#Dinah and Greaseball have 3 kids | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

marastriker · 1 year

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notes from last week's stex watchings 👀

Wednesday, March 8th Coco shoves Dinah during the argument between the engines and the coaches Dinah playfully slaps Pearl's butt at the beginning of Ich Bin Ich The coaches have glittery parts of their costumes! Dinah and Pearl have sparkly fabric for the straps under their knee pads Terence Caboose is REALLY REALLY amazing with his acting choices In Freight, Rusty loses control of both coaches and freight and looks very panicked Terence flips his hat back onto his head so smoothly 10/10 When coupling up for the first race, Turnov points to BV and makes a motion as if to say hurry up! Then takes off so quickly that Bee has trouble grabbing his couplers Alexandra covered Volta and gave some cool female Volta vibes Gary was very very Purse-like with his performance during Pearl Welche Ehre - but did some signature Krupp spins in AC/DC! A nice balance of the two! When the other components join Pumping Iron, KW freaks out because Elektra is FUSSY Flat Top is trying to imitate the Rockies' dance moves during Momma's Blues and fails so badly Belle throws up at the end of heat 2 - no drinking and racing kids KW freaks out again when Pearl leaves Elektra for Greaseball - he is so anxious about his job, poor Watt Terence sang the 2nd verse of Mein Spiel first, by accident but he saved it well! TerryBee did fun CB move Overall such INCREDIBLE acting, amazing Mein Spiel When Dinah disconnects Elektra, he's freaking out - but Bee is already there and Elektra kinda just….sighs okay fine can you help me Bee: >:D One rock and roll too many…. Idiot sandwich <3 Coco cocks her shoulder box when telling off Pearl before Für Immer When everyone comes back out onstage post love-song, GB is going after Elektra but Elektra SHOVES him away. BV laughs, Elektra holds up a finger to him as if to say: "shut up. You caused this."

Thursday, March 9th Trax bapped Carrie on the back of the head during bye bye Rusty During the argument, Ruhr seems to just be playfully playing along, but he has a kind smile and tips his hat to Carrie Beginning of Ich Bin Ich - Turnov offers Espresso a shot of vodka and Espresso does NOT like it Manga and Ruhr also sharing a snack. Manga offers Ruhr an alcoholic drink as well, maybe sake Belle has two barrettes in her hair, one is shaped like bottle openers and the other is shaped like bottle caps Beginning of Freight, Flat Top squares up to Dinah and she snaps his suspenders Rockies imitate Bee's "fake news" gesture - Rocky 2 gets it wrong and Rocky 1 shows him, "no, he does it like this" When the trains malfunction as a result of Elektra's presence, Bee does a silly little robot dance Dinah and BV talking/gossiping at the beginning of AC/DC No Pyro at beginning of Pumping Iron Jae Volta squatted like a hoe in pumping iron actually jae volta was slutty all week Ida Brexit is a grandpa and I love him. Hi peepaw Turnov makes a "chop chop" motion to Bee to couple him for heat 1 KW shows Rusty away to talk to Pearl Pearl looks sad to leave Rusty and go with Elektra Each BV actor has a "thing" they do when Greaseball yells CABOOSE during the races - Terence looks back and then nods GB pushes BV into Wrench so he can disconnect her and take Manga Flats is straight up grooving during Momma's Blues When FT takes a selfie of him and Momma, he looks at the pic and then looks back at her like "damn you don't look so good" and she gets upset and shoos him off OIL OIL OIL - Delano puffs out his cheeks and looks so stinky Rusty: Pearl won't race with me :( Rockies: tease him by fake crying Flats gets so STOMPY BV eavesdropping on Rusty and Momma's convo during Bummelok - also his scarf was backwards Momma looks so taken aback by GB and Elektra like "these youngins……" When Greaseball tells Dinah to shut up in the rap, the gang is like OOOOOOOOO and she looks ready to fight them Another incredible Mein Spiel performance Bee mockingly waves goodbye to Pearl after he crashes Rusty Rusty literally crying before the Starlight sequence :( Dinah disconnects the components because she angy

Friday, March 10th Technical difficulties with the door where the nationals enter! it got fixed fairly quickly <3 naruto run in rolling stock my beloved Ida brexit walk like afraid of cockroach Luuk Espresso sounds so italian even when singing in german GB pokes and prods Pearl when he brings her in He plays with her ponytail, she is not amused I LOVE MEZZO PEARL (Dieuwke) Kai Bee tips his hat to Carrie <3 For some reason, Elektra's gear lights weren't working until Race 1 today Ryan can play Espresso and Turnov, and THAT is what i call great vocal range Rocky 2 was ready to throw hands with Rusty for insulting Momma! Dustin flinched when Momma yelled NEINA Dustin waves shyly behind Momma during the race 2 introduction Espresso grabs Carrie's skirt tassels instead of her couplers and pats her ass RuhrCarrie moments! He spun her around Both Elektra and BV injure Pearl in the final race - Elektra electrocutes her and BV baps her at some point Saturday, March 11th and Sunday, March 12th Cole Greaseball has such power behind his voice! Incredible acting choices! GB didn't fade into the background this time, I genuinely enjoyed Cole so much more! Brexit/Turnov disappear sometime between taunting Rusty and the beginning of Ich Bin Ich due to split track Rocky 3 and Flat Top The other coaches are a little miffed that Rusty interrupted her but Carrie shrugs and is like oh okay :) Since Turnov is not available for Pumping Iron due to a split track, they replace him with TerryBee and he dances with Carrie! The coaches all take shots at the beginning of coda of freight to prepare for the race super quick change from Flat Top to Turnov for Race 1! Even if turnov is not there when they are all coupling up for race one, Bee and GB still have a moment where they establish they have a deal and I like that detail KW scans Pearl's face during the beginning of Pumping Iron (Elektra maybe already made it clear that he wanted her as a race partner?) Flat Top shows up halfway into Momma's blues due to split track Momma and R2 have a little fistbump after saying rusty is blind Rocky3 raising her hand like MEEE after Momma asks for Rocky to race with her. the other two scold her Carrie looks so excited to win the second heat with Ruhr! Delano Rusty is so ready to square up with Greaseball after race 3 Delano is the only one who acts properly injured after the crash/gang beat up, chugging back before right place right time I FINALLY FIGURED OUT HOW THE LIFT WORKS. there is indeed a back portion that supports Rusty by the waist as he's lifted into the air Carrie waves to Bee before the final race and BrandiBelle chastises her Cole GB acts like a ballerina in one rock and roll and it's hilarious Rocky 3 is the one who disconnects Bee, Elektra, and GB from the train before the final scene! Brandi and Bee share a drink before Light at the End of the Tunnel

#starlight express #march bochum trip 2022 #mara's stex thoughts

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sweet-dining-car · 9 months

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diesel triplet autism did Dinah and Greaseball ever have to ask for help from the other with the kids?

I’m guessing you meant au instead of autism cuz to me the sentence doesn’t exactly make sense

They absolutely help each other all the time!

They see parenting as kinda like a tag team type thing, they are very strategic. One gives the triplets their baths one by one and the other gets them dressed for bed afterwards. One cleans up from dinner while the other helps the triplets to brush their teeth. Ya know, things like that

Greaseball especially tries to help Dinah. He could be trying to hold them all at once or could be using those child leashes while all 3 of them are trying to run in different directions and Dinah would ask Greaseball if he needs help and he’s just like “I’m fine! I got ‘em!” He does in fact not got ‘em

Dinah can never get them to eat all their veggies(if she doesn’t hide it in their food) so she asks Greaseball to help convince them to eat their veggies. He always comes up with creative ways to get them to eat their veggies to make it seem fun

Greaseball always likes to help Dinah in any way that he can because he knew that both the pregnancy and the delivery was hard on Dinah and even after she still felt really bad about gaining so much baby weight. Greaseball always reminds her that she did have triplets who are diesels (naturally bigger+Greaseball’s even bigger genes) and that it’s normal to gain weight. He also reminds her at how pretty she is, like he says it constantly

They do ask other ppl for help too. Sometimes they do hire a babysitter(Typically Buffy, Ashley, Pearl or Rusty) and while they mean to have a romantic date or something, they usually end up just taking a nap or just going to bed early(if it’s overnight babysitting)

That’s all I have for now

#starlight express #stex #greaseball the diesel #dinah the dining car #stex greaseball #stex dinah #diesel triplets au

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dinahdoeeyes · 2 years

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Greasedinah domestic life 1, 2, 3, please!

If they get married, who proposes?

Greaseball. He proposed a little over 2 years after the events of StEx, shortly after (in my headcanon) their 4th anniversary.

What’s the wedding like? Who attends?

The wedding is very pretty, a touch glitzy (it’s Greaseball, and this is like a celebrity wedding to everyone in the train yard), fairly southern, and not huge, but not really small either.

Attendees are: Everyone in the yard except for the Sleepers; the National engines; and Dinah’s family and friends from back home. (Greaseball’s family, in my headcanon, is a totally different situation. And yes, in my headcanon, they have family and are born, whatever. 🤷🏽‍♀️ I was inspired by the cut song “Be A Pump” mentioning Rusty’s dad.)

