IF YOU LOVED STEVE McQUEEN’S MOVIE “BLITZ”, THEN CHECK OUT THIS MUSICAL that takes place at the same exact time. London, during WWI during the bombing of the city and Britain’s first sexual revolution.

LONDON

UNDONE

Below is a detailed outline of the musical that includes the songs to click on and listen to and the lyrics to each song. It’s all here in one long scroll.

Also, find the script and links to the songs on streaming platforms in the menu.

Book, Music, & Lyrics by

Scooter pietsch

SYNOPSIS OF THE STORY

LONDON UNDONE is the story of the first sexual revolution in England. It is based on real people and events which unfold in a dramatic and provocative story of survival, personal freedom, murder and love. During the Blitz of WWII (267 days and nights of continuous bombing) the people of London found themselves not only on the brink of the collapse of the British Empire but in the midst of unheralded social experimentation. It was a time when everyone was convinced there was a bomb with their name on it, compelling them to ignore traditional morals and live like there was no tomorrow. It was a time when gas masks were worn with lingerie. A time when the police, busy with far more serious matters, allowed London’s most popular nightclub, CAFÉ DE PARIS, to become the place to drink, dance, experiment, and forget that you were going to die. 

 

LONDON UNDONE is based on true events AND real people. The Blitz of London during WWII changed forever, not just the physical city itself, but its entire social structure. Because of the imposed “blackout” of the city, the darkened streets of London provided the perfect outlet for criminal activity but also the perfect hiding place, allowing everyone to pursue activities hidden from the prying eyes of neighbors, the police and especially the church.

 

Although the story in LONDON UNDONE is fictional, many of the characters, locations and situations are real. The story takes place at the infamousCAFÉ DE PARIS night club – still in existence today, with additional scenes in Aldwych Station and Coventry Street. Real characters include the band leader at Café de Paris,Ken “Snakehips” Johnson, American actress and dancer Louise Brooks, the Piccadilly Commandoes(a group of local prostitutes), andBishop A.F. Winnington-Ingram of the Public Morality Council. 

Real-life characters appearing in the musical.

Additionally, many of the story elements and details are taken directly from first-hand accounts recorded at the time. For instance, champagne really was used to clean wounds incurred after the bombing of the club, someone did try and steal the jewelry off a woman trapped under the rubble after a bombing, and people really did try and cover up a murder by putting a dead body in the rubble of a bombed building. And there’s more! The British Museum did store priceless artworks in abandoned subway tunnels in an effort to prevent their destruction in the bombing, makeup manufacturers continued to advertise the use of makeup even though they had no product to sell – in an effort to keep women in the habit of using makeup. And it appears to have worked.

Posters from the era


BASED ON TRUE EVENTS

ACT ONE

SCENE 1: LONDON TRAIN STATION. Soldiers, family and friends gather to say goodbye to another regiment of troops being shipped off to the war all across Europe. It’s November 1940 and WWII 1s already a year old. The US has not yet entered the war but President Roosevelt is helping our allies as much he is able.


A train waits as soldiers in uniform say goodbye to loved ones. The train is covered with encouraging slogans on its sides and soldiers hang out of windows waving. A military band accompanies their departure in an effort to inspire them to victory. Everyone’s mood is upbeat because they feel strongly they will win this war – but there is also a fear they are trying to keep hidden. All of them know many of these brave men and women will not be coming home. PRIVATE JAMES DRAKE, dressed in brown, British Battledress uniform, is with his girlfriend CLAIRE LAWRENCE.

The ensemble sings of courage, valor and glory. Various soldiers and relatives step forward with individual stories; from a 17-year-old soldier to mothers and fathers saying goodbye. A VICAR marries James and Claire. The war, and its uncertainties, have made people live in the moment and do things they would not do in normal circumstances. As the song ends, the train pulls away and James hands Claire a piece of paper and tells her that if she ever needs anything, she should go to the address on the paper and ask for “Snakehips.” The train leaves the station and Claire is left alone on the streets of London.

This train

ENSEMBLE THIS TRAIN TO COURAGE, TO VALOR, TO VICTORY. THIS TRAIN TO BRAVERY, TO HONOR, TO GLORY.THIS TRAIN TO COURAGE, TO VALOR, TO VICTORY. THIS TRAIN TO BRAVERY, TO HONOR, TO GLORY.

SOLDIER #1 I AM ONLY SEVENTEEN,

ENSEMBLE SEVENTEEN.

SOLDIER #1 LIED A BIT TO JOIN THE ARMY.

ENSEMBLE ARMY.

SOLDIER #2 WE’LL BE FIGHTING SIDE BY SIDE,

ENSEMBLE SIDE BY SIDE,

SOLDIER 1 & 2 AND BE GETTING ALL THE GLORY.

SOLDIER ENSEMBLE WE SWORE AN OATH UNTIL THE END, NO MATTER WHAT THE COST, ENGLAND WILL NOT BE LOST.

ENSEMBLE THIS TRAIN TO COURAGE, TO VALOR, TO VICTORY. THIS TRAIN TO BRAVERY, TO HONOR, TO GLORY.

MOTHER I WISH YOU DIDN’T HAVE TO GO.

SOLDIER #3 I’LL BE CAREFUL, MUM, YOU KNOW.

MOTHER GIVE A KISS YOUR TRAIN IS LEAVING.

FATHER WATCH YOURSELF AND GIVE ‘EM HELL.

SOLDIERS 1, 2 & 3 GUESS IT’S TIME TO SAY FAREWELL, BOARD THIS TRAIN TO BRING US GLORY.

SOLDIER ENSEMBLE TO SECURE OUR LIBERTY,

IT TAKES EACH ONE OF US.

SOLDIERS & ENSEMBLE WE WILL FACE WHATEVER LIES AHEAD. WE WON’T STOP UNTIL THERE’S JUSTICE.

JAMES CLAIRE, I NEED TO ASK YOU SOMETHING,

CLAIRE OK?

JAMES I KNOW WE JUST MET WHAT WAS IT, FRIDAY?

CLAIRE No, Thursday.

JAMES THIS IS HARD, I’VE NEVER BEEN SO NERVOUS. WILL YOU MARRY ME, OH, GOD, WILL YOU SAY, “YES?”

CLAIRE Yes!

CONDUCTOR All aboard to victory!

OFFICERS RISE UP, STEP UP, ALL GOOD MEN.

OFFICERS AND SOLDIERS RISE UP, STEP UP, ALL GOOD MEN.

ENSEMBLE RISE UP, STEP UP, ALL GOOD MEN. RISE UP, STEP UP, ALL GOOD MEN. RISE UP, STEP UP, ALL GOOD MEN. RISE UP, STEP UP, ALL GOOD MEN.

VICAR Will thou take each other, To be thy wedded husband and wife, In the Holy state of matrimony, So long as you both shall live?

JAMES/CLAIRE I will.

VICAR Those whom God hath joined together, let no man put asunder.

JAMES/CLAIRE Amen.

VICAR Good luck, my son. May God be with you.

CLAIRE TIME TO KISS ME, MISTER DRAKE,

YOU’RE STUCK WITH ME FOR LIFE.

JAMES STUCK IS ALL I WANT TO BE, MRS. DRAKE, MY WIFE.

JAMES/CLAIRE I WILL WRITE YOU EVERY DAY, AND MISS YOU EVERY NIGHT. PRAY THE LORD WILL KEEP YOU SAFE, TILL I CAN HOLD YOU TIGHT.

JAMES/CLAIRE/ENSEMBLE I WILL WRITE YOU EVERY DAY, AND MISS YOU EVERY NIGHT. PRAY THE LORD WILL KEEP YOU SAFE, TILL I CAN HOLD YOU TIGHT.

ENSEMBLE 2 I WILL WRITE YOU EVERY NIGHT. MISS YOU EVERY, MISS YOU EVERY NIGHT.

JAMES/CLAIRE/ENSEMBLE I WILL WRITE YOU EVERY DAY, AND MISS YOU EVERY NIGHT. PRAY THE LORD WILL KEEP YOU SAFE, TILL I CAN HOLD YOU TIGHT. I WILL WRITE YOU EVERY DAY, AND MISS YOU EVERY NIGHT. PRAY THE LORD WILL KEEP YOU SAFE, TILL I CAN HOLD YOU TIGHT. I WILL WRITE YOU EVERY DAY, AND MISS YOU EVERY NIGHT. PRAY THE LORD WILL KEEP YOU SAFE, TILL I CAN HOLD YOU TIGHT.

