Topic: No Small Parts, No Small Actors

Lelah

Date: 2011-05-20 15:47 EST
21twelve's temporary offices were located on the third floor of the very fashionable Plaza de Troyes, which sat at the northern edge of the Marketplace. Things were kind of crazy in the studios. Rehearsals were being held in the large conference room at the rear of the floor, while the hallways were filled with people carrying storyboards, half-finished costumes, sheaves of paper, models of sets, and props of all sorts.

The day weather had turned bright and warm. Clover made her way to the Plaza and Lelah's temporary office. She wore a yellow cami-tank, white capris and simple wedge heels. Taking the elevator up to the third floor, Clover managed (with luck) to get through the crowded hallways and get directed to where she could find Lelah.

There was a single oasis of calm in the roiling sea of chaos, however, and her name was Jenny. She sat, primly composed, warmly benign, behind a large wrap-around desk directly in front of the elevators. Her desk was clear, except for a large calendar with notes written in four different colors and a telephone with flashing lights and more lines than seemed possible in such a small space. When she spotted the alluring redhead, Jenny flashed her a toothsome smile. "Welcome to 21twelve. Can I help you?"

Clover flashed the receptionist a wide smile, "I'm Clover, Lelah requested I stop in the talk about fill in a small role in the movie? Deal with Alpha?" Running long fingers through her hair, unsure of how much or little information was needed.

Jenny's smile grew and she nodded. "Yes. Ms. Rivka's expecting you. If you want to follow me?" The blonde rose from behind her desk, displaying a tastefully tailored suit and kitten heels on a trimly sexy figure, and headed down one of the hallways to the rear of the floor. "It's so exciting," she said over her shoulder to Clover. "Have you ever been in a movie before?"

Blue-grey eyes shifted over the people and props as she followed Jenny to Lelah, "Nothing so large... I once helped a friend with a small independent college production." Soft smile, her little small step in as a luck granting goddess had helped launch a small career. She gave a light shrug of her shoulder, "But it was just a small role, waitress in the background." Little parts easy to fill, things she was used to doing outside of RhyDin.

They came to the apex of the hallway which was dominated by a large set of wooden double doors. Jenny knocked, paused for a beat, then opened the right-hand door. "Ms. Rivka, Clover's here to see you." She held the door open and took a step back so Clover could enter the office.

It was a large room - the wall opposite the doors was completely dominated by floor-to-ceiling windows that commanded a gorgeous view of the city, clear to the Southern Glen. There was a desk that was covered with stacks of papers, models, props, swatches of fabrics, and a computer that was currently running something that looked like a spreadsheet. There was also a small round table with four chairs around it, a comfortable-looking couch flanked by two armchairs, a wet bar, and of course the ubiquitous filing cabinets and bookshelves. Lelah, herself, was seated at the table, pouring over yet another rewrite of the script. She was dressed in a coral-colored skirt, a crisp white shirt, and bare feet.

"Thank you." Offered to the girl as Clover slipped into the office, her gaze carried around her surroundings to finally land on Lelah. A friendly smile, filled with warmth, lit her features. Lelah looked very involved in her work. Clover moved quietly, light as air, over to one of the armchairs and settled into it. Legs crossed, she leaned on the arm toward Lelah. "I hope you remember to come up for air from time to time."

Lelah grinned, thanked Jenny who closed the door quietly as she left, and then rose from her chair. A little stretch and she headed over to the wet bar. "At least twice a day, though today's special. I get three breaks! Do you want something? I have some pretty good scotch, a couple of cans of Coke...there might even be a beer or two lurking as well."