How many kids do they have, if any? What are they like?

They have twins girls first, and then a son 3-4 years later. All dark hair and big, brown eyes! The elder twin takes after Dinah more, while the younger is more like Greaseball; but of course, they have their very own personalities as well. I haven’t yet decided if one is an engine and the other a coach, or if they’re both motor coaches. 🤔 But if they’re one and the other, then the older girl is an engine while the younger girl is a coach. The boy... well, I haven’t thought of him much yet, but he’s either a motor coach or a coach.

(SHIP QUESTIONS)

#Why YES I've thought out entire backstories for them! And what about it? 💅🏽#greasedinah #greaseball x dinah #stex headcanons #headcanons #commentary #text post #my answered asks 💌#answered ask memes 💌

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isaterriblebore · 3 years

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Stex Appreciation Month Day 24 - Original Characters

Okay so I’ve never actually talked about my Stex OCs before... so here we go 😅

1. Barney

Barney was my first original character with @rrrrrumble. He’s a little steam train and he’s Rusty and CB’s kid (because I’m Rusted Brakes trash lol). They found him abandoned at the train station when he was about 3 years old and they took him in.

I don’t have any drawings of him but we headcanon him to look quite a lot like Bobby Collins’ Rusty (with Rusty sorta looking like Blake Patrick Anderson’s Rusty lol).

About Barney

His dream is to be a racer just like his dad and Rusty coaches him.

Due to CB’s closeness with Dinah, Barney calls Dinah ‘aunt Dinah (and Greaseball ‘Uncle Greaseball’). Greaseball has a soft spot for Barney (as he does with any kid tbh).

Dinah and Greaseball have a kid called Lovette. Barney and Lovette grow up together and are very close.

He hates sandwiches. When he was at the station he would have to steal sandwiches from passengers so he can have some food.

Rusty calls Barney ‘Little champion’

Barney is quite outspoken. He can be very cheeky more often than not but it’s all harmless fun.

Barney’s bedroom ceiling has stars painted on it because when he was living at the station, he’d count the stars until he fell asleep.

His favourite meal is spaghetti and meatballs because he loves helping to make the meatballs.

Rusty obviously sings ‘Starlight Express’ to Barney before bed.

He’s named after the station they found him at ‘Barnsboury station’.

2. Bolt and Broadcast

Bolt and Broadcast are mine and @bag-of-broadway-snacks original characters. Bolt is an Electric engine and Broadcast is an Electric brakevan and they’re Electra and CB’s two kids.

Credit for both drawings belongs to the amazing @bag-of-broadway-snacks 🥺

About Broadcast and Bolt

Bolt and Broadcast are twins

Bolt looks up to Electra a lot and wants to be just like them when he’s older. He likes to follow Electra around and copies his every move 🥺

Broadcast is always up to shenanigans and drags poor Bolt along with him.

They love to terrorise poor Krupp. Broadcast wraps himself around one of Krupp’s legs while bolt tries to zap him. Krupp just sighs and deals with it.

Broadcast loves to play with CB’s hair and makes it stick up in all different ways with the static.

Bolt loves playing with dolls but he’s very particular about how he plays with them and he gets into tantrums if things don’t do his way.

Bolt has mad tantrums and they are painful. It starts off with him stomping his feet and crossing his arms... then it’s downhill from there.

Broadcast makes Bolt pull him around everywhere which is good because Bolt learns how to pull.

I’m not sure if it’s a regular occasion but CB sometimes keeps the babies in a donut box.

Bolt and Broadcast have a little secret handshake 🥺

#stex appreciation month #starlight express #stex #stex oc

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the-bafflement-of-scotland-yard · 3 years

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Allllllll of them for DinahBoose lofe !!!

them ;-;

PRE-RELATIONSHIP

1. How did they first meet?

The freight and coaches generally kept their distance from each other, but one day they were all stuck at a station because of a railway accident (C.B. may or may not have been the cause of that) and they got talking and hit it off immediately.

2. What was their first impression of each other?

C.B. thought that she was nice and too good for Greaseball, and that she should learn to stand up for herself. Dinah thought that he was sweet and innocent, ironically.

3. Did any of their friends or family want them to get together?

For a long time nobody even considered it because Dinah was with Greaseball and C.B. was very obviously gay, but once they noticed them getting a little more flustered around each other Buffy and Ashley started to ship them.

4. Who felt romantic feelings first?

C.B., but it gradually crept up on him; he only realised it when he was already crushing hard.

5. Did either of them try to resist their feelings?

Dinah did, because she was convinced that C.B. is gay. He was convinced of that too, and as such kinda denied his feelings for her, though he didn't actively resist them, just misinterpreted them.

6. If you had told one of them that the other would be their soulmate, what would they think?

At first both of them would laugh it off. By the time they're crushing they would really consider it, though.

7. What would their lives be like if they had never met?

Probably not that different. A little more lonely, though, especially for C.B. who was never good at confiding in someone. And Dinah would have had a harder time with Greaseball dumping her, but the other coaches would have cheered her up eventually.

GENERAL

1. Who initiated the relationship, and how did it go?

Dinah. It was kind of an accident.

2. Did they have an official first date? If so, what was it like?

Yes. It was a bit awkward while they were focused on it being a date, but once they got past that and just had fun together like they always do, it was great.

3. What was their first kiss like?

Very short lol

4. Were they each other’s first anything (kiss, relationship, etc.)?

In most things no, though C.B. has never been in an actual relationship before.

5. What’s their height difference? Age difference?

C.B. is a few centimetres taller, they're both short. As for ages, they're probably kinda similar, maybe C.B. was manufactured a few years before Dinah.

6. What’s their relationship with each other’s families?

The other coaches are okay with C.B., he did lose their trust somewhat after the championship, but they all know that he's arguably been better to Dinah than Greaseball has ever been so they can eventually look past that. The freight like Dinah, though they're a bit salty about losing their fuckbuddy to her, especially Flat-Top.

7. Who takes the lead in social situations?

Depends on with whom they are. With the coaches or diesels it's Dinah cause she knows them better; with strangers it's C.B. cause he's better at making conversation and acting interested in others.

8. Who gets jealous easier?

C.B., because it's not easy seeing your girlfriend interact with her very handsome and muscular ex every day.

9. Who whispers inappropriate things in the other’s ear?

C.B., obviously. In what pairing with him would he not be that?!?

LOVE

1. Who said “I love you” first?

Dinah.

2. What are their primary love languages?

C.B.: physical touch, acts of service. Dinah: acts of service, words of affirmation.

3. Who uses cheesy pick-up lines?

C.B. does, of course.

4. How often do they cuddle/engage in PDA?

A lot, moderately. C.B. wouldn't mind being more public about it, but Dinah wants to keep it 'decent'.

5. Who initiates kisses?

Both of them, but Dinah wins.

6. Who’s the big and little spoon?

Usually C.B. is the big spoon, but occasionally they switch around.

7. What are their favourite things to do together?

They love just sitting around and gossiping or playing games, or swimming, or C.B. doing Dinah's hair.

8. Who’s better at comforting the other?

C.B. is. He wrote a whole fucking song for her, come on.

9. Who’s more protective?

Also C.B., because he sometimes feels like he has to compete with Greaseball.

10. Do they prefer verbal or physical affection?

Physical, but they like verbal as well.

11. What are some songs that apply to their relationship, in-universe or otherwise?

There's Me, obviously. Other than that cause we just discussed it, Why Don't You Kiss Her? by Jesse McCartney.

12. What kind of nicknames do they call each other?

Dee and Cee.

13. Who remembers the little things?

Both of them do. C.B. is slightly better at it, also cause Dinah absolutely loves it when he surprises her with something she mentioned once in passing cause Greaseball was a lot but attentive wasn't really on the list.

DOMESTIC LIFE

1. If they get married, who proposes?

Marriage doesn't exist in my universe, but if it would, C.B. would propose. Nothing big, but very sweet.

2. What’s the wedding like? Who attends?

It would be small and intimate, just close friends.

3. How many kids do they have, if any? What are they like?

No kids, C.B. vetoed that. Luckily kids don't exist in my universe so it isn't an issue.

4. Do they have any pets?

C.B. is the pet.

5. Who’s the stricter parent?

Hyper-hypothetically C.B., he's got more backbone than Dinah.

6. Who worries the most?

Dinah. C.B. is more carefree.

7. Who kills the bugs in the house?

C.B., cause he knows no fear.

8. How do they celebrate holidays?

With the rest of the yard.

9. Who’s more likely to convince the other to come back to sleep in the morning?

C.B., he'll just hold out his hands and whine with big eyes and pouty lips and Dinah will give right in.

10. Who’s the better cook?

Dinah, obviously.

11. Who likes to dance?

Both of them.

