Chaplin Libretto PDF

CHAPLIN(BROADWAY((/(Opening(Night:(Sept.
(10th,(2012( (
Chaplin
__________________________
A new musical
Book By Thomas Meehan and Christopher Curtis
Music and Lyrics By Christopher Curtis
Contact:
Susan Weaving
William Morris / Endeavor
212-903-1170
CHAPLIN(BROADWAY(/(Opening(Night:(Sept.(10th,(2012( ( 1(
PROLOGUE
The audience enters to see the image of the Little Tramp

projected on a scrim. As the house lights go down, the
orchestra plays a few bars of "The Tramp Shuffle" and the
image briefly comes to life. We bleed through the scrim to
reveal CHARLIE CHAPLIN standing alone, as the Little Tramp,
precariously balanced on a tightrope wire high above a large
motion-picture sound stage.
SONG #1: OVERTURE / PROLOGUE ("WHAT'CHA GONNA DO?")
MUSIC begins under, lights come up to reveal our entire cast

on stage gazing up at CHARLIE. We prominently see HEDDA
HOPPER, JOAN BARRY, SYDNEY, KARNO, ALF, SENNETT,
MILDRED, LITA, PAULETTE, and OONA, as well as HANNAH
and YOUNG CHARLIE.
HEDDA
WHAT'CHA GONNA DO WHEN IT ALL FALLS DOWN?
(
MILDRED, LITA & PAULETTE
WOMEN
JUST ANOTHER DAY IN HOLLYWOOD.
ENSEMBLE
WHAT'CHA GONNA DO, WHAT'CHA GONNA DO?
MILDRED
Charlie, I love you...
SYDNEY
Cablegram's addressed to you, Charlie. You're the one with the talent.
ENSEMBLE HEDDA
WHAT'CHA GONNA DO, What's up, Charlie? Are you
( WHAT'CHA GONNA DO?
(
hiding from me? Afraid?
ENSEMBLE
TELL US MR. CHAPLIN 'BOUT THIS SCANDAL SHE'S UNCOVERED
TELL US MR. CHAPLIN 'BOUT THIS STORY SHE'S
DISCOVERED
HEDDA
JUST ANOTHER DAY IN HOLLYWOOD
ENSEMBLE
WHAT'CHA GONNA DO?
WHAT'CHA GONNA...
HEDDA
HOLLY…
SOUND: A loud shrill bell, of the sort used on movie sound
stages to indicate that shooting is about to start. As LIGHTS go
to black, CHARLIE is flown off the tightrope wire up into the
flies, while ALL exit, except for those involved in the "Look At
All The People" scene.
CHARLIE (V.O.)
(pre-recorded, a voice over a sound-stage loudspeaker)
Stand by! Quiet on the set! Lights!
Lights come blazingly on to reveal the full sound stage, on

which there is a set of a South London street, on a winter
evening in the 1890's. FILM CREWMEN are at work on both
the sides of the stage.
Camera! Roll sound! Slating!
A youthful film CREWMAN hurries to downstage center with a

slating clapboard and slates the upcoming scene as though the
camera is out front.
CREWMAN
Chaplin Scene One: -- Take one!
CHARLIE (V.O.)
Cue the snow! Action!
Underscore for "Look at All the People" begins.
SONG #1A: TRANSITION TO A LONDON STREET / SOUND STAGE
Fake snow begins to fall from the grid above the sound stage,
as the members of our cast involved in "Look at All the People"
make their entrances.
ACT ONE, SCENE 1: A LONDON STREET
HANNAH CHAPLIN enters holding the hand of YOUNG

CHARLIE.
HANNAH
Come along, Charlie, and try to be happy. Give Mum a smile.
YOUNG CHARLIE
I don't wanna.
HANNAH
Don't be sad, Charlie. Things are gonna get better. And don't forget when
Mummy and Daddy fight like we did tonight, it's not your fault.
YOUNG CHARLIE
I know.
HANNAH
It's Daddy's.
(A young BOY carrying a hat runs across the stage pursued by

an angry and hatless young GIRL.)
YOUNG GIRL
Oy! Gimme back my hat!
HANNAH
Now there's somethin' to really be unhappy about. Poor girl out in the cold
without a hat. See, everyone along Kennington Lane, they got their cares
and worries, same as us.
SONG #2: "LOOK AT ALL THE PEOPLE"
!
HANNAH
LOOK AT ALL THE PEOPLE,
AND SEE INTO THEIR EYES.
TRY TO FIND THE STORY
BEHIND EACH ONE'S DISGUISE.
WONDER WHERE THEY'VE COME FROM,
AND THE PEOPLE THEY HAVE KNOWN.
WE ALL HAVE A SECRET
A FACE WE NEVER HAVE SHOWN
Look at this poor fellow.
A sad TRAMP passes by, in tattered clothes, over-sized shoes,

and with a shuffling walk. HE tries to keep his dignity as others
look at him disdainfully.
HANNAH
SEE HOW HE IS TRYING
TO HOLD HIS HEAD UP HIGH.
HE FIGHTS TO HIDE HIS SORROW
FROM PEOPLE PASSING BY.
MAYBE THERE'S A LADY
WHO HAS SADLY BROKE HIS HEART.
WE ALL WEAR DISGUISES,
THEN WE JUST PLAY A PART.
SOME HAVE ANGER,
SOME HAVE HOPE,

(
HANNAH (CONT’D)
SOME HAVE COURAGE,
AND SOME JUST COPE.
An apparently RICH COUPLE strolls by.
HANNAH
Oh la, look at them two. So uppity. So fake.
YOUNG CHARLIE
Fake?
HANNAH
Yes, trying to make everyone think they're rich, from Mayfair.
YOUNG CHARLIE
But they're not?
HANNAH
Uh-uh. I'm on to them, Charlie. Look at his frayed coat and her worn-out
shoes. They're as poor as we are. Oh, and look at this sorry bloke. Drunk as
a lord.
A DRUNK staggers by, struggling with his jacket, which HE has
half off and half on while nonetheless trying to pretend to a
passing POLICEMAN that HE is perfectly sober.
YOUNG CHARLIE
Just like Daddy.
HANNAH
Just like Daddy. But trying to pretend he's sober.
YOUNG CHARLIE
Just like Daddy. Look at me, Mum.
(YOUNG CHARLIE imitates the DRUNK and then others on the

street, including a chipper YOUNG MAN who passes by
twirling a cane.)
HANNAH
Thatta boy, Charlie! Funny, you're very funny.
( AND THEN LOOK INSIDE YOUR HEART.

HANNAH (CONT’D)
THERE YOU'LL FIND YOUR STORY,
AND THEN YOU CAN PLAY YOUR PART.
"Look at All the People" ends to applause as a minimal set

representing the Orpheum Music Hall appears around
HANNAH on the soundstage.
ACT ONE, SCENE 2: ORPHEUM MUSIC HALL
SHE is suddenly on a small stage, about to sing for a rowdy

audience while YOUNG CHARLIE stands shyly by.
Underscore begins. There is a timpani roll under Master of

Ceremonies.
MASTER OF CEREMONIES
Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to Lambeth's Orpheum Theater. Now
here's one of your favorite performers, the lovely Hannah Chaplin!
SONG #3: MUSIC HALL "WHAT'CHA GONNA DO?"
(MUSIC plays and HANNAH sings.)
HANNAH
YOU'VE GOT A GREAT BIG HOUSE
ON TOP OF EASY STREET.
YOU'VE GOT A MILLION QUID,
A LIFE THAT CAN'T BE BEAT.
BUT YOU LOOK DOWN ON FOLK,
YOU'RE SUCH A MEAN OLD BLOKE . . .
(HANNAH stops.)
Hannah?
!
HANNAH
Sorry, I can't seem to remember what comes next.
(SHE tries to sing.)
Christ, Hannah, you sung the bloody song a hundred times.
(SHE stops. The Hall is silent.)
CROWD (VARIOUS)
(Heckle Hannah)
Booo . . . C'mon . . . Just sing the song.
HANNAH
BUT THERE . . . WILL . . .
(SHE loses it again.)
I can't!
CROWD (VARIOUS)
Come on Hannah! Get on with it or get off the stage. Go home. What's
wrong? Booo!
What's wrong with ya, Hannah? Sing!
(The CROWD noise reaches a fever pitch. HANNAH is frozen

in fear.)
YOUNG CHARLIE
(Climbing onto the stage)
BUT THERE WILL COME A DAY,
WHEN YOU'RE KNOCKED OFF YOUR FEET.
Go on, boy!
(CROWD, stunned, goes dead silent.)
YOUNG CHARLIE
THEN, WHAT'CHA GONNA DO WHEN IT ALL FALLS DOWN,
AND WHERE YOU GONNA GO FROM THERE?
WHAT'CHA GONNA DO WHEN THE MONEY'S GONE
(
YOUNG CHARLIE (CONT’D)

AND WHO YOU GONNA BUY TO CARE?
WHAT'CHA GONNA DO WHEN THE LANDLORD SAYS
"NOW GET YOURSELF OUTTA HERE"?
WHAT'CHA GONNA PAINT
WHEN YOU CANNOT PAINT THE TOWN?
REMEMBER WHAT'CHA GIVE IS WHAT ALWAYS GOES AROUND!
AND WHAT'CHA GONNA DO WHEN IT ALL FALLS

DOWN?
(YOUNG CHARLIE is cheered and applauded

by the crowd, who throw coins at him. )
ACT ONE, SCENE 3: KARNO'S ON STAGE
Ladies and Gentlemen, Charlie Chaplin!
CHARLIE, YOUNG CHARLIE, ENSEMBLE

AND WHAT'CHA GONNA DO WHEN IT ALL FALLS DOWN,
WHAT'CHA GONNA DO WHEN THE MONEY'S GONE,
"NOW GET YOURSELF OUTTA HERE?"
REMEMBER WHAT'CHA GIVE IS WHAT ALWAYS

(
GOES AROUND!
WHAT'CHA GONNA DO WHEN IT ALL FALLS...
ACT ONE, SCENE 3A: VAUDEVILLE ACT
(Musical interlude.)
(During the following musical interlude, we transition to

CHARLIE appearing with his brother, SYDNEY, and others in a
series of three comic skits ending in one entitled "The Drunk,"
all performed on the stage of a London music hall known as
Karno's Fun House.)
CHARLIE, ENSEMBLE
AND WHAT'CHA GONNA DO WHEN IT ALL FALLS
DOWN,
WHAT'CHA GONNA DO WHEN THE MONEY'S GONE,
"NOW GET YOURSELF OUTTA HERE?"
CHARLIE, ENSEMBLE KARNO

WHAT'CHA GONNA PAINT Charlie Chaplin, Ladies and
WHEN YOU CANNOT PAINT THE Gentleman! And his brother,
TOWN Sydney.
REMEMBER WHAT’CHA GIVE IS
WHAT ALWAYS
CHARLIE, ENSEMBLE
REMEMBER WHAT'CHA GIVE IS WHAT ALWAYS
GOES AROUND!

(
ACT ONE, SCENE 3B: BACKSTAGE AT KARNO'S
We are immediately backstage, where Alf, the stage manager

is in charge.
ALF
All right, good show. Everyone back for the eight o'clock tonight.
(SYD enters carrying a large bouquet of red roses)
GLORIA
Syd, roses for me, you shouldn't have.
SYDNEY
Ain't for you, Gloria, unless you'd like to walk out with me after the show
tonight.
GLORIA
Ha! I wouldn’t go out with you or that no good kid brother of yours for all the
roses in the world.
As the GLORIA exits, CHARLIE enters.