©2018 SPM, Inc. Scooter Pietsch (DG) (BMI)


SCENE 2: THE STREETS OF LONDON. The stage turns to night as Claire stands on Coventry Street. The city becomes the opposite of the positive, “victory assured” mood at the train station. In the distance we hear the low, ominous drone of hundreds of German planes approaching. Bombs whistle and fall and eventually explode. The ground shakes underneath her. People run for shelters and in the dim light we see buildings that have been destroyed. Homes have been turned to rubble. But what we don’t see is light. That’s because in order to avoid being a target for the German bombers, a mandatory blackout is imposed across the city. Everything is pitch black. And with bombs falling everywhere, it is suicide to be outside. Yet despite this danger, as our eyes adjust to the darkness, we see A FEW PEOPLE on the streets; hiding in doorways, in the throes of passion, buying black market goods, looting stores, digging through the rubble. Because even with death only meters away, life, and especially sex, still go on.

Claire sings a song summarizing the state of London during the Blitz and how a once beautiful and thriving city has been almost completely destroyed. The statistics/lyrics tell the story: 267 straight nights of bombings, 40,000 people killed, a million homes destroyed. She sings of the Blitz spirit, the British people’s ability to keep going despite the toll it has taken on them. It is a scary, emotional time and yet the people of London stand strong… there is hope.

LONDON DURING THE BLITZ

this is london

CLAIRE THIS IS LONDON, THIS IS WAR,

CLAIRE/LONDONERS NOTHING LIKE WE’VE SEEN BEFORE, 1940 WORLD WAR II, AIR RAID SIRENS SCREAMING TO WARN YOU.

267 NIGHTS OF STRAIGHT BOMBING,40,000 PEOPLE DEAD, ONE MILLION HOUSES CHILDREN GREW UP IN, RAZED BY PLANES OVERHEAD. IN THE SHELTERS DOWN BELOW, WE PRAY FOR EVERYONE WE KNOW, PLEDGE THIS OATH TO OUR DYING DAY, SAVE OUR CITY COME WHAT MAY.

CLAIRE FOR THIS IS LONDON, THIS IS BRISTOL,

CLAIRE/LONDONERS THIS IS COVENTRY. THIS IS COURAGE, THIS IS SPIRIT, THIS IS BRAVERY.

CLAIRE/LONDONERS EVERY NIGHT THEIR EVIL GAME, DUSK TO DAWN WITH DEADLY AIM, STARTING WITH A DISTANT HUM, CHASING ME BUT HOW DO I RUN FROM THREE HUNDRED BOMBERS DROPPING TONS OF EXPLOSIVES, THIRTY-FIVE SECONDS TO FALL, EACH ONE FIVE HUNDRED POUNDS OF DESTRUCTION, OUR NAMES ON THEM ALL.

WE STAND TOGETHER ARM IN ARM, FROM LOCAL PUB TO COUNTRY FARM, HOLD OUR GROUND FOR THE KING AND CROWN, GOD SAVE US, GOD SAVE LONDON TOWN.

FOR THIS IS CARDIFF, THIS IS PLYMOUTH, THIS IS BIRMINGHAM. THIS IS VALOR, THIS IS VIRTUE, (THIS IS VIRTUE)

THIS IS WHO I AM.

CLAIRE THIS IS LONDON, THIS IS WAR.

©2018 SPM, Inc. Scooter Pietsch (DG) (BMI)


A bomb lands close to Claire and she and an AIR RAID WARDEN are knocked to the ground. We see some else who was not so lucky, who’s been blown up by the bomb. The Warden tells her to get to her assigned shelter but Claire tells him she is lost. Lost because even though she knows London like the back of her hand, in the pitch black and destruction it’s almost impossible to find your bearings. This city, her city, is now foreign to her. The Warden suggests she seek shelter “where the rest of your type hang out.” Implying she is a prostitute. He guides Claire to doorway and pushes her inside.

Claire stands in complete darkness and then someone asks her where she is going. A match is struck and Claire sees BEX TAYLOR-ASHWORTH. Bex warns Claire that she should be careful invading Charley Smiles’ territory. “You’ll live longer working the street out there in the bombs than trying to cut in here on his business.” Claire asks her if she looks like a prostitute. Bex tells her that these are desperate times and everyone is doing things they never would have done before the war.

Claire’s eyes adjust to the dim light and she sees silhouettes of men and women together, men with men, women with women. Bex orders them gin and tonics. Another bomb lands nearby outside. The building rattles and shakes. A breaker is reset and in an instant the stage is flooded with light. We are inside the magnificent Café De Paris, the swankiest nightclub in London. And it’s also one of the safest places to be because the club is two floors underground. LONDONERS of all types and classes are packed inside. A balcony above the dance floor has the PICCADILLY COMMANDO prostitutes selling their “wares” and below them sits London’s most popular jazz band.

CAFE DE PARIS TODAY


SCENE 3: CAFÉ DE PARIS. A big drum fill comes from the bandstand as the band kicks into a song. Bex screams and drags Claire to the dance floor. Real life bandleader, KEN “SNAKEHIPS” JOHNSON, a charismatic and brilliant singer and dancer, leads the ensemble.


Originally designed to look like the nightclub on the Titanic, the place is packed with all kinds of people; the well-heeled, upper crust of London, soldiers from around the world and more regular folk, like Claire. They are all dancing and drinking and having fun as if the world above them isn’t on fire.

Snakehips and The West Indian Orchestra sing about how we’re all going to die any minute now so we may as well go out drinking, dancing and partying (BLITZED). Bex drags a reluctant Claire onto the dance floor joining ZOE McINTOSH, a Piccadilly Commando and friend of Bex’s. Zoe is with a man and is obviously having a great time. Claire asks her if this is her “war husband.” Zoe replies, “He is! And the third one tonight!”

blitzed

SNAKEHIPS WELCOME TO

CLUB PATRONS CAFÉ DE PARIS,

SNAKEHIPS YOUR SHELTER DEEP UNDERGROUND,

YOU’LL HAVE FUN,

CLUB PATRONS THAT WE GUARANTEE,

SNAKEHIPS/PATRONS AS SOON AS YOU BUY US A ROUND.

SNAKEHIPS LET’S GET BLITZED,

CLUB PATRONS SO BLITZED,

SNAKEHIPS LET’S GET

CLUB PATRONS BOMBED OUT OF OUR MIND,

SNAKEHIPS LET’S GET TANKED,

CLUB PATRONS SO TANKED

SNAKEHIPS/PATRONS AND LEAVE OUR WORRIES BEHIND.

SNAKEHIPS LET’S GET WRECKED,

CLUB PATRONS SO WRECKED,

SNAKEHIPS TILL WE DON’T CARE WHAT’S UP THERE, BOTTOMS UP,

CLUB PATRONS UP, UP,

SNAKEHIPS/PATRONS FEELS MUCH BETTER THAN A PRAYER!

BEX (to Claire) NO ONE KNOWS WHEN IT ALL WILL END, SO WHY GO OUT FEELING BLUE?

CLUB PATRONS BLU–U-U-UE

BEX CUDDLE UP,

CLUB PATRONS MAKE YOURSELF A FRIEND,

BEX YOU KNOW THERE’S THINGS YOU WANT TO DO. LET’S GET GASSED,

CLUB PATRONS HOO WHEE,

SNAKEHIPS/BEX LET’S GET

SNAKEHIPS/PATRONS SMASHED AND HAVE A GLASS,

SNAKEHIPS/BEX POUR THEM FAST,

CLUB PATRONS FAST, FAST,

SNAKEHIPS/BEX AND PRAY THIS ISN’T YOUR LAST. LET’S GET

SNAKEHIPS/PATRONS BIM, BAM, BOOMED,

SNAKEHIPS DON’T LET UP UNTIL THE DAWN, WE ALL KNOW

CLUB PATRONS WE’RE DOOMED,

BEX IT’S BLOODY WELL TIME TO TIE ONE ON!

SNAKEHIPS (on seeing the girls) Oh, yeah! I like that!

DRUNK MALE PATRON So blitzed!!

SNAKEHIPS Yeah, man. That’s cool! Wooo!

EVERYONE LET’S GET SLAMMED, HELL YEAH, WAR BE DAMNED, LET’S DRINK TO THAT, TOAST AND JAM, JAM, JAM, TILL YOUR FACE DOWN ON THE MAT. LET’S GET BLITZED, SO BLITZED, LET’S GET SHELLED UNTIL WE’RE BLIND BRAHMS AND LISZT,

BEX I’M PISSED!

EVERYONE DRINK YOUR DRINK YOU’RE ONE BEHIND! BLITZED, SO BLITZED, SO BLITZED, WHOO WAH, WHOO WAH. BLITZED, SO BLITZED, SO BLITZED, WHOO WAH, WHOO WAH. BLITZED, SO BLITZED, SO BLITZED, WHOO WAH, WHOO WAH. BLITZED, SO BLITZED, SO BLITZED, BOP, BOP, BOP, BOP, BOP, BOP, BOP, BOP, BOP, BOP, BOP, BOP, BOP, BOP, BOP, BOP, BOP, BOP, BOP, BOP, BOP, BOP, BOP, BOP,

BAH… BAH BAH BAH… BAH BAH BAH BAH BAH BAH

BLITZED!!!!