#starlight express #stex #c.b.#dinah #dinahboose #lofe #greaseball

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calocera · 4 years

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i wanna know more about this starlight express you post about!!! it seems really cool and i'd love to get into it ;; thank you for your time ;w; <3

oh ofc! ive made a few posts about it before but never gone insanely into depth so i think im gunna answer this one a bit more detailed, so sorry for the length!

some basic history: the show was created by alw (same guy who did cats and phantom of the opera) it started in 1984 and has been running ever since! though it has been performed exclusively in Bochum, Germany since 2003 (besides the occasional tour), so most content you can find is in german. many people compare this show to cats, the songs generally do have that “character sings about what they do” vibe, but not anywhere near as literal as cats; there is definitely plot and concrete personalities to these characters. in my opinion it is WILDLY different from cats, but if you enjoy cats you will most likely enjoy starlight express! the WHOLE SHOW is performed in roller skates, each costume is an average of around 45 lbs and cost at least 10k-20k individually, the sets are wild with huge moving bridges, pyrotechnics, rising and falling platforms, and areas the skaters go right through the audience. the show has “races” where the trains all race around the rink at 20-30 mph and do choreographed crashes, it’s considered one of the most dangerous musicals!

(this is the set in bochum, germany)

story: the show opens with a little kid named control playing with toy trains, that night the trains come to life to compete in an annual national race (depending on production, the trains are either real living toys or the whole thing is a dream sequence the kid is having) trains from all over the world come to compete.

the story follows Rusty, a small weak steam engine who wants to win the race. he mainly competes against Greaseball the diesel, the previous years winner, and Electra, the new rich hot electric train

Rusty also hopes that winning the race will help him get together with the 1st class car, Pearl (which is kinda the main crux of the show, it really isnt an alw show without unneeded romance lmao). other notable characters are dinah, Greaseballs girlfriend who just gets so much shit and doesnt deserve it, cb, the silly little caboose :)), and poppa, rusties father figure who tells him that to win the race he needs to have faith in jesus The Starlight Express (its also certainly isnt an alw show without gratuitous religious allegory) also almost every song is insanely innuendo laden, it is unequivocally not an alw show without things being just insanely sexual. the show has gone through SO many changes over the years, some good most not dfghfg. pretty much every version has something wildly different! i would recommend that you read up on the show before searching for bootlegs bc you WILL be confused. id also recommend listening to some cast albums if youre the type that likes to do that before seeing a show!

as an example of changes, heres the same character throughout various years:

here are some cast albums available on youtube:

original 1984 london recording (pretty much the only surviving material from the original version)

1987 Japan/Aus tour album (highlight reel, only about 1/2 of the shows songs)

2002 “new starlight” album (notable for completely removing the character cb, it is pretty strange to have a whole main character just absent)

1988 German concept album (in german, THE most 80s thing you will EVER hear i swear its incredible, also only about 1/2 the songs)

1997 Bochum live recording (in german, personal fave cast)

1997 Mexico city (in spanish, notably the most different! abt 1/2 the songs)

2014 Bochum live recording (in german, great quality!)

this show is one that is sung through, there are bits of spoken dialogue, but mostly just as interludes between. every song is a different genre, so theres basically every 80s style in there, electro pop, rock and roll, disco, country, blues, gospel, theres a few duds definitely but thats to be expected with such range. it is mind numbingly 80s, so its definitely not everyones cup of tea

where to watch it!

watching starlight express is kinda tricky, despite its long run there has not been a pro shot :( so all we are left with is bootlegs! while good ones are out there, none are even close to film quality. it is DEFINITELY a show you need to do some private bootleg trading to get a fully rounded experience of, if thats too daunting its fine! you can still get the whole show from boots available on youtube, but if you end up really falling for the show youll definitely want to dig for more content after a short amount of time.

Boots available on youtube:

Broadway 1989 (REALLY good quality for the time, crunchy but i think that adds retro charm! this is also the closest youll get to really seeing the show as close as you can to the original version. sadly the first 15 minutes are missing (from Overture to Pumping Iron) so youll need to watch the first chunk of another production) B+

Vegas 1996 ( this production was cut short for vegas, so a few key songs are cut. they also opted to have the race sections be pre recorded rather than performed live) C+

2004 Bochum (in german, but has subtitles! video quality is pretty good, but there are some people slightly in frame) taken down :(

2014 Bochum p1 p2, 2nd(act 1 only) (german, these 2 recordings have BY FAR the best video quality, sadly the person recording focuses solely on a single background character, it is to the point where if you havent seen the show before you will not be able to tell what is going on. id recommend skimming these boots for views of costumes/ watching specific unobstructed songs, since there are some nice tight zooms) D taken down

there are other boots out there, but these are my immediate recommendations! better quality ones exist, however youll have to do some digging for them as they are not public. there are also LOTS of tv previews/ one off professionally recorded videos on youtube if youd like to see specific songs

i hope this is good convincing to watch this trainwreck (lol)

#ask #starlight express #long post

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mr-face-both-ways · 4 years

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Stex Appreciation Day 4: Pearl! Greaseball doesn’t have rights so he has to wait

I was painted, I was polished, I was shining like a star!

Questions answered below!

Fave song: He Whistled at Me (the original version), its so bouncy and fun and my favourite song when i was a kid haha, i also love Make Up My Heart, the melody and the choreography is/was (rip all the choreo post 2018) but I have Opinions as i’ll mention in a bit

Fave actor: Georgina Hagen was absolutely perfect when I saw her! Especially the combo of her and Marcel Brauneis were just *chef’s kiss* I also love Kim Leeson, Stephanie Lawrence, Trina Hill, Nikki Belsher and Amanda Coutts

Fave ship: Prusty! its a sliding scale of good depending on the production and actors but when its good its real darn cute, i love them oh and pearl/dinah has been growing on me too!

Fave thing: She’s so damn pretty (shallow I know lol)!! But she’s absolute aesthetic honestly, absolute heart eyes!! And I love that she’s very well meaning but she still makes mistakes and learns and grows from it, she’s a good bean i think c:

Random headcanon: Being an observation car she is very perceptive but sort of unconsciously?? So she won’t realise that she’s noticed something until there’s some stimulus to bring it to the surface? Like I’m thinking especially after Race 3, she sees the shenanigans but it doesn’t click until she sees Rusty, Greaseball and C.B all together. I also think she likes to hang out in the freight yard, even though it might be unbecoming for a first class car to get dirty she doesn’t care because she likes to sing and dance and mess around with the boys and Belle!

Unpopular opinion: Ok I’ve mentioned this a loooong time ago, but Make Up my Heart is one of my favourite songs, but narrative it makes like no sense?? it makes her seem like a hypocrite to have a whole song about how difficult and serious she is about choosing a race partner/lover, and when she accepts Greaseball’s offer, her saying “quit crying, its only fun” is just so mean :( and with the original he whistled the whole attitude of the song is different, so it still comes across as a lil insensitive but not quite as mean i think. I also think that her whole character shouldn’t be about choosing a guy, have her want to prove herself as something more than a pretty ornamental coach, but someone athletic and strong and new who wants to experience everything she can!! (And maybe find her dream train along the way tehe)

Anyways Pearl’s my girl and i love her

#stex appreciation month #starlight express #stex pearl #stex #musicals #my art

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elektrolokomotive · 4 years

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Rusty, Dinah, and Dustin?

Rusty

1) Rusty has opalescent freckles all over his face, chest, and back. They’re only visible in a certain light. After his encounter with the Starlight, they become more visible and sort of twinkle like teeny stars.

2) Rusty’s father, an alpha from a fleet up north of Chicago, wanted his son to succeed him as alpha. But Rusty does not have an extroverted bone in his body and had no interest in becoming alpha. His main interest was finding a yard with a steam engine he could take possession of. What he found was Cali Ave, which had… a little switcher that hadn’t been used in ages.

3) Rusty becomes the target of CB’s attention bc he’s exceedingly calm and chill 90% of the time and literally does not have the heart to tell CB to leave him alone. CB takes this as ‘we’re Friends now, feel free to bother me to your heart’s content.’

Dinah

1) Dinah was Cali Ave’s ‘it girl’ prior to Pearl. She’s beautiful and sweet, which made her the object of every young male’s attention. But when GB moved in, he was quick to win her heart and they became a reliable item very swiftly.

2) Dinah and Buffy are half-sisters (same dad, different moms). Buffy is a good deal older than Dinah, so they weren’t very close growing up, but they have a sense of loyalty and solidarity with each other.

3) Dinah’s greatest desire is for children. She’s wanted kids for ages, but Greaseball was never ready. Now that they’re broken up and Dinah’s taking some time to work on herself, that ambition is on the back burner, but she still holds the desire very dear to her heart.

Dustin

1) Dustin came from the UK, as did Flat-Top. They traveled overseas and eventually settled in Cali Ave together, and as such are very close. They’re essentially the only ‘family’ the other has.

2) Dustin is the peacekeeper of the freight yard. He prevents Flat-Top from pummeling CB and breaks it up when the Rockies get too rough with each other. I’ve been mentally comparing him to Chien-Po from Mulan.

3) Rusty helps Dustin come out of his shell. Because Dustin was the only ‘sensitive soul’ in the freight yard prior to Rusty’s arrival, he didn’t have anyone to open up and express his feelings to. Needless to say, he’s intensely grateful that Rusty came along.

