Chance Encounter

[nomorekaraoke]

Any given Sunday around this time of day (or night, as the case may be, sometimes) will find Lorne seeking the familiar comforts of his favourite tea house. Francis', named after its owner and proprietor, is a very hush hush place most readily accessible from smack dab in the middle of Manhattan's China Town. Or rather, the tea house itself can be accessed from China Town in various locations, should you know enough to gain entrance.

One needs only find the right door, knock on it twice, and speak the demonic pass word to be let in. Inside, the lone bouncer will gruffily jab a thumb at the wrought metal staircase winding its way down, down, down to the tea house proper. The moment one sets foot on the first step, the scents of freshly baked bread and sweet pastries will seize one's olfactory sense and urge one down the may twists of the staircase. There are three floors made available for guests and patrons alike, full of tables and plush armchairs and couches of varying shapes and sizes and color that blend into a warmth one seldom finds above ground. At the very bottom of the stairs is a polished wooden floor, coated with several layers of protective magic for those unfortunate demons to whom oak is toxic. To the side, a massive counter with all manner of treats available for inspection, all of which - rare though it may be for such establishments - are safe for human consumption.

Behind the counter stands Francis himself, rivalling the counter with his own gigantic, infectiously exuberant bulk, ever ready to take one's order.

In the far corner, blanketed by the warmth emanating from the nearby kitchens, sits Lorne enjoying his usual treat of very, very green tea and very, very scrumptious red bean pastries.

Comments

[stilljustandrew]

"Make it the top five," says Andrew generously. "Either in order of best or by category."

[nomorekaraoke]

Once again he needs to fan himself, but for entirely different reasons this time around. To name the five best musicals of all time. Okay. Here goes.

"Geek with Tongue-in-Cheek: Fellowship! The Musical Parody of the Lord of the Rings." He studies Andrew carefully, just to see if there's a spark of Oh Em Gee, that one! in his eyes. "Queer: Rocky Horror, because it appeals to my love of sci-fi, rock n' roll and outrageous costumes. Movingly Animated Pictures: Nightmare Before Christmas, even if some of the lyrics are a tad eh, I love everything else about it, from the adoration of two of the best holidays there are in the U-S-of-A to the notion of there being different villages for every holiday - very Milliwaysian, come to think of it."

And this is where he taps his lips in silent contemplation. Only two more slots to fill.

[stilljustandrew]

He's grinning. "Never saw Fellowship-the-Musical-Parody, but I need to. Go on?"

[nomorekaraoke]

And that is exactly what he does. "For the Love of Puppets: Avenue Q, and suitably last but not least and deeefinitely up there in the Hall of Fame Name-Dropping Game--" he says, but halts for a quick little deferral of sorts. "Even if it's actually considered to be the first American opera rather than a musical, which gives you the right to issue a veto... Porgy and Bess."

[stilljustandrew]

A low whistle. "Porgy and Bess. Old school, dude."

[nomorekaraoke]

"I could have mentioned Sondheim and Julie Andrews and, say, Cabaret, but if there's one thing you don't want to be in my line of work, it's predictable."

[stilljustandrew]

Andrew grins.

"So is it my turn now?"

[nomorekaraoke]

"Oh, yes, my darling, turnabout's fair play." Meanwhile, he'll enjoy a bit of croissant, thank you very much.

"Better make it a good list after what you put me through. Best ever musicals, top five. Please."

[stilljustandrew]

"Okay."

Still grinning, he lifts a finger.

"In the category of They Made An Animated Musical Out Of What?, we have Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame, with bonus points for using Latin in the chorus. In the category of Historic And Educational, Pacific Overtures narrowly edges out 1776."

[nomorekaraoke]

Swallowing his nibble of sumptuous, delicious treat, he nods. "Gotta love Mako, but 1776 is the only musical I know where even certain congress men are scrumptious. Go on."

[stilljustandrew]

"I almost went for Assassins ahead of Pacific Overtures," he asides, "but again, obscure gets points. In the category of Secretly A Remake: Miss Saigon squeaks in just ahead of West Side Story. For Best Broadway Show About Making Broadway Shows: The Producers, but only when Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick are in the lead roles. I gotta say, that's the show that won me over for Broadway Matthew."

[nomorekaraoke]

It's Lorne's turn to turn the beam on. Nathan Lane just happens to be one of his favorite comedians, and Broderick, well, there's only one word to sum up how incredibly cute and fan-worthy he is, and that word is Ladyhawke. And that isn't even covering how wonderful Andrew is for giving Disney props for one of their darkest, most adult movies to date. "And last but not least at all?"

[stilljustandrew]

"Last but not least of all, Best Classic Comedy: Guys and Dolls. Stage version, not the film version." Half a beat. "Brando's definitive Sky Masterson notwithstanding."

[nomorekaraoke]

"Oh, you're making me wistful!" And thoughtful and appreciative and quietly impressed behind that well rehearsed pearly white grin of his.

"I think our lists compliment each other, don't you?"

[stilljustandrew]

"Yeah?" He tilts his head, and pulls a piece off his croissant.

[nomorekaraoke]

Don't let his peachy demeanour fool you. He's serious. Completely serious. "Well, it sure seems to me like we've covered a lot of ground."

[stilljustandrew]

"There's a lot we barely touched, though." He sounds a little wistful in turn. "Like, what do you think of all the stage shows based on Disney animated musicals? -- You know, I still haven't seen The Lion King?"

[nomorekaraoke]

He gapes. "Me neither! It always struck me as fantastic."

[stilljustandrew]

"With the masks and the puppetry and everything? Yeah. One of these days, I swear."

[nomorekaraoke]

"Speaking of puppetry and inventive use of stage... You really have to catch a showing of Fellowship!."

[stilljustandrew]

"Seriously. Is it even playing anywhere now?"

[nomorekaraoke]

"Sadly, no." But don't let that deter you, his leaning in closer seems to say. Tapping the side of his nose, "A friend of a friend reassures me there'll be a revival in a year or three. Not only was the response so huge, everyone involved had a blast."

[stilljustandrew]

"Yeah?" Andrew brightens. "Someone you know in the business, or ...?"

[nomorekaraoke]

"Yup. In fact, it's the same someone that insisted I go see it in the first place."

[stilljustandrew]

"Cool."

A beat.

Cautiously: "I don't suppose I could ask you to give me a heads-up if you hear any more details about it?"