13294/The Count of Monte Cristo: Costume Fitting

The Count of Monte Cristo: Costume Fitting
Date of Scene:	15 January 2023
Location:	Gotham Cable Studios
Synopsis:	Early Bird Noriko doesn't catch the worm but she does leave a hamburger! Nick 'Edmond' Drago and Ariah 'Mercedes' Olivie meet for the second time in months and holy water under the bridge doesn't keep them from vowing to make a memorable movie together.
Cast of Characters:	Michael Hannigan, Noriko Ashida, Ariah Olivie
Tinyplot:	The Count of Monte Cristo

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Michael Hannigan has posed:
After a very busy few months, the multi-city production of The Count of Monte Cristo has built up their cast listing. Those who have gained parts or have been put on the backup listing have gotten their notices and now it's time to get to work.

And now for the ever important concern. "I got the part! Oh God. What on earth shall I WEAR?" Fear not. This production has that settled. With the multiple cities involved in the project. There are several posible points of contacts for those who have joined the ranks. And that does mean Costume fittings are taking place at each location.

This particular location is Gotham Cable Studios. In a building adjacent to the cafeteria building. Props, Costumes, and Makeup are managed. Today, this building has been taken over by the Count of Monte Cristo crew with respective rooms earmarked for changing into attire and curtained areas where tailors can make their markings on the assigned outfits where things need to be let out or taken in.

And despite the size of the cast and number of extras, the crowd is a lot smaller than the casting call. For one, those who got called back, were also given time slots in which to drop in to get the costumes fitted. For their sanity, and the sanity of costumers everywhere.

For those who came to Gotham Cable Studios for their audition, they may find a few familiar faces in the building, the first of which would be that lovely receptionist who had handled the sign ins and tickets before. This time around she's-

Well doing the same thing. Only the desk is different and she is presenting less paperwork for those checking in. This time around she's also displayed her name plate: 'Anissa Yates'. It's almost like she was discouraging social banter at the auditions or something. Or trying avoid getting attached to the potential failed auditions.

Noriko Ashida has posed:
Noriko doesn't seem to have a problem making it to the fitting.  She seems to have a problem /staying/.  She's come to check the line and returned at least eight times already, an interval quite noticeable to anyone paying attention.  Someone might have lost her call sheet for the fitting and hasn't bothered to check the times, perhaps.  For some reason though, she keeps retreating to the bathrooms and always comes back from them.

Noriko has already checked in and she emerges from the bathroom clutching a sack of greasy burgers (by the smell of it).  Did no one tell her to read the signs or respect the process here?

"Already-checked-in," the speedster spits out fast in hopes of preempting Anissa from bothering her.  They're going to have to do something about her electric blue hair.

Ariah Olivie has posed:
    Ariah might be somewhat of a special case, given her short stature. Smol woman, big voice, which is always interesting when she's stepping up to the reception desk and speaking in that quiet, chilly tone she's in normally. "...I got a call back..." she starts, and states, looking around. "...I should be on time. I am to be playing mademoiselle Mercedes?" Her accent makes it perfect, that thick French, the right enunciation. Maybe she was born to play this role, and hadn't known it yet.

    Or she just sings real good.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Anissa's eyes dart over to Noriko as she blurts out the response about being checked in. "I'm aware of that," The woman mutters, making a note to look up the blue haired girl's appointment time once the line goes down. There's a deep sigh taken before she looks back over to previously mentioned line.

Despite Ariah's short stature, Anissa's seated position allows for the female lead to tower over the receptionist. Okay, tower is the wrong word, but Anissa does have to look up slightly. The budding frown that was forming is replaced with a smile. The smile is a foreign sight for those who had to interact with her last time but perhaps getting called back was enough to unlock the personable trait?

A brief frown is flashed Noriko's way, in particular to the bag of greasy food before looking back to Ariah. "Oh yes. Miss Olivie." She glances down to pull up a clipboard holding a pink sheet. "If you would be so kind as to write your sign in time next to your name?" A finger slides down to the 'O' surnames, tapping along the first name listed there. "There are a few principal cast members already being fitted but feel free to take that time to get to know a few of your future costars."

Another glance is given towards the blue-haired girl. "I believe she is also in the primary cast. As Valentina, your son's love interest. Either way you'll be called when the next space opens up. And Congratulations."

Noriko Ashida has posed:
Noriko doesn't flit around here out in public, and her presence seems to be punctuated by a series of sighs.  She recognizes Ariah from the auditions where she wandered into auditioning for a role.  "You're Mercedes?" she lifts her chin though she has no need to look over anyone, especially at Ariah.  Though she is at least 10 paces away.