#starlight express #stex #stage-props

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bellesdomain · 7 years

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Starlight Express Workshop - Thurs 14th Sept

Let me preface this with my overall impressions - this show was fantastic in many ways, the performances were all amazing, the band was fantastic, the staging was remarkably full and entertaining given the circumstances! It was an absolutely fascinating experience, I’m so glad I had the chance to go - and that I’m going again to see how it develops further.

But as reviews like this are bound to, this is all going to come across as very negative - but I want to start off emphasising how much I enjoyed it overall!

The theatre is a small, steeply raked auditorium, with a thrust stage about level with the 3rd row. The stairways on either side were accessible from the stage and used in the performance. There’s a gantry upstage, which forms a platform for the 8 piece band and Control - yup, live Control onstage. He had fabulous glowing headphones and an Ipad that seemed to be a racing game - I think it also included his script! Generally I am very anti-live Control, when it comes to non-replica productions - since the entire show takes place in his imagination, he exists on a different plane to the action therefore they shouldn’t interact. But given the fluid nature of this workshop, pre-recording the kid would be impossible so it worked ok!

The show opened with Andrew Lloyd Webber and Arlene Phillips giving us the context of the evening. Lloyd Webber explained how they’d workshopped “School of Rock” in a similar manner - no big automation, complex lighting cues or costume changes, just establishing the story telling. Great concept! And the venue “The Other Palace” theatre in Victoria, is being run for precisely this function.

Lloyd Webber also told us how he and Arlene Phillips had visited the German production for the English Gala, and he hardly recognised the show they were performing as his work. And indeed, I was also at the English Gala and suddenly hearing the material in its original language made the inconsistencies and plot holes glaringly obvious! So the point of this workshop is to see if they can get the show back into shape for a future production, as well as the German production’s 30th anniversary next May.

The show opened in a familiar manner, Control (playing with his ipad), sent to bed by his Mother. She sings her lullaby, the melody is taken up by the mouth organ. The Overture modulates, repeats, swells, in the fans’ mind’s eye you see the shadowy figures skating around the set - and then Control interrupts with “Stop that Boring Music!” And begins to introduce the National Engines.

I think it’s fair to say this change is getting a bit of negative feedback. That overture is the literal HEART of the show, it’s the preview of the Starlight Sequence, it’s the title song melody. It’s the magic happening, as Control falls asleep and we enter his dreamscape. The Overture alone will literally draw people to tears. To have Control dismiss it as “boring music” is crass, insensitive, and a tonal mis-fire, alienating Control from the audience. In other words, he’s a brat!

Entry of the National Trains is always a clunky way to start the show, these minor characters are so unimportant to the plot. Placing the scene later, before AC/DC, makes for better story telling, as the audience have already established who’s important and it contextualises Electra’s entrance as we’re calling forward the competitors for the race. Anyway, the workshop has given us some new names for the Nationals - Bobo the French train is now the feminine Coco, which works well. The German Engine is now named after Wagner’s opera das Rheingold. Rather than fix the dated and embarrassing reference, the Japanese train is still Nintendo. And the British train is now “Brexit” - which is as topical a joke, and I suspect will last in the public conscious about as well as his APT designation did. Yeah, that’s the point. Nobody remembers! A very quickly dated reference. There were a few of them throughout the night, so hopefully they’ll be reconsidered. Rolling Stock - Oliver Tompsett as Greaseball, greased back hair and stubble, was hilarious and a bit menacing - would probably be more menacing if I weren’t so steeped in his performances from Rock of Ages! The strangest thing here though, was it. Was. so. Slow. There’s a strange quirk that the 1984 original cast recording has the Rolling Stock track at a stodgy plod - as if an LP record is played on the wrong setting! And this is what they decided to replicate live. The performances were all brilliant, the ensemble mugging it up as their Nationals, it was hilarious and engaging, but why so slow? As far as I know, it wasn’t performed that slow in 1984, it’s just a quirk of the recording - but Andrew Lloyd Webber obviously approved of this!

Second number in was Crazy. Throughout, Crazy and Call Me Rusty have been mixed up and cut together - along with remnants of Engine of Love in there as well. It works, sort of, plot-wise it’s exactly like Engine of Love, here’s young Rusty and the coaches. There’s a lovely bit of contextualisation where Control explains “Rusty is the first train I got when I was six” which grounds us as these are his toys. Then into Crazy. George Ure as Rusty may have dried on his opening lyrics, but a bit of ad-libbing and he was back on track. Christina Bennington as Pearl got straight in there with the high option for Pearl’s “Til someone better comes along”.

Greaseball, Nationals come in to bully Rusty, and the coaches all stick up for him, however Pearl makes the point that she’s not actually Rusty’s partner, flirting with Greaseball. Then we have a version of “Call Me Rusty”, the short version used in Vegas I believe, layering “Call me Rusty if you dare. Call me Rusty if you like…” with the coaches still having the mid break from the original but with some new lyrics from Pearl about “we’re just friends”. Rusty is sent to fetch the trucks, and we have the original intro into Locomotion, “Rusty/can’t/be serious, him/go in/for the race?” but then there was some new material, Greaseball flirting with Pearl, saying “woowoowoo you’re brand new!” Dinah comes forward to warn him off Pearl but she gets sent to “go make the tea” by Greaseball and the Nationals. Here’s where we’re introduced to Tassita (shhh she’s a quiet coach and doesn’t like loud noises), and we go into the new song to “introduce” the coaches, “I Got Me (and that’s all I need)” This song felt to me like there’s some School of Rock type influence. It’s very “I can do what I like” independent rock chick. It’s not a bad song, but it doesn’t serve the purpose of introducing these characters at all, plus the pedantic mind says that these girls are railway coaches - and coaches DO need an engine. Sorry to break the vibe but coaches aren’t independent - but you can easily argue the case that an engine without coaches is as useless as coaches without an engine. The song ended quite abruptly to muted applause, but launched straight into a reprise, which was then interrupted by the Freight train.

Freight ran exactly as the 1992 London, with all the banter from the coaches, which was particularly entertaining despite being such very familiar lyrics. Whether it was due to the small ensemble, or an effort to address the gender imbalance in the show, Hopper 3 was female, and she was having a great time of it. Sadly no return of the Rockies, the Hip Hoppers are about the only remaining remnant of the contributions made by David Yazbek in 2003. The only new moment in the number was one of the most jarring changes - Caboose is included, but rather than introduce himself using the “There’s Me” melody (“at the back on every piece of track…” Being “All alone, you think you’re on your own…”) no, the Red Caboose comes straight in with “Wide Smile, High Style” melody, telling us straight off that he’s in the business of wrecking trains. His characterisation was very much aggressive, nasty and scary! No pretense at the sweet and helpful Caboose that anyone would trust, this guy is clearly one to avoid. Caboose made a point about being paid to do his job.

Straight after Freight, we have Control announcing technical problems… oh boy! A late entry! These must be his minders! Kilowatt is Electra’s security truck. Wrench is the repair truck, Purse the money truck ordered us to switch your accounts to Electra. Again money is an active concept in this world. Joule and Volta followed - male Volta, as with Hopper 3 is this a limitation of the size of ensemble?

Electra appeared in towering red velour heels, fishnet stockings under a conventional masculine ensemble of slacks and jacket. Liam Tamne has an incredible voice, great range and strength and falsetto! But his characterisation flat for my personal taste for Electra, and also really reminded me of someone else, a character on TV perhaps. He was very flamboyant and self-indulgent.

AC/DC is interrupted suddenly, as Greaseball appears. The coaches, who 10 mins earlier were making such a point of not needing no man, especially Dinah getting up in the faces of the Nationals to protect Pearl, undergo a complete 180 on their characters, turning to the regular excited fangirls we’re used to seeing in Pumping Iron. This felt especially wrong given Dinah’s “Back off girls, he’s mine!” - really? Is he? Because you were defending your girls from his flirting just now, and showed no suggestion of a relationship between Dinah and Greaseball other than antagonism. The earlier scene is massively out of character for Dinah.

Oliver Tompsett rocked Pumping Iron, of course, it’s easy to appreciate why the girls are all fangirling over him. The two female components stayed to dance, while Electra and his boys left in a huff. This was one scene where the minimal staging fell flat, as the dance break needs some rock’n’roll partner work, skates or not.

Coda Freight ran much as expected, the confrontation between Greaseball and Electra was extended by the two of them sharing the lines usually sung by the Nationals, as they mock Rusty’s intent to join the race. Coda Freight originally did not modulate key - the German production is one where it drops into a lower key which always jars. But this time we get a modulation UP a key, which is different! But not necessary, it’s quite busy enough staying in one key.

Control announces five minutes to race time, and “if you ain’t in twos, you lose”. This is where we would expect to find Crazy, and indeed we have a reprise of the number where Rusty approaches Pearl, but she rebuffs him with something about “don’t push me around”. But then their conversation follows the coaches’ melody from “Call me Rusty”, as she explains in no uncertain terms that while she likes him she wants an engine of the future. Then they are interrupted by Electra’s Bodyguard Kilowatt (shall we just call him K?) who explains Electra’s coach has a “Migraine”. Pearl has her dilemma, and will let Electra know.

