Scene 1: Jack sits in his apartment, looking out the
window.
Stranger in a Strange Land
Jack:
City streets are lonely when you call the country home.
City streets are lonely when you call the country home.
Never seen so many people; never felt so alone.
I know the words they say, but I still don't understand.
I know the words they say, but I still don't understand.
I thought that I could be free, but I'm just a stranger in a
strange land. My bed is
hard and cold, and midnight fills my brain.
My bed is hard and cold, and midnight fills my brain.
I got myself a woman, but “Music” is her name.
Scene 2:
A local bar. Jack and his band step onstage.
To the Top
Jack: [To band] For years it's been my dream
to break the music scene, to show the world my songs, and hope they
sing along. So now the
time is near—that's why you all are here—a band of brothers we
should be. Count it off,
now one, two, three!
[To audience] Well, the band's all here,
and the way is clear—they can't stop it.
We're gonna play each part till it's down by heart, then we
can rock it. We got
something to show this town; we'll make the walls shake right down!
Get ready for starlight shining down from a great height;
once we start, there ain't no way to stop our flight straight to the
top!
When the music's right, and the groove is tight,
we're gonna make it. If
the sound's too sweet, not strictly street, we can fake it.
We'll step out of the limousine, nothing like the world has
ever seen! Get ready for
starlight shining down from a great height; once we start, there
ain't no way to stop our flight straight to the top!
Scene 3: Jack leaves the bar and walks on a lonely
street.
What Am I?
Jack: Applause, and I hold my head high, but when I
step down off the stage I cry.
I'm so small inside.
Do I have a choice, and how do I decide?
Disguise, or is it truly me?
Feels so right when I'm a girl; I'm queen and I want to be
seen, till I have my fill and I want to be “he”.
Every voice I hear in my head tells me that it's wrong, and
still I don't know where I belong, and I ask myself again, “Who am
I? What am I to do?”
Names—none seem to stick.
I don't think I'm gay and don't feel sick.
Don't want to trim my wick, and if I had a choice, then this
I wouldn't pick. Every
time I think I see light, it's only an illusion, I find.
Disappointment, and great confusion, and I ask myself again,
“Who am I? What am I to
do?”
Scene 4: Jack stands in his apartment.
Simone
Jack: The streetlight shining through the shade
illuminates my face. The
lipstick tube is put away, now, every hair's in place.
The hallway seems deserted; check twice now, just in case.
The click-clack of my heels upon the floor…a quick breath
before I hurry out the door.
[Moves to street]
Panic on the sidewalk, but the man just passes by; he didn't
seem to notice, but still, I felt his eyes.
Wonder if he wondered if this “girl” was just a guy?
A light ahead eases up my mind: a place where they tolerate
my kind. And I can hear
a voice from yesterday: "It ain't what you're dealt, it's how you
play".
[Enters gay bar]
My own voice sounds so strange as I buy myself a drink.
A table in the corner—just the place to stop and think.
A lady taps me gently and then asks me with a wink,
“Mind if I sit down here for a spell?
These heels look nice, but they sure do hurt like hell!”
She could've been my mother, if she hadn't been a “he”.
Her dress is quite demure, and it fits her to a "T".
She says, "I've seen you here before, but you may not have
seen me; you seemed to be in a world of your own.
By the way, my name is Simone."
And I can hear a voice from yesterday: "It ain't what you're
dealt, it's how you play".
She says, "I remember how it was when I was about your age.
Always felt I had to hide, always in a rage.
Thought if I got married, that it would go away; but you
can't run forever, so I found.
Took fifteen years to turn my life around.
That's why I'm so glad to see a young girl like you here—no
doubt you've already made your peace with all that pain and fear".
I shake my head and try to smile, and
brush away a tear.
"Every day, I wish the curse was gone, and I could live happily
normal from now on".
She takes my hand, and I think I hear
her say, “It ain't what you're dealt, it's how you play”.
She says, "I know just how you feel, but it doesn't work that
way. Whether this
thing's written in your soul, or in your DNA, when you accept it's
part of you, the pain will start to fade.
It's a gift you have, one you can't erase; don't cut off your
nose to spite your face".
"But don't you fear the fires of Hell, or the wrath
of God above?"
"No," she says with another smile, "I
think that God is love, and this is the way you and I were made.
So what's to be scared of?
Who does it hurt when you put on a dress?
It's their expectations that cause you such distress.
If there's one thing I've learned along the way, it ain't
what you're dealt, it's how you play".
I take a drink in silence, staring at
the floor. My whole
world is shifting, and I’m eager to hear more.