"Three whole breaks, however did you swing that?" A chuckle in her smile at the tease, she shook her head lightly. "No, but thank you for the offer." With Lelah up, Clover relaxed back into the chair. Her arms settled against either arm of the chair. Despite her easy-going nature, warm welcoming smiles, laid-back attitude, she managed to have a near-regal stance sitting in the position. Well, gods were higher than kings. It seemed an involuntary reflex that her legs were lifted to curl under her and she leaned again on an arm, relaxed pose again, the throne-stance gone--she was simply Clover and nothing more. "Shall we discuss the part I'll be filling? Or do you want to test me out to see if I'm worth my salt?" Clover sounded comfortable either way.

Lelah

Date: 2011-05-20 15:47 EST
Lelah helped herself to a single scotch and carried it over to the couch, where she curled up cat-content. "It's really just a small part that I was thinking of for you. It's the role of a barrista in a Starbuck's-like place. It's during a crucial scene, though, so you'll be getting lots of camera time with the leads, Aimee and Jon. Does that sound acceptable?"

"It's what Harris wants and I'm capable of doing it..." Pausing, she gave a small apologetic smile and restated, "Yes, it sounds perfectly acceptable. I'm even well educated with the job of barrista itself, so acting the part should be easy."

"Well, good. You'll be a natural. Filming starts in two weeks, but your scene won't be until late in June or early July. I'll let you know when we need you on-set." Lelah took a sip of her scotch, dark, kohl-lined eyes intent on Clover's face for a moment. "How's it going with Harris? What's he like to work with?"

Nodding to the details on when work would be starting. Clover was going to need to get some sort of phone eventually; she filed that thought away as something to look into later in the day. To Lelah's questions, Clover smiled knowingly. "Harris is an incorrigible lech. I adore him." Quite simply enough. Soft chuckle, "He makes my job easy, all I have to do is stand around and look good."

"Which, obviously, isn't hard for you, huh?" Lelah gave her a tiny smirk and sipped more scotch. Then she twisted a bit, set the glass down on the small side table to her right, and turned back to fix Clover with a curious look. "Can I ask you a question? And please feel free to tell me to mind my own damned business if it's too impertinent a question.?

It wasn't, but Clover could play modest and not gloat it up. Returning the smirk with a smile, accepting it silently as a compliment. Taking note of the twist and curious look, her own expression curious in return following Lelah's request to ask her a question. Light brow lifted, then settled, "By all means, ask away..." The goddess tended to be honest or evasive, it all depended on the question asked and her mood at the time of asking.

Lelah bit her bottom lip for a moment as she deliberated how, exactly, to ask what she had been wondering about for days now. "Are you seeing Gideon?" And seeing here was used in a purely euphemistic sense; Gideon having a steady honey was as ridiculous as Hugh Hefner getting married...again...at age 80-whatever.

Clover pondered that one for a little; the wording was interesting--even though it carried the air of not meaning dating. Clover didn't date, she went out on dinners, had experiences, but she was far from being serious with anyone--including Gideon. "You mean f*cking." She clarified with a gentle smile. Even with that out there, she went thoughtful again. She hadn't seen Gideon for a while; he had fallen somewhat out of her graces. She didn't hate him, she wasn't mad at him, but somewhere he had offended that vain nature of the goddess, so presently she was indifferent to him. It was, perhaps, nothing a few smooth words couldn't fix. And he was good with those. Clover propped her chin on her hand, "Not recently." Blue-grey eyes fixed on Lelah and remained curious, "Why do you ask?"

Lelah shrugged, a too-casual gesture that belied some deeper, underlying cause for her curiosity. She realized suddenly that she had no female friends in the entire city and the one person she felt she trusted enough to talk to was the one person who did not - under any circumstances - need to hear her thoughts on Gideon. "No reason, really," she lied smoothly. "I'm...curious about him. That's all." Liar, liar, pants on fire.

"And who he is sleeping with? Or more intimated details?" Back straighten in the chair as her hands moved to the arms, "More intimate details are usually better gotten from the source." She'd seen the pair together from time to time, a mixture of bickering and want.