©2018 SPM, Inc. Scooter Pietsch (DG) (BMI)


We begin to see hints of the changes that are happening in the night clubs of London and in everyday social lives in general: multiracial dancing partners, men dancing with men, women dancing with women, and “women of the night” socializing and flirting with the high-end clientele. The PICCADILLY COMMANDOES fit in because the realization that you might die at any moment has changed the morals and prudish minds of this city’s citizens. We are in the throes of the first sexual revolution in Great Britain and everyone is taking full advantage of it.


Also hanging out in the club is CHARLEY SMILES, a ruthless thug who runs a lucrative black market business. He offers “dishes” not normally served on the menu at Café De Paris – and he has plenty of buyers. Some of his clients include not only the affluent but also the military personnel from around the world stationed in London. He also sells to American GIs who are there even though the U.S. has not entered the war. US soldiers have been sent to England to train and advise the British. Other soldiers hail from British territories and other allies in the war and comprise a variety of ethnicities. It’s a melting pot of the free world. Bex and Zoe dance with several soldiers from around the world - something that in prewar Britain never would have been allowed.


Claire is told that her husband of a few hours is actually the owner of Café De Paris and because he is gone now, she is in charge. She tells Snakehips and the rest of the staff that she knows nothing about running a nightclub but in the end, knowing that Charley Smiles will likely takeover if she doesn’t do it, she relents.

Claire also finds out that Bex is actually Rebecca Taylor-Ashford, married to Lord Randolph Taylor-Ashford which makes her a “Lady.” A peerage title that put her well above any normal Londoner.


SCENE 4: CAFÉ DE PARIS - AFTERHOURS. The night, and the party, in Café De Paris has ended. Claire is alone and reminisces/sings (8 MILLION TO 1) about James and how they met in the middle of 8 million Londoners and a war.

8 million to 1

ENSEMBLE 1, 2, 3, 4, AND 5, 6, 7, 8 TO 1.

CLAIRE IN THIS CITY OF 8 MILLION PEOPLE, YOU CAN STILL FEEL ALONE. WE MAY ALL SMILE AND CALL IT HOME, BUT IT NEVER FEELS LIKE YOUR OWN.THEN RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF US HUDDLED MASSES, SOMEONE SUDDENLY APPEARS, AND HE SEES ME,

JAMES AND I SEE… YOU,

CLAIRE & JAMES NO DOUBT, NO DISBELIEF, I KNEW.

ENSEMBLE 1, 2, 3, 4, AND 5, 6, 7, 8 TO 1.

CLAIRE & JAMES 8 MILLION BECOME 1. 8 MILLION TO 1.

ENSEMBLE 1, 2, 3, 4, AND 5, 6, 7, 8 TO 1.

CLAIRE & JAMES 8 MILLION BECOME 1. 8 MILLION TO 1.

CLAIRE JUST LIKE THAT, THE EMPTINESS THAT FILLED ME, THE LONELINESS OF LIVING, SLIPPED AWAY.

JAMES THERE IN AN INSTANT, JOY AND CONTENTMENT, I WAS HERE TO STAY.

CLAIRE & JAMES DAYS AND NIGHTS THEY DRIFTED RIGHT ON BY, ALTHOUGH WE NEVER REALLY KNEW.

CLAIRE I KNOW I HEARD THE MUSIC,

JAMES I KNOW I SAW THE MOONLIGHT

CLAIRE & JAMES I KNOW I FELL IN LOVE WITH YOU.

ENSEMBLE 1, 2, 3, 4, AND 5, 6, 7, 8 TO 1.

CLAIRE & JAMES 8 MILLION BECOME 1. 8 MILLION TO 1.

ENSEMBLE 1, 2, 3, 4, AND 5, 6, 7, 8 TO 1.

CLAIRE & JAMES 8 MILLION BECOME 1. 8 MILLION TO 1.

ENSEMBLE 1, 2, 3, 4, AND 5, 6, 7, 8 TO 1.

©2018 SPM, Inc. Scooter Pietsch (DG) (BMI)


Charley Smiles shows up at the club and warns Claire that if she doesn’t partner with him, he will make her life very difficult. (ANOTHER SHILLING)

another shilling

CHARLEY ANOTHER SHILLING, ANOTHER KILLING, EACH TIME THEY WANNA GET HIGH. THEY’RE ALL SO WILLING, IT’S VERY THRILLING, IT BRINGS A TEAR TO MY EYE… It’s quite moving. LOOK AT THE SWILLING,

PICCADILLY COMMANDOES SWILLING!

CHARLEY (noticing people spilling drinks) AND CONSTANT SPILLING,

PICCADILLY COMMANDOES SPILLING!

CHARLEY IS THERE AN ENDLESS SUPPLY? There is! ME POCKETS FILLING,

PICCADILLY COMMANDOES FILLING!

CHARLEY FILLING AND FILLING,

PICCADILLY COMMANDOES THEY’RE SO FULL!

CHARLEY ALL THANKS TO THOSE PLANES IN THE SKY.

PICCADILLY COMMANDOES WHOA, WHOA, WHOA.

CHARLEY THAT WAR OUTSIDE, OH, IT’S A BAD ONE,

PICCADILLY COMMANDOES SO BAD.

CHARLEY TURNS THE HAPPIEST BLOKE INTO A SAD ONE.

PICCADILLY COMMANDOES SAD…

CHARLEY THAT’S WHY WE GOT

CHARLEY/COMMANDOES WOMEN HERE,

CHARLEY TO BRING A LITTLE

CHARLEY/COMMANDOES BIT O’ CHEER,

CHARLEY TO EVERY SUCKER WHO’LL PAY.

PICCADILLY COMMANDOES AY, AY, AY, AY.

CHARLEY/COMMANDOES AND ALL THE WHILE I GET RICH…

CHARLEY By the way. (to a female customer) SHE CRAVES HER UPPERS.

PICCADILLY COMMANDOES UPPERS.

CHARLEY (to a male customer) HE NEEDS HIS DOWNERS.

PICCADILLY COMMANDOES DOWNERS.

CHARLEY PASS THEM AROUND, SIR, DIG IN.

PICCADILLY COMMANDOES DIG, DIG, DIG IN.

CHARLEY I’M GRANTING WISHES, THAT’S TWENTY QUID, MISS. TO TAKE HER OUT FOR… A SPIN. (to Claire) SO HERE’S MY PITCH, DEAR. TO MAKE YOU RICH, DEAR. HOW ‘BOUT IF I CUT YOU IN?

PICCADILLY COMMANDOES CUT YOU IN, CUT YOU IN.

CHARLEY A BRILLIANT OFFER, WE’RE EQUAL PARTNERS, SO WHAT SAY YOU? ARE YOU IN?

PICCADILLY COMMANDOES ARE YOU IN? ARE YOU IN?

CHARLEY/COMMANDOES I SENSE THE START OF SOMETHING LOVELY.

PICCADILLY COMMANDOES LOVELY.

CHARLEY YOU AND ME GETTING AWFULLY CUDDLY.

PICCADILLY COMMANDOES CUDDLE, CUDDLE.

CHARLEY IT’S NICE WHEN SOMEONE

CHARLEY/COMMANDOES STANDS WITH YOU,

CHARLEY WHO’LL LIE TO COPS

CHARLEY/COMMANDOES TO SAVE YOU.

CHARLEY BABY, YOU’RE SENT FROM ABOVE. BE STILL MY HEART, WE’RE FALLING IN LOVE!

PICCADILLY COMMANDOES YES, WE’RE FALLING IN LOVE!

CHARLEY/COMMANDOES WE’LL MAKE HISTORY IN LONDON,

CHARLEY I’LL SHOW YOU HOW TO MAKE THIS WAR FUN.

PICCADILLY COMMANDOES WAR IS FUN!

CHARLEY/COMMANDOES A TEAM LIKE US IS UNSURPASSED,

CHARLEY A BONUS IS YOUR PERFECT ASS. I’M SORRY, ME TONGUE HAD ITS WAY.

PICCADILLY COMMANDOES BAD, BAD TONGUE.

CHARLEY SO THERE’S MY PITCH, SO WHAT DO YOU SAY?

CLAIRE I THANK YOU FOR THE OFFER, I’LL THINK IT OVER…

BEX No, she won’t..

CHARLEY (to Bex) M’LADY, YOU BEST REMEMBER,

I GOT A TEMPER…

CLAIRE We’re not scared.

CHARLEY (to Bex) THAT SILVER SPOON, THAT YOU WERE BORN WITH, MIGHT FIND ITS OWN PATH, DOWN YOUR THROAT. (to Claire) AND YOU DEAR, WITHOUT ME NEAR YOU, I FEAR YOU’LL FIND IT… HARD TO STAY AFLOAT.