"Psssst.  I think I play your daughter," no.  That's not right at all.  "Oh no.  You're the mother-I don't remember.  I already got fit for like six outfits.  You'd think all they would need to do is take my measurements."  She really has no idea how this works.

"Yeah what she said-What?"  Noriko interrupts herself to belatedly address the /look/ she got from Anissa but doesn't wait for an answer.  "Why someone thought I'd be convincing being interested in a guy is beyond me," she rattles off under her breath.  But it's a job!

Ariah Olivie has posed:
    Ariah takes the time to sign in, giving a polite nod to Anissa. Maybe she's the dream performer. No attitude. No loudness. No hamming it up. She's just there. Punctual. Professsional. Quiet. "Merci," she says quietly, then nods, glancing around. Her head tilts to the side, spotting Noriko, and slowly the small woman approaches the much taller one. That's nine inches of difference in height, and Ariah isn't wearing any kind of platform-y shoes. Nope. She's all casual today, just a coat over a teeshirt and some snug, insulated pants. The little witch doesn't /do/ cold.

    "It would seem that way," she says quietly. "Mother-in-law?" she asks, tilting her head slightly, looking Noriko over for a moment. Then she shrugs, the fur lining of her coat's collar rising with her shoulders. "...it is acting, non? I have no interest in males, myself..." she states matter-of-factly. "...but they asked me to sing. So I will sing."

Michael Hannigan has posed:
"Your character appears midway through the movie dear," Anissa points out, being reasonably close enough to the exchange between the two to overhear. Also with the lull in the line she has time to check on Noriko's fitting appointments, "You were likely fitted for a background character outfit to fill out one of the earlier scenes." A considering glance is given to the hair, "Do not be surprised if you're fitted for two different types of wigs." She skims through the list, taking note of the remaining times. "Miss Ashida, It appears that your next fitting is not for another two hours so if you do want to get out and stretch your legs you could possibly wrangle a tour of the grounds from one of the tram drivers. It's a slow day at most of the buildings so I'm sure Jeffrey is bored enough to jump at the opportunity."

Ariah's comments about not being interested in males gets a nod. "I believe you'll find a number of good actors in this group."

Off to the central fitting area, a red headed woman parts a curtain, gesturing over to one of the dressing rooms. Another woman, wearing a period dress sways in the indicated direction while the redhead moves over to a clothes rack and glances towards the clipboard and then towards the waiting area "Miss Olivie?!"

Noriko Ashida has posed:
"To-be I guess," Noriko says with a shrug.  "I read too many renditions and spinoffs and all the roles got mixed up in my head."  Curiosity killed the cat.  "I've never acted before," she explains quite bluntly.

"I mean aside from that audition, which didn't really come with a manual other than, 'Hey you, sing something.'  Or read something,"  Noriko shrugs, seeming wound up next to Ariah's cool demeanor.  "I'll just have to practice a lot," as if she hasn't already.  "I think I heard you singing from the other room.  You're pretty good...Do you like burgers?"

Noriko half-lifts the bag and gives it a little shake, which happens to be at eye-height for Ariah.  "I can spare one if you want, but I've got to get the rest home quick before they get co-?  Two hours?!"  Noriko checks a plastic watch on her arm.  The arms look plastic, the body looks plastic, and it is see through with plastic gears.  "Okay well I don't have time for a tour.  I've got to get back to Westchester."  Noriko mumbles a little to herself and then whips out one of the burgers, leaving it on the edge of the nearest table.  "Here, if you want it.  If not, that lady could use some carbs," she points to Anissa with her thumb.  "Or maybe Jeff can have it-cool meeting you-I'll see you around!"

Noriko then slips out, walking at a clipped pace and taking almost all of that hole-in-the-wall food with her, which she will indulge in on her run back to her primary job.

Ariah Olivie has posed:
    It's a very marked difference. Not just in height, of course, but attitude. Ariah is ice cold, staring blankly, expression impassive. Just. This tiny little doll of a woman. If. Dolls were ripped. Well, not that anyone can tell underneath her jacket and such. "Many versions, oui," she agrees, and will certainly have to read the script a few more times to make sure she's got down this exact version. Which she has time for, certainly. The query of burger makes her blink, and slowly, her head tilts. She's got her mismatched eyes focused on the bag, and then slowly she looks up at Noriko, confused. "Oui? I like them..." she says quietly.

    Slow, quiet, and... the other girl is. Gone. Ariah canonly blink, and she reaches for the burger to take it. For later. Then her name is called. What a curious time and timing to match. Her head shakes slowly, a soft sigh exhaled, "...oui, that is me.." she states, moving towards the one with the clipboard.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Anissa watches as Noriko runs out quickly. "Well. She does have plenty of energy." She comments, taking a pen to the board to make a notation next to her name.

