[INTRO — DARK ROYAL WALTZ]
[Low piano, ominous cello, delicate music-box motif; mature female alto, restrained and icy]
The doors are shut.
The horses gone.
The little fool has carried on.
My daughter, raised in silk and splendor,
Has chosen mud and some pretender!
I gave her every golden stair,
And she has thrown it to the air.
A crown, a name, a future bright—
For a common man and a cottage night!
[VERSE 1 — WALTZ GROWS QUICKER]
[Playful woodwinds, sharp pizzicato strings, increasingly agitated phrasing]
Who does she think she is?
A princess playing peasant!
Trading diamonds for a kiss,
As though disgrace were pleasant!
Does he have land? Does he have gold?
A family name worth being told?
Can love put silver on the shelf?
Can kisses feed you by themselves?
Oh, how romantic! How divine!
A little house, a little vine!
Let her discover, let her see,
What poverty does to fantasy!
[VERSE 2 — ORCHESTRAL COUNTERPOINT]
[Rapid piano, restless strings, dramatic brass; precise, rhythmically intricate vocals]
I taught her how to hold her head,
To know the words a queen must say.
I planned the gowns, the vows, the bed—
And she has thrown the script away!
A royal wedding, pearls and lace,
The finest blood, the finest face.
Instead, she runs into the night
And calls this foolishness her right!
She thinks that love is something pure,
A little flame that will endure.
But every flame can lose its air.
Every heart has seams to tear.
[BRIDGE — THE WOUND BENEATH THE PRIDE]
[Sudden drop to solo piano and low strings; voice becomes quiet and dangerously controlled]
I carried her before the throne.
I swore she'd never stand alone.
And now she leaves me here to face
The laughter hiding in this place.
They'll whisper when I pass them by.
They'll watch me smile and wonder why.
A queen can bear a thousand things—
But not the shame her daughter brings.
[FINAL MOVEMENT — A THOUGHT IN THE DARK]
[Minor-key strings return; a haunting flute motif emerges beneath the voice]
Wait...
There was a woman once I knew,
Who dealt in dreams that could come true.
A clever hand, a velvet tongue,
A thousand spells for old and young.
Perhaps I needn't call her back.
Perhaps a little nudge off track...
A chance encounter, a passing face—
And love may find a stranger's place.
[FINAL VAMP — BUILDING ORCHESTRA]
[Low repeated piano figure, layered wordless female harmonies, slow dramatic crescendo]
If love can take my child away,
Then love can learn another way.
A little whisper...
A little flame...
A little stranger
Who knows his name...
*Who does she think she is?*
[Orchestral hit. The music-box motif turns ominous. Sudden silence.]