©2018 SPM, Inc. Scooter Pietsch (DG) (BMI)


After Charley leaves, a man rushes in with an injured woman. She is pregnant and was injured in the bombing. Claire tends to her and is able to flag down an ambulance. Claire realizes that the club is about more than just partying at night, it can provide a valuable and needed service during the daytime.

But despite the brave face of wartime, Claire and most every Londoner wishes for a return to when things were “normal.” She sits at the piano and plays and sings, dreaming about her life before the war. (TO LIVE THAT LIFE AGAIN)

to live that life again

CLAIRE

TO LIVE THAT LIFE AGAIN,

TO WANDER ANYWHERE YONDER,

ANYWHERE I COULD SEE.

TO WAKE UP, START ON A NEW DAY,

ALL OF THE WORLD WAITING FOR ME,

HOW IS IT ALL OF THOSE SIMPLE THINGS

DRIFT AWAY?

EVEN WHEN THERE WAS DARK CLOUD,

EVEN WHEN THE RAINS CAME,

THERE WAS HOPE, THERE WAS A LONGING,

AND A FLAME.

TO LIVE THAT LIFE AGAIN,

TO LIVE THAT LIFE AGAIN.

©2018 SPM, Inc. Scooter Pietsch (DG) (BMI)


An American soldier, TOM SPERANZA, enters the club while Claire sings and listens. He is a big fan of Café De Paris because it’s a place where celebrities go and pictures of the club appear regularly in Hollywood magazines and newspapers.


SCENE 4: CAFÉ DE PARIS – A FEW NIGHTS LATER. As Claire tries to adapt to running the club, LOUISE BROOKS, a real person and famous American actress, model and dancer enters. She is good friends with Bex and they reminisce about when Louise lived in London and worked at Café De Paris.

American actress/singer/dancer

lousie brooks


SCENE 5: CAFÉ DE PARIS – THE CHARLESTON. When she worked at Café De Paris, Louise was the first person to bring The Charleston to London. She teaches the crowd once again how it goes in a big production number.

Claire’s brother, DAVID, is also at the club and Claire is introduced to the man he is dancing with. She asks him if he has always “danced” with men. He says, “No, but when you think you’re going to die any minute, there’s a lot of things that seem worth trying!”

Due to a shortage of supplies in London during the war, Claire is forced to make a deal with Charley Smiles in order to keep the bar and kitchen stocked at Café De Paris.


SCENE 6: CAFÉ DE PARIS - A FEW WEEKS LATER. The club is in full swing and more popular than ever. Decadence has reached new highs. Bex warns Claire about falling for Charley Smiles. Bex considers him dangerous, destructive and disturbed. Claire considers him devilishly handsome.

In the midst of a particularly rowdy dance number, members of the PUBLIC MORALITY COUNCIL (the PMC) – an ultra conservative coalition of religious leaders with a decades-long reputation for doing their best to stop any kind of sexual immorality - show up at Café De Paris and strongly encourage the patrons of the club to stop this behavior or God will banish them to hell. The Bishop of London and head of the PMC is introduced, THE HONORABLE BISHOP A.F. WINNINGTON-INGRAM.


He sings a lecture/sermon on the state of depravity in London. (YOU’RE ALL GOING TO HELL) He has seen many undesirable women loitering around air-raid shelters. He says girls are accosting soldiers at bus stops and he fears the country will be overrun with illegitimate babies. He says that the mothers and wives of England are to blame for the immorality and perversion that is sweeping London. He claims that their time spent in “pubs and cinemas takes them away from the home allowing their daughters to run free in the streets!” Women in the club, led by Claire, challenge him. “So you encourage all of us women to do our part for the war effort and take jobs that take us away from our houses, otherwise we are unpatriotic, but should you see us in a pub or cinema that absence and negligence is to blame for our daughters’ improprieties?”

Additionally, Claire has a history with The Bishop. Her father was a vicar and he and her mother were both killed when the church they worshipped was bombed in the raids.

you’re all going to hell

PMC CORRUPTION!

BISHOP Corruption!

PMC LOOSE WOMEN!

BISHOP Loose women!

PMC THIS DEN OF SIN!

BISHOP EVIL LIES WITHIN.

PMC PERVERSION!

BISHOP And perverts.

PMC INDECENT!

BISHOP Cover yourself!

PMC YOU MUST REPENT!

BISHOP EVERY MALCONTENT.

PMC SALACIOUS!

BISHOP Lubricious.

PMC OFFENSIVE!

BISHOP To God!

PMC THE WAY YOU LIVE!

BISHOP ONLY GOD FORGIVES.

PMC IMMORAL!

BISHOP My Lord!

PMC IMMODEST!

BISHOP I protest!

PMC THEY ARE POSSESSED!

BISHOP THAT I CAN ATTEST.

PMC SATAN, SATAN!

BISHOP YES, CHILDREN, EVERYWHERE.

PMC FIRE AND BRIMSTONE, AH!!!!!

BISHOP THE END IS COMING.

PMC SINFUL, SINFUL!

BISHOP BEG GOD TO SAVE YOUR SOUL.

BISHOP/PMC OR YOU WILL SPEND ETERNITY, WAY DOWN BELOW.

CHARLEY Hold on there just a minute Vicar…

BISHOP God waits for no man!

CHARLEY I know, but—

PMC HEED THIS HOLY MAN!

CHARLEY I’s figurin’ you might be interested in these little…

BISHOP You have nothing I want.

PMC GOD DOES NOT NEED YOU!

BISHOP & PMC YOU NEED HIM! TO SHOW YOU!

THE ONE TRUE WAY!

PMC BUT YOU MUST BEHAVE!

WOMAN #1 Just Sundays?

PMC NO, ALL DAYS.

WOMAN #2 And night time, too?

PMC THERE IS NO HALFWAY.

DRUNK #1 And liquor?

PMC HELL NO, SIR!

DRUNK #2 Not even gin?

BISHOP THAT’S A MORTAL SIN!

BAR CROWD ADULTERY?

BISHOP/PMC No!

BAR CROWD FOUL LANGUAGE?

BISHOP/PMC No!

BAR CROWD BLACK MARKET GOODS?

PMC No!

PMC HEAVEN, HEAVEN! MAKE THAT YOUR GOAL IN LIFE. HIS SON, JESUS CHRIST, COULD BE YOUR ROOMMATE.

BAR CROWD DEATH AND WAR ARE CLOSER THAN EVER BEFORE.

DRUNK #2 Pardon me, but this just seems a bit fuckin’ late.

BISHOP (stopping his followers from starting a fight) Believers! We must forgive, not retaliate.

CLAIRE Excuse me, your Holiness, but as the owner of this place…

BISHOP This is God’s world! You own nothing in it… And He will not look kindly on the raining down of blasphemy you have created in His establishment.

BEX (angry) Hey, if you don’t like it in here…

BAR CROWD GET OUT! GET LOST! YOU DON’T BELONG IN HERE. SLANDER, LIBEL, HATE! WILL GET YOU NOWHERE.

CLAIRE BARKEEP, BARKEEP, POUR DRINKS FOR EVERYONE. WE WILL NOT BE LECTURED TO, THAT I DO SWEAR!

BAR CROWD BOOZE AND BEER AND DANCING WITH ANYONE. KISSING SOMEONE NEW…

YOUNGER GUY HEY, THAT’S ME MUM!

BAR CROWD IF GOD DON’T LIKE IT, WHAT IS HE GONNA DO?

BISHOP/PMC GOD WILL TEAR THIS HEINOUS, WHOREHOUSE DOWN. HE’LL CRUSH IT. ERASE IT. HE’LL STRIKE IT DOWN. YOU’RE ALL GOING TO HELL. HE’LL SMASH IT. REMOVE IT. HE’LL KNOCK IT DOWN. YOU’RE ALL GOING TO HELL. HE’LL RAZE IT. UPROOT IT. HE’LL CUT IT DOWN.YOU’RE ALL GOING TO HELL. HE’LL SQUASH IT. DESTROY IT. HE’LL BURN IT DOWN, DOWN, DOWN, DOWN, DOWN.

©2018 SPM, Inc. Scooter Pietsch (DG) (BMI)


SCENE 7: FITZROY TAVERN – A FEW DAYS LATER. Claire’s brother David, asks Claire, Zoe and Bex to accompany him to a “different” type of club - Fitzroy Tavern. The tavern is a popular gay club in London. He’s nervous to go alone and needs their support. The girls enjoy themselves and flirt with both men and women in the club. Charley Smiles shows up at this club as well because he’s always on the lookout for business opportunities. He tells them, “I don’t judge. What’s good for anyone is good for business.”


SCENE 8: CAFÉ DE PARIS - DAYTIME. The club is closed and Claire and The Piccadilly Commandoes lie around reading, talking and relaxing. Tom has his arm around her. The relationship has progressed. Tom hands her a gift. It is nylons from America and Claire is the first person anyone knows who has these. In wartime, certain items are completely unavailable. In fact, although makeup was continually advertised in London, it was never available. But manufactures did not want women falling out of habit of wearing it so they continued to advertise as if you could still buy it in every store.