As Ariah approaches, the redhead looks over to the shorter woman, smiling. Which is short lived as she looks to the burger. "Oh, one moment." With a quick stride, she moves over to the side to grab a cardboard box and a roll of paper towels. She strides over, the clack of heels betraying her height to not be at its truest. "If you would, please put the food in the box and wipe your hands with the paper towel afterwards. It would be a shame to get grease on your costume."

Over at another fitting station the curtain parts slightly, allowing for a Blond man to step out and walk over to the clothes rack. With a turn, he orbits around the ladies to move over to the other side. He gives a glance to Ariah before looking to the redhead. "Mercedes?" He queries. Seeing a nod in response, "Ah. Edmond's almost done." With a quick grab, he tugs out a red, black, and gold trimmed affair. "Ballroom's last."

The redhead smiles, shifting her own hand away from a white dress to instead grab at a rose colored dress.

Ariah Olivie has posed:
    Second-hand burgers are weird. At least it's wrapped. She blinks, though, and looks to the box, and the paper towels, and nods. "It... was not mine. In the first place. Now it is?" she sounds just as perplexed as the other woman /looks/. But she certainly puts the burger in the box, and does a rather thorough job of cleaning her hands off afterwards. "Apologies. Would not wish to damage things..." she states, nodding slowly.

    Looking up at the man and hearing the query, she also nods, then tilts her head at the mention of Edmond. Which, she assumes, is to be /her/ Edmond. Or rather, Mercedes's Edmond. But she turns to focus on her own handler, looking at the red dress. "...I am fond of that color..." she states, now in the process of shrugging off her jacket and inadvertently giving out free tickets to the gun show.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
As the blond walks off with his selections to the curtained area, the redhead holds up the dress against Ariah for a moment before giving a nod. "That is good." She replies, "This will be worn for one of the ballroom scenes. Now let's get you into it and I'll put your recently acquired burger in a safe place while you're getting dressed." Instructions given, the woman leads Ariah over to one of the dressing rooms that contain an actual door. "My name is Kristy by the way." She offers up to eliminate the 'hey you' aspect of the interaction. She opens the door and sets the dress on a hook. "We do have a few shoe options available. What is the highest heel or platform you're comfortable walking around in?"

Ariah Olivie has posed:
    "It is a pleasure, Kristy," the smaller woman states, moving into the offered dressing room. She frowns at the question as she puts her jacket aside and starts to take off her own shoes, as if contemplating them as one would ponder an orb. Then she looks up at the presumably taller woman, "...any. Which would best fit the performance, non?" she offers with a shrug. She doesn't mention her own preternatural agility or physical prowess. Her being a vampire witch is irrelevant to the production, after all. "Merci," she then nods, looking the dress over.

    Once the door is closed, though, she works herself out of her street attire and right into the dress proper. Having been raised by a 'high society' sire, putting on such clothing had become second nature in the last few decades. An acquired skill.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Kristy nods to Ariah's response. "Already in the actor's mindset. Very good. I was informed you might be new to this aspect. I'll grab two options. And there will be chairs available at each of the sets so you won't have to worry about standing on them all day."

With a click of the door, Kristy leaves Ariah to change into her attire. There might be a bit more time allotted to the changing than Ariah needed. Kristy was not privy to Ariah's advantage after all. But eventually there is a gentle knock at the door. "It is Kristy. I have your shoes." Once access is granted, the wardrobe mistress helps on with the shoes, which should provide Ariah a bit more height. "Edmond's shoes are being adjusted so you don't need to compensate entirely on your end." Once the shoes are on, Kristy leans back, looking satisfied. "Alright. Perhaps a test walk to make sure those shoes work?" She moves to her feet to set a hand upon the door.

Ariah Olivie has posed:
    Again, Ariah simply has no issues standing stock still for hours at a time. Her skills and nature may very well be assets in the performing arts circuit. "Come in," the little woman replies at the knock, still making a couple of final adjustments, or maybe just fussing over this or that just so. Then she steps into the shoes and checks how comfortable they are to linger in. "Oui, a test is good. But I think they will work. It is.. not optimal to fight in, but they do for the stage..." she nods. Was she serious?

    Then she starts towards the door, her day clothes in a neatly-folded stack. "Are we to meet the Edmond now? Or is more adjusting necessary?"

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Kristy nods, "I think it would be important to make sure the costumes give the both of you the proper amount of height to be able to look each other in the eyes. Although, you will need to look up still." She opens the door, "Fortunately, this Edmond is not the tallest actor out there so we have room to work with."