CHARLIE
Syd, roses for me, you shouldn't have.
SYDNEY
C'mon, Charlie, we're already late and you promised.
CHARLIE
I did. In a weak moment. But, actually, I'm not going with you.
SYDNEY
Why?
CHARLIE
Because I don't want to see her, that's why. Sorry, but if she can't remember
who I am, thank you very much, then I can't remember who she is.
SYDNEY
All right, the hell with ya. I'll go by myself, again.
(HE starts off and stops to call back)
Don't forget, she's still our mother, Charlie!
(HE exits)
!
CHARLIE
(to himself)
I haven't forgotten.
KARNO
(entering)
So, Chaplin, what's this I hear about you havin' some kind of job offer in
America?
CHARLIE
It's nothin', Mr. Karno.
(pulling a cablegram from his pocket)
I got this cablegram. Probably some kind of joke.
KARNO
(grabbing the cablegram out of his hand)
Lemme see that.
(reading the cablegram aloud)
"Mack Sennett of Keystone Pictures offers Charles Chaplin a starting
salary of one hundred and fifty dollars a week to appear in his Keystone
movies."
ALF
A hundred and fifty dollars a week! Can I go too?
KARNO
Mack Sennett?
CHARLIE
I heard that he was in the audience one night when we were over in New
York.
KARNO
Was he, now? But you're not thinking of accepting this offer, are you?
CHARLIE
Oh, well, no, probably not, Mr. Karno.
KARNO
You better not be! You’re my star comic.
CHARLIE
Yes, sir, your star comic.
(taking the cablegram back from KARNO)
Paid five pounds a week. And this says a hundred and fifty dollars a week.
KARNO
! To be in the movies. You ever seen one of them flickers?

CHARLIE
Actually, no, sir, I haven't.
KARNO
Well, I have, and they're nothing. A cheap gimmick, a passing fad.
ALF
Like marriage.
KARNO
Besides, Chaplin, the theatre is in your blood. Your father and mother were
top of the bill in this very theatre. You're following in their footsteps.
CHARLIE
Dad died drunk and Mum went crazy. Maybe I should go into the movies.
KARNO
You do and I'll see to it that you never work in London again, you ungrateful
young bastard.
CHARLIE
Thanks for being so understanding, Mr. Karno.
(Karno exits. Looking again at his cablegram)
CHARLIE (CONT'D)
A hundred and fifty dollars a week.
(to ALF))
Say, Alf, where can I see one of those flicker shows?
ALF
There's one up at Leicester Square. I went last Sunday. Laughed my
bloomin' head off.
CHARLIE
Really?
ALF
! Really!
SONG #3A: TRANSITION TO FLICKERS / ABANDONMENT

FLASHBACK
Transition, still of course on the Chaplin Studios sound stage,

to a London street outside an early version of a movie theatre.
ACT ONE, SCENE 4: A LONDON STREET
A TICKET SELLER stands in front of the theatre calling out to

PASSERS-BY.
TICKET SELLER
Five pence flicker show. Only five pence. Come see the greatest new
invention of the 20th century -- the movies! Show just about to begin!
Flickers!
CHARLIE
(handing a coin to the TICKET SELLER)
One, please.
TICKET SELLER
Right in there, sir. They’re just about to start.
TICKET SELLER begins to exit.
Flickers!
We follow CHARLIE as he enters a small

darkened theatre.
ACT ONE, SCENE 4A: AT THE FLICKERS
CHARLIE takes a seat. A few other MOVIE-GOERS sit in

seats behind him. A light comes on high up and behind
CHARLIE and projects a film over his head. We hear the
clicking SOUND of the film projector. We see CHARLIE's
face as he watches his first movie. HE is mesmerised, rapt,
intent, amazed -- it is love at first sight. We see brief scenes
from the early black-and-white films, ending with a flicker
featuring a MOTHER comforting her young SON. As we go
into CHARLIE's memory, LIGHTS change, theater seats
! move to become the walls of a room.
ACT ONE, SCENE 4B: AT THE FLICKERS / ABANDONMENT FLASHBACK
We see HANNAH with a uniformed NURSE and YOUNG

CHARLIE with a uniformed GUARD. HANNAH holds a rose in
one hand. During the stage action, the movie continues playing
above the actor's heads.
YOUNG CHARLIE
No, Mum, don't leave me here.
HANNAH
I'm sorry, Charlie but I have to.
YOUNG CHARLIE
Please Mum, no, I wanna stay with you.
NURSE
You can't. Your mother isn't well. She has to go in hospital.
YOUNG CHARLIE
But I wanna go with her.
HANNAH
No, Charlie. Children aren't allowed.
YOUNG CHARLIE
Why not? Why not?
NURSE
Because they're not.
YOUNG CHARLIE
But I wanna...
GUARD
That's enough, boy.
HANNAH
And never forget, I love you.
(as SHE gives the rose to YOUNG CHARLIE)
NURSE
( Come along, Hannah.
YOUNG CHARLIE
No, you don't! You don't! Or you wouldn't leave me here!
GUARD
Come along, boy.
HANNAH
I'll come back for you, Charlie, I promise.
YOUNG CHARLIE
(clutching the rose)
No, Mum! Mum! Don't leave me here! Please don't leave me here! Mum!
Mum! Mum!
LIGHTS change.
ACT ONE, SCENE 4C: AT THE FLICKERS - IF I LEFT LONDON
(We are back in the present with

CHARLIE at the flickers. HE sings.)
SONG #4: IF I LEFT LONDON

CHARLIE
IF I LEFT LONDON TOMORROW,
WOULD I FIND GOLD IN THE WEST?
WOULD I FIND FAME IN THE FLICKERS
OR A SECOND-HAND LIFE THERE AT BEST?
IF I LEFT LONDON TOMORROW,
WOULD I SUCCEED OR JUST FAIL?
FOR HERE IN MY HAND IS A WORLD THAT'S UNSEEN,
WITH A NEW KIND OF FUTURE THAT APPEARS ON A SCREEN.
AND THERE ON THAT SCREEN COULD I BE
SOMEBODY OTHER THAN ME?

!
CHARLIE (CONT’D)
(As CHARLIE rises, the movie seats disappear and we are
back on a London street.)
FOR HERE IN POOR KENNINGTON LANE,
I KNOW WHAT MY LIFE HERE WOULD BE.
BUT FAR FROM POOR KENNINGTON LANE,
COULD I BE SOMEONE OTHER THAN ME?
(HE walks outside the theater.)
FOR THERE I COULD BE SOMEONE'S HERO,
NO DAMSEL WOULD BE IN DISTRESS.
AND MAYBE I'LL MEET
THE MOST BEAUTIFUL GIRL
WITH AN INNOCENT FACE
AND SWEET HONEY BLOND CURLS
AND THERE ON THAT SCREEN COULD THERE BE
SOMEBODY WAITING FOR ME?

!
ACT ONE, SCENE 5: BACKSTAGE AT KARNO'S

CHARLIE is now once again
backstage at Karno's theatre, where
HE runs into SYDNEY.
CHARLIE
Syd, I got offered a job making movies in America. I think I'm gonna take it.
SYDNEY
What?
CHARLIE
I just saw one of those flicker shows and I'm telling you, they're magical! And
how about this for an idea? I'll take the job and you can come with me to
California!
(passes him the cablegram)

SYDNEY
Cablegram's addressed to you, Charlie. You're the one with the talent.
CHARLIE
But I've never done anything without you.
SYDNEY
Charlie, one of us needs to stay in London and look after Mum.
CHARLIE
What if I fail. End up back on the street without you?
SYDNEY
You won't. I know it. Go!
(CHARLIE hugs SYDNEY. SYDNEY

exits, as CHARLIE sings)
CHARLIE
SO GOODBYE TO MY LIFE HERE IN LONDON,
GOODBYE TO OLD KENNINGTON LANE.
HELLO, AMERICA, FILLED WITH ROMANCE.
I'LL PACK UP MY PAST,
AND TAKE YOU UP

ON THIS CHANCE.
'CAUSE THERE ON THAT SCREEN I WILL BE:
(We see images of America: an

ocean liner, the Statue of Liberty, a
fast-moving locomotive, the palm
trees of California and Hollywoodland)
CHARLIE (CONT'D.)
SOMEBODY DIFFERENT.
SOMEBODY NEW.
SOMEBODY OTHER THAN ME!
! (CHARLIE exits.)
ACT ONE, SCENE 6: CHAPLIN STUDIOS
We once again hear the voice of CHARLIE,

pre-recorded over a loud speaker.
CHARLIE (V.O.)
Moving on, set up for Keystone Studios!
SONG #4A: TRANSITION INTO MACK SENNETT STUDIOS
Underscore begins. LIGHTS come up on the

Chaplin Studios sound stage as we see
CREWMEN changing the scenery, putting up
a set for the upcoming Mack Sennett sequence.
Stand by! Quiet on the set! Lights!
Lights come blazingly on to reveal Keystone Studios.
Camera! Roll sound! Slating!
Once again a youthful film CREWMAN hurries to downstage

center with a slating clapboard and slates the upcoming scene
as though the camera is out front.
CREWMAN
Chaplin, Scene five -- Take One!
CHARLIE (V.O.)
Cue the cast! Action!
Underscore ends.
!
ACT ONE, SCENE 7: MACK SENNETT STUDIOS
SENNETT, the MEMBERS OF HIS CAST, and the MEMBERS

OF HIS CREW populate the set.
SENNETT
Chaplin! Where the hell is that Chaplin?
SENNETT ASSISTANT
(entering with a scared and nervous-looking CHARLIE)
He's right here, Mr. Sennett.
SENNETT
How do you do, Chaplin, I'm Mack Sennett and you're three days late.
CHARLIE
How do you, sir, and I'm very sorry. But I was seasick for eight days,
bounced around in a cigar-smelly railroad car for eight more, arrived in Los
Angeles on time, three days ago, but then couldn't find my way here in all
this heat and bloody sunlight. I'm used to London. Where's the fog? Where's
the rain?
SENNETT
In other words, you're scared to death.
CHARLIE
Exactly. I mean, I'm a stage entertainer, never done a movie.
SENNETT
That's all right, neither had I until three years ago. 'Cause there weren't any.
Don't worry, I saw you on stage in New York and you're good. All right, let's
get started.
CHARLIE
Get started? What do you mean, get started?
SENNETT
Making pictures. That's why I hired you. Everybody ready on the set?
CAST and CREW respond.

CHARLIE
( Wait! Where's the script?

SENNETT
There is no script. Just do what I tell you to do.
CHARLIE
But don't we rehearse first?
SENNETT
No, we don't.
CHARLIE
Can I go back to London?
SENNETT
No, you can't. All you have to do is follow my direction.
(sings as MUSIC begins)
SONG #5: SENNETT SONG
THAT'S CHARLOTTE IN WARDROBE AND MARY IN MAKEUP,
THE GIRLS THAT WILL HELP YOU LOOK PRETTY.
THAT'S HANK ON THE DOLLY AND PETE ON THE PROPS,
AND THE MAN AT THE CAMERA IS ROLLIE.
NOW MAKEUP IS WAITING AND DAYLIGHT IS FADING,
SO WHY NOT BEGIN WITH THE FUN?
SO COME OVER HERE, CHAPLIN,
AND HANG ON MY WORDS,
AND I'LL SHOW YOU HOW PICTURES ARE DONE.
WITH A GIRL AND A BENCH, TWO PIES AND A TREE,
THREE COPS, WE'LL HAVE YOU ALL LAUGHING.