Tom wants his relationship with Claire to be exclusive but Claire tells him she has too much on her plate as it is… and she’s married. Tom asks about James. Claire tell him that she has not heard from him in months and fears the worst. Tom leaves upset and Zoe consoles Claire. Zoe tells her she is “daylight guilty” meaning that what they all do at night is fine but in the morning, reality and real life hit.


The girls discuss the recent destruction in London from the bombings; Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace and the British Museum have all been recently hit. How the German’s keep missing St. Paul’s cathedral baffles them. They consider London lucky because St. Paul’s is the heart of every Londoner. If they destroy St. Paul’s, they destroy us.


SCENE 9: CAFÉ DE PARIS - DAY. Zoe sings about how once the war is over, with the perfect cup of tea, she’s going to marry herself a hard-workin’ bloke. Not too smart or handsome, a simple man. (CUPPA AND A BISCUIT)

Cuppa and a biscuit

ZOE OH, HAVE I GOT PLANS, FOR A CUPPA AND A BISCUIT. AND A MAN, A PLAIN OLD, ORDINARY WORKING MAN. I’LL LIFT THAT LID OFF MY KETTLE AND LET HIM IN. OH YEAH, I GET RIGHT TO SHOWIN’ HIM HOW I DO THE DEED,

COMMANDOES DOO, DOO.

ZOE THERE AIN’T NO TIME FOR CHITTER CHAT WHEN YOU GOT THE NEED.

COMMANDOES YOU GOT THE NEED.

ZOE I’LL BLOW HIM JUST A LITTLE KISS AS HE FILLS MY POT,

ZOE & COMMANDOES LET HIM GIVE MY SHINY KNOB A TWIST TO MAKE IT GET HOT!

COMMANDOES Oooooohhhh!

ZOE TIME TO TAKE A SEAT, SLOW IT DOWN,

ZOE & COMMANDOES LET THE STEAM RISE.

ZOE AND WE’LL WAIT FOR THE,

ZOE & COMMANDOES WAIT FOR THE, WAIT FOR THE

ZOE WATER TO BOIL. NINETY-THREE DEGREES, KNOWS HOW TO PLEASE. MY KETTLE STARTS TO

ZOE & COMMANDOES STEAM AND SCREAM,

ZOE IT’S BLOWIN’ ITS TOP, SO I PULL OUT MY DRAWERS SO HE CAN SEE WHAT I GOT.

ZOE & COMMANDOES ENGLISH BREAKFAST, EARL GREY, A CUP AND A SAUCE—

ZOE NOW WAIT A MINUTE EARL GREY? YOU GOT TO BE— Seriously, those Earl Grey drinkers can knack off!

COMMANDOES Oooohhhh.

ZOE ONE MUST NOT EXPECT GOOD THINGS TOO QUICKLY,

COMMANDOES OH, NO, NO, NO.

ZOE THE SCRUMPTIOUS THINGS IN LIFE NEED SELF-CONTROL.

COMMANDOES SELF-CONTROL.

ZOE YOU WILL BE REWARDED IF YOU HOLD ON TO YOUR SEAT! BUT TO GET THE FULL EFFECT, YOU’VE GOT TO LET IT STEEP.

COMMANDOES Mmmmmmm.

ZOE SO I BOP IN THE BAG,

COMMANDOES BOP, BOP, BOP.

ZOE DAZZLE HIM WITH A LITTLE BIT A SMALL TALK. LIKE HOW YOU

ZOE & COMMANDOES CAN’T PULL IT OUT, PULL IT OUT

ZOE TOO SOON, THAT’LL MAKE A LADY WALK.

COMMANDOES MAKE A LADY WALK.

ZOE & COMMANDOES OH, BABY I HEAR YOUR PLEA,

ZOE YOU NEED A CUPPA

COMMANDOES CUPPA,

ZOE & COMMANDOES TEA. QUICK THE TEA GOES IN THE CUP, HE’S DYIN’ OF THIRST,

COMMANDOES DYIN’!

ZOE I DON’T WANT TO HEAR NO BLASPHEMY THAT MILK GOES IN FIRST. I’LL OFFER HIM A LUMP OR TWO ‘CAUSE HE LIKES IT SWEET,

ZOE & COMMANDOES THEN IN THEY GO, NICE AND SLOW, OH, BE STILL MY HEART BEAT!

ZOE OOH HE SIPS AND THEN HE YIPS AND GIVES ME A SMILE. IF YOU’RE TRYIN’ TO GET A HOLD OF ME HEY, I MIGHT BE A WHILE. I GOTTA REEL HIM IN NOW SO HE NEVER FORGETS,

ZOE & COMMANDOES I BOLT THE DOOR, OPEN THE DRAWER, AND LET HIM AT MY BISCUITS!

ZOE MAN, OH MAN, I TELL YOU NO MAN, HAS HAD A

ZOE & COMMANDOES CUPPA AND A BISCUIT LIKE MINE.

©2018 SPM, Inc. Scooter Pietsch (DG) (BMI)


Charley Smiles shows up at the club and Zoe tells him that she and girls no longer want to “work” for him. Claire offers to protect them from Charley. Charley threatens them all.

SCENE 10: CAFÉ DE PARIS – NIGHT. Claire, Bex, Tom and others discuss the state of the war. Britain is holding its own against the Germans but it is taking its toll on men, planes and moral. It is only a matter of time before London falls.

Snakehips and the band kick into a song that gets the whole crowd dancing. He sings about how all things in life, from love to death, are surprises and we never know what is going to happen. (I DIDN’T SEE IT COMING)

i didn’t see it coming

SNAKEHIPS One, two, three, four! Let’s have some fun. YOU WANT A LIFE WITH ADVENTURE AND DANGER, THEN DON’T BE BORING, AND GO MEET A STRANGER, YOU TAKE YOUR CHANCES, A ROLL OF THE DICE, AND YOU ARE ON YOUR WAY, YOU CAN BE NAUGHTY OR NICE.

FEMALE CLUB PATRON I NEED A MAN, SAY YOU AND YOU, TOO!

MALE CLUB PATRON I NEED A LASS WHO’LL DANCE THE NIGHT THROUGH,

SNAKEHIPS YOU MAKE YOUR CHOICES, GIRLS OR THE BOY-SES. SHOUT IT OUT, I WANT TO HEAR YOUR VOICES.

ENSEMBLE I!

SNAKEHIPS I DIDN’T SEE IT COMING.

ENSEMBLE NO!

SNAKEHIPS IT TOOK ME BY SURPRISE.

ENSEMBLE A BIG SURPRISE.

SNAKEHIPS IT KNOCKED ME OFF A MY FEET.

ENSEMBLE I!

SNAKEHIPS I DIDN’T THINK I’D SURVIVE. AND YET I’M HERE LOOKIN’ SWEET.

ENSEMBLE DON’T WE LOOK SWEET? YEAH, YOU CAN FEEL THE HEAT. YOU!

SNAKEHIPS YOU REALLY SHOULD A TOLD ME,

ENSEMBLE YEAH!

SNAKEHIPS THAT I WOULD FALL IN LOVE.

ENSEMBLE I FELL IN LOVE.

SNAKEHIPS AND THERE AIN’T NOTHING I CAN

ENSEMBLE DO!

SNAKEHIPS DO WHAT YOU WANNA WITH ME, DO WHAT YOU CAME HERE TO DO.

SNAKE & ENSEMBLE DO WHAT CHA, DO DO WHAT CHA, WHAT CHA DO.

SNAKEHIPS I NEED A MINUTE, TO PROCESS WHAT HAPPENED. I HAD MY EYES CLOSED, COULD I HAVE IMAGINED, THAT OUT OF NOWHERE, I FELL SO IN LOVE, WHILE YOU WERE KISSING ME, AND YOU WERE ALL I THOUGHT OF?

FEMALE CLUB PATRON I’M NOT THE KIND TO GET ROMANTIC,

MALE CLUB PATRON I’VE KNOWN ROMANCE TO MAKE ME PANIC,

SNAKEHIPS STILL ALL THE SAME, I MUST MAKE THE CLAIM, I DO LOVE THE DAME, OH, I, I, I, I.

SNAKEHIPS & ENSEMBLE LIFE IS A MYSTERY, YOU CAN’T TAKE IT SERIOUSLY, ONE MINUTE YOU’RE LAUGHING, THE NEXT THING BYE BYE.

FATE HAS A PURPOSE, IT WILL NOT ALERT US, SIT BACK AND ENJOY IT, WE’RE ALL GONNA DIE.

ENSEMBLE SO DO WHAT WHAT,

SNAKEHIPS OH, YEAH, THAT’S IT.

