[Lyric Note]
Act II
Scene I
The master bedroom and wardrobe
The curtain rises to find Pollock primping and preening before a large, three-paneled vanity. Various Angels and Devils excitedly scurry about
Cassius lays shackled to a large bed at the far end of the room
[Pollock]
Spotlight on center stage!
[Pollock & Angels/Devils]
It's all the rage, hear them cry!
The unveiling of a Gemini
[Pollock]
Welcome to the arcade!
[regarding Cassius]
Step right up, don't be afraid
The beast is chained
[Pollock & Angels/Devils]
See the hate in his eyes!
The awakening of Gemini
Hear him howl, see him spit!
Take a picture with the kids—
[Pollock]
Oh—quit this bravado bullshit—
I AM, again, the swan, the twin dragon!
[Lyric Note]
He pulls out the elixir bottle, and begins mixing a concoction in various test tubes
[Pollock, to Cassius]
Too much of a good thing
Has rendered you a pawn
And issued me a queen
[Pollock & Angels/Devils]
All my rooks, all my knights!
To the christening of Gemini
[Pollock]
What spoils will this evening bring?
Little piggies run and hide
From the majesty of Gemini
[takes a large swig from one of the test tubes]
So, I'll huff and I'll puff
And I'll blow this house up—
[dazed, stumbling]
Oh—I may have just done myself in
I AM, again
[now, truly dazed]
I AM, I am, I am, I am
[Lyric Note]
Suddenly, Pollock jerks upright with new vigor; the concoction seems to have kicked in
[Pollock]
I AM! I am the holy second coming
I AM! I am the very double crossing
I am—and don't you ever forget that
I am not one half, I am wholly intact
What would that poor coward say
If only he'd see "him" this way?
Maybe he'd wake up, yeah
Maybe he'd finally behave
More like a man should behave
Maybe less like a nun
I swear he was stunted as a child
Meanwhile, I was
[loudly]
Stranded! Abandoned!
I AM, again, the swan, the twin dragon!
Now that I've paid my dues
I'm going to paint this bloody town
Black and blue
[Pollock & Angels/Devils]
All the rage, hear them cry!
It's the rampage of a Gemini
[Pollock, cranes ear towards Cassius]
Hear that whimper in the night?
The swan song of a Gemini
[Lyric Note]
We shift our attention to Cassius, feebly watching from his shackled perch across the room
[Cassius]
I've done deeds I could never repeat—skeletons
History can be so strangling—skeletons
All of our sins are rising again like skeletons
Someone, please, I must be seeing things
All these skeletons, oh
I've done deeds I could never repeat—skeletons
Past mistakes climbing up from their graves—skeletons
All of our sins are rising again like skeletons
How could this be, dancing in front of me?
Hello, skeleton
Who could this be acting just like me?
Hello, skeleton
[Lyric Note]
Dressed in top hat and tails, a tuxedo accented with white feathers, Pollock dances across the room, exits