"No,? she said, shaking her head. ?I definitely do not want a list of who he's spending his nights with." She ducked her head, stared down at her hand lying her lap, which was making itself busy fumbling at the hem of her shirt. She bit her lip again and asked in a soft voice, "Does he scare you?"

Lelah

Date: 2011-05-20 15:48 EST
Clover slipped from being able to be empathetic. The question being if Gideon scared the little goddess, she chuckled. A brilliant smile breaking out, "Not at all." She had nothing to fear from Gideon as far as her perspective went. But she watched Lelah for a heartbeat, heard the girl's voice repeat the question in that soft voice in her head. The smile slipped away, an edge of concern in her expression, "Does he scare you?"

Lelah nodded readily, whispered, "Yes." Then she took a deep breath and cast off the vulnerability as if she were taking off her shoes. "But then again, there's not much about this city that doesn't scare the crap out of me on a daily basis." She raised her eyes, meeting Clover's, and her pleasantly bland mask had slipped once more into place, as if the previous glimpse of the very young, very frightened girl had been only an illusion.

Watching that mask slide back into place, a trace of admiration found its way on to Clover's features. Lelah was good at filling a role, but what else could be expected from the actress? She reached a hand over to brush Lelah's arm. Comfort and safety present in that touch, understanding in her features. "It is difficult to be mortal in a realm such as this one." There were many things ready to fear and shock.

Lelah gave Clover a grateful smile for that small bit of comfort and sympathy. Then one corner of her mouth turned up in a smirk. "Mortal, huh? And you're not?" Lelah had no clue as to the reality of Clover's nature, no clue about the reality of 99% of the people she rubbed elbows - and other body parts - with on a daily basis. "We must be as rare as frog's hair here. Us puny humans, I mean."

Secretive smile. Evasive today. She pulled her hand away, settled it upon her lap. "Not at all that rare." Though, there was mortal--then there were those that were mortals without any sort of additional enhancements. Perhaps that end of the spectrum was low. Clover unfolded her legs from the armchair, "Do you have any other questions?"

Lelah shook her head and rose, taking on the role of the perfect hostess now. She went to her desk and picked up a script to hand to Clover. "Thanks for coming by. I'll let you know when exactly we'll need you, but you can count on the last week of June and the first week of July. Hopefully it won't take that long, though." She gave Clover a warm smile and opened the door to her office.

"Thank you, Lelah." Taking the script in hand, she would certainly curl up with it and read it when she got back to her place. Perhaps enjoy it with some wine. "I look forward to it." Stepping through the open door, she turned back, looked like she wanted to say something more, offer advice, but any words of that died on her tongue. Instead she offered a mere, "Enjoy your day," with a short nod and turned to make her way back to the elevators.

Lelah watched Clover until she disappeared from view, then shut the door to her office and returned to her seat at the table. She sighed deeply, somehow feeling that an opportunity of some sort had been missed. "Crap," she whispered before turning her attention back to the script in front of her.


((Many thanks to Lucky Clover's player for this scene.))

Lelah

Date: 2011-06-17 01:59 EST
Never a fan of formal meetings was an understatement when it came to the mogul, but still he could gussy up when required. In his own way. Simple brown loafers from Duerrgo&Goblina, Arathi slacks, and a sapphire blue button down shirt of spider-silk he shifted the portfolio from one hand to another as he stopped outside the Plaza de Troyes. Slight whistle looking up since he'd never been here before. "Should be easy enough to find. If not I can harass someone."

Heading through the doors, he looked for A: a receptionist, and if that could not be found, then B: a map kiosk. There was a bank of elevators at the back of the lobby and between the front doors and those elevators was a cute little brunette. "Can I help you?" she called out as Race entered the building

"Hope so." He replied and broke out the dimples. "I'm here to see Lelah Rivka." Flash of pearly whites for dramatic effect

"21twelve is up on the third floor, sir. Have a nice day!" was the too-perky reply.