ENSEMBLE DO WHAT WHAT,

SNAKEHIPS YOU GOT IT.

ENSEMBLE DO WHAT WHAT, DO WHAT WHAT CHA DO. I!

SNAKEHIPS I DIDN’T SEE IT COMING,

ENSEMBLE NO!

SNAKEHIPS IT TOOK ME BY SURPRISE.

ENSEMBLE A BIG SURPRISE

SNAKEHIPS IT KNOCKED ME OFF A MY FEET.

ENSEMBLE I!

SNAKEHIPS I DIDN’T THINK I’D SURVIVE, CUZ I WAS FEELING THE HEAT.

ENSEMBLE HOT, HOT, HOT HEAT. MY HEART IT SKIPPED A BEAT. YOU!

SNAKEHIPS YOU REALLY SHOULD A TOLD ME,

ENSEMBLE YEAH!

SNAKEHIPS THAT I WOULD FALL IN LOVE.

ENSEMBLE I FELL IN LOVE.

SNAKEHIPS AND THERE AIN’T NOTHING I CAN…

ENSEMBLE DO!

SNAKEHIPS DO WHAT YOU WANNA WITH ME, DO WHAT YOU CAME HERE TO DO.

SNAKEHIPS & ENSEMBLE DO WHAT CHA, DO DO WHAT CHA, WHAT CHA DO.

ENSEMBLE DO WHAT WHAT,

SNAKEhips WHOO, SHAKE IT.

ENSEMBLE DO WHAT WHAT,

SNAKEHIPS YOU KNOW WHAT YOU’RE DOIN’.

ENSEMBLE DO WHAT WHAT,

SNAKEHIPS THAT’S RIGHT. I LOVE IT.

ENSEMBLE DO WHAT WHAT CHA DO.

SNAKEHIPS Ooh baby, I love it!

SNAKEHIPS & ENSEMBLE LIFE IS A MYSTERY, YOU CAN’T TAKE IT SERIOUSLY, ONE MINUTE YOU’RE LAUGHING, THE NEXT THING BYE BYE.

FATE HAS A PURPOSE, IT WILL NOT ALERT US, SIT BACK AND ENJOY IT, WE’RE ALL GONNA DIE.

ENSEMBLE I!

SNAKEHIPS I DIDN’T SEE IT COMING,

ENSEMBLE NO!

SNAKEHIPS IT CUT ME DOWN TO SIZE.

ENSEMBLE CUT DOWN TO SIZE.

SNAKEHIPS AND KNOCKED ME INTO THE STREET.

ENSEMBLE I!

SNAKEHIPS I KNEW I COULDN’T DENY, THAT YOU HAD ME AT YOUR FEET.

ENSEMBLE DOWN AT YOUR FEET!

SNAKEHIPS I KNOW WHEN I AM BEAT.

ENSEMBLE YOU!

SNAKEHIPS YOU REALLY SHOULD A TOLD ME,

ENSEMBLE YEAH!

SNAKEHIPS THAT I WOULD FALL IN LOVE.

ENSEMBLE I’M SO IN LOVE.

SNAKEHIPS AND THERE AIN’T NOTHING I CAN…

ENSEMBLE DO!

SNAKEHIPS DO WHAT YOU WANNA WITH ME, DO WHAT YOU CAME HERE TO DO.

SNAKEHIPS & ENSEMBLE DO WHAT CHA, DO. I DIDN’T SEE IT COMING!

©2018 SPM, Inc. Scooter Pietsch (DG) (BMI)


During the song, the bombs land outside and the sirens blare. Yet people are happy in the club and having the time of their lives. Claire, Tom, Henry, Bex and Zoe, as do all the patrons at the club, dance and mingle and feel safe underground. It’s apparent that London and our cast will survive the Blitz and life will carry on. Then, the sound of the bombs gets louder and closer, until suddenly, the noise outside goes deathly silent. The band stops. Everyone on stage stands still and listens to the whistle of a bomb falling. BOOM! The stage explodes in fire and destruction.


Historical Note: On March 8th, 1941, two bombs made their way through an airshaft above Café de Paris and exploded on the dance floor.


end of

act one


act two


SCENE 1: CAFÉ DE PARIS. Lights are dim on stage and it is hard to see through the smoke from the explosion that ended Act 1. Tables are upended and people are lying everywhere. There is confusion and yelling and screaming. The blast has killed lots of people and many more are injured.

Claire, Tom, and Bex try and help the injured people in the club. Claire tells the surviving Piccadilly Commandoes to open champagne and use it to clean wounds. There’s a big commotion at the bandstand as the musicians move the rubble around. This area has taken the worst of the damage. Claire runs to the bandstand. A few musicians are getting up but it’s clear several are dead. Snakehips is sitting on the ground leaning against a wall - with not a scratch on him. Even the flower in his lapel is untouched. But he’s dead. The force of the explosion has killed him instantly without physical damage. Claire is devastated at his death.

She then hears a woman crying out from under the rubble. They clear the debris away and pull her out. When Claire grabs her hand to help her the woman begs her not to steal her jewelry. Claire is shocked. The woman tells her that while she was trapped under the rubble, someone tried to steal her rings and bracelet. Claire knows it was Charley. Patrons of the club who survived, brush themselves off and take the party to The Windmill Club down the street. Their attitude is that either a bomb has your name on it or it doesn’t. And there’s nothing you can do about it either way.


SCENE 2: ST. PAUL’S CATHEDRAL

Everyone attends a service for all of the recent casualties of the Blitz. Claire and company are there to memorialize Snakehips and the others. The Bishop of London, A.F. Winnington-Ingram presides over the service and reads the names of those wo have died. Claire and the others sing of how God has betrayed them and taken the side of the enemy. (ST. PAUL’S)

St. paul’s

VICAR (reading names of the dead from a list) Ken Johnson, Nicholas Conway, Annie Clark, Dave Williams, Ruth Fenton, Ernest Hutton, Lillian Taylor, Arthur Bacon, (names continue under singing) Ethyl Cross, John William Cross, Nora Jackson, Harold Worth, Robert Tomkins, Vera Tomkins, Henrietta Barker, James Isbister.

CLAIRE WE PRAY, WE CRY, WE SAY GOODBYE.

CLAIRE/CONGREGATION WE HURT, WE ACHE, THIS PAIN, THIS HEARTBREAK. DAY AFTER DAY AFTER NIGHT, IS THIS A TEST? TO MEASURE OUR LOVE? TO CHALLENGE OUR FAITH? TO SEE WHICH ONE FALLS IN ST. PAUL’S?

VICAR Mary Richardson, Martha Taylor, Lily Taylor, Fred Taylor…

CLAIRE NO MORE PRAYING, FOR OUR FAMILIES, NO MORE CRYING, FOR OUR FRIENDS, NO MORE BEGGING, FOR YOU TO SAVE US, AND NO MORE TRYING TO MAKE AMENDS. THIS IS

CLAIRE/CONGREGATION OVER, NO NEED TO STEP IN, NO NEED TO STOP THIS, WE DON’T NEED YOU, WE WILL DO THIS ON OUR OWN.

VICAR Walter Sunderland, David Roberts, Elizabeth Ann Cooke, Agnes Bennison, Kathleen Bennison, Ann Shipley, (names continue under singing) Katherine Shipley, Bernard Brown, Elsie Greer, Ellen Moore, Franklin Wilkinson, Thomas Beck, Ruth Gregory.

CLAIRE WE LIVE, WE DIE, PLEASE TELL ME WHY. THIS TOLL, THIS PRICE, THIS WORTHLESS SACRIFICE.

CLAIRE/CONGREGATION DAY AFTER DAY AFTER NIGHT, WE BEG FOR HELP, BUT YOU TURN YOUR BACK, YOU NEVER RESPOND, YOU HIDE IN THESE WALLS IN ST. PAUL’S.

VICAR Alfred Musgrove, Gladys Musgrove, Ellen Hawthorne Morrell, Arthur Dalton.

CLAIRE YOU MAY DAMN US FOR OUR FAILURES,

SHOW NO MERCY ON OUR SOULS,

CONGREGATION MERCY ON OUR SOULS.

CLAIRE SING WITH PLEASURE AS YOU FORSAKE US,

FOREVER BAND US FROM KINGDOM COME.

CLAIRE/CONGREGATION IT WON’T MATTER, IT TRULY CAN’T BE, ANY MORE HEARTLESS, MORE INHUMAN, THAN THIS HELL THAT WE LIVE NOW.

CLAIRE THIS DOME, THESE WALLS,

CLAIRE/CONGREGATION THIS GOD, ST. PAUL’S.

THIS DOME, THESE WALLS, THIS GOD,

CLAIRE ST. PAUL’S.

©2018 SPM, Inc. Scooter Pietsch (DG) (BMI)


Charley Smiles shows up at the end of the service and Claire asks him what they are going to do now that the club has been destroyed. Charley tells her that business will always be found if you follow the people. And the people have gone underground to the abandoned subway stations.