Pearl has a new intro to “Make Up My Heart”, written to the “diddlydiddly” pre-race music (also used by Caboose pre-”Wide Smile”), as she discusses how Electra seems fun, then she had an echo of “He Whistled At Me” - which I think was the only occurrence of that/”Engine of Love” melody. Then that disjointed selection of melodies led into the full “Make Up My Heart” number, as performed on the 1992 London recording.

Control starts the races, with a comment about “I’ll pick your partners for you”. A new addition for the races which grew very tedious almost immediately, each engine as they’re introduced, sings the “Clear my track, this is my train now, this could be my dream, clear my track” fragment of “No Comeback” that Pearl sings in “Laughing Stock” - each with their own lyrics of course. But hearing that same fragment four times in a row was repetitive, and annoying given that that melody is meant to specifically refer to Electra. The concept of melodies referring to specific characters and event - the use of leitmotif - has more or less been lost, apart from a few occasions which shows that while they COULD use the concept, they choose not to! Race 1 ends up with a Dead Heat between Greaseball and Electra, with only the “No Comeback” melody appearing in the race music.

As the racers clear away, we have a mopey Rusty with the “Call me Rusty” melody on the mouth organ, as he approaches the Freight yard and “Momma” is singing The Blues. Mica Paris was poorly served by the existing score - while the major solos are within a reasonable alto range, most of Poppa’s recit is well below an alto. However her character, and the staging for the number was really engaging and fun, and included Caboose mooching in the background. Caboose has always seemed notable by his absence from this scene of the Freight - I presume the practical reason is that Caboose has just finished racing so to make him immediately be onstage but purely for context would be unkind. But within the world of the show, why is Caboose not hanging out with the rest of the freight? Momma’s response after “Let me hear you say Steam!” - the Starlight Express melody - is “When the Night is Darkest” rather than “When Your Goodnights have been Said”, which probably only coincidentally is kinder on her vocal range. But it’s slightly odd in a production that draws so heavily from the previous London productions, to bring in the Broadway variation of the title song. Control interrupts to inform us of heat 2, Momma decided to race and ends up with Dustin much as is familiar from other productions. The exact reason was unclear but Brexit meant the British train was missing, allowing Momma to race.

Race Two again seemed to have Control decide the race partners, and again repeated the “Clear my Track” melody, except Momma introduced herself with the Coaches’ “I got Me” melody which seems to be pretty random for an old Steamer. It was also incorporated into the race music.

After Race 2, into Laughing Stock, played much as normal, but with one small 1984 detail restored - Momma points out Rusty “Couldn’t face that losing shame!” rather than Rusty admitting his own weakness, or the line being omitted altogether.

Starlight Express - the title song closed act 1 with an unexpectedly subtle edit, new lyrics to the “When the Night is Darkest” melody. I’m not absolutely sure new lyrics were needed for this number, but they’re evocative and very much in keeping with the scene and Rusty’s emotional journey.

(And we have the interval. Go get a glass of wine. You’ll need it.)

Act 2 begins with The Rap - entirely a capella, started by Hoppers “Are you Ready?” which updated lyrics. The Coaches come in with something like “Swipe to the left? Swipe to the right? Who will be my date tonight?” which feels like it’ll date very quickly. It was a mix between the 1992 Rap in structure, “Gotta be in the frame if you’re gonna win the game, are you ready for the big one, ready!” with quite a lot of the individual lines tweaked. This meant that we’ve still got all the “Shut it, Dinah!” and some of the classic lines like “losing the race with this floppy disc” and “Boil with the oil or lose with the fuse”. Performed entirely unaccompanied, with much stomping on the beat, worked really well.

“Pearl Twirl” ran unaltered, giving Dinah a COMPLETE character shift from act 1. The confident, sassy girl is completely unrecognisable as the heartbroken Dinah singing “Uncoupled”. Fantastic performance from Natalie McQueen, really heart-felt and beautifully sung, but it was distracting how she seemed to be playing a completely different role to earlier. The staging was even much as normal, with the other two coaches hanging out behind, with varying levels of sympathy and boredom as they sing backing vocals. But without Dinah having established a character of a devoted, in love with Greaseball, the song was very out of place.

Invitation Dinah included some new material, a longer conversation between the girls, with Dinah saying “I can’t manage on my own” - again, this is not the Dinah we saw in act 1. The line “But if Greaseball changes his mind!” is in there. Tassita and Belle have very little to do - no Girls Rolling Stock - but whereas in the past the coaches only had “Oh, Dinah!” to express their frustration, this gives them a little dialogue.

Caboose’s scenes in the middle of act 2 almost had me vocalising my frustration! This scene is one of my biggest problems in the current show AND IT HAS NOT BEEN CHANGED!

First, Caboose tells Greaseball that Rusty is fast, and they plot as in the US Tour with Greaseball’s “Ohh that’s nasty, I like it!”. This conversation also gives us the existing line “Just cos I smile all the time, don’t mean I’m not into crime”. This is not news, this is not a reveal, and this Caboose has only been smiling in an evil, mean way. There’s been no pretense at Caboose being helpful or sweet, he’s been flat-out nasty from the beginning.

Then we have the Disco-tastic 1984 version of “Wide Smile” which repeated the “Just cos I smile all the time, don’t mean I’m not into crime” line, and included “Under the smiles, under the fun I’m public enemy number 1” - again, there’s not been any fun or smiles from this Caboose! Also they use the full 1984 “CB” lyrics including the CB radio references which were cut for the Broadway show in 1987 as too obscure!

Patrick Sullivan’s performance was extraordinary, hitting those falsetto notes, amazing energy and rhythm, a really enjoyable number. I don’t know if I should read significance into Electra not joining in the backing for the number, but it was only the components.

The problem is though this scene is a MASSIVE plot point. It should be the moment we learn that Caboose is a cheating back-stabbing bastard, but this has already been established. Also, there is a logical gap in this number - with Electra well aware of Caboose’s enjoyment of double-crossing, why on earth does Electra then choose Caboose as a race partner for the downhill final? Especially when surrounded by his components, any of which would be a suitable race partner. The simple solution, which I was hoping this workshop would consider, would be for Electra to be removed from this scene. Simply continue the song on from Caboose’s conversation with Greaseball, have Greaseball’s gang as the backing dancers rather than Electra’s components. Then, Electra is unaware of Caboose’s scheme, his choice of race partner makes sense. This would also remove a flabby feeling repeat of the material as different versions have been grafted together.

Race 3 - the Uphill Final - begins with Control announcing Greaseball and Pearl, Electra and Dinah, and Rusty and Caboose. This race has not had the extra “No Comeback” repetitions, but rather the normal spoken lines from each Engine including Rusty’s “Let’s hear it for Steam!”

No explanation is given as to how there are only three engines, since Control earlier quoted the 1992 London instructions “There are two heats, two qualifiers from each heat”. So what happened to the 2nd qualifier from Heat 2? Why did only Momma come through from that race?

Well, I can tell you why, it’s because Control’s lines are taken from the 1992 London, but the races are taken from the 2003 US Tour with the pre-recorded 3D races. Because the tour ran with only 4 Nationals including the British train, the races were run on the logic of two heats, and the winner from each would compete in the final, which should have consisted of two engines. But since Electra and Greaseball tied, they both went through to give us 3 engines in the final. But this story telling has been overlooked in this workshop.

The race was staged with Caboose literally picking up Rusty to make it clear he wasn’t going anywhere! The race music also included the inverted race melody, the descending phrase as used in Germany which always jars when used to the London versions. The Race music did include the “Wide Smile” motif. Rusty was thrown to the floor, injured, as Control shouts “Race Cancelled! Who did it? I didn’t do anything!” - again the 1992 London script.

The 1992 London show was the production which cut Caboose - which is particularly relevant in this part of the show, as without Caboose driving the story, the London show included material to patch over the holes. This material was then drafted into the UK Tour in 2004, to cover gaps where some of the David Yazbek contributions were removed, I believe. However the result is that there are two separate scenes which cover the same actions.

Firstly, the Caboose version is that Caboose has crashed Rusty. The original London staging in 1984 was one of the weaker points of the show, where a fairly illogical staging required all the racers to make it onto the bridge to be carried to the top level, mid-race. CB slowed Rusty to the point he missed the connection and the race was then cancelled due, I believe, to the fighting between Greaseball and Electra. This had Rusty challenge Greaseball with “That CB he never took off the brakes”, which is when Pearl realised that Greaseball and CB were in cahoots. The original version didn’t have Rusty injured apart from his pride, but gave us CB’s insane “10, 10 never again you’re no engine!”. CB’s gloating and insane pleasure at the damage he has caused is an essential part of his character arc. The German staging had Rusty crash and tumble down the bowl to land in a heap centre stage, where Greaseball and Pearl came by, with Pearl saying “I’ll go tell the Marshalls!” then as Greaseball pulls her away, she begins to realise she’s made mistakes.