"You too." Offering a nod, he made a mental note to ask the receptionist out for drinks before leaving. Moving past her he headed for the elevators to be tortured by Muzak on the way to the third floor.

When the elevators opened, he was met with another receptionist, this time a blonde with startling cornflower blue eyes. She sat behind a curved desk that was half-way between two long hallways. "Welcome to 21twelve studios," she said in a sultry purr. "How can I help you, sir?"

Lifts a brow at the purr since this places him in a dilemma of sorts. "I'm here to see Lelah Rivka." Straight to the point as he moved closer to the desk.

The receptionst, Jenny, looked down at her appointment book and nodded. "Mr. Cantath, right? I'll let Ms. Rivka's assistant know you're here. Would you like some water or something while you're waiting?"

He glanced down at his pudgy frame then back up. "No, I'm fluffy enough." A second flash of dimples as he opted to wait. "And it's Mr. Lutz. Race if you want."

"Mr. Lutz. I'm sorry." She spoke softly into her phone and then went back to her computer. A few moments later, a very harried-looking, smartly dressed brunette in big, clunky eyeglasses appeared. "Mr. Lutz? Hi, I'm Olivia, Ms. Rivka's assistant. She's ready for you now." The general air the two girls used when speaking of Lelah made it seem as if Race was being allowed an audience with a Queen.

"Well then, better not keep the queen bee waiting." Motions for Olivia to lead the way before flashing the blonde a friendly smile in passing.

Liv headed down the left-hand hallway, passing by the art department, makeup, hair and costuming departments, and finally rapped on a set of double doors at the very apex of the hallway. After a short pause, she opened the door for Race and said, "Ms. Rivka, Mr. Lutz is here for you." Then she smiled and disappeared back down the hallway.

Smooths down the front of his shirt before stepping past Olivia and plasters a boyish smile on his face. You know the one, that I'm cute and I know it smile. The interior of the office was a picture of barely-controlled chaos. Bound scripts, DVD cases, files, piles of papers, and stacks of 8 x 10 head shots covered nearly every horizontal surface. Lelah herself was seated at her desk, one of only two uncluttered surfaces in the room, the other being the small round conference table that sat beneath floor-to-ceiling windows with a commanding view of the city clear to the Southern Glen. "Mr. Lutz," Lelah said and stood, extending her hand to the man.

Takes the offered hand in a business manner. "Weren't you at the GAC meeting on Monday?" Oh yes, he'd been observing the audience. She had a firm grip, not quite mannish, but not girlie and weak either.

"Yes, I was. I have some interest in politics." Then she gestured to the conference table. "Have a seat."

Despite his bulk, the grip was measured. Moving with her towards the conference table, he opened the portfolio and handed her a page from inside. On it was a list of product his company produces besides polished lumber. Furniture and some of their recycling efforts. "Then it seems you all ready know some about me. That's less of myself I have to discuss. Anyway, I wanted this meeting to discuss my company being a preferred bid when it comes to product for your set constructions."

She looked over the sheet of paper he handed her before answering, "I see," she said distractedly and then glanced up at him. "You're familiar with the FLA, then?"

"Yes. I signed it." Offers one more nod.

"Wonderful," she said with an easy smile, the sort that brought to mind that old cliche about someone lighting up a room. "Were you wanting to bid on just the larger set pieces or did you have an interest in fulfilling some of our prop fabrications, too?"

"That I had a feeling we could discuss since we do make furniture." He pulled out a photo of a rocking chair showing images of children's stories etched into the wood. "This was recently donated to Riverview Clinic in our name on the Governor's behalf."

"Oh, it's lovely," she said with a soft smile. "You do nice work." Then she sat back in her chair and crossed her legs demurely, pausing for a moment to tug down the hem of her skirt. "I do have to warn you that most of our scenery and sets are handled by a wizard's illusions, but we do have the occasional need for something a little more permanent."

