Tell Me a Beautiful Lie is a new historical/romantic musical by Chris Guin, set in Sevastopol, 1920 - the last year of the Russian Civil War. It's not produced or anything, but the site exists as a convenient way for Chris to show his friends what he's working on. The current draft is essentially finished, and recordings will be added as they are made. Hope you enjoy!
Plot Synopsis
ACT ONE:
Young barmaid Katya Svetlikova finds herself again in a bread line in the streets of Sevastopol - now under martial law at the hands of the anti-Communist White Army. The Crimea is one of the few parts of the old Russian Empire not under Lenin's control. Depressed by the oppression and poverty she sees around her, Katya imagines the glorious festivities to come when Sevastopol is liberated by the Red Army (WHEN THE RED MORNING DAWNS). Surreptitiously sneaking off to the telegraph office, she finds that her lover, long gone, has still sent her no word (I ONLY THOUGHT), but her hopes for his return are not stymied (AS FAR AS I KNOW).
At the Svetlikov's Tavern, we meet Katya's aunt Oksana and uncle Andrei, who wish Katya would settle down, as well as tavern patrons and stevedores Mikhaylo and Dmitri. When a White sailor named Oleksander enters the tavern looking for Katya, Mikhaylo tells him the story of Katya's first meeting with her mysterious Communist lover, Roman (KATYA). Oleksander is not impressed, and fights the crowds to visit Katya in the tavern kitchen.
Oleksander introduces himself to Katya as an old childhood friend. Eventually Katya remembers, but is discouraged that Oleksander has joined the White army, whom she views as the enemy (DON'T YOU REMEMBER ME?). Oksana appears to ladle additional guilt onto
Katya.
In Kharkov, Ukraine, we meet Roman, having just escaped from prison camp in Poland and hard at work. He is visited by a former comrade Natalya, whose advances become too close for comfort. As Roman rebuffs her for the sake of "that girl in Sevastopol," Katya pores over Roman's telegrams, yearning for the thrilling certainty of his ideology (A CERTAINY COMES). Oleksander pays a call to Katya, and the conversation quickly turns into a political debate. Frustrated by her ability to see both sides of the issue, Katya returns to the telegrams to clear her mind, as Roman likewise composes a new telegram, reminding Katya of his promise to her to find her and protect her (HARBOR FROM THE STORM).
The Svetlikov's Tavern is filled with exiles from Russia, including a now demented aristocrat known only as the Lady in Gray, who, to escape the horrors done to her by the Red Army, lives in a fantasy world in which the tavern is a grand Parisian hotel (LIFE IS A DREAM). Katya, frustrated with the patrons' indulgence of her fantasy, threatens to reveal the truth to her, but is unable to do so. When Oleksander reappears to apologize for the previous argument, Katya claims to understand how wanting to convince someone can be a difficult act of love, and accepts his invitation to join him at the market in the morning.
At the marketplace, Oleksander reminds Katya of her own philosophy of finding the joy of life and grace of God in everyday things (GRACE ABOUNDING), while Roman struggles with the path his ideals have led him down (FOR HER), as he forces a striker to sign a false confession. The scene ends with a gentle kiss between Katya and Oleksander, while Roman executes the striker when he refuses to sign the confession.
ACT TWO
Katya, now having been seeing Oleksander for some time, says a last farewell to Roman as she burns all of his telegrams (almost all of them) (TELL ME A BEAUTIFUL LIE).
At Svetlikov's Tavern, when Katya has left, Oleksander decides, reluctantly, to confront the overbearing Oksana to give Katya some space, but ends up going a little further than he intended (BACK OFF A LITTLE). Katya returns to the tavern to find herself alone, confused, and torn, revealing that she snuck a visit to the telegraph office and found a telegram from Roman, revealing that the Red Army is preparing an invasion and he is on his way (ONLY YESTERDAY). Mikhaylo arrives to take vodka and inform Katya that an evacuation has been ordered. Oleksander arrives to frantically pack Katya for the ship, but she refuses to either budge or admit to Oleksander what the problem is (THE PACKING SONG). Hurt and frustrated, Oleksander storms off into the night.
As Oleksander assumes his duties, assisting civilians with their evacuation of Sevastopol at the docks, he wonders what he did to make her so upset (WHATEVER IT IS, I'M SORRY), before finally deciding to board the ship.
Back at the tavern, Katya and Oksana learn from Andrei that the Red Army has invaded and has begun hanging the remaining population of the city. Red Guardsmen arrive and force Andrei to fill out a questionairre about his family history. Katya's hope for Roman's return is rewarded when he arrives at the door - but he is not the same Roman she remembers. He instructs them to hide in the loft, and not open the door for anyone, or will they become targets. Andrei and Oksana flee to the attic, leaving Katya to take the pistol from the bar - her first time to handle a weapon. Taking a reluctant glance out the window, she observes the streets of hanging corpses, and her illusions are shattered. A frantic knock on the door from the Lady in Gray sounds. Ignoring Roman's warning, Katya throws open the door and accepts her into the house - prompting a Red Guardsman to enter the tavern. Before he can lay a hand on Katya, however, he is shot and killed by Oleksander. When Roman returns, a confrontation ensues in which Oleksander is beaten unconscious. Roman, confused and hurt by Katya's protests, drags Oleksander into the streets to finish him.
Roman indicts the half-conscious Oleksander with crimes against humanity (NO LONGER), before leveling his gun at his victim's head. When Katya arrives, carrying her own gun, strong, Roman threatens to kill Oleksander in front of her, but is shot in the heart by Katya, who leads Oleksander back to the tavern through the city of the hanged.
In the attic loft, Katya nurses Oleksander while pondering the horrors she has witnessed, abandoning her former idealism for a new certainty (GOOD ENOUGH). The last image is of Katya standing guard at the window.
Full Script
Song Samples
The songs are me on my keyboard only - no voices yet. Check back as I update this section with more samples.