Day 440

The theatre felt like another world entirely and this was not necessarily a good thing.
First you encounter the narrow stairs, covered in thick red velvet that smothered all sound.
Then the lobby, richly furnished at first glance and a heady mix of burgundy and gold patterns.
The person serving tickets wore an old fashioned uniform and seemed normal enough until
someone tried to talk to them about anything other than the shows.
Such conversations caused the server to crash as it were, smoke rising from the ears and blood
running from the eyes, nose and mouth - the usual signs of crashing in theatre staff.
Incidents like this were thankfully few and far between, the noticeboards helped.

From the lobby the path to the main theatre was sloped and wound down like a spiral staircase.
The thick red velvet carpet continued to muffle all sound and combined with dark burgundy walls
it gave the walk a claustrophobic feel that weeded out the weaker theatre goers.
Shows were so much more when the audiences were able to cope with the intense performances.
The main theatre itself was the largest underground theatre in the western hemisphere.
Despite being relatively unknown the shows always ended in thunderous applause, albeit
sometimes from the unseen audience of the upper balconies.
Tonight's show was based on Swan Lake, if Swan Lake was set in the Irish marshes.

The stage changed drastically between scenes, from the attic of a poverty-stricken house to the
great London Library to a highly realistic tree surrounded by foggy swamplands.
As the show reached its' climax the stage began to creak and groan and sink slowly.
The swamp water began to overflow and flood the stalls, the pillars that had been decorated to
look like lightning struck trees suddenly seemed more realistic, more natural.
As the stench of rotten eggs, damp soil and the faintest trace of smoke filled the theatre the
audience began to applaud, with such a realistic show you could almost feel the character's
terror as they cried out for the audience to save them from the stage's collapse.