SENNETT (CONT’D)
MABEL SIT DOWN, FATTY STAND UP,
CHAPLIN GET IN THERE, IT'S HAPPENING.
TROUBLE ARRIVES, A VILLAIN APPEARS,
"FATTY, CATCH HER FLIRTING."
AND HE WHO GETS IN FATTY'S WAY,
I PROMISE WILL BE HURTING!
A LITTLE TO THE LEFT, NO, A LITTLE TO THE RIGHT,
NOW STAND UP, CHAPLIN, FIND YOUR LIGHT.
SIT DOWN, STAND UP, MOVE LEFT, MOVE DOWN,
NO, NO, CHAPLIN, JUST LOOK RIGHT.
C'MON, CHAPLIN, LOOK AT ME
AND GIVE ME ONE REACTION.
YOU GET WHAT I SAID,
FORGET WHAT I SAID,
I REALLY JUST WANT TO SEE ACTION!
Charlie, run for it . . . Fast . . . Faster . . . Charlie. Don't slow it down, Chaplin.
Keep up with them. What are ya' doing? You're not in a theatre, Chaplin. No!
Wait! You're slowing it down . . . Stop, cut, cut, cut! Charlie.
CHARLIE
Yes, sir?
SENNETT
Movies, theatre, movies, theatre, movies, theatre -- see the space in
between my hands?
CHARLIE
Yes, sir.
(
SENNETT
That's the difference between them. They're called movies ‘cause they move
faster than anything you'll ever see on stage. Now, I like ya, Chaplin.
CHARLIE
I like you too.
SENNET
That’s swell. So let's try it again.
ROLLIE
Rolling!
SENNETT
Action!
SENNETT
A LITTLE TO THE LEFT, A LITTLE TO THE RIGHT,
GET IN THERE CHAPLIN AND START A FIGHT!
SHOW ME JUST A LITTLE OF THE MAGIC THAT I SAW THAT

NIGHT.
CUE THE COPS AND CUE THE PIES,
AND VILLAINS HIDDEN IN DISGUISE.
CHAPLIN HELP ME, TIME IS MONEY,
WON'T YOU SHOW ME SOMETHING FUNNY?
MABEL'S SWEATING, FATTY'S THINNING,
JUST GIVE ME A GAG THAT'S WINNING.
ROLLIE'S ROLLING,
PETE IS WAITING,
MOVE IT, KID, STOP HESITATING.
CHAPLIN STAND AND MABEL STRUT,
AND FATTY PUNCH HIM IN THE GUT.
CHAPLIN UP,
MOUTH IS SHUT,
BE FUNNY, CHAPLIN, DAMMIT, CUT!

(SENNETT GOES TO CHARLIE.)
CHARLIE
It's that difference again, isn't it, sir?
SENNETT
It is.
CHARLIE
Sorry, sir. I'm just trying to figure out my character's motivation.
SENNETT
What?
CHARLIE
In London, I always knew why my character was doing something.
SENNETT
Character? This is Hollywood. We don't have character here and we don't
have motivations. All you have to be is funny.
CHARLIE
But... it's my first time in front of a camera.
SENNETT
And it may be your last.
CHARLIE
Let me try it one more time.
ROLLIE
Rolling!
SENNETT
Action!
SENNETT
TIME HAS PASSED,
SO MOVE YOUR ASS,
AND GIVE ME ONE GOOD SHOT.
YOU'D THINK YOU'D HAVE IT IN YA

(
SENNETT (CONT’D)
JUST TO GIVE ME WHAT YOU GOT.
THE CAMERA'S ALMOST EMPTY
SO THE PRESSURE IS ON YOU.
THE DUSK IS HERE.
THE DAY HAS ALMOST
SLIPPED WITHOUT A TRACE.
SO GRAB A PIE, RUN ON BY,

HIT FATTY IN THE FACE.
I KNOW IT'S SCHTICK,
I KNOW IT'S CRUDE,
BUT WHO CAN REALLY BLAME US?
SO, C'MON, KID, AND SHOW ME NOW
THE GAG FOR WHICH I'M FAMOUS . . .
(On that, CHARLIE hits SENNETT in the face with the pie.
Mabel laughs.)
SENNETT (CONT'D.)
Cut! Are you sure you're the guy I hired?
CHARLIE
I have the cablegram if you want to see it.
SENNETT
Don't show me that! Ya know Chaplin, when I saw you onstage I thought you
were funny.
CHARLIE
You don’t think I’m funny?
SENNETT
Not anymore. All you've done here today is run wildly around in circles. All
right, everybody, wrap it up. And you, Chaplin, I'll give you one more chance
tomorrow morning and if you don't show me something funny then, you're
fired!
CHARLIE
Fired!
SENNETT
Yes! Fired! Come up with something funny or else!
SONG #5A: THE PROP CLOSET

SENNETT and the SENNETT CAST and CREW exit, leaving
CHARLIE alone. HE wanders dejectedly into a large and
deserted prop and costume shop.
ACT ONE, SCENE 8: THE PROP CLOSET

HE looks at himself in a mirror and tries to
make funny faces. HE finds a pair of FATTY's
pants and tries them on, again checking
himself in the mirror. HE tries to flip and catch
a chair and fails. HE sits despondently down
at a desk, discovers a paper and a pen and
begins writing.
CHARLIE
What am I gonna do?
(speaking as HE writes)
Dear Syd, good news! I'll probably be coming back to London a lot sooner
than you'd expected. Because, you see, I'm finding out the hard way that
being in a movie is a lot different than performing in a music hall.
SYDNEY appears in a spotlight at one side of the stage
reading the letter CHARLIE has sent him.
SYDNEY
(speaking as HE reads)
And I apparently have no talent for it, or so says Mr. Sennett, who is of the
opinion that I am not funny. Funny, everyone in London always thought I was
funny.
LIGHTS out on SYDNEY, who exits in the dark
as we focus back on CHARLIE as HE finishes
writing the letter.
CHARLIE
(reading aloud as HE writes)
And way back when, as far back as I can remember, even Mum thought I
was funny.
Snow underscore begins.

SONG #6: "LOOK AT ALL THE PEOPLE" REPRISE) /
TRAMP DISCOVERY
CHARLIE
AND SEE INTO THEIR EYES.
TRY TO FIND THE STORY
BEHIND EACH ONE'S DISGUISE.
HANNAH
(Singing offstage)
WONDER WHERE THEY'VE COME FROM,
AND THE PEOPLE THEY HAVE KNOWN
ONCE YOU'VE FOUND THE STORY
THEN YOU CAN MAKE IT YOUR OWN.
ACT ONE, SCENE 8A: FLASHBACK/ A LONDON STREET / TRAMP

DISCOVERY
HANNAH, YOUNG CHARLIE, and the
Kennington Lane PASSERS-BY appear in
CHARLIE's memory;
HANNAH (CONT)
Come along Charlie. Try to be happy, give Mum a smile.
Oh, Look at this poor fellow.

The MUSIC of "Look at All the People"
continues under as the sad TRAMP once
again passes by, in tattered clothes, over-
sized shoes, and with a shuffling walk.
CHARLIE
I see him, Mum.
The TRAMP steps out of his shoes as HE

shuffles along and CHARLIE, following
behind him, steps into the comically over-
sized shoes. Now the apparently RICH
COUPLE strolls by.
HANNAH
Look at them two. So uppity.
CHARLIE & YOUNG CHARLIE

I see them!
CHARLIE reaches into the past, takes the hat
from the RICH MAN and places it on his own
head.
HANNAH
And look at this poor bloke. Drunk as a lord, eh?
The DRUNK passes by as earlier, once again
struggling with his jacket.
CHARLIE puts his arm into the sleeve of the

DRUNK's jacket. HE turns upstage and, while
turning, the DRUNK and CHARLIE almost
become one as the jacket ends up being worn
by CHARLIE. While CHARLIE is facing
upstage, during the switch of the jacket, he
puts the classic Little Tramp moustache on.
The chipper YOUNG MAN once again enters
twirling his cane and, out of sheer exuberance
and joy, tosses his cane high into the air and
CHARLIE catches it. With the baggy pants, the
over-sized shoes, the bowler hat, the ill-fitting
jacket, the moustache and the cane,
CHARLIE, isolated in a spotlight, turns out
front to the audience, totally transformed into
the famous Little Tramp.
He tries out his new-found persona and

comes up with the Little Tramp's signature
shuffling walk.
!
ACT ONE, SCENE 8B: MACK SENNETT STUDIOS
SENNETT enters and stares at CHARLIE.
SENNETT
Chaplin.
CHARLIE
Yes sir?
SENNETT
That's funny!
("Tramp Shuffle" underscore begins.)
CHARLIE
It is?
SENNETT
Yes. Do that walk for me again.
CHARLIE
This one?
SENNETT
What inspired that, boy?
CHARLIE
You did, sir.
SENNETT
Well, I have that effect on people, don't I?
CHARLIE
You do, sir, yes.
SENNETT
( Charlie, when I said I was gonna fire you, I was just trying to scare you.
CHARLIE
(Uncomfortable little laugh.)
You did.
SENNETT
And what would you call this?
CHARLIE
Character.
SENNETT
Ah, yes, you got me there. Character.
CHARLIE
He's a poet. A dreamer. A wanderer. A tramp!
SENNETT
A tramp? I like the sound of that. But what's his, you know?
CHARLIE
Motivation?
SONG #7: "THE TRAMP SHUFFLE" (PART 1)
CHARLIE
EACH DAY HE'LL START
A NEW AND UNKNOWN JOURNEY.
AND IN HIS HEART
NO ONE WILL SEE HE'S LONELY.
HE'LL SEARCH THE WORLD
TO FIND A PLACE TO CALL HIS OWN.
HE'LL NEVER HAVE TO HIDE,
THOUGH POOR, HE'LL HAVE HIS PRIDE,
WHENEVER THE TRAMP SHUFFLES.

(
SENNETT
AND I SEE CHAPLIN PICTURES EVERYWHERE,
PEOPLE WAITING IN THE SQUARE,
BUYING TICKETS TO SEE.
AND YOU'LL BE TALKED ABOUT IN MAGAZINES,
RECOGNIZED ON MOVIE SCREENS,
LIGHTING UP THE MARQUEE.
AND THE DISTRIBUTORS WILL CALL MY NAME,
BEGGING TO GET IN THE GAME.
WHAT A GOLD MINE YOU'LL BE,
OH, CHARLIE!
WITH MY NAME ABOVE YOU,
THE WORLD'S BOUND TO LOVE YOU,
WHEN THEY SEE THE TRAMP SHUFFLE.
The scene shifts to once again become the

Keystone Studios sound stage.
Everyone, c'mere and see what Chaplin's come up with.
ACT ONE, SCENE 8C: MABEL'S STRANGE PREDICAMENT

The members of the Keystone CAST
and CREW enter. Among them is HANNAH.
Charlie, do a bit of that walk for everyone! Action!