The door opens up and Kristie leads Ariah over to the now opened fitting area the blond had emerged from earlier. As Ariah is led over to the waiting blond, there is the creak of another door. A man wearing a deep red dress robe with golden trim emerges from another dressing room. Peeking out from the open robe is black pants and a high collared black vest sporting an intricate red, fractal like, pattern. The face positioned above the collar is a familiar looking one although the tall collar does wonders obscuring the ponytail of the actor.

"Edmond! Over here."

Hearing the character's name, pale blue eyes look over to the awaiting trio. The glance lingers upon Ariah for a few more moments than the others but eventually the man strides over.

The blond man smiles, looking over to Ariah, "Mercedes, this is Edmond. Edmond, this is Mercedes."

The man tilts his head down slightly. It appears the raised heels in Ariah's costume and the lowered heels in his reduced the height difference to about 5 inches.

"Oh that's workable." The blond comments.

The two costumers give small and quiet high five to each other.

Nick smiles to Ariah, offering his hand, "Hello. I'm Nick Drago."

Ariah Olivie has posed:
    "I am used to it," Ariah says, simply understanding that life as a shorter person is an interesting one and has adapted accordingly. She seems to have zero trouble walking in both heels and a dress. She moves a bit stiffly at first, getting used to walking in them after not having worn heels in, well, a while. Then she's looking quite graceful themoment 'Edmond' looks over.

    Of course, Ariah freezes. She stops, stares, and waits for 'Edmond' to approach her. And approach he does. She stares at him as he gets within arm's length and doesn't -quite- recoil at the hand being offered. While the two costumers celebrate quietly, all Ariah can do is stare. Then slowly, she lifts a gloved hand, a lovely contrast of the white over dark skin, meeting with the crimson of the dress.

    "It is you... of all people..." she says softly, frowning. Maybe they'd hashed out what had happened on the beach shortly afterwards, but there's still some... poor feelings there. A kicked puppy takes time to trust again, after all, even if it was an accident. Still, her fingers extend, and she waits to see what Nick does with her hand. "...Ariah."

Michael Hannigan has posed:
True. It did take a moment to register who he was seeing when he came out of the dressing room. But, upon mentally recovering he came over. Judging from the response, Ariah needed a moment as well. The beach incident was likely not a pleasant one for Ariah, but considering the behavior displayed, Nick had been fairly restrained in his corrective response.

But that is neither here nor now.

When she offers her hand back in response, Nick's hand twists slightly allowing for her palm to rest on top of his. His thumb rests upon the top of her hand while he brings the other hand over to cup on top. Gentle, not clenching down at all. He tilts his head forward with a nod before looking to her eyes. "Pleasure. Let's make a good movie together, okay?"

Ariah Olivie has posed:
    Both of them showed remarkable restraint on the beach. More remarkable for Ariah, possibly, due to acting on pure, starved survival instinct. It could have gone a lot worse for all involved. But it didn't. And now they're here again after... months. The wound still stings, though. She's patient, she lets the hand be guided, and Ariah's eerie, mismatched gaze focuses on his.

    "I will endeavor to do my best," she states. "...but please have care in the songs you sing for me..." she then adds. Something about her right now seems surprisingly delicate. Just a girl in a dress, her hand being held. Maybe this is the life that was torn from her decades ago. Maybe this was her natural state before the war.

    A chance to relive a life lost, even briefly.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
The musician gives a nod to Ariah's promise. "And I will give you my best as well." Nick holds the look a little longer before relenting, raising his top hand off of Ariah's to allow her the ability to pull her hand away. "I'm almost done with my fitting but I have some business in the other building. If you're still here afterwards, perhaps you can join me for coffee? I'm sure you have questions."

Ariah Olivie has posed:
    Ariah is warm, regardless of her particular status of 'living'. There's clearly chemistry between the two. Perhaps it'll make for a good performance. Tension always makes for a fun performance. Then she carefully steps back, "Of course, monsieur Edmond," she states and bows her head politely. She turns to Kristy, "Does it look well enough? Are there more to try one?" Back to business, really. She knows there's a line, and she doesn't want to keep the others waiting. What she will wait for, however, is Nick, in case he, too, has questions for her after the fitting.

Michael Hannigan has posed:
Kristy smiles, "I think that takes care of the height issue." She looks over to the blond. "Thank you Neil."

The blond man nods, "You're welcome. Glad we knocked that one out early." Turning his head he looks over to Nick while gesturing to the curtained area, "After you, Count."

Nick nods, before looking to Ariah. "Until later, Mademoiselle Mercedes." Exchange completed, he walks all three steps of the way to his marking area. Neil steps to the opening and yanks the curtain shut.

"Alright, Miss Olivie." Kristy starts up, leading the leading lady back to their own curtain area, "We should probably get started on the rest of those outfits while coffee is still a relevant outing choice for you and Mr. Drago..."