Lelah

Date: 2011-06-17 02:03 EST
"Well, I did some stage work in college with our technical department. So I can see the preference to something that doesn't have to be dismantled during hell week after the final showing. However, when it comes to things like this rocking chair, they're always hand-crafted. The majority of my wood crew are families who've been doing this since before I took over the company. Quality is guaranteed because they take their work seriously. Where the run of the mill assembly line items tend to fall apart after a few years. Integration of reality and imagery is what your company is about? Well then let mine..provide some of the reality and your wizard can do the imagery." Another smile as he spreads his hands a bit conveying her turn.

She nodded, a tiny smirk at the man's hard sell. "Your company's quite adept at doing things to spec, then?"

"My workers do their best despite expanding what we do. It's a hard business to be in when so many other companies have switched to layering particle board and crank out furniture like they're cutting cookies." Admits this readily enough as he pulls out three more photos. One is a red-oak coffee table no more than a foot high. The top is inlaid with a swirling leaf patter painted a pale gold. "That is one solid piece of wood, though we can make the legs detachable for ease of moving."

She whistled softly, admiring the craftsmanship and the attention to detail. "This is beautiful. Well, as far as I'm concerned, you're more than welcome to submit bids. I'll give your information to our production designer, Adam Higgins, and he'll send out requests when he needs things done. Does that work for you?"

"Sounds reasonable to me." Offers a smile as his right hand gently taps knuckles on the conference table. A large green ring glitters gently on his middle finger depicting a circle between two horizontal lines. Reaching he set down a business card. "All of the contact information you'll need is right there. I handle all new contracts myself, a little fond of micro-management."

That drew a laugh. "Me, too. Just ask my poor assistant. Do you text your employees at two a.m. to remind them to add stuff to the calendar?"

"Just my personal assistant Marcello." Shrugs without shame. "He handles most of the large projects that require blue prints like our theme park set to open next year."

"Theme park? No sh... Er, no kidding? Here? In Rhy'Din, I mean."

"Yes. We appropriated the land for it shortly before I became Deputy of Commerce under Minister Starblade."

"That's exciting. I can't wait to see it. Will it have roller coasters?" Lelah was a huge fan of roller coasters.

"Yep. We're still working on details for The Red Dragon. The designers are fighting over whether or not riders should view random scenes of death, murder and resurrection, or child-birth and other things that shouldn't happen inside of a bar when they pass through the tunnels." Yes, he just admitted that the park was going to irreverently make fun of Rhydin's eccentricities.

She grinned. "You could do like a fun house sort of thing, and have a different room for each scene. The child birth one would be the scariest." She shuddered in horror and then smirked at him. There was a knock at the door and then Liv stuck her head into the office. "Ms. Rivka? Scott and Frankie are waiting in Scott's office."

"Guess our time is up." Nods and moves to stand, offering her a hand politely.

She, too, stood and took his hand to give it a firm shake. "It was nice to meet you, Race. I hope to be doing business with you soon." She walked with him to the door then.

"Assuming my company wins the bids, me too." Flashes dimples and the pearly whites as he's ushered out like a good little boy.

((Many thanks to Race's player for this scene!))

Lelah

Date: 2012-02-01 21:53 EST
"Good afternoon, Imperial Grand Rhy'Din hotel. This is Martha speaking. How may I help?"

Lelah's mouth tugged up in a smile when she heard the grandmotherly voice of Riley and David's secretary. "May I speak with David, please?" she said. "Tell him it's Lee."

"Right away, ma'am. Please hold." And then Lelah was subjected to a few moments of hold music. At least it wasn't awful. She was actually enjoying 'Sweet Dreams' by the Eurhythmics when David's voice came on the line.

"Lee?" There was a small--very small--note of surprise in David's voice. He wasn't used to getting calls from her, especially in the middle of the day--she was usually way too busy with studio business. "Is everything okay?"

"No," she said, sliding a little desperation into her voice. "I'm in a jam, David. I desperately need your help." She felt mildly guilty for doing this to him, but she really was in quite a predicament and could see no other way out.