SCENE 3: THE RUBBLE OF CAFÉ DE PARIS. Charley meets with a couple of dangerous looking men. He is selling them priceless works of art. The men haggle and belittle the pieces, trying to get a lower price. Charley threatens to kill them for not appreciating art. Zoe shows up and Charley gives her a gift. It’s a priceless Greek necklace from 500 B.C. Charley sings about how one must care for beautiful, valuable things. At the end of the song, he puts his hands around Zoe’s neck and tells her very bad things happen when people cross him. (BEAUTIFUL THINGS)

beautiful things

CHARLEY PORTRAITS BY REMBRANDT, I DO LOVE THEM SO, AND SCULPTURES IN MARBLE, A CLARET FROM THE BORDEAUX. ‘COURSE I HATE FRENCH, ‘CEPT THE FRENCH WHO CAN MAKE, A WINE SO DIVINE, I BE CALLIN’ THEM ME BEST MATES. I CAN’T FORGET, MY FIRST VINCENT VAN GOGH, YOU KNOW THE STROKE OF ‘IS BRUSH, WITH ALL THAT PAINT IS CALLED “IMPASTO?” LOOK, HERE’S ME POINT, ART’S GOT A PLACE IN MY SOUL, SO NEAR AND SO DEAR, WITHOUT IT

CHARLEY & COMMANDOES I’M AN ARSEHOLE. BEAUTIFUL THINGS, DAZZLING AND RAVISHING,

CHARLEY THANK GOD THERE’S SO MUCH TO ADORE, CUZ IF ALL I SAW WAS THIS

CHARLEY & COMMANDOES UGLINESS,

CHARLEY I’D TEAR ME EYES OUT

CHARLEY & COMMANDOES AND STOMP ‘EM ON THE FLOOR.

CHARLEY Splat!

ZOE NOW YOU’RE AN ART COLLECTOR?

ZOE & COMMANDOES DON’T MAKE ME LAUGH.

ZOE YOU’VE ONLY AN INTEREST

ZOE & COMMANDOES IN BEAUTY THAT CAN MAKE CASH.

ZOE BUT LET’S SAY YOU’VE CHANGED, YOU FANCY ART MORE THAN DOUGH, THEN DO THE RIGHT THING,

ZOE & COMMANDOES AND LET US GO.

CHARLEY & COMMANDOES BEAUTIFUL THINGS,

CHARLEY CAN LEAD TO SUFFERING, LIKE A VARNISH SHOWS ITS AGE, WHAT ONCE YOU THOUGHT TO BE

CHARLEY & COMMANDOES IMMACULATE,

CHARLEY BEGINS THE YELLOWING STAGE. IT AIN’T PRETTY, YOU CAN SEE. I GAVE ‘EM ADVICE, I PAID A FAIR PRICE, I BORE ME CROSSES, I ‘AVE. BEST TO CUT ME LOSSES!

ZOE & COMMANDOES BEAUTIFUL THINGS, SHOULD BE INSPIRING, ELECTRIFYING TO BEHOLD, THE VALUE COMES IN HOW THEY MAKE YOU FEEL, NOT FOR WHAT THEY CAN BE SOLD.

CHARLEY IF BEAUTIFUL THINGS, NO LONGER MAKE YOU SMILE, PERHAPS IT’S TIME TO TAKE STOCK. AFTER ALL, I GOT SO MANY SHEEP,

COMMANDOES SO MANY,

CHARLEY WHAT COULD IT HURT TO TRIM THE

CHARLEY & COMMANDOES FLOCK?

ZOE WHY EVEN BOTHER? WHY GIVE IT A THOUGHT? GO START A NEW LIFE, FOLLOW YOUR DREAMS, GIVE IT YOUR BEST SHOT.

ZOE & COMMANDOES YOU KNOW YOU’RE RIGHT, IT’S CLEARLY ART THAT YOU LACK. ‘CAUSE REMBRANDT AND VAN GOGH, NEVER TALK BACK.

CHARLEY WHY IS IT YOU LIKE TO TAUNT ME? SAY TO MY FACE, THAT YOU DON’T WANT ME? WHAT HAVE I DONE? DRAGGED YOU FROM NOTHING? NOT ONE SIMPLE, “THANKS?” NOW THERE’S AN UGLY, UGLY, UGLY THING.

©2018 SPM, Inc. Scooter Pietsch (DG) (BMI)


SCENE 4: AN UNDERGROUND SUBWAY STATION. What’s left of the Café de Paris gang has gathered in an underground subway station along with hundreds of regular citizens. People are sleeping on the subway tracks, down the long tunnels, on the steps, basically anywhere they can. Many of them are in pajamas. Bunks are set up. What’s left of Snakehips’ band is set up on a platform. Drinking and trysts in darkened corners happen everywhere. The bombs landing above them reverberate through the tunnels. An Air Raid Warden, doing his rounds, yells to where Bex and the girls are getting dressed. He asks if there are any pregnant women there. Bex yells back, “We’ve only been here an hour. Give us time!”

Claire and the Piccadilly Commandoes sing a song about losing faith in the government and that they need to take things into their own hands. (GAS MASKS AND LINGERIE)

Gas masks & lingerie

CLAIRE/BEX/ZOE/COMMANDOES LA, LA, LA, LA, LA, LA LA, LA, LA, LA, LA, LA … LA LA, LA, LA, LA, LA, LA LA, LA, LA, LA, LA, LA … LA

CLAIRE TAKE A LOOK AROUND US AND THE STATE THIS COUNTRY’S IN,

CLAIRE/BEX/ZOE WE DON’T KNOW WHICH WAY TO GO, OR EVEN WHERE WE BEEN,

ZOE MR. CHURCHILL SAYS TO STAY THE COURSE,

DON’T GIVE UP HOPE,

CLAIRE/BEX/ZOE BUT MORE AND MORE IT FEELS LIKE THAT’S A JOKE.

ENSEMBLE A JOKE!

BEX THE THREE OF US HAVE TAKEN MATTERS

INTO OUR OWN

CLAIRE/BEX/ZOE HANDS, TIME TO SHOW THE BUREAUCRATS THAT WE ALL HAVE DEMANDS,

CLAIRE/BEX/ZOE STAND UP FOR EVERY ONE OF US

AND SHOUT UNTIL WE’RE HOARSE,

BEX WE INSIST ON ORAL INTERCOURSE!

ENSEMBLE OF COURSE!

CLAIRE/BEX/ZOE GAS MASKS AND LINGERIE,

HOW’S THIS FOR FIGHTING A WAR?

ENSEMBLE HEY!

CLAIRE/BEX/ZOE BLACK MARKET CABARET,

WE’RE HERE TO LEAD YOU ASTRAY.

ENSEMBLE OK!

BEX NOW WE’RE BEING TOLD THAT OUR BEHAVIOR IS A SIN,

CLAIRE/BEX/ZOE FAR TOO MUCH CAVORTING AND WE’RE SHOWING TOO MUCH SKIN, MURDER IS APPARENTLY MUCH LOWER ON YOUR LIST, THAN ALL THE MEN AND WOMEN WE HAVE KISSED. MMM-WAH!

GAS MASKS AND LINGERIE, WATCH HOW WE SWING AND SASHAY.

ENSEMBLE HEY!

CLAIRE/BEX/ZOE WHAT’S ON DISPLAY TODAY, YOU WON’T SEE AT THE BALLET.

ENSEMBLE NO WAY!

CLAIRE/BEX/ZOE GAS MASKS AND LINGERIE, DON’T LET THEM TAKE US AWAY,

ENSEMBLE HEY! WE DON’T CARE WHAT YOU SAY, YOU’LL NEVER MAKE US OBEY.

ENSEMBLE NO WAY!

ZOE WHOO!

CLAIRE/BEX/ZOE GAS MASKS AND LINGERIE, YOU’LL NEVER TAKE US AWAY.

ENSEMBLE NO WAY!

CLAIRE/BEX/ZOE GAS MASKS AND LINGERIE, GET OUT ‘CAUSE WE’RE HERE TO STAY!

ZOE WHOO!

ENSEMBLE GAS MASKS AND LINGERIE, GAS MASKS AND LINGERIE,

ENSEMBLE HOORAY!

CLAIRE/BEX/ZOE GAS MASKS AND LINGERIE, GAS MASKS AND LINGERIE. GAS MASKS AND LINGERIE, GAS MASKS AND LINGERIE, GAS MASKS AND LINGERIE, GAS MASKS AND LINGERIE.

HOORAY, HOORAY, HOORAY!

©2018 SPM, Inc. Scooter Pietsch (DG) (BMI)


As the scene underground gets raunchier and raunchier, the PMC and Bishop A.F. Winnington-Ingram show up again, this time with the police, to stop the obvious downfall of London society.