Secondly, the No Caboose version, the London 1992 version, has to find another reason for Rusty to be out of the race. The Uphill final is cancelled by Control when it’s devolved into a fist fight on the bridge, Control didn’t see what happened so Greaseball and Electra jump on the chance to blame Rusty - “Rusty did it, he caused the wreck!” Greaseball then confesses “Shut it, I did it, he was good, he was fast” - without Caboose in the show, this comes as a surprise. The Marshalls have been wordlessly clearing everything up, Rusty then comes back to Greaseball with “They (the marshalls) say - “ “what do they say?” Greaseball then sics his gang on Rusty, to “make sure it won’t happen again”. The Gang then beat up Rusty (to the melody of “Wide Smile”) in order to bring him to the same, injured and dejected state, as if Caboose had been there.

These two separate scenes have been smashed together since the US Tour in 2003 gave the show major re-writes, and the story being told is flabby and confusing. If Rusty has been wrecked by Caboose, is already on his knees and his confidence destroyed, why do the gang need to beat him up directly? Unless the staging includes Marshalls directing the clean-up, who is Rusty talking about with “They say”? If Caboose is there, then how does the line “You told the Marshalls I drove into you!” make any sense?

The Workshop gives us the current version of this scene, with the 1992 London version of the show, including Greaseball and gang beating up Rusty. Then Pearl wanders in, sees Rusty wrecked on the floor, and realises things are going bad “This wasn’t how I wanted it, this wasn’t what I saw” (what had you seen, Pearl? We no longer have He Whistled At Me to specify her dreams and ambitions) Flat-top has his sympathetic line “Give it up Rusty, you’ll never beat them”, and Caboose has just left. Then we have a reprise of “Crazy” at a slow, reflective pace, as the badly injured Rusty picks himself up. This reflects back to Rusty’s naive hopeful attitude at the start of the show, contrasting his previous optimism with his sad current state. Then we hear the “Call Me Rusty” refrain on the mouth organ as standard. This reflects back to Rusty’s naive hopeful attitude at the start of the show, contrasting his previous optimism with his sad current state. Yes, the concept of Rusty’s confident introductory number being reprised in a slow, sad tone is exactly repeated in this scene.

Where we’d expect Right Place, Right Time, we have the Hoppers wander in and paraphrase the opening lines of the number, without any particular motivation for their presence, but the full number is omitted. This scene feels like it might be a compromise as the work in progress nature of the workshop, where this is a place-holder for a new version of the full number for the Hip Hoppers.

Rusty, alone and dejected, runs into the Starlight Sequence as normal, reflecting on how he’s “down and out”. The Starlight Sequence is always magnificent, but it was slightly soured after Control’s “Stop that Boring music!” comment during the overture, which is of course a preview of this scene. Mica Paris as Momma wasn’t quite comfortable with the vocal range of the song but at some moments opened up sounded glorious. There were also some slight lyric paraphrases such as “The Starlight Express is no more or less, I’m you, Rusty”, which doesn’t quite make sense, but I suspect was simply the nature of the workshop rather than a deliberate change. George Ure’s performance was stunning and so emotional, he really carried us on Rusty’s journey.

The Rusty and Dustin scene has some new music, using the same melody as Rusty’s monologue prior to the Starlight Sequence, the melody most characterised as the Coaches’ verse in “Call Me Rusty”. It’s a minor key, the music always suggests concern, worry, lack of confidence, so to use it for this scene felt off. The standard score uses “Belle’s Song” at this point, as that melody is connected with the Freight and Dustin as well as Belle.

Dinah’s Disco is re-worked to be a reprise of “I Got Me” which works well in this context. If “I Got Me” were moved from act 1 to replace “Girls’ Rolling Stock”, following “UNCOUPLED”, this reprise would work perfectly. Electra calls CB to his side with the “AC/DC” melody, the 7/4 time makes the short scene feel a bit awkward, but replacing the “Nobody Can Do It Like a Steam Train” melody makes sense when all references to “He Whistled At Me” have been cut. Electra and CB bargain for the price of CB’s help.

Control introduces the re-run of the Final Race, on the Downhill course. Again the score being used is snipped from the 2003 US Tour - the pre-race 4 has two versions, the original staging called for three finalists, the Broadway and later used four finalists. The beautiful, complex layered music was originally written for the six racers, then altered for eight. But then the US Tour version cut it back to six, rather than referring to the original score, the two vocal lines are simply left out leaving a gap in the music. Specifically the 1992 score had Bobo singing “Le jour du gloire est arrivé” (please pardon my french!) with Ashley singing “Gonna be hot, hotter than hot”. The alternative for that vocal part has Caboose singing “Just for me, I’m in this just for me” (or “Nur fuer Mich” in the German score) - but the workshop uses the Tour version which simply skips this vocal line. Once part that point the complex harmonies were gorgeously performed. While I love the “Rusty’s gonna race in the Final” moment in this number, it harks back so strongly to the original version of the Rap.

The Downhill Final was performed with a very witty side-comment from Control about “Sorry about the lights, use your imagination!” The race music was very much the 1984 original which was gorgeous! Control’s narration tells us the story, including Pearl being disconnected, and Rusty saves her - at which point the Crazy melody was incorporated in the race music, with the ensemble singing “Come on Rusty”. Immediately on winning, Rusty leaves with “I must find Pearl”, as usual.

One Rock’n’Roll Too Many was staged almost exactly as usual - in fact all that was missing was the kneepads! Contextually this was played the same as UK Tour / Germany, not like the 1992 London, which seems a shame. The only major difference (apart from the presence of Caboose) is that in London, the ensemble stayed onstage and witnessed the massive fall from grace of the major players in the game. I appreciate that practically, in staging the show, I am sure the ensemble are grateful for a couple of minutes backstage, but the story telling of including them as witnesses is important. Plus it gives the ensemble characters more time to establish their personalities. There’s no logical reason all the characters leave before the number, and come back at the end. Momma was struggling with the vocal range for the “Where’s Rusty gone?” section.

Pearl is introduced with the electric guitar playing the “He Whistled At Me” melody, but since neither version of her song appeared at the start of the show, her reprise that was the introduction to “I Do” has been cut. Which is super frustrating, because that little reprise was the only good addition with this dreadful song!

“I Do” is untouched, it’s still abysmal, with clunky, random, meaningless lyrics, poor melodic construction, long and repetitive. The lyrics scan very poorly to the music (“you think that noboDY would love you”), and the vocal ranges are very hard to sing, it’s fortunate the cast are so strong! They are genuinely adorable and you’re so happy that they’ve found each other, despite the music.

I have to admit, however, that with the changes to Pearl’s character, that she is given more time to think, the lyrics are not as contradictory as previously. It feels like Pearl, and to an extent Rusty, have been ret-conned to fit this song!

I am genuinely astonished that this song has been kept, I thought the one thing this workshop would be sure to give us was an improvement on the love song. It’s such a shame to have lost “Only He” - in any of its many variations - as the love song being a reprise of one half of the Starlight Sequence is an enormously important part of the story telling. The “Only You” melody speaks of discovery, completion, it’s the answer to the question, where the “Starlight Express” melody is the question.

Following “I Do”, Rusty and Pearl sing a reprise of “I Got Me”, and the “Well Done Rusty, King of the Track” is now set to the same melody, which is slowed, and jars with the dissonance. Then the reprise of the “Starlight Express” melody is as you’d expect, into Dinah’s “Greaseball you’re hurt!” - beautifully performed, and there isn’t the jarring sense of “No, honey, don’t go back to your abusive ex!” - which is possibly more of a negative statement since Dinah’s character is so inconsistent. Oliver Tompsett does have the most magnificent puppy-eyes pleading expression though, making it hard to resist forgiving his character!

Leading into Light at the end of the Tunnel, Mica Paris was again having difficulty singing the role written for a baritone! I had a moment of cognitive dissonance, given how there had been strong throw-backs to the 1984 version of the show, for the one line that was originally sung by Soul Queen PP Arnold as Belle, “The man who watched the pot and said, hey I got…” - for one moment being sung by Soul Queen Mica Paris! The final number bounced along, full of joy and energy as ever, with no changes from the norm. No megamix, just a play-out from the fantastic band.

#stexworkshop #starlight express #Scene by Scene analysis

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marastriker · 3 years

Note

I know you love Electraboose, so what abt all of the otp questions for them?

OH BOY MY LOVES

1) What's their love language?

Electra shows how much he loves/cares about someone through gift giving. He doesn't know how to express his feelings in any other way, so he hopes that the other person will understand the thought and effort he puts behind the gifts he gives. But Electra does prefer others to show him they love him through quality time spent together. He and CB hang out all the time, even before they started dating, so that's never something he has to beg for.

CB however, shows others he loves them with little handmade trinkets, drawings, etc. He's a "I found this thing that reminded me of you, so here!" He loves Electra showing him that he loves him with physical affection. The boy is touch starved.

2) Who confesses first?