CHARLIE
(CHARLIE comes face to face with
his past, represented by HANNAH)
( Wait, Mr. Sennett. He needs one last thing.
HE takes a rose from SENNETT's lapel and

places it in his own lapel. HANNAH smiles
approvingly at CHARLIE and exits.
CHARLIE
All right. Now I'm ready.
SENNETT
Action!
(As they sing, we film CHARLIE and MABEL, in a sequence on
the bench, that becomes MABEL'S STRANGE
PREDICAMENT. Sung in counterpoint:)
SENNETT CHARLIE
AND I SEE CHAPLIN PICTURES EACH DAY HE'LL START
EVERYWHERE. A NEW AND UNKNOWN JOURNEY.
PEOPLE WAITING IN THE SQUARE, AND IN HIS HEART
BUYING TICKETS TO SEE. NO ONE WILL SEE HE'S LONELY.
AND YOU'LL BE TALKED ABOUT IN HE'LL SEARCH THE WORLD
MAGAZINES, TO FIND A PLACE TO CALL HIS
RECOGNIZED ON MOVIE OWN.
SCREENS, HE'LL NEVER HAVE TO HIDE
LIGHTING UP THE MARQUEE. THOUGH POOR, HE'LL HAVE HIS
PRIDE,
AND THE DISTRIBUTORS WILL WHENEVER THE TRAMP
CALL MY NAME, SHUFFLES.
BEGGING TO GET IN THE GAME.
WHAT A GOLD MINE YOU'LL BE,
OH, CHARLIE!
WITH MY NAME ABOVE YOU,
THE WORLD'S BOUND TO LOVE
YOU,
WHEN THEY SEE THE TRAMP
SHUFFLE.
SENNETT
( Cut! Perfect!
ACT ONE, SCENE 9: MOVIE THEATER / CHARLIE SEES HIMSELF ON FILM

A YOUNG USHER runs through Sennett
Studios and sings.
USHER
COME SEE CHARLIE CHAPLIN,
PLAYING HERE AT THE STRAND
FIRST TIME IN THE LAND!
ONE SHOW FOR A NICKEL,
THREE SHOWS FOR A DIME
USHER CHARLIE
SO COME AND SEE SOMETHING FUNNY...
WILL THEY THINK I'M FUNNY?
(SENNETT joins CHARLIE as HE sees himself as the Little

Tramp, in a movie, for the first time.)
SCENE 9A: THE TRAMP SHUFFLE (PART 2)
SONG #7A: "THE TRAMP SHUFFLE" (PART 2)

SENNETT
What do you hear, Charlie?
CHARLIE
Laughter, Mr. Sennett. What do you hear?
SENNETT
Money, Charlie. Lots and lots of money.
(A group of REPORTERS hurries toward SENNETT.)
REPORTERS
TELL US, MR. SENNETT,
'BOUT THIS CHAPLIN

(
REPORTERS (CONT’D)
YOU'VE DISCOVERED.
TELL US, MR. SENNETT,
'BOUT THIS TALENT YOU'VE UNCOVERED.
WHERE'D YOU FIND HIM?
AND CAN YOU TELL US WHERE HE'S FROM?
CHARLIE
HEY, SYD,
I THINK I MIGHT HAVE FOUND MY PLACE, SYD.
PEOPLE RECOGNIZE MY FACE, SYD.
ALL AROUND THE TOWN THEY ASK ME:
"AREN'T YOU IN THAT MOVIE?"
IT'S REALLY QUITE AMAZING.
I THINK NOW MY LIFE IS CHANGING.
ONE DAY, MY FUTURE WAS UNSEEN.
THEN THE NEXT DAY, MY NAME'S UP ON A SCREEN.
HEY, SYD, I THINK I FINALLY FOUND MY HOME.

REPORTERS USHER
TELL US, MR. SENNETT, COME SEE CHARLIE
'BOUT THIS CHAPLIN CHAPLIN
YOU'VE DISCOVERED. ENSEMBLE [Offstage]
TELL US, MR. SENNETT, COME SEE CHARLIE COME SEE CHARLIE
'BOUT THIS TALENT YOU'VE CHAPLIN CHAPLIN
UNCOVERED.
TELL US, MR. SENNETT COME SEE COME SEE
( (
CHARLIE STUDIOS AND CHORUS

I THINK I’VE FINALLY FOUND
MY HOME COME SEE CHARLIE CHAPLIN
STUDIO AND CHORUS
COME SEE CHARLIE CHAPLIN
ACT ONE, SCENE 10: CHARLIE'S DRESSING ROOM
(CHARLIE's opulent Keystone Studios

dressing room appears all around him.)
SENNETT
Charlie? Charlie, there's some guy here who says you sent for him.
CHARLIE
Really? And who would that be?
ALF REEVES enters, in a coat and hat,
carrying a large suitcase.
ALF
Me! Here I am, Charlie.
CHARLIE
Alf! You're here! Great!
SENNETT
Yeah, great. But who's he? What's he doing here?
ALF
Alf Reeves, I am, sir. And I got me cablegram from Charlie.
(taking out his cablegram and reading it aloud)
"Charlie Chaplin offers Alf Reeves a starting salary of one hundred and fifty
dollars a week to stage manage at Keystone Studios."
SENNETT
( What's this, now you're hiring your own stage manager?

CHARLIE
Straight from London. I need someone to work with who can speak proper
English.
ALF
And I bloody well can.
CHARLIE
Welcome to Hollywood, Alf. This is Mr. Sennett, Mack Sennett. He'll show
you around the studio, won't you, Mack?
SENNETT
Oh well, yes of course. Come along, Alf.
(As they exit))
But why do I get the impression that all of a sudden I'm working for you
instead of you're working for me?
ALF
(As he leaves.)
By the way, Charlie, I forgot to mention, I hate to travel alone. So I didn't.
(Sydney enters, surprising CHARLIE.)
CHARLIE
Syd???
SYDNEY
Charlie.
(They embrace.)
Well, well, well, the famous Charlie Chaplin. Funny, you look a lot shorter in
person.
CHARLIE
Same old Syd.
SYDNEY
But not the same old Charlie.
CHARLIE
This is who I am now, Syd. What do you think?
SYDNEY
Wow! It's unbelievable, Charlie, truly unbelievable. A hundred and fifty a
( week.
CHARLIE
Forget a hundred and fifty. I’m making a thousand a week, that’s more than
Sennett has ever paid anyone.
SYDNEY
You’re going to be rich?
CHARLIE
I am. And if I’m going to be rich, Syd, your’re going to be rich, too. This can’t
be just a visit. I want you to stay here, move out here, work with me.
SYDNEY
I’d like to, Charlie, I really would, but there’s still…
CHARLIE
Mum? Is she any better?
SYDNEY
Sometimes a bit. Most times, not so.
CHARLIE
Does she know what's happened to me?
SYDNEY
I'm afraid not. But it's nice to know you're thinking of her.
CHARLIE
Always.
SYDNEY
Really? Imagine my surprise on my journey out here reading an interview
that my famous brother gave to Photoplay. Quote, "When Mr. Chaplin was
asked about his Mother, Chaplin explained she had died when he was ten
years old." Unquote! Are you ashamed of her?
CHARLIE
No, no. How could you say that?
SYDNEY
I didn't. You did.
!
CHARLIE
Listen, Syd, not a day goes by when I don't think about Mum and how much
she meant to me when I was a kid.
(Going to the jacket of his Little
Tramp costume and taking out a well-
worn photograph from an inside
breast pocket)
See this?
SYDNEY
What?
CHARLIE
(showing the photograph to SYDNEY)
It's a picture of Mum. When she was first singing in music halls. She was just
sixteen or seventeen. Lily Harley, she called herself in those days.
SYDNEY
(looking at the picture)
She was pretty.

CHARLIE
She was. I always keep this with me when I'm playing the Tramp.
(putting the photograph back in his jacket pocket)
About you going back to London, Syd. What if we brought Mum over here?
We’ll find a private nursing home in some nice place like Glendale where she
could live in comfort for the rest of her life. No one has to know about it.
She'll have a far happier life in sunny California than she's ever had in
London. And so will you.
SYDNEY
Maybe. But what am I supposed to do here?
CHARLIE
Join me in the movie business.
SYDNEY
Doing what?
CHARLIE
We'll figure out something. The movies, Syd, they’re magic .
(
HE goes to a projector, switches it on, and shows a clip, from

the film PAYDAY, in which HE, as the Little Tramp, is shown
dropping bricks off the ledge of a building wall.
CHARLIE
Look at this scene we shot this morning.
HE narrates the film.
Drop it, drop it, foot, drop it, drop it, drop it, foot, drop it, drop, drop, crack,
drop. Nothing much, right? Certainly not funny.
SONG #8: LIFE CAN BE LIKE THE MOVIES
HE now shows the same piece of film run backward, and at a

higher speed. This makes it look as though the Little Tramp is
catching the bricks being thrown to him.
CHARLIE
But this is how it'll look in the finished film -- printed backwards and speeded
up. Catch it, catch it, catch, catch, catch it, catch it, catch it… It's funny,
huh?
SYDNEY
Amazing. And, yes, very funny. But…
CHARLIE
No buts, this could be your life too. Stay with me, Syd. We’ll work all day.
And then at night, there is always time to play. You’ll see, lots of time to play.
I mean, after dark in Hollywood, Syd...
CHARLIE points, and we hear a symbol crash.

The projector magically jumps to life, and we
see Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford in
an energetic dance, as a lavish Hollywood
party scene comes to life.
!
ACT ONE, SCENE 11: HOLLYWOOD PARTY SEQUENCE (PEABODY)
CHARLIE
LIFE CAN BE LIKE THE MOVIES,
PERFECT IN EVERY WAY
HERE YOU CAN WRITE YOUR STORY,
KEEPING THE PAST AT BAY
WOMEN
HERE IT'S JUST HAPPY ENDINGS
MEN
AND THE GODS ONLY AIM TO PLEASE
CAST
LIFE CAN BE BEAUTIFUL,
LIFE CAN BE SWEET,
LIFE CAN BE LIKE THE MOVIES.
CHARLIE
AND IF YOU'RE USED TO STEALING BREAD ON THE STREET,
WE HAVE A FEAST TO CATCH YOUR EYE.
THE ONLY COPS YOU'LL FIND HERE WALKING THE BEAT,
ARE JUST THE KEYSTONES RUNNING BY,
SYDNEY
LOOK AT THE LIFE YOU FOUND HERE,
FAR FROM OLD KENNINGTON LANE.

!
CAST
THE WEATHER IS ALWAYS FINE HERE,
'CAUSE WE TELL THE SKY WHEN TO RAIN.
MEN
BEAUTIFUL FACES STROLLING ALONG,
WOMEN
KEEPING THE WORLD AT EASE.
CAST
HERE YOU CAN DO WHAT YOU PLEASE.
(Underscore continues as one beautiful girl after another

strolls past CHARLIE and SYD, seductively giving them the
eye.)
CHARLIE
Remember, Syd, when we were livin' on the streets in Lambeth, we could
never get the pretty girls to give us a second look?
SYDNEY
And we got nowhere with the ugly girls either.
CHARLIE
But out here Syd, the pretty girls just throw themselves at you.
(A man, JESSE ROBBINS, approaches CHARLIE and

SYDNEY.)
ROBBINS
Charlie Chaplin! Jesse Robbins, president of Essanay Films. Listen, when
you're ready to make movies for someone other than that cheapskate
Sennett, let me know.
CHARLIE
Why don't you talk to my brother Sydney here? He's my business manager.
SYDNEY
I am?
!
CHARLIE
You are now.
ROBBINS
Sydney, Essanay will double any deal Charlie has with Mack Sennett.
SYDNEY
Charlie?
CHARLIE
Double? But would I be able to write and direct my own pictures?
SYDNEY
Mr. Robbins?
ROBBINS
Absolutely!
SYDNEY
Charlie?
CHARLIE
Would I leave Mr. Sennett? The man who made me famous, for double the
money and the chance to direct my own pictures? Absolutely!
SYDNEY
(shaking ROBBINS' hand)
Sir, you have a deal.
CHARLIE
Well done, Syd, I think you found your calling. Now you have to stay.
CHARLIE and SYDNEY move away to celebrate.
The young uniformed USHER whom we've seen
earlier runs through the CROWD to downstage
center.
USHER
PLAYING HERE AT THE STRAND.
( In Essanay's "By the Sea"! The funniest comedy of 1916!