But she turns and waves at someone who just walked through
the door.
"There's my wife, she finally made it
here. I've got to run,
but you take care, my dear."
[Jack goes back to his apartment]
Now I'm walking home again…my head is spinning still.
My future starts to open wide, and I see with a thrill I have
another way to live; I hope I have the will.
I feel more hope than I have ever known.
I owe it to that lady named "Simone".
And there's one thought I'll cling to every day: "It ain't
what you're dealt, it's how you play".
Scene 5:
Jack makes up in a dressing room at a local theater.
Getting Ready
Jack: Getting ready for the show; the band is out
there waiting for me.
Maybe I should have let them know; my transformation will be a
surprise. I should think
before I give in to this urge, but the butterfly is longing to
emerge. The dress is
perfect, seams are straight—never have I looked so good!
I've got to go or I'll be late.
Ready or not, here I come.
Scene 6: Jack’s band plays onstage at the local
theater.
Onstage
Jack [entering]: Step right up, you
ladies and gents! Betcha
wonder where the old Jack went!
Feast your eyes on the brand new me!
The chains are off, I'm finally free! A brand new world
awaits you if you dare; are you ready to come?
I can take you there.
I got the message every day: "Watch what you do and watch
what you say". If
everyone got to be themselves, we'd make heaven from this hell.
A brand new world awaits you if you dare; are you ready to
come?
Rich and Keith: No! No!
Jack: I can take you there.
Rich and Keith: Where?
Rich:
What the hell is going on here?
Have you finally flipped your lid?
Our career you don't consider—would it stop you if you did?
Jack: I'm not trying to tear
the band apart; all I want to do is follow my heart, make a fresh
start.
Rich: We have worked so hard
to make it, to find an image sure to sell.
Now you make us look like fairies—for that, please just go to
hell.
Rich and Keith: We had a
dream; now we're watching it fall away.
Watching it fall away, and we're standing in the middle of a
freak show.
Jack: Look at me—I was supposed to be free!
Rich and Keith: Please go,
freak show.
Jack: Look at me—I was meant to be free.
Scene 7: Jack wanders the streets of the city.
Freak
Jack: How much longer must I run?
How many times will I be driven away?
Don't want to die tonight, but got no reason to live.
I'm a freak; tell me, please, where is shelter in this storm?
Spend my time in the alley, hiding in shadows to avoid the
light of day. But
there’s a place, I’m told, where the people dare to love.
I’m a freak, but I believe there must be shelter from the
storm. [Comes to rest
outside a church]
Church choir: We all need a
hand to hold, a place to run when the heart gets cold.
Yeah, even a freak can feel alone.
Come inside, you're finally home.
Scene 8: Jack enters church.
We Can Love
Jack: On dark despair sunlight glares.
Caught unaware, an answered prayer.
I'm so tired of running and hiding and being cool.
Surprised to find myself among others feeling that way, too.
Congregants: What brings us
here, draws us near? The
answer's clear—we need our peers.
We’re so tired of plastic faces on every screen; the real
world is marked with scars, the sacred and obscene, and we are
somewhere in between.
Jack: I am; please take my
hand. In this strange
land we don't have to be strangers.
Congregants: This place
where we belong…together we're strong.
When we know we're loved, we can love.
Scene 9: Jackie sits in his apartment.
Start Again
Jackie: Now that I have found a place of
comfort and refuge, now that I know there's somewhere where I can
let my self shine through, now that I've found community, what do I
dare to do? Can I start
anew? Can I start anew,
now that I've found a place?
It's time to start again, see where this music takes me.
It's time to start a band; this time won't hide my reality.
It's time to play again, find a place where we can be totally
free. Totally free.
It's time to start again.
Scene 10: Jackie and new band play at local club.
Lipstick
Jackie: Just when I thought life was slipping away, I opened my eyes
and started a brand new day.
Now, once again I'm playing in a rock and roll band, and
we've got a message I'm sure you can understand.
Now, you boys listen!
Band: Put on the lipstick, put on the lipstick!
Jackie: You know that clothes can make the man!
Band: Put on the lipstick, put on the lipstick!
Jackie: The age of the beautiful people just began!
All you pretty things don't need to hide; our time has come
and we won't be denied.
Every woman and man can be a star—uncover your lights and show us
who you are!
Band: Put on the lipstick, put on the lipstick!
Jackie: You know that clothes can make the man!
Band: Put on the lipstick, put on the lipstick!
Jackie: The age of the beautiful people just began!
Band: Secret sisters come and play; others like you feel this way.