Electra, for sure. He can't hold back his feelings (or urge to fuck CB) for much longer. He confesses, at the expense of short circuiting because he cannot handle the Big Emotion™

3) Who plans the dates?

Electra, since he has tons of ideas on places to take CB. Unfortunately, a lot of these places are high class and fancy, so Electra has to give CB a crash course in professional behaviorism. Regardless, Electra still takes him to fancy restaurants, galas, dancing, etc. Electra secretly loves seeing CB all dressed up and fancy. Even if CB can be less than enthused at the change of environment.

There are a few times where CB invites Lex out to small, simple dates like scouring a Walmart late at night or watching the sunrise/sunset. He takes small pleasures at the simpler things in life.

4) Who's the better driver.

CB, and let me tell you why. He has to be very meticulous and calculating to pull off all the crashes he has. He knows his way around the controls a lot better than your standard engine. Greaseball is just focused on going fast and Electra, while being a bit smarter about it, still relies on others to do the work for him. CB is the master of control. The tiny details.

5) Who likes to be the little spoon?

Both of them, and yes, they will fight over it. Electra likes to be held just as much, but CB just ends up being a little jetpack. CB will whine and complain until Electra agrees to be the big spoon though.

6) What's their stance on PDA?

Electra has absolutely no problem feeling up CB at any and all moments of the day. CB secretly enjoys it, but knows that it can be distracting. He will partake in PDA as well, but he's definitely not as smooth about it.

7) Who shows affection through words?

Neither of them are particularly good with words, but Electra makes a huge effort to get better about it. He practices what he's going to say in the mirror. CB wishes he could try as hard but can never find anything as eloquent as Electra to say.

8) Who shows affection through touch?

Both of them. Touch is very easy for them. They practically can't keep their hands off each other.

9) How do they like to initiate intimacy?

Electra doesn't even have to say a word, he just knows exactly where to touch CB for him to know he wants to get intimate. While Electra is smooth and sultry, CB is a jokester. He will pose stupidly and make the dumbest jokes (a la "draw me like one of your French girls"). Either that, or he'll make random pouty noises. Electra knows what it means and is more than happy to satisfy.

10) Do they have a dream wedding venue?

Electra does, for damn sure. Electra would do most of the planning for any sort of wedding related stuff. It's not that CB isn't interested in helping, he just never thought that he would get married and has no idea how to go about it. All he can genuinely offer is, "I like these colors."

11) How do they comfort each other?

CB swears Electra's kisses could cure cancer. Whenever CB is feeling upset, Electra's embrace and kisses seem to help melt all his troubles away. CB is just really good at cheering Electra up with jokes that make him forget about his problems.

12) What's an ideal evening for them?

They're honestly just happy to be spending time with each other, but Electra has a tendency to like more relaxing evenings like a bubble bath with champagne and yoga. CB wants Electra to play video games or watch a movie with him.

13) Who's the most playful in bed?

They're both rather playful, but CB definitely has more energy for being hyper about it.

14) Who shows affection through gift giving?

As mentioned above, Electra.

15) Who's the first one up in the morning?

Probably Electra, only because they go to sleep at a reasonable time. CB has a lot more trouble sleeping, and therefore more trouble getting up early.

16) Were they friends before they were lovers?

For sure, but not for a long amount of time since Electra might have exploded if he didn't tell CB about his feelings.

17) Who is the better singer.

Not that either of them are bad, but Electra is particularly good. They have that soul 🎵

18) Who has the best jokes?

CB, of course! What's a clown without jokes? He's very clever, witty, and funny and Electra can't get over just how much CB makes him laugh.

19) Who's the better cook?

CB isn't allowed near the appliances and can only make simple stuff and Electra definitely isn't great at first, but comes to be an okay cook. Dinah still outshines them both, though.

20) What's their stance on having kids?

Electra has always dreamed of having little mini mes and doesn't have any compunctions about having kids. CB never thought it would be a possibility and probably thought he'd make a terrible parent. Electra helps him warm up to the idea, even suggesting they have another caboose first so it'll be easier on him. Her name is Rose and she is hot pink.

Thank you so much for the ask lol

#starlight express #stex cb #cb stex #cb starlight express #starlight express cb #cb the red caboose #electra stex #stex electra #electra starlight express #electra the electric engine #electraboose

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sweet-dining-car · 3 years

Text

Electra: *quietly crying in a corner*

Greaseball: *drinking a cup of coffee, shaking*

Pearl: "Were back from brunch!"

Dinah: "What happened?"

Rusty: "As soon as you guys left, crying nonstop"

C.B: "I don't hear any of the trainlets crying..."

Greaseball: "No not the trainlets, he means Electra"

Electra: "I can't take care of trainlets!"

Dinah: "I only see 4 trainlets in the other room."

Greaseball, Electra, Rusty: "......"

Electra: "Livewire!"

(I used @the-rum-tum-hatter's oc, i hope thats ok)

#starlight express #stex #Stex incorrect quotes #Dinah and Greaseball have 3 kids #And Pearl and Rusty have 1 #Electra and Caboose have more than 1 but I haven't introduced them yet #Caboose Dinah and Pearl go to brunch together #Greaseball Electra and Rusty watch the kids #correction #Try to watch the kids

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the-bafflement-of-scotland-yard · 3 years

Note

Okay okay about the ship asks now you gotta do all of them for electraboose 😈

YESSSSSS THANK YOU

PRE-RELATIONSHIP

1. How did they first meet?

At the championship, when Electra dramatically entered lmao

2. What was their first impression of each other?

C.B. was intrigued by the objectively gorgeous superstar. Electra just thought Wow, that dude really stands out with that colour.

3. Did any of their friends or family want them to get together?

The Components were a little hesitant at first to see Electra spending time with a known criminal, but when they saw the positive effect he had on Electra they were quick to ship them. When Dinah finally found out she was all for it, and well she was of course the one to push them to confess so...

4. Who felt romantic feelings first?

Hard to say, they both caught it gradually and simultaneously.

5. Did either of them try to resist their feelings?

Both of them. So much. C.B. couldn't believe that a superstar like Electra would ever be interested in him like that, and Electra was already so happy to finally have a friend that they didn't want to ruin it. I wrote like five stories about that you should know by now sdklfjhsdkjfsdh

6. If you had told one of them that the other would be their soulmate, what would they think?

C.B. would dismiss it but secretly be feeling hopeful. Electra would be confused because they don't know what a soulmate is.

7. What would their lives be like if they had never met?

Bad. C.B. would continue his solitary quest for autonomy, and Electra would spiral into depression at constantly feeling misgendered.

GENERAL

1. Who initiated the relationship, and how did it go?

Dinah did lol. Although technically between the two of them Electra was the first to confess, albeit because they literally had no other choice. And technically C.B. was the one who made it official.

2. Did they have an official first date? If so, what was it like?

They did, and that's all I'm gonna say for now! The story after the next one will cover it ;-)

3. What was their first kiss like?

Soft and sweet. It was an emotionally confusing moment and they didn't have much time, so it was mostly hugging with their lips pressed together.

4. Were they each other’s first anything (kiss, relationship, etc.)?

Kiss: no. Relationship: yes. Etc.: you will just have to wait and see!

5. What’s their height difference? Age difference?

Height difference: a lot, Electra's easily 30cm taller than C.B. They don't really have set ages, but Electra has been manufactured much more recently than C.B.

6. What’s their relationship with each other’s families?

"families" being taken in a broad sense here The Components like C.B., he's very spontaneous and cheeky and he clearly adores Electra, who in turn is obviously happy with him. The freight is rather intimidated by Electra, but Dinah likes them for similar reasons as why the Components like C.B.: they make him happy.

7. Who takes the lead in social situations?

C.B. does. He has little shame and enough social skills to have had the entire railyard fooled about his character for years. Electra doesn't really know how to act towards others other than flirty or disdainful.

8. Who gets jealous easier?

Surprisingly, Electra. They're used to getting their way and having everything set right for them, so when they see C.B. having fun with Dinah they aren't equipped to handle the weirdly possessive feeling that arises.

9. Who whispers inappropriate things in the other’s ear?

C.B. lmao, like there could be any question about that. Electra does too, but C.B. is much better at making them flustered while maintaining his pokerface.

LOVE

1. Who said “I love you” first?

Surprisingly, Electra. You will find out more later ;-) #shamelesslypromoting

2. What are their primary love languages?

C.B.: physical touch, acts of service. Electra: physical touch, quality time. They match pretty well in this regard.

3. Who uses cheesy pick-up lines?

C.B. does. He's a master. Electra has already heard a lot of pick-up lines, having been hit on all the time, so he simply invents new ones.

4. How often do they cuddle/engage in PDA?

ALL. THE. TIME. Both of them can't keep their hands off each other; Electra is possessive in public and C.B. is a little shit, they will violently french each other right in front of Greaseball (his uncomfortable spluttering will only spur them on, they have no shame).

5. Who initiates kisses?

Both, but C.B. a little more. He'll look up at Electra with those big puppy eyes and trembling lip and if that doesn't work he'll just literally climb them cause otherwise he can't reach, he tiny.