Dance interlude as we move from 1916 to 1918. The MUSIC

becomes a waltz. We see a beautiful woman carried high
above the crowd. CHARLIE and SYD enter a Hearst Castle
party in 1918.
ACT ONE, SCENE 11A: HOLLYWOOD PARTY SEQUENCE (WALTZ)
PHOTOGRAPHER
Charlie, how about a picture for Photoplay?
CHARLIE
Sure. Why not!
(HE puts on his famous bowler hat for the picture.)
PHOTOGRAPHER
All you need is a girl on your arm, Charlie.
(CHARLIE reaches out to a pretty young woman, MILDRED
HARRIS, who is standing nearby and brings her and into the
picture. EVERYONE laughs.)
PHOTOGRAPHER (CONT’D)
Thanks, Mr. Chaplin.
CHARLIE
(to MILDRED)
Thank you, for obliging.
MILDRED HARRIS
My pleasure, Mr. Chaplin! I almost didn't recognize you without your
moustache.
CHARLIE
I usually don't like being recognized. But in your case, I'll make an exception.
(SYD rolls his eyes.)
MILDRED
I'm Mildred Harris.
CHARLIE
Delighted.
!
MILDRED
Care to dance?
CHARLIE
Syd, would you hold my hat for a moment, please?
(CHARLIE tosses his hat to SYDNEY )
Absolutely.
CHARLIE waltzes off with MILDRED. As CHARLIE and
MILDRED are dancing, SYDNEY smiles, tries on CHARLIE's
hat and even makes a kind of Little Tramp look. The
PHOTOGRAPHER takes SYD's picture.
PHOTOGRAPHER
Hey, Syd, you look just like Charlie..
SYDNEY looks at the hat in his hand. It's all in the look. The
PHOTOGRAPHER moves on as a man, JOHN FRUELER,
walks up to SYDNEY.
FRUELER
Sydney Chaplin, John Frueler, Mutual Pictures. I’d be willing to give Charlie
ten thousand dollars a week if he’d leave Essanay and come to work for us.
SYDNEY
Ten thousand a week? Why don't we get a drink and talk this over a bit
more?
(MUSIC continues under as we focus on CHARLIE and

MILDRED.)
MILDRED
So what is a famous man like you looking for tonight?
CHARLIE
I don't know. What's a pretty girl like you looking for tonight?
MILDRED
Someone interesting.
CHARLIE
I've been told I'm interesting.
MILDRED
I've heard that, too. But would someone as interesting as you ever be
interested in someone like me?
!
CHARLIE
Possibly.
MILDRED
All right, then let's play a game.
CHARLIE
A game?
MILDRED
Yes. If this were a film, how would it end?
CHARLIE
Well, what’s the story?
MILDRED
It's about this unknown young girl who goes to a fancy Hollywood party,
where she gets to talk to a most thrilling and handsome movie star.
CHARLIE
Ah, yes. Go on.
MILDRED
They chat for a bit.
CHARLIE
And she's so young and pretty.
MILDRED
Almost seventeen. And she wonders if he would like to take her home after
the party.
CHARLIE
And what does he say?
MILDRED
That's your line. What does he say?
CHARLIE sweeps her off her feet into a waltz. The room erupts
into applause. As CHARLIE and MILDRED dance, the
COMPANY punctuates the action with heavenly choral "Ah's."
We are transported for a moment to CHARLIE's version of a
perfect Movie-Musical romance.
!
MILDRED
ROMANCE IT NEVER FALTERS,
IT LIFTS YOU UP LIKE A BREEZE.
LOVE CAN BE BEAUTIFUL,
LOVE CAN BE SWEET,
LOVE CAN BE LIKE . . .
CHARLIE and MILDRED kiss. Our young USHER appears

once again at downstage center.
ACT ONE, SCENE 11B: HOLLYWOOD PARTY SEQUENCE (TANGO)
USHER
PLAYING HERE AT THE STRAND.
In Mutual Pictures' The Rink, the first smash hit of 1918!
A beautiful violin player steps into a pool of light at the center of
the room. VALENTINO leads a wild Tango as we move from
1918 to 1919. CHARLIE, SYD, and MILDRED arrive on the
roof of the Ambassador Hotel. THEY are greeted by THOMAS
TALLY, the president of the First National Exhibitors Circuit.
TALLY
Happy New Year, Charlie, Sydney.
CHARLIE
Happy New Year. You remember my friend, Mildred Harris?
TALLY
Of course. You look lovely tonight, Miss Harris. Charlie, why don't you
celebrate the new year by going partners with us at First National. I can give
you the best deal you ever had.
SYDNEY
And what is that?
TALLY
Charlie's own studio. And a five hundred thousand dollar advance.
(CHARLIE and SYD are speechless; TANGO break.)
Speechless! Does that mean we have a deal?
(
(Short TANGO break.)
SYDNEY
Five hundred thousand dollars? Is that all?
TALLY
What?
SYDNEY
I think he deserves a little bit more.
(Music hit.)
(TANGO BREAK as SYD and TALLY go off to talk.)
CHARLIE
Did you hear that, Mildred? Charlie Chaplin studios. Life can't get any more
perfect than this.
MILDRED
In the movies it can. Young girl turns to her handsome movie star friend and
tells him that he is going to be a father.
CHARLIE
(Then HE grasps it.)
What? Really? A father?
MILDRED
That's what the doctor told me.
(HE hugs her.)

CHARLIE
A father. Oh, my God! I can't believe it. That’s great! Listen, Mildred, we'll
have to get married.
MILDRED
Yes!
(HE kisses her as SYD approaches CHARLIE.)
SYDNEY
Charlie, you won’t believe it. I just got you a million-dollars. Biggest deal in
motion picture history.
!
MILDRED
We love you, Sydney.
CHARLIE
A million dollars? And I'll have a son to leave it to.
SYDNEY
A son?
CHARLIE
I'm going to be a father, Syd . . .
(Short pause.)
Speechless. Does that mean you're happy for me?
SYDNEY
I most certainly am, Charlie.
(HE hugs his brother, really moved and excited by the news)
And for you, too, Mildred.
Countdown to 1920 everyone!.
CAST
10, 9, 8 . . .
(CHARLIE hugs MILDRED.)
CAST
7, 6, 5, 4, 3 , 2, 1 . . .
CHARLIE
Everyone! Mildred and I are getting married!
ALL
Happy New Year! YAAAAYY!
Now, during the following chorus, we focus on Charlie as he

looks around at everyone celebrating. Lights change as we see
YOUNG CHARLIE and HANNAH, dressed as they were in the
"Look At All The People" scene, wandering through the party,
gazing in wonder at all of the glamorous party-goers, women
and men.
!
ACT ONE, SCENE 11C: HOLLYWOOD PARTY SEQUENCE (CHARLESTON)
CAST
PERFECT IN EVERY WAY.
HERE YOU CAN WRITE YOUR STORY,
KEEPING THE PAST AT BAY.
HERE IT'S JUST HAPPY ENDINGS,
AND MONEY JUST GROWS ON TREES.
LIFE CAN BE BEAUTIFUL,
LIFE CAN BE GRAND,
LIFE CAN BE BOUNTIFUL,
AT YOUR COMMAND,
LIFE CAN BE LIKE . . .
CHARLIE
Wait!
The CAST freezes as the song is about to end.
Now, ALL exit except HANNAH and YOUNG
CHARLIE as we transition to a Chaplin memory:
a London street outside the Ritz Hotel when
CHARLIE was a young boy.
ACT ONE, SCENE 12: FLASHBACK / A LONDON STREET / OUTSIDE THE

RITZ HOTEL
HANNAH
They're lucky, aren't they, Charlie, all of them fancy people?
YOUNG CHARLIE
Yes, Mum, very lucky.
!
HANNAH
Some day, when you're grown up, Charlie, if the life that you wish for
becomes real, you might be one of the people at a party just as grand as this
one.
HANNAH begins to walk away, seemingly abandoning YOUNG
CHARLIE.
If the life that you wish for becomes real.
YOUNG CHARLIE
Mum, Mum, where you goin'?
A drunken, disreputable-looking man, none
other than YOUNG CHARLIE's father,
CHARLES CHAPLIN, SR., happens along
with a tarty-looking young woman, MOLLY.
SONG #8A: DRUNK ON THE STREET

YOUNG CHARLIE
Dad? Dad, is that you?
CHARLES CHAPLIN, SR.

Well, if it ain't me darlin' son, Charlie. What you doin' all alone in this swell
part of town?
YOUNG CHARLIE
I was with Mum, lookin' at all of the fancy people comin' and goin', but then
she went off and I don't know where she is.

Same old Hannah. Molly, this is me darlin' son, Charlie.
MOLLY
Ain't you a fine-lookin' young fella. Come on.
YOUNG CHARLIE
(holding out a handful of coins)
Look, Dad, they gave me money for singin' at the Music Hall last night.

Oh, my, my, look at that, must be, yes, four, five shillings.
(grabbing the coins away from
YOUNG CHARLIE)
Thank ya, lad, that oughta be just enough to get me and my Molly and a
lovely bottle of gin.
(as HE goes off with the money and
MOLLY)
Good evenin' to ya, boy.
MOLLY
(cheerfully as THEY exit)
Good evenin'!
Transition back to the bare soundstage of

Chaplin Studios.
ACT ONE, SCENE 12A: CHAPLIN STUDIOS

MOVIE CREWMEN are at work on the
soundstage. CHARLIE, transitions to the role
of director, addressing the actor who played
his father.
CHARLIE
And remember, he was a drunk who cared only about drinking, didn't give a
damn about anybody but the women he'd pick up in pubs. And his poor wife,
her only sin was motherhood.
CREWMAN
(slating with a clapboard)
! "The Kid" -- Scene One, Take One!

ACT ONE, SCENE 13: SOUNDSTAGE / THE KID
SONG #9: THE KID

Chaplin-esque MUSIC plays under the
following sequence, which is seen in flickering
light, so that it appears as though we are
looking at an old-fashioned silent movie. As
CHARLIE narrates his description of the film,
we see what he is describing, beginning with
the YOUNG WOMAN leaving the maternity
hospital, played by the same actress who
plays HANNAH. Projected on the back wall of
Chaplin Studios we see backgrounds that
depict specific locations and memories.
CHARLIE
Long shot of a penniless woman leaving a Charity Hospital with her new-
born baby in her arms. Her drunken husband has abandoned her and she is
all alone. She wanders forlornly through the streets of London and then
spies a luxurious Rolls-Royce parked in front of an elegant mansion.
(to the YOUNG WOMAN)
You stop. What will she do? You make a fateful decision. You will abandon
your baby, a boy, in the back seat of the car in hopes that its wealthy
owners might give your son the life of ease that you cannot. You leave a
note.
(continuing his narration)
"Please love and care for this orphan child". Then a pair of burly car thieves
soon appear and steal the car with the baby in it.
The thieves quickly discover the baby in the back seat and, stopping the car
in a lowly slum neighborhood, leave the infant in a cold alleyway. Leaving it
alone to die. And then a miracle happens.
CHARLIE, as the Little Tramp, appears in the

scene and discovers the baby. HE sits and
cradles it in his arms. HE finds the note and
reads it aloud to himself. HE stands and
shuffles away with the baby clutched to his
breast. CHARLIE now continues a version of
what he is describing. As he speaks, the Attic
Room of the Little Tramp, folds in behind him,
! as he crosses downstage.
CHARLIE
The Little Tramp carries the baby home to his shabby attic room, nurtures
the infant and, as years pass, lovingly raises the child as his own son. They
were very happy until one day...
CHARLIE stops the music and the lights come

up, and now in his role as director, he
addresses JACKIE COOGAN. We see a
woman, MRS COOGAN, sitting on a director's
chair, on the opposite side of the stage to the
camera.
CHARLIE
Jackie, do you see those two mean-looking men standing over there?
JACKIE
Yes.
CHARLIE
How would you feel if they came and took you away from your father, the
Tramp, to a workhouse for bad little orphan boys?
JACKIE
I wouldn't like that.
CHARLIE
No. But that's exactly what's going to happen right now. So I want you to cry
for me in this scene, can you do that?
JACKIE
I don't want to.
(calling over to MRS. COOGAN)
Mom...
CHARLIE
Don't call your mother. Just look at me. I want you to cry your eyes out.
What would make you cry like that in real life?
JACKIE
I don't know. If my dog died?
!
CHARLIE
Good. Make believe your dog just died. All right, stand by, roll camera,
action! Now they're taking you away from me, Jackie. Hold out your arms!
Cry! Cry!
JACKIE
I can't. I don't wanna. Mom!
CHARLIE
Don't talk to your Mother. Look at me. Stop. Cut!
(CHARLIE goes to MRS. COOGAN and
whispers in her ear. MRS. COOGAN exits.)
JACKIE
Where's my Mom going?
CHARLIE
She's going home without you.
JACKIE
I want to go with her.
CHARLIE
You can't.
JACKIE
Why not?
CHARLIE
Because she's very angry with you, Jackie. Because you didn't cry when I
told you to.
JACKIE
(starting to cry)
I want my Mom.
CHARLIE
Do you want her to come back?
JACKIE
Yes!
CHARLIE
! Are you sure, Jackie?

