The carriage arrived at the Royal Opera House.
Shaw was the first to get off,
Land, calling out to him from behind, said, "Wait! We need to cut that part."
Shaw was stunned for a moment, then realized,
That part about the mouth of truth should indeed be cut out, otherwise if the leading actress saw it, she would become wary, and we wouldn't be able to create the desired surprise.
The three of them completely revised the script before entering the theater.
Unlike the Lancelot Grand Theater, the Royal Opera House had performances scheduled from the afternoon, so the stagehands were almost working around the clock, either performing or preparing for performances.
Inside the theater, it was chaotic,
Occasionally, there were loud crashes as props or scenery fell heavily to the ground, followed by screams and scolding from the theater manager.
Owen couldn't help but chuckle,
"Seeing them work so hard, I have a sense of pride."
Shaw rolled his eyes at his dear friend and quipped, "What are you proud of? The Lancelot Grand Theater can temporarily dominate the London theaters because of 'Yes! Prime Minister'. But when 'Roman Holiday' hits the stage, you'll be crying."
Indeed, romantic comedies have a broader audience appeal than political satires,
But theater shouldn't only pursue popularity,
Works like 'Yes! Prime Minister', which pioneer a new genre of drama, are destined for the history books, and the Lancelot Grand Theater and all the main actors are proud of it.
So Owen wasn't worried at all,
"No problem, I've already figured it out. As long as I cling to Professor Land's thigh, I'll get fame and fortune."
With that, he subtly winked at Shaw,
"Your drama won't stand a chance~"
Shaw: "You ***! @#￥%..."
One sentence almost made Shaw cough up blood, and his words came out as gibberish.
At that moment, a staff member spotted the three of them,
He first noticed Shaw,
"Mr. Shaw?"
Because Shaw was a frequent visitor to various theaters, most people knew him.
Shaw waved his hand and said, "You go call Jarey over, just tell him that Sir Owen and Lu, who created 'Yes! Prime Minister', are also here."
The staff member widened his eyes in surprise, staring at Land,
After a while, he turned around,
"I'll go right away!"
He dashed towards the stage direction in a flash.
Not long after, a swarm of people rushed towards the three of them,
Simultaneously, they loudly discussed:
"Is it really that Lu? I particularly like his 'Yes! Prime Minister'."
"Or 'The Answer' was written well."
"That poem is indeed well written, but it's just the last remnants of classical aestheticism. We actors naturally focus on innovative dramas."
"Why is Lu here?"
"I heard from the manager that it seems Her Majesty the Queen commissioned Lu to create a romantic comedy script and wants to put it on our theater."
...
The crowd headed straight for where the three were.
They were as eager as hungry zombies, as if they had seen fresh meat.
Although Land and the others had seen big scenes before, this kind of lineup was unprecedented, and they all unconsciously took a step back.
Finally, the crowd slowly stopped.
The theater manager, Jerry Linden, hurried forward and shook hands with the three in turn,
He focused his gaze on Land and said, "I suppose you're Professor Land. Ever since Buckingham Palace discussed the script with me, I've been eagerly awaiting your arrival, and finally, you're here."
Land exchanged a few pleasantries with him, then casually found a seat and handed over the script.
Linden glanced at the title with some surprise,
"Roman?"
He began to carefully read through the script, murmuring to himself from time to time, occasionally reading lines aloud to get into character.
Soon, he finished reading the first act and said, "Professor Land is truly remarkable. To be honest, many people have thought about writing scripts in colloquial everyday language, but without exception, they all failed. This 'Roman Holiday' has no sense of dissonance."
Shaw was curious,
"Jerry, haven't you seen 'Yes! Prime Minister'? That one has already been popularized."
Linden shook his head,
"Political satires and romantic comedies are still quite different."
He then beckoned to a few actors,
"You guys also come and take a look at the script."
The actors had long been curious about what kind of script the mysterious Lu could write, and they all excitedly gathered around.
Lin Deng then whispered to Lu Shi, "I highly value Professor Lu's script, so I want to rely on the theater's top actors to support this play. However..."
He lowered his voice even more.
"After reading the script just now, I feel that we should be more careful in casting the female lead. After all, Princess Anne is a girl full of youthful vitality, and having an actress in her thirties play her would be very unconvincing."
Lu Shi agreed with this view.
In the movie "Roman Holiday," the lead actress Audrey Hepburn was almost a newcomer, while her co-star was Gregory Peck, who had been nominated for an Oscar four times.
But with this cast, they still managed to create a classic.
This shows that while acting skills are important, the compatibility between actors and roles is also crucial.
Lu Shi asked, "Do you have someone in mind, Mr. Lin Deng?"
Lin Deng nodded, his gaze scanning the group of actors gathered around the script, stopping at a certain girl.
The girl was very delicate,
even youthful.
Lin Deng introduced, "That girl is called Phyllis Dale. Don't be fooled by her young age; she's already famous. Her performances in 'Little Red Riding Hood' and 'Fairy Tale World' have captivated audiences."
Lu Shi was taken aback,
" 'Little Red Riding Hood'? Is it the 'Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf'?"
Lin Deng nodded,
"Yes."
Lu Shi took a deep breath,
"Then let me ask you, how old is Miss Phyllis?"
Lin Deng looked at Lu Shi strangely and said, "Phyllis is already fourteen years old. Is there a problem? As far as I know, this kind of thing is very common in the country where Professor Lu is from."
Lu Shi was speechless.
He then shifted his gaze to Phyllis, and his eyes widened, instinctively saying, "Is she crying?"
Lin Deng was surprised too and looked over. Then he scolded, "Phyllis, why are you... I just discussed with Professor Lu about letting you play the lead role, and you're doing this now. Do you not want this opportunity?"
Upon hearing about the lead role opportunity, Phyllis tried to hold back her tears.
But once tears started flowing, how could it be so easy to stop them again?
She still looked somewhat teary-eyed.
Lin Deng was somewhat angry,
"You..."
Before he could finish his sentence, Lu Shi interrupted,
He asked Phyllis, "Miss, why are you crying? Is there something wrong with my script?"
Phyllis pouted,
"No."
Her childish expression said it all.
Lu Shi, Owen, Lin Deng, and Shaw exchanged glances, then burst into laughter,
They were all touched by the girl's natural display of emotion.
Lu Shi said, "Adorable miss, if there's anything wrong with my script, just point it out, and I'll fix it."
This was spoken in a tone used to pacify children.
Phyllis was a little annoyed, but Lu Shi's teasing made her want to laugh,
She tried to keep a straight face and said, "Professor Lu, you promised to write a romantic comedy, but why does 'Roman Holiday' have such a tragic ending? Why didn't the princess and the journalist end up together?"
Lu Shi was surprised,
"You read the script so quickly?"
This question caught Phyllis off guard.
Her face turned red, and she cutely stuck out her tongue, lowering her head and saying in a coquettish tone, "I... I saw the ending in advance... Sorry! Sorry~"