That note of surprise became one of concern. "What's wrong? What do you need?" There was no hesitation between the two questions--whatever help she was asking for, he was ready to give.

"Um..." she said, biting her lip and realizing now that she'd made a big deal out of nothing...well, not nothing, but certainly not something worth the big dramatic introduction she'd given it. "Can you dance? At all? Even a little bit?"

Of all the possible things she could have asked him, all the troubles he might have imagined--and being that this was RhyDin, that list was very, very long and included things like vampires, dragons, faeries, yakuza, and Tara--that was possibly the least likely question he'd ever expected to come out of her mouth. In fact, he wasn't entirely sure he'd heard her correctly. "Did you say dance?"

"Yes, I did." She sighed heavily. "I need someone to fill a small role in the next project. It requires the actor to be able to dance." She paused for a moment, then said, "Will you do it?"

Suddenly, he remembered that conversation with Riley yesterday, when she'd mentioned Lelah was looking for people to be in her movie. He'd jokingly said that he could easily be in a movie, but he hadn't actually expected her to call and ask. He could actually dance, quite well, but...not a single person in RhyDin other than Riley was aware of this fact. It wasn't something he liked being bandied about. Even Dan didn't know, unless Riley had...let the cat out of the bag, so to speak. He was silent for several moments.

"No, I didn't think you could," Lelah said, filling the suddenly uncomfortable silence between them. "It was a shot in the dark, to be frank. I figured someone who lived with a prima ballerina and teacher had to have picked something up along the way." She was silent for a moment longer and then said as a thought suddenly occurred to her. "Does Riley have any students who can act as well as dance?"

He heard the disappointment in her voice, and didn't like it much. He didn't have so many friends that he was willing to let any of them down, when he could actually help, as he could in this case. Was it really a big deal if people knew he could dance? "Well. I can dance, actually. Pretty well."

"What? No way! Seriously?" The excitement in the director's voice was palpable. "Will you do it? It's a small part at the end of the film, just a few moments of screen time. About like what Riley did in 'Crowes'."

"Yeah, seriously. It helps the bagua." He paused again, then said slowly. "Riley's the only person in RhyDin who knows I can dance. Was the only person," he corrected.

"Oh," she said, feeling a stab of guilt again. "Well...if you don't want your secret to get out, we can just lie to the press and tell them that you had to take lessons for the role."

"Nah, the hell with it," he said. "It's not that big a deal. If you need me to do this, then I'm in."

"Oh, thank you thank you thank you!" she gushed. "You have no idea how much this helps me! You're the best ever!"

He snorted, but he was grinning, and she could probably hear that in his voice. "Don't let Dan hear you saying that. He might get jealous or something." Never mind that Dan was possibly the least jealous person he'd ever met.

She laughed. "I don't think we have to worry about Daniel being jealous. Of you or anyone else, for that matter." There was a clattering sound in the background for a moment as Lelah wrote notes on her computer. "Rehearsals start Monday, the sixth, but we won't need you until the tenth and then only for a few days. We'll film your scenes sometime in March--Liv will get the schedule to you--and I promise I won't take up more than three, four days of your time." Of course, she didn't tell him that those days would be brutal pre-dawn to post-dusk days.

"The tenth of February? I have to talk to Riley about it, just be sure. I'm sure she can handle the hotel business for a couple of days, but I don't want to just drop it in her lap."

"That's totally fine. If you two aren't busy, you should come over to the house this weekend for dinner. Bring Finn, too, of course. We can talk more about details then."

"All right, cool. I'll give you or Dan a call later and let you know."

"Wonderful. I've gotta run. More auditions today. Thanks again, David. You're a life saver!" She hung up and scurried away to inform Liv of David's agreement.

He put the phone down and shook his head. What had he just signed himself up for? Riley was going to love this.


((Many thanks to David Lo's player for this scene!))