JACKIE
Yes, yes. I don't like this anymore. I want my Mom. I want my Mom!
CHARLIE
I'm sorry, but you may never see her ever again.
JACKIE starts bawling.
Roll camera. Action.
The scene shifts to a London memory, years before.
ACT ONE , SCENE 13A: ABANDONMENT FLASHBACK
SONG #9A: ABANDONMENT FLASHBACK
JACKIE is now YOUNGER CHARLIE. HANNAH appears, as

well as a nurse and a guard. Projected across the entire scene
we see the moving image of a single crying child, as a nod to
JACKIE COOGAN, in the corner of the room in THE KID, and
as a connection of YOUNG CHARLIE abandoned by HANNAH.
YOUNG CHARLIE
No, Mum, don't leave me here.
HANNAH
I'm sorry, Charlie but I have to.
YOUNG CHARLIE
Please, Mum, no, I wanna stay with you.
NURSE
You can't. You're mother isn't well. She has to go in hospital.
YOUNG CHARLIE
But I wanna go with her.
HANNAH
No, Charlie. Children aren't allowed.
YOUNG CHARLIE
Why not? Why not?
NURSE
(
Because they're not.
YOUNG CHARLIE
But I wanna...
GUARD
That's enough, boy.
HANNAH
And never forget, I love you.
(as SHE gives the rose to YOUNG CHARLIE)

NURSE
Come along, Hannah.
YOUNG CHARLIE
No, you don't! You don't! Or you wouldn't leave me here!
GUARD
Come along, boy.
HANNAH
I'll come back for you, Charlie, I promise.
YOUNG CHARLIE
(clutching the rose)
No, Mum! Mum! Don't leave me here! Please don't leave me here! Mum!
Mum! Mum!
ACT ONE, SCENE 13B: THE KID PART 2

CHARLIE
Cut! Print it!
Memory fades away as Charlie hugs JACKIE.
That was perfect, Jackie! It's alright. You did just what I wanted you to.
(as MRS. COOGAN tiptoes back in...)
And look, your mother came back.
MILDRED, all dolled up to go out, steps out from the shadows
where SHE has been watching the filming. CHARLIE continues
working, setting up the next shot.
!
MILDRED
Why did you have to be so mean to little Jackie, Charlie?
CHARLIE
I have to do what I have to do to get a scene up on the screen. What are you
doing here, Mildred?
MILDRED
It's eight o'clock. You promised me you'd take me out to dinner at the Brown
Derby.
CHARLIE
Not possible. I'll be shooting until at least midnight.
MILDRED
I've been sitting home alone every night for over two months while you've
been making this damn movie. I wanna go to the Brown Derby.
CHARLIE
(calling out)
Syd? Is Syd here?
SYDNEY
(entering)
I'm right here, Charlie.
CHARLIE
Syd, would you please take my lovely wife out to dinner?
MILDRED
Wait! I don't wanna go to dinner with your brother, I wanna go with my
husband, Charlie Chaplin!
CHARLIE
Sorry, Mildred, but you'll go with Syd or you won't go at all.
SYDNEY
I'm afraid you're stuck with me. But before we go, Charlie should hear this:
there's something I'm kind of wondering about, Mildred.
MILDRED
Huh? What?
!
SYDNEY
I assume that you've been seeing your doctor -- what's the name you told
me, Steinberg? -- on a regular basis, about the baby.
MILDRED
Yes, of course, once a week, sometimes twice.
SYDNEY
Dr. Stephen G. Steinberg, in Beverly Hills?
MILDRED
Yes.
SYDNEY
Funny, we never received any bills from Dr. Steinberg, and so I...
MILDRED
I pay him in cash. I always pay him in cash.
SYDNEY
Ah, yes, I figured that must be the case. But when I called his office this
afternoon, spoke to the doctor himself, a very pleasant-sounding chap, he
told me, Mildred, that you'd never been to his office and that he doesn't know
who you are.
MILDRED
Oh, well, that's because, uh, he made a pass at me and I changed doctors.
SYDNEY
When?
MILDRED
I forget. Last month.
SYDNEY
Sorry, Mildred, but I don't believe you.
CHARLIE
What are you saying, Syd?
SYDNEY
I'm saying that Mildred tricked you into marrying her. That she's not pregnant
and never has been.
!
CHARLIE
What? Mildred, is that true?
SYDNEY
Yes, tell him, Mildred, tell him the truth. Tell him there is no baby.
MILDRED
Charlie, I love you.
CHARLIE
And I'm going to be a father?
MILDRED
Oh, Charlie.
CHARLIE
Tell me! Am I going to be a father?
MILDRED
(after a long pause)
No, you're not.
CHARLIE
How could you. So you lied to me.
MILDRED
Charlie.
(Goes to hug him.)
CHARLIE
Oh, I get it. You didn't want to marry me. You just wanted to marry Charlie
Chaplin.
SYDNEY
C'mon, let's go Mildred.
MILDRED
Wait! I'm not leaving this marriage empty handed.
CHARLIE
Get out of here, Mildred. Get out of my sight!
(calling out to his crew as SYDNEY takes MILDRED off)
! Setting up for the closing scenes!

ALF
Setting up! Standing...
CHARLIE
Standing by! Quiet on the set. Lights, camera...
MILDRED
Goodbye, Charlie.
SONG #9B: THE KID FINALE / REPORTERS / THE GOLD RUSH
(All of CHARLIE's emotion spills out, in the following speech,

as we see him fight back tears, and push through to the final
happy ending of the movie.)
CHARLIE
Action! Now the Little Tramp rescues the Kid from the workhouse and
returns him to his Mother. In a final twist of the plot, they are tearfully re-
united. The Little Tramp is overjoyed to at last have a loving wife and son.
The End. Cut! Print!
CHARLIE, overwhelmed by emotion, is unable to speak. ALF

steps in to save him.
ALF
Wrap it up!
Cast and crew applaud and exit.

CHARLIE
So, Alf, what do you think?
ALF
I think it's the best bloody picture you ever made, Charlie. The best bloody
picture anybody ever made!
Transition to outside a theatre where THE KID has just had its
! world premiere.
ACT ONE, SCENE 14: SYDNEY AND REPORTERS
SYDNEY, in a tuxedo, is surrounded by a group of

REPORTERS with flashing cameras, one of whom happens to
be HEDDA HOPPER.
REPORTER #1
Syd, the critics are saying that "The Kid" is the best picture your brother ever
made.
REPORTER #2 (HEDDA)
The best picture anybody ever made. What's your response to that?
SYDNEY
As his brother, I'm happy that America loves "The Kid." But as his business
manager, I'm upset that I didn't get Charlie a bigger piece of the distribution
deal.
REPORTERS laugh.
REPORTER #1
So, Syd, what's next for Charlie?
SYDNEY
With my unpredictable brother, you never know, but he has been thinking
about a picture in which the Tramp strikes it rich and becomes a millionaire.
REPORTER #3
Sort of like what happened to Charlie himself, huh?
SYDNEY
You've got that right.
REPORTER #2 (HEDDA)
Come on Syd, what's the title of this strikes-it-rich picture?
SYDNEY
You want the scoop, fellas? "The Gold Rush."
Instant transition to a radio NEWS BROADCASTER talking

into an old-fashioned 1920's-style standing microphone. We
see a rapid montage of scenes from THE GOLD RUSH,
! including a snippet of the bread-roll scene.
ACT ONE, SCENE 14A: SYDNEY, ALF, NEWS BROADCASTER
HEDDA
And, believe it or not, the success of Chaplin's movie "The Kid" has been
eclipsed by his latest worldwide sensation "The Gold Rush." The story of the
Little Tramp who treks north to the 1897 Klondike gold rush and, after a wild
series of comic misfortunes, strikes it rich and returns to America a well-
dressed millionaire. Chaplin stars in his funniest role ever.
We see ALF and SYDNEY, both reading
newspapers.
ALF
Look at this, Syd. Charlie's everywhere!
SYDNEY
It's unbelievable. I've never seen grosses like this.
CHARLIE enters.
ALF
Not bad for a kid from Kennington Lane.
SYDNEY
Right. Everybody in the world is crazy about him.
ALF
And it also seems like everybody wants to be him.
SYDNEY
Of course, everybody wants to be somebody else.
ALF and SYDNEY exit. CHARLIE is left alone in Chaplin
Studios.
HEDDA
This Chaplin craze is all over America folks. It's almost scary.
CHARLIE
Very scary. Everybody wants to be me. Except me.
!
ACT ONE, SCENE 15A: ACT ONE FINALE / THE LOOK A LIKE CONTEST
VOICE-OVER
Ladies and gentlemen, Grauman's Chinese Theatre is pleased to present the
! thousand-dollar Charlie Chaplin Look-A-Like Contest!
The Look-A-Like Contest. BALLET follows. As

CHARLIE remebers the Look-A-Like contest,
in a parallel "Look At All The People" and
"Tramp Discovery," he takes a hat from one
Look-A-Like contestant and a cane from
another, before finally joining the army of
dancing Charlie Chaplins. BALLET continues.
ACT ONE, SCENE 15B: FINALE / LOOK-A-LIKE CONTEST (MARRIAGE OF

FIGARO)
ACT ONE, SCENE 15C: FINALE / LOOK-A-LIKE CONTEST (HAT SPIN)
ACT ONE, SCENE 15D: FINALE / LOOK-A-LIKE CONTEST (ROLLER SKATING)
ACT ONE, SCENE 15E: FINALE / LOOK-A-LIKE CONTEST (HELLO MR.

NAPKIN)
ACT ONE, SCENE 15F: FINALE / LOOK-A-LIKE CONTEST (BIG FINISH / ROLL
DANCE)
The drop flies out to reveal, CHARLIE slowly

rising from the floor, on a tightrope.
CAST
AND YOU WILL KNOW HIM
BY THE TIP OF HIS HAT.
ACT ONE, SCENE 15G: LOOK-A-LIKE CONTEST / ACT ONE FINALE
As the cast continues to sing and dance,

SYDNEY and ALF move amongst them.
Calling up to CHARLIE above.
SYDNEY
Watch out, Charlie!
CAST
AND THAT'S JUST HOW WE WILL SHOW HIM,
ALF
Be careful, Charlie!
CAST
THE WORLD'S BOUND TO LOVE HIM,
HANNAH appears close to centerstage, and look up at

CHARLIE on the tightrope.
CAST
WHEN THEY SEE THE

SYDNEY AND ALF
LITTLE You're going too high, Charlie! HANNAH
Charlie!
CAST
TRAMP!
CHARLIE flips into a handstand on the

tightrope, flips back to standing, does a hat-
trick and blows a kiss. Blackout. Curtain.
! END OF ACT ONE

ACT TWO, SCENE 1: CHAPLIN STUDIOS: SOUNDSTAGE / JUST ANOTHER

DAY IN HOLLYWOOD (THE CIRCUS)
SONG #11: JUST ANOTHER DAY IN HOLLYWOOD
ALF
He's here, everyone! He's here!
CHARLIE
Good morning, Alf!
ALF
Mornin’
RING MASTER (BILL R.)