6. Who’s the big and little spoon?

The few times they tried spooning C.B. was the big spoon and Electra the little, but the height difference made this a rather unworkable arrangement. Neither of them is comfortable with the other way around, though, so they usually sleep entangled.

7. What are their favourite things to do together?

C.B. loves taking Electra along on his regular chaos runs, where he tries to piss off the diesels and Control as much as possible. Electra loves being taken along by C.B., but also to just simply sit together, having him do their hair or running their hands through his.

8. Who’s better at comforting the other?

C.B. is. In general he's a much more comforting presence than drama queen Electra, and of course he's gotten a lot more practice with them than the other way around. Though to be fair, Electra's problems are usually superficial and easy to cure so their dramatic bouts can quite easily be soothed, whereas C.B. tends to keep things inside so it's much more difficult to find the underlying problem with him, and when he is upset, he has reason to.

9. Who’s more protective?

Electra. They've been protected all their life, it's pretty much the only way of affection they know. C.B. will jump to Electra's rescue, but he can more easily step back when he knows they can handle it themself.

10. Do they prefer verbal or physical affection?

Physical, both of them. Though especially C.B. will melt from compliments as well, he's not used to that.

11. What are some songs pieces that apply to their relationship, in-universe or otherwise?

Oh dear, this is never my best part For some reason Le Coq D'Or by Nikolaj Rimsky-Korsakov comes to mind, specifically the suite, because it's so wild and varying and new. As for a pop song I randomly thought of Into The Unknown by Idina Menzel (from Frozen II) because... yeah.

12. What kind of nicknames do they call each other?

C.B. calls Electra superstar, Electra calls him little criminal. They mostly just use each other's names, though.

13. Who remembers the little things?

C.B. does. Lil thing has an insanely good memory and he got so good at crashing because he pays attention to details. It drives Electra mad sometimes, they can never one-up him no matter what they try.

DOMESTIC LIFE

1. If they get married, who proposes?

They're not getting married cause marriage isn't a thing in my universe, but if they would, C.B. would propose. Electra would want to be swept off their wheels.

2. What’s the wedding like? Who attends?

If C.B. had his way they would elope, but Electra would get their way and it would be grand, with the entire railway and all their racing colleagues and the paparazzi and everything attending.

3. How many kids do they have, if any? What are they like?

Kids also don't exist in my universe, but even if they would neither of them would want any. They're both completely unfit as parents and much happier having it be just the two of them anyway.

4. Do they have any pets?

Pets are also a human concept that I won't use, but hypothetically: C.B. would have a chicken. And it would either be super mean to anyone except him, or be the dumbest thing in existence.

5. Who’s the stricter parent?

N.A.

6. Who worries the most?

C.B. worries most about Electra. Electra worries most about Electra as well.

7. Who kills the bugs in the house?

C.B. lmao, is that even a question? Electra freaks out at one tiny ant on the floor, C.B. could fall into Aragog's nest and be chill about it, lil maniac has nerves of steel.

8. How do they celebrate holidays?

Together. And probably with the Components.

9. Who’s more likely to convince the other to come back to sleep in the morning?

They both try, but C.B. is more effective. Electra doesn't function that well in the morning anyway.

10. Who’s the better cook?

C.B. of course, Electra has never touched a stove in their life and he has always had to take care of himself. He's actually objectively pretty good (perks of being best friends with Dinah), but he rarely goes all out, when he cooks for himself he usually just stays with a fried egg and some lettuce or something.

11. Who likes to dance?

Both of them. The height difference makes it a challenge, but it also has its perks.

#thanks for asking! 🖤🖤🖤#starlight express #stex #electraboose #electra my beloved #c.b.#dinah #greaseball

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marastriker · 3 years

Note

The red caboose for the ask game?

I didn't know which number you wanted so I just did them all 🤷

1) CB doesn't necessarily see anything about himself to be proud of. He's content with his acting ability and being able to keep his lifestyle of crashing trains under the wraps so well. But it's not something he would brag about to others, unless, of course, they attempted to undermine him.

2) At first, he really wants to please Greaseball when the diesel is paying him to rig races in his favor (not always with money. Sometimes with sexual favors.) He thinks that, perhaps, if he can get Greaseball to reigning champion, GB would maybe give him more of the time of day. Maybe see him as more than just a tool. It's a foolish endeavor, of course, since Greaseball has eyes for a certain dining car instead. CB can't bring himself to be angry or resentful, because Dinah is his best friend and she also genuinely likes him. He just feels like a forgotten third wheel. I think he finds new purpose in helping Electra rather than Greaseball, though. And even if Electra treats him as more of an equal, he still doesn't want to let them down.

3) I guess the funny thing about being the token errand boy is that many engines depend on him. It gives him a feeling of power that he knows he can't misuse, but he does have his own fun in knowing that he could ruin everything at the drop of a pin if he wanted to.

4) Come to terms with it. Very quickly. He would actually probably shut himself away from the world and wait for it to happen, or maybe try to accelerate the process. If Electra was in his life at this point, they would probably encourage CB to live life to the fullest in the meantime. It would take a lot of convincing though.

5) His Chessie System sticker/tattoo (I see them as tattoos, personally). His mother was an original Chessie yellow caboose and it reminds him of her.

6) CB has gotten so used to being on his own for so long, but he'd be lying to himself if he didn't wish his parents were still alive. Things could have turned out so differently.

7) Electra or Dinah. They're the ones he's closest to.

8) If CB had the money, he would dish it out on a fancy red convertible. But he's just fine rolling himself where he needs to get, or if not, public transportation is just fine.

9) Someone playing with his hair, massaging/scratching his scalp. It's like a damn reset button, it immediately puts him at bay. He only trusts a select few with this information though.

10) He simply lives with it. End of story. He never wants to be seen as weak or vulnerable to anyone and has learned to bottle up all his problems so no one will know just how broken he really is.

11) His neckerchief is especially important to him. It was the last piece of his old baby blanket, and he still likes to keep it close. It's a comfort thing.

12) How doesn't he sleep? He moves around so much that he's fallen off the bed multiple times in his sleep. It doesn't wake him up, because he is a very heavy sleeper. But he needs to be a special kind of tired to stay still during sleep.

13) Someone who would vow to make sure nothing would ever get in the way of them having a normal childhood. He's not going to make them go through the same bullshit he did, no one deserves that.

14) CB was one of those students who didn't do any of the homework and goofed off in class (typical class clown, of course.) But he would ace the tests, quizzes. Teachers thought he was just cheating, and asked him questions out of the blue during class. All of which he got correct. He's not stupid, by any means, in fact he's a genius. He just doesn't feel the need to do homework over stuff he already knows.

15) Something crisp and clean once he can afford it. Perhaps he might also use body sprays traditionally marketed toward women, but he likes the fruity scents.

16) It's actually quite confusing, after trying to date Dinah, he assumed he was gay after not being as attracted to her sexually. Sexual stuff with other men turned out to be much more enjoyable. But in actuality, he's probably Pan, since he doesn't mind Electra being genderfluid.

17) I have this idea that he's actually really into Disney movies so I imagine him and Dinah would have fun doing some Disney duets. Love is an Open Door, A Whole New World, etc. But in the way that Sharpay and Ryan always played the romantic leads in High School Musical - just because they're comfy with each other, not because they're in love.

18) He's a very bendy lad. He has some mad contortionist/acrobatic skills that he casually shows off. Totally didn't think it was special or interesting until others pointed it out though. He's just like what? You can't put your leg behind your head?

19) CB is someone who despite being able to hold his own and take care of himself, desperately wants someone to be there for him. That's why he feels safest with Electra. Electra is someone who thankfully sees him for who he really is and fiercely loves him despite his flaws.

20) Washing dishes. He hates touching wet food, it's a sensory issue. That might be one of the only things that could get him to easily vomit.

21) The first Christmas he could remember when his parents were still alive was when he got his first kid's radio set. It really fueled his love for radio communication and he appreciated it greatly since he knew his family was always tight on money. He can clearly remember the happy look on his mom's face when he opened the present.

22) Foolishly. He will pour hundreds into his hobbies and interests but not on stuff he actually needs to survive like food. Or even proper bed sheets. He thinks it's completely justified, because he thinks life isn't worth it if you can't do something you enjoy.

23) Don't get me wrong, CB is very much a lightweight, but he likes his blackout nasty liquor. He will do shots of basically anything you give him. Though if he had a choice of drink, it would be a fruity concoction that's sure to get him wasted ASAP.

24) He's always longed to rise above his station. Racing is something he truly enjoys and wishes he could be an engine like Greaseball or Electra. Unfortunately, that's just something that's not possible. Crashing trains aside, he loves the feeling of the wind in his hair as he's speeding down the track. It's when he feels the most free.

25) Others would probably prefer that he didn't crash trains, but it's not like he cares. That's not something that's worth changing about himself in his mind. He wonders if people actually got to know the real him they would understand what he wants out of life better. But it's always difficult for him to trust someone enough to be that vulnerable with.

#starlight express #stex cb #cb stex #cb starlight express #starlight express cb #cb the red caboose

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