The police however are reluctant to arrest people despite them violating laws like men dancing with men, or people of different races dancing together (women dancing women was not, however, against the law). The police tell the Bishop that they have a war to fight. Claire and her friends test the patience of the Bishop and police by refusing to stop dancing with the “wrong” people. They start up the song again (GAS MASKS AND LINGERIE) and taunt the Bishop and police. The Bishop and PMC then reprise the song YOU’RE ALL GOING TO HELL with lyrics changed to YOU’RE ALL GOING TO JAIL.

SCENE 5: COVENTRY STREET - DAY. Claire runs towards a destroyed building where David, Tom and Bex are standing. They have been called there by the police who have found Zoe dead. The Air Wardens believe it to be from the bombings but Claire and her friends know Charley Smiles killed her.

Claire, Bex, Tom and David sing an homage to Zoe. (FAITH, HOPE & ZOE)

faith, hope, & zoe

CLAIRE DARKNESS, YES, IN THIS DARKNESS,

CLAIRE/BEX THERE WILL BE LIGHT. HOWEVER SMALL, HOWEVER SLIGHT. LIGHTNESS, WILL GUARD AFFECTION WILL NEVER FADE,

CLAIRE/BEX/DAVID BESTOW A STRENGTH,

CLAIRE/BEX/DAVID/TOM A COURAGE MADE, AND UNAFRAID. A FAITH THIS STRONG MUST LIVE ON, ON FOREVERMORE.

TOM STILLNESS, YES, IN THIS

CLAIRE/BEX/DAVID/TOM STILLNESS, THERE IS PEACE. IT GIVES US HOPE, AND HOPE IS WHAT WILL GET US THROUGH.

DAVID KINDNESS, YOU HAD A KINDNESS THAT SAVED US,

BEX A GOODNESS THAT GAVE US,

CLAIRE/BEX/DAVID/TOM OVERWHELMING HAPPINESS. WE WILL MISS YOU, ZOE. BUT IN A WORLD WHERE THERE IS LOVE, AND FAITH AND HOPE, THERE WILL BE YOU.

©2018 SPM, Inc. Scooter Pietsch (DG) (BMI)


SCENE 6: CAFÉ DE PARIS - NIGHT. Claire and Bex scavenge through the debris of the club looking for things they can salvage. Claire goes upstairs where the damage is severe. Bex warns her to come down because they structure is so damaged. Charley Smiles shows up to offer Claire a deal. He will build her a new club if she allows him to store a few “beautiful things” at the club until he is able to sell them. Claire insists that she know what they are and Charley tells her how the British Museum has made the very unwise decision to store priceless artworks underground because they fear the museum being above ground makes them vulnerable. Charley has found them and is now in the process of selling them to the highest bidder.

Claire refuses to let Charley store the artwork there and Charley says he is going to do it anyway and attacks them. In chasing Claire in the club, the damaged columns give way and the balcony collapses on Charley, killing him.

Claire sings of her guilt in his death, her guilt for betraying her husband and how our sensibilities and morality become warped when survival is the only thing on our minds every day. (A CASTLE IN THE AIR)

a castle in the air

CLAIRE I’M GUILTY OF DREAMING, OF WANTING, OF LIVING. I STRUGGLE, I FALTER, I RUN AWAY. I WONDER, I WANDER. I SOUGHT OUT AN ANSWER. I KNEW TIME WOULD RUN OUT, AND THAT’S TODAY. THE PLANS I MADE WERE MADE IN FEAR, AND DOOMED TO FAIL. I BUILT A CASTLE IN THE AIR, OUT OF DESPERATION I SWEAR, A PLACE WHERE I WOULDN’T BE SCARED, BUT I’M STILL SCARED.

THERE IS NO SAFETY, THERE IS NO SHELTER, THAT’S THE REALITY. I AM BROKEN, I AM DAMAGED, I’VE ABANDONED MY OWN. WITHOUT COURAGE, WITHOUT VIRTUE, I AM ALONE.

WHEN LIVING IS TOO MUCH, WHEN DYING NO LONGER HURTS MUCH, AND ALL I HAD, NOW LIES IN THE COLD, COLD EARTH. WHATEVER LIFE I THOUGHT I’D HAVE, SEEMS SO STUPID NOW.

I BUILT A CASTLE IN THE AIR, SUPPORTED BY CLOUDS AND DESPAIR, A PLACE WHERE I’D HIDE AND NOT CARE, BUT I STILL CARE. I BUILT A CASTLE IN THE AIR, THE RESULT OF A DESPERATE PRAYER, BUT I KNOW I WILL NEVER GO THERE. I WILL NEVER GO THERE.

I DON’T NEED A CASTLE, FULL OF HOPING, BUT NEVER SOUND. WHAT I NEED IS MY TWO FEET, FIRMLY ON THE GROUND. FIRMLY ON THE GROUND.

©2018 SPM, Inc. Scooter Pietsch (DG) (BMI)


SCENE 7: UNDERGROUND SUBWAY TUNNEL Claire, Tom and Bex go deep into the subway tunnels to find Charley’s hidden stash of stolen art. They also discover hundreds of priceless paintings, sculptures and art objects that the British and National Museum is storing there for safekeeping.

They sing about the randomness of war. The friendships forged in the midst of the worst time in their lives. And how they have felt more alive than at any point before this. (OUR FINEST HOUR)

our finest hour

TOM WELL, HERE’S A TOAST TO ALL OF US,

BEX ALL OF US WITH LUCK ENOUGH,

TOM TO BE HERE RAISING CUPS,

BEX FULL OF WINE FROM… no shit, ’29.

CLAIRE TELL ME WHY THEM, AND WE’RE…

TOM STILL HERE? I DON’T KNOW, MY DEAR.

BEX JUST AS WE SAVED THIS ART,

ALL EVERYONE PLAYS THEIR PART.

HERE’S A TOAST TO OUR FINEST HOUR,

BEX/TOM ALL OF THIS COULD NOW BE OURS.

CLAIRE I GUESS WAR HAS ITS OWN REWARD.

ALL HERE’S TO LIVING, HERE’S TO THE COST,

HERE’S TO WHAT WE WON AND WE LOST.

TOM WASH AWAY THE SORROW,

CLAIRE SWALLOW ALL YOUR PAIN,

ALL WE MAY DIE TOMORROW,

BEX But tonight! We drink champagne!

CLAIRE HOW DO WE SAY GOODBYE? I JUST CAN’T…

TOM WE HAVE TO TRY.

BEX I SWEAR TO YOU, CLAIRE, WE’LL GET BY,

CLAIRE WHAT WOULD I DO? WITHOUT YOU?

Tom opens another bottle of wine.

ALL NOW POUR THE BORDEAUX, SING THE SONGS WE ALL KNOW, FROM SO LONG AGO. They dance with each other and celebrate the various pieces of art.

ALL HERE’S A TOAST TO OUR FINEST HOUR, PAID IN BLOOD BY YOURS, MINE AND OURS, WE PROMISE WE WILL REMEMBER THEM. HERE’S TO VIC’ TRY, HERE’S TO THE END, HERE’S TO WHAT WE FOUGHT TO DEFEND, ENGLAND.

ALL LAI LAI LAI LAI LAI LAI LAI LAI etc

TOM HERE’S A TOAST TO OUR FINEST HOUR,

BEX PAID IN BLOOD BY YOURS, MINE AND OURS,

CLAIRE WE PROMISE WE WILL REMEMBER THEM.

ALL HERE’S TO VIC’TRY, HERE’S TO THE END, HERE’S TO WHAT WE FOUGHT TO DEFEND, ENGLAND.

©2018 SPM, Inc. Scooter Pietsch (DG) (BMI)


SCENE 8: ST. PAUL’S CATHEDRAL - NIGHT. This night will prove to be the heaviest night of bombing in the war. And the entire city of London is on fire including St. Paul’s. It has been hit by several incendiary bombs and is burning. But if it’s wood frame structure catches fire, the entire cathedral will collapse. Claire and Tom and The PMC volunteer to help put the fire out. Tom and Claire climb to the highest rafters and throw sand on the incendiary bombs that are stuck in the rafters. Water cannot be used because it makes the fires burn hotter. Claire and Tom miraculously save the cathedral and reprise the song ST. PAUL’S with new lyrics restoring their beliefs.


SCENE 9: LONDON TRAIN STATION - DAY. Claire and Bex have come to the train station to welcome soldiers home and help wherever they can. Tom shows up and tells Claire that America has joined the war and he is being shipped to Africa. The ensemble reprises the song THIS TRAIN saying goodbye to all the experiences they have had together.

At the end of the song, Claire sees James hobbling from the train on crutches. She runs to him and they embrace. The ensemble then reprises the song THIS IS LONDON with new lyrics to show the turn the war has taken.


For the curtain call, Snakehips rejoins the ensemble and they perform a reprise of BLITZED.


Contact: info@scootermusic.com

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