Morning, Mr. Chaplin.
CHARLIE
Morning!
ALF
The Circus. Scene one! Take one!
CHARLIE
Action!
A BEAUTIFUL GIRL jumps on a trampline and
flies through a hoop centerstage.
CAST
(As Charlie shoots THE CIRCUS:)
JUST ANOTHER DAY IN HOLLYWOOD,
JUST ANOTHER NAME IN LIGHTS.
CHARLIE
Ladies!
CAST
JUST A NEW CAREER IN HOLLYWOOD,
ANOTHER STAR TO REACH THE HEIGHTS.
ONCE YOU HAVE TASTED THE SWEETNESS OF FAME,
STAYING ON TOP IS THE NAME OF THE GAME.
IT'S JUST THE WAY IT IS IN HOLLYWOOD.

(
ACT TWO, SCENE 1A: JUST ANOTHER DAY IN HOLLYWOOD (CITY LIGHTS)
(ALF gives CHARLIE his hat and cane and HE walks into the
scene with the FLOWER GIRL in his next picture, CITY
LIGHTS.)
ALF
City Lights, Scene 82, Take 94!
(CHARLIE is directing the FLOWER GIRL.)
WOMEN
THE LIGHTS ARE ALWAYS GLOWING,
AND THE CAMERAS ALWAYS ROLLING,
AND THE DIRECTOR'S ALWAYS SHOUTING "JUST ONE MORE".
CHARLIE
Just one more!
WOMEN AND MEN
STARLETS ALWAYS GAZING
AT THE LEADING MAN WHO'S PLAYING,
WHO IS HOPING THAT HE'S BETTER THAN BEFORE.
ACT TWO, SCENE 1B: JUST ANOTHER DAY IN HOLLYWOOD (MODERN

TIMES) / HEDDA HOPPER STUDIOS
ALF
(With slate.)
Modern Times! Factory scene! Take 58!
CHARLIE
Conveyor belt - go!
(CHARLIE shoots MODERN TIMES as a conveyor belt
appears.)
CAST
( YOU DO YOU'RE BEST TO STAY ON TOP.
CAST
STARS ON THE RISE,
STARS ON THE FALL,
STARS YOU'LL FORGET,
AND STARS YOU'LL RECALL,
LIGHTING UP THE SKY IN HOLLYWOOD.
(HEDDA HOOPER is revealed, wearing a very large hat, at a

microphone.)
HEDDA
Hello, I'm Hedda Hopper and this is Hedda Hopper's Hollywood. In the fickle
world of movies, stars come and go but one star keeps on shining: the Little
Tramp. Yes, the whole world knows the on-screen face of Charlie Chaplin.
But behind that screen there is another face that movie-goers have never
seen. And I’m here to show it to you.
(As the CAST sings, we once again see the MODERN TIMES
conveyer belt, this time from HEDDA'S perspective.)
HEDDA
WOMEN
JUST ANOTHER INGENUE.
HEDDA
WOMEN (WITH MEN "AHH-ING")

ANOTHER MIDNIGHT RENDEZVOUS.
SWEET, YOUNG AND PRETTY,
WITH SENSUOUS EYES,
BUT INSIDE THAT BEAUTY,
SCANDALS ARISE.
CAST
( JUST ANOTHER DAY IN HOLLYWOOD.
WOMEN
IF YOU PLAY THE GAME,
YOU MIGHT GET YOUR SHOT AT FAME.
AND THEN THE LEADING MAN
WILL ALWAYS CATCH YOUR EYE.
ONE NIGHT IN THE HAY
AND LADY LUCK WILL COME YOUR WAY.
AND THEN YOU'LL SOON BE KISSING
WAITRESSING GOODBYE.
(A bell rings as we see a boxing ring with HEDDA as the
Referee.)
ACT TWO, SCENE 1C: JUST ANOTHER DAY IN HOLLYWOOD (BOXING)
HEDDA
Welcome to Hedda Hopper's fight-night in Hollywood! In this corner, the
aging feather-weight, Charlie Chaplin. And in this corner, the lovely young
lightweight, Mildred Harris.
(A bell rings and the fight ensues.)
Harris lands a hard right cross to Chaplin's jaw but the Little Tramp fights
back. And now, oooooh, Mildred's mad . . . she wants his mansion . . .
(MILDRED punches him.)
Rolls-Royce . . .
(MILDRED punches again.)
An apology . . .
(Punch.)
And most of all, a hundred-thousand dollar settlement.
(MILDRED knocks out the Tramp)
She gets it all! The winner, by a knockout, Harris!
SYDNEY tosses a bag of money to MILDRED, who exits as
LITA GREY enters.
Next up, Lita Grey, Chaplin's second wife, a teen-aged battler who comes
( out punching!
HEDDA (CONT'D)
(SHE punches him.)
She's fighting for her life. And so is he!
(HE punches her; SHE ducks)
How will this shotgun marriage end? She's asking for the world!
(SHE punches him four times and CHAPLIN goes down.)
She gets it! The largest divorce settlement in California history: $650,000!
(SYD appears again with an even bigger bag of money that HE

hands to LITA as SHE exits. The bell rings.)
And now stepping into the ring is Chaplin's current wife, that sluggin
southpaw, Paulette Goddard. All she's looking for is one shot of revenge.
(PAULETTE winds up and knocks him out.)

She gets it!
(The bell rings; HEDDA sings as SYD helps CHARLIE up. We
see a number of mirrors fly in from above to surround
CHARLIE.)
HE CAME FROM AFAR,
AND THEN HE WAS CAST,
'CAUSE HOLLYWOOD'S A FANTASY,
WHERE YOU CAN LOSE THE PAST.
HE BECAME A SUCH STAR IN THE CITY OF SIN,
JUST A HAT AND CANE,
AND IT'S GUARANTEED YOU'RE IN.
CHARLIE sings to the beautiful women that surround him.
CHARLIE
SHOW ME A SMILE,
SHOW ME SOME GRACE,

(
CHARLIE
SHOW ME THE LIGHT,
IN THAT BEAUTIFUL FACE.
WOMEN
IT HAPPENS EVERY DAY IN HOLLYWOOD.
ACT TWO, SCENE 1D: JUST ANOTHER DAY HOLLYWOOD (MIRRORS)

(HE looks in the mirrors, suddenly the reflections of many
many girls surround him. HE is trapped.)
GIRLS
Charlie, Charlie, Charlie, Charlie, Charlie, Charlie!
CHARLIE
WAIT? Am I married to any of you? NO? Thank God!
ACT TWO, SCENE 1E: JUST ANOTHER DAY IN HOLLYWOOD (POLE CLIMB)
CAST
HERE YOU CAN DO
WHATEVER YOU PLEASE
WHATEVER YOU WANT
YOU CAN TAKE IT WITH EASE
IT'S JUST ANOTHER DAY

HEDDA
IT'S JUST THE WAY WE PLAY
HEDDA & ENSMBLE
WELCOME TO THE WORLD OF HOLLYWOOD
! CHARLIE runs and climbs the center tentpole. Button.

SONG #11A: HOLLYWOOD PLAYOFF
ACT TWO, SCENE 1F: TRANSITION INTO CHAPLIN STUDIOS
ACT TWO, SCENE 2: AT CHAPLIN STUDIOS

Charlie's office at Chaplin Studios. SYDNEY is standing
reading a newspaper while CHARLIE is in an easy chair.
SYDNEY
Oh, here’s one. "With the end of Chaplin's marriage to Paulette Goddard, his
divorce settlements now total nearly a million dollars." Congratulations,
Charlie, you've given the nation's gold diggers challenging new heights to
aspire to.
CHARLIE
I'm delighted to be an inspiration to starlets everywhere.
SYDNEY
Your personal life is beginning to read like a trashy dime novel.
CHARLIE
Thank you, Syd.
SYDNEY
I was thinking, Charlie, if you went into production on a new picture you
wouldn't have time to sleep with a new starlet every night.
CHARLIE
Yes, but then what fun would I be having? And I'll go into production on a
new picture only when I come up with a brilliant idea for a new picture.
SYDNEY
Which could take months.
CHARLIE
Or years.
SYDNEY
Or years. Meanwhile, you might drop by some afternoon to see Mum. I
mean, why bring her over here and then never go see her?
CHARLIE
Can't you ever get it, Syd? It's too painful for me to see her the way she is
(
now. I want to remember her the way she once was.
SYDNEY
Me, too. But, ya know, I almost felt the other day, for just a couple of
minutes, that she finally seemed to recognize me.
CHARLIE
Really?
SYDNEY
She's not getting any younger, Charlie. And frankly, the doctors told me last
week that they're beginning to worry how much longer she'll be with us.
(with a sigh)
Yes. Anyway, your next picture, whatever it turns out to be, I have a thought
you should consider.
CHARLIE
A thought? Really, Syd, and what would that be?
SYDNEY
Picture this. The Little Tramp appears on the screen, shuffles down a dusty
country road, turns to the camera, smiles, and for the first time ever, he
speaks! It's a talkie!
CHARLIE
Absolutely not. He will never speak.
SYDNEY
But it would be a sensation at the box office and get the papers writing about
your movies again instead of about your latest love.
CHARLIE
Still no!
SYDNEY
I'm trying to help you, Charlie. If you keep making silent pictures, no one will
come to see them. The talkies have been here for years, and they're the
future.
CHARLIE
They’re not my future.
SYDNEY
Dammit, Charlie, I would hate to see you end up the forgotten man because
! of your stubbornness.
CHARLIE
Forgotten man. Charlie Chaplin will never be forgotten. I will never forget
them and they will never forget me.
SYDNEY
Charlie, I'm just trying to help you.
CHARLIE
Well, when it comes to "thoughts" like these, don't!
CHARLIE starts to exit.

SYDNEY
Where are you going?
CHARLIE
I'm a silent comedian. I can't say.
HE exits.
SONG #11A: SCENE CHANGE TO GLENDALE HOSPITAL

(
ACT TWO, SCENE 3: GLENDALE HOSPITAL / THE LIFE THAT YOU WISHED
FOR
The Glendale nursing home, later the same day. HANNAH sits
on a park bench, against a beautiful backdrop of a park,
projected all around her is the decaying asylum, representing
the lost nature of her mind. She is humming the tune to “LOOK
AT ALL THE PEOPLE.”
NURSE
Hannah, I have a nice surprise for you this afternoon.
HANNAH
Oh?
NURSE
Your son is here to see you.
CHARLIE
(entering)
Hello. Mum, it's Charlie.
(HANNAH does not answer.)
I know it's been a long long while. But I've been, uh, quite busy. You're
looking well. Sydney told me that, well, uh, the other day...
(
HANNAH
Are you the doctor?
CHARLIE
Sorry?
HANNAH
I've been waiting for you. They put me in here but I don't belong.
CHARLIE
Oh?
HANNAH
You have to help me get out. I should never have been sent here in the first
place. And it's very important.
CHARLIE
And why is that?
HANNAH
Because I have to sing tonight. They'll be waiting for me down at the music
hall, all of them, but especially him.
CHARLIE
Him? Who?
HANNAH
The young boy who sang with me.
CHARLIE
Young boy? How old was he?
HANNAH
Seven, maybe.
CHARLIE
Do you remember his name?
HANNAH
No . . . I can't recall . . . but he sang and then . . . I couldn't find him. He could
be lost somewhere. I keep worrying that he's out on the street, cold and
hungry. But he was there that night. Were you?
CHARLIE
Yes, I was.
!
(MUSIC starts under, quietly.)
SONG #12: THE LIFE THAT YOU WISHED FOR

HANNAH
Then you must know him. You must know what happened to him? Please,
sir, tell me. What happened to that boy who sang with me?
CHARLIE
MUM, THEY STOP HIM ON THE STREET,
AND THEY HAVE HIM SIGN HIS NAME.
AND THEN THEY TAKE HIS PICTURE,
SO THE MOMENT CAN REMAIN.
AND HE IS WONDERFUL.
OH, YES, HOW WONDERFUL HE FEELS.
'CAUSE THE LIFE THAT HE WISHED FOR
BECAME REAL.
NOW THE MONEY'S ROLLING IN
AND HE'S DRESSED IN FANCY CLOTHES,
HE LIVES INSIDE A MANSION,
AND HIS FACE THE WHOLE WORLD KNOWS.
AND HE IS WONDERFUL.
OH, YES, HOW WONDERFUL HE FEELS.
'CAUSE THE LIFE THAT HE WISHED FOR
BECAME REAL.
BUT SOMETIMES WHEN HE SIGNS HIS NAME,
THEY QUICKLY WALK AWAY.
HE KNOWS THEY'RE TRYING TO BE POLITE,
BUT HE WISHES THEY WOULD STAY.

