The King's Players - Discussion/Planning Thread

[Mnemosyne]

Originally Posted by Feanor of the Peredhil

I'm speaking for Lari only because I'm not sure she's done with her epic delayed travels yet, and because I know what she's got in mind since she and I were brainstorming together during our bouts of homelessness last week.

In terms of movie distortions, what we had in mind was in line with your idea of stage show plotlines that don't mesh perfectly with the actual events. So instead of having our 'real life' characters go with movie canon instead of book canon, the idea we had was to throw a few Easter eggs into the plot lines of the performances.

Confused Audience Member 1: "Now, I cannot say I was there for this, and I do not know for sure that my memory means a thing, or anything, and all, but I do not remember the minstrels singin' about m'lady majesty the Queen's father Lord Elrond climbin' up that mountain path with a sword!"

Confused Audience Member 2: "Now I heard m'lord Elrond followed the Fellowship to make sure they did it right, so that don't make no nevermind to me, but what I can't see is this: why ain't Tom Bombadil in the story?"

What we had in mind were passing comments that would get a giggle out of each other and readers, but without descending into movie issues as part of our actual story.

Passing giggle-worthy comments are more than okay, thanks for clarifying.

We had this in mind for the following reason: Eowyn would only appear very [very] briefly during the final performance, basically seated silently in the audience somewhere, not actually doing anything. The only activity she would have would be an extremely brief and poignant (ahem, *snicker*) encounter with my Therian, who might just have reason to change his mind about his opinion on shieldmaidens.

So though Eowyn is, herself, a major character, her role in this game would be a bit part, no more than a post or two between me and Lari near the end.

Of course you may still veto it, since you did say no canon characters, but we were hoping you might let it slide because of how tiny and innocuous the role we had in mind was.

Okay, I wasn't sure if Eowyn was going to have to act as a historical source or something. Of course, if anyone wants to run into her as part of our research (or any of the other canons), and can square the matter away with the fact that she'd probably be a busy, busy woman (and I trust all of you to have that kind of discretion), that's fine... I'd just like to limit the extent to which these are played as characters, if that makes sense.



On Therian: sounds good. I do think that Brinn should have gotten married before she left Dale, though, because--well, maybe they do things different in Dale, but I can't help but think that most people would assume something about a bunch of single ladies travelling with a bunch of single gents. If Brinn's married, then we have someone in the trusted position of looking out for her sister's "virtue."

Anyway, I'll write her bio that way for now, and I'll keep filling in the details as I get more input.

[Mnemosyne]

NAME: Brinn (stage name Celebrindal)

AGE/GENDER/RACE/WHERE FROM: 27, female, Man, Dale

APPEARANCE (very brief physical description/or as detailed as the player wishes to be): Brinn is pretty average size-wise: medium height, tends to the plump side but thins out during peak playing season (see below). Her hair is naturally auburn, but she dyed it black when the troupe first came to Gondor (she thought it would help) and has been known to do so again from time to time. Hazel eyes and a few freckles scattered across her nose.

BITS OF CHARACTER/HISTORY YOU FEEL MIGHT BE HELPFUL IN DEFINING THE CHARACTER
(again, as brief or detailed as you wish):

Personality: Brinn has a quick mind for ideas, planning, and management: the intellectual satisfaction she gets from being with the Players is dealing with the unpredictability of life on the road and its challenges. She is usually common sensical, but every once in a while comes out with a brilliantly stupid idea that she's headstrong enough to think will work even when everyone is trying to persuade her otherwise.

Her emotional satisfaction comes from making other people happy, and she can't rest if she's aware of unresolved conflicts among the Players--especially if it's going to start bleeding into their work.

When under stress, Brinn tends to pinch the bridge of her nose... a lot... and if it's an ongoing situation in need of resolution, she forgets to eat in her efforts to get everything worked out. She's gotten burned out a couple of times over the years and forced to sit down and be coddled by her family.

Brinn is somewhat clumsy, enough for her to be afraid of messing things up if she makes her way onto a fully decorated set. She has acted before and will do so in a pinch, but most of the time she gets props ready, helps with quick costume changes, etc.

She is possessed of one fiddle, which has been known to entertain the crowds through a squeaky intermission. Playing it is one of the few times that Brinn can lose herself to abstraction.

History: Brinn's father was a mechanical toymaker in Dale--one of the best. When he was commissioned to make the new mechanical dragon for the Feast of the Dragon* in Dale, she had an idea for something to do with the old one...

Talking with her friends and betrothed, many of whom were involved with the theatrical part of the festival, she devised a way to take the annual performance on the road and entertain the surrounding countryside. When the scheme actually looked pretty watertight, her father let her have the old dragon. Together, the soon-to-be-Players pooled together enough money to buy two travelling wagons and draft animals. A few more people were necessary for the scheme to be watertight.

After her father would not allow her more mechanically-minded sister to go with them, Brinn convinced Asta to join them anyway. This has led to tense situations whenever the troupe returns to Dale. Additionally, since many of the Players were better at playing one sort of role than another (whether they perceived themselves as such or not), she decided to see if she could recruit the more versatile Therian and was pleasantly surprised when he joined up. The group set out after Brinn and her fiance were married.

Since then, Brinn has travelled with the Players and considers them her family (though she may have one or two young ones of her own at this point). When they decided they were going to head to Gondor, she was the one to get a hold of a map and figure out which places were well off enough to give them money if they performed. She also helped settle a tricky dispute with the older and better-known Swan Players of Dol Amroth over their theatrical circuit. While in Gondor, Brinn took on the stage name Celebrindal, and this is usually how she introduces herself to Gondorian strangers, because it sounds more impressive.

*tentative title