
"And sing with the chorus," Tom pointed out.
"Humph."
"You may have the part of the Wizard, Doctor," Tuvok offered at
the doctor's disgusted grunt. "The costume will be a close enough
fit."
"Forget it, Tuvok. You're the wizard."
"I can emote with much more realism than a Vulcan," the doctor
protested at Tom's blunt refusal.
"I concur," Tuvok agreed, unfazed by the doctor's disparaging
tone.
Tom was aware that the doctor had a talent for excessive emoting,
which had nothing to do with acting. He already had enough over-
enthusiastic actors, juxtaposed by the under-enthusiastic approach
of the other half of the cast. "It's acting, Tuvok. You don't have to
feel the emotions of the character, you just have to pretend to feel
them. I sure your logical mind can separate the two. And don't
forget I've seen a Vulcan opera…" he paused briefly, an intentional
reminder that he was the one who'd helped Tuvok fine tune that
particular program, one nearly as ornate as a Klingon opera, if only
about a tenth as interesting, "so I know Vulcans can dramatize in
the name of art."
"The concept of "art" is a very subjective one," Tuvok noted
superciliously. "However I have given my word, so it appears I
have no choice."
"Nope," Tom agreed, a complacent look on his face.
"I still think you should reconsider," the doctor grumbled as Tuvok
nodded his acquiescence and turned away. "I can do—"
"No, Doc. I want Tuvok to do it." He gave the doctor a
conspiratorial grin. "I have to find some way to loosen him up…"
The doctor rolled his eyes at the unlikelihood of that goal ever
being achieved.
"And we need to get the next scene started. Everyone!" Tom
turned and stepped forward as he spoke, ready to call for attention,
and promptly collided with Harry, who was encased from head to
foot in soft gold-colored velveteen material.
"Hey!" Harry jumped back as Tom stumbled into him, then he
raised his velvet-encased hands—paws—and waved them
threateningly in Tom's direction. "You wanna fight? Well, put 'em
up, put 'em up. I'll fight ya. I'll fight ya with my eyes closed, I'll fight
ya with one paw tied behind my back—"
"Harry!" Tom backed up as Harry danced around him, tossing
feinting boxing punches at him with his "paws", his whisker painted
face scrunched up in implied threat. The effect was marred by the
cuddly velvet costume he wore, complete with cute little ears and a
mane of blond ringlets. He waved Harry's hands away. "We
haven't gotten to that part yet."
Harry dropped his hands and shook his head. "Amazing how
people change once they're in charge and power goes right to their
head."
"Everyone!" Tom glanced back at Harry, having not heard a word
he'd said. "What?"
Harry rolled his eyes. "Tom, you're sort of a cheerless director,
you know that?"
Tom shrugged. "I'm also constantly ignored," he said. The cast
continued to mingle and talk among themselves. Yelling seemed
to be the only way he could recapture their attention.
"EVERYONE!"
"Maybe it's hard for them to take someone dressed in rags with
bits of straw sticking out everywhere seriously," Harry said, giving
Tom an innocent smile. "Though you do make a really captivating
scarecrow. I wonder how B'Elanna can manage to keep her hands
off you."
"How, indeed," Chakotay said as he approached. He met Harry's
smirk with a grin of his own. "You're looking pretty adorable
yourself, Harry, with all those lovely blond ringlets. The red bow is
a precious touch."
"Speaking of adorable…" Harry mused, giving Chakotay a
malicious look. "Chakotay, I love what you've done with the black
eyeliner. It really brings out the beauty of your deep brown eyes
against your silvery skin. And those kissable red lips—"
"Guys, guys, a little more congeniality, please," Tom ordered
sternly. And speaking of congeniality…if it wasn't "Dorothy"
advancing on him, swinging her basket with enough ire to give
poor Toto a concussion. She stopped in front of him so abruptly
he was sure he heard the little bundle of fur thud against the inside
of the basket.
"I've got real work waiting for me in Engineering, so if you boys can
quit arguing over who's the cutest here, maybe we can get on with
this rehearsal."
The "boys" down to the last man managed to suppress several
obvious comebacks about who looked cutest in their costume as
B'Elanna stood in front of them in a gingham pinafore and pigtails
tied up with blue bows, mostly because they valued their
continuing good health.
And Tom didn't want to chance B'Elanna walking out *after* she'd
kicked them all where it hurt, so he bit his lip and confined his
words to a simple direction. "Okay, let's move on to the next
scene."
(continued in Part 3)