(
CHARLIE
I NEED FOR YOU TO HEAR ME,
AND RECOGNIZE MY FACE.
I WISH THAT I COULD SAVE YOU
FROM THIS DARK AND LONELY PLACE.
AND THAT WOULD BE WONDERFUL,
OH, HOW WONDERFUL THAT WOULD FEEL,
IF THE DREAMS THAT YOU WANTED TO SEE
TURNED OUT THE WAY YOU HOPED THEY WOULD BE,
AND THE LIFE THAT YOU WISHED FOR
BECAME REAL.
HANNAH stands slowly and exits upstage.

CHARLIE is once again abandoned by his
mother.
!
ACT TWO, SCENE 4: CHAPLIN STUDIOS/ THE GREAT DICTATOR

The sound stage with a large movie screen. ALF enters and
cues playback. The beautiful backdrop now becomes a
Universal Leader. We transition to news reel footage of Hitler
adressing the crowds at Nuremberg. CHARLIE enters, dressed
in a Hitler uniform, but with no moustache.
CHARLIE
Kampfgeist!
(HE imitates Hitler)
Kampfgeist! Sieg Heil! No, back up the film up, Alf, I want to try something.
It's the German language he uses to bully his people? Those brutal
consonants. If he spoke French, he'd probably still be painting landscapes. A
madman and no one in this country is trying to stop him. Alf, run that section
again but this time without the sound.
We now see Hitler's mouth moving, but

CHARLIE is speaking for him, initially using
his words, then speaking gibberish.
CHARLIE
Stop that! Stop chanting! Listen to me! I'm a little teapot short and stout. This
is mein handle und this is mein spout. Mein spout.
SYDNEY enters.
SYDNEY
Please tell me that there's a sane reason why you're dressed like that.
CHARLIE
Sane? No. Reason? Maybe. How do I look?
CHARLIE stands in front of a background shot of Nuremberg.
SYDNEY
Frightening. Is that actual footage from . . . ?
CHARLIE
Yes, Nuremberg. I figure if I'm going to make a film about Hitler, I might as
! well let him save me money on production costs.
SYDNEY
A film about Hitler?
CHARLIE
I'm thinking about it. After Mum died, I promised myself I'd make a film for
her.
SYDNEY
And this is the film you want make for her, about Hitler? It could be seriously
controversial. Half of America shouting that we should stay out of another
war with Germany.
CHARLIE
That's why it could be truly important. And I'm thinking I could play two parts.
SYDNEY
Oh?
CHARLIE
A German dictator and the Tramp as a Jewish barber. Actually, wait - better .
. . a Jewish barber who looks exactly like the German dictator.
SYDNEY
A German dictator and a Jewish barber both played by an Englishman who
lives in Beverly Hills? No I don’t see the controversy in that at all?
CHARLIE
But wait! The most important character will be a poor woman of the slums
who's been beaten down by a tyrannical society that's all but driven her mad.
Her name will be . . . Hannah.
SYDNEY
Hannah. Of course.
SONG #12A: THE GREAT DICTATOR UNDERSCORE
CHARLIE
You see, the Tramp could be mistaken for the German dictator and asked to
address the nation. When he does, he will deliver a message of hope instead
of tyranny. His words will be heard over loudspeakers in the streets, in the
ghetto, where Hannah is listening. She knows his voice. He says her name!
(
A film CREW appears onstage and we are on the set of THE

GREAT DICTATOR.
CHARLIE
Lights. Camera. Sound!
(A microphone descends from above.
CHARLIE speaks on film for the first time. His
voice echoes. HANNAH, as a young woman,
appears in a pool of light, dressed as
PAULETTE GODDARD's character in
"The Great Dictator.")
"Hannah, can you hear me wherever you are? Look up! The clouds are
lifting. The sun is breaking through. We are coming into a new world. Look
up Hannah! Look up!"
(Sound effect of applause and cheering.)
Cut.
SYDNEY
The Little Tramp finally speaks, Charlie?
CHARLIE
For the poor and the downtrodden. For all the Hannah's of the world. Thanks
to you, Syd. And I will call it ...the Dictator. No wait... the Great Dictator. It will
be my finest comedy.
SYDNEY
Comedy? You really think you can make Hitler funny?
CHARLIE
He is funny because he's a buffoon and he doesn't even know it. Besides, it
serves him right.
(as HE exits)
...the son-of-a-bitch stole my moustache!
SONG #12B: TRANSITION TO HEDDA

(
Transition to HEDDA HOPPER's office/studio. HEDDA is at a
microphone broadcasting.
!
ACT TWO, SCENE 5: HEDDA HOPPER'S OFFICE/STUDIO

HEDDA HOPPER is at a microphone
broadcasting.
HEDDA
Finally, believe it or not, Charlie’s Chaplin’s “The Great Dictator” is a box
office smash. Even though millions of patriotic Americans, like me, feel that
the picture is shamefully unfair to the German people. But now that Chaplin
is talking on the silver screen, I think it’s high time he come talk with me on
coast-to-coast radio? What’s up Charlie? Are you hiding from me? Afraid?
Good night from Hedda Hopper's Hollywood!
(SHE ends her radio address as her SECRETARY enters)
It's a goddamn outrage that Chaplin is making millions from "The Great
Dictator"! I assume that he still hasn't called back.
SECRETARY
No, he hasn't.
HEDDA
I need to get him on the show -- we could get ratings through the roof.
SECRETARY
Louella Parsons is also trying to get him on her show.
HEDDA
I'm Hedda Hopper, no one interviews him before I do! Get me Alf Reeves on
the line now!
ACT TWO, SCENE 5A: CHAPLIN STUDIOS / SPLIT-SCREEN

ALF, at Chaplin Studios, answers the phone.
ALF
Alf Reeves!
HEDDA
Yes, hello. Mr. Reeves, it's Hedda Hopper calling again.
ALF
Oh, Miss Hopper, yes. As promised, I presented your request to Mr. Chaplin.
!
HEDDA
Oh, lovely, thank you, and when will he be coming on my show?
ALF
I believe his answer was never?
HEDDA
Excuse me.
ALF
He's not interested. Says he doesn't talk to tabloid gossip columnists.
HEDDA
I am not a gossip columnist, Mr. Reeves, I am a syndicated journalist, the
star of my own nationally broadcast radio show, and a very powerful woman.
ALF
I'm sure that you are, Miss Hopper.
HEDDA
So tell me again when Mr. Chaplin will be coming on my show?
ALF
Sorry, but the answer is still never. Good day.
ALF hangs up the phone and exits.

HEDDA
How dare he?! Chaplin finds his voice and decides that he's too good for the
rest of us. Him with his teenage brides and under-aged girl friends. And now
speaking out politically with "The Great Dictator." Fine, he uses his voice, I'll
use mine!
SONG #13: ALL FALLS DOWN
HEY THERE, MR. CHAPLIN,
YOU MAY THINK I'M RATHER SMALL.
'CAUSE THE POSH PAPERS ARE FALLING AT YOUR FEET.
SO, GO AHEAD AND SNUB ME

(
AND DON'T RETURN MY CALL.
AND BUILD YOUR HOUSE ON TOP OF EASY STREET.
Her SECRETARY returns and HEDDA gets an idea.
BUT, WHAT YOU GONNA DO WHEN IT ALL FALLS DOWN
'CAUSE I LET A LITTLE RUMOR SPREAD?
WHAT YOU GONNA DO IF I CHANGE THE NAME
OF THE PERSON SLEEPING IN YOUR BED?
WHAT YOU GONNA DO WHEN I TELL THE TALE
THAT MAKES THE COUNTRY TURN ITS HEAD?
JUST A LITTLE GOSSIP, AND JUST A LITTLE LIE.
I'LL SIMPLY SAY THE LITTLE TRAMP
IS JUST A LITTLE SPY.
AND WHAT YOU GONNA DO WHEN IT ALL FALLS DOWN?
HEDDA
Ha! Chaplin says he loves America but then makes a movie that could lead
the country into war.
SECRETARY
And he's not even an American citizen.
HEDDA
He isn't? Really?
A drop flies in and we see a fantasy come to life as HEDDA
dreams of bringing Chaplin down. We shift to a dark version of
"THE CIRCUS" as CHARLIE becomes a puppet controlled by
HEDDA.
HEY THERE, MR. CHAPLIN,
(
HEDDA (CONT’D)
WELL, YOUR ACT DESERVES APPLAUSE.
YOU WAVE OUR FLAG AND THE COUNTRY IS IMPRESSED.
BUT I'M A VOICE AMONG THE CROWD
THAT'S QUESTIONING YOUR CAUSE,
AND NOW I'LL SPREAD MY DOUBT AMONG THE REST.
WHAT'CHA GONNA DO WHEN IT ALL FALLS DOWN
WHAT'CHA GONNA DO WHEN THE MONEY'S GONE
WHAT'CHA GONNA DO WHEN THE COUNTRY SAYS
"NOW GET YOURSELF OUTTA HERE"?
I'M GONNA WIPE THE SMILE
FROM THE FAMOUS LITTLE CLOWN.
AND WHAT'CHA GONNA DO WHEN IT ALL FALLS DOWN?
AND ALL THE KING'S HORSES
AND ALL THE KING'S MEN
WILL NEVER PUT POOR CHARLIE
TOGETHER AGAIN!
AND WHAT'CHA GONNA DO WHEN IT ALL FALLS DOWN?

(
By the end of the number, HEDDA has stolen

CHARLIE's hat and cane and finishes in a
striking image at her microphone. We
transition back to Chaplin Studios.
SONG #13A: ALL FALLS FOWN PLAYOFF

(
ACT TWO, SCENE 6: CHARLIE'S OFFICE AT CHAPLIN STUDIOS
SYDNEY is once again standing reading a newspaper as
CHARLIE lounges in a chair.
SYDNEY
(quoting from the newspaper)
"Eyebrows were raised all over Hollywood today at Hedda Hopper's news of
Charlie Chaplin's speech at the Russian rally in San Francisco last Saturday
night. Makes people wonder if the Little Tramp's a Communist." Why did you
let them talk you into speaking?
CHARLIE
Talk me into it? On the contrary. I asked them if I could speak.
SYDNEY
Why?
CHARLIE
Because I feel that I can make a difference. People listen to me. Since "The
Great Dictator," I've come to realize that I have a political voice that is taken
seriously.
SYDNEY
People don’t want you to be serious, Charlie. They want you to make them
laugh.
CHARLIE
I'm tired of making them laugh. Do you realize that Hitler has ordered every
last citizen of Leningrad wiped off the face of the earth and we in America
are doing nothing to stop him? I spoke at that rally in support of a second
front, an allied invasion of Europe, and in the end ten thousand people stood
up and cheered me.
SYDNEY
Congratulations. So what's next, Charlie, you going to run for President?
(
CHARLIE
I can't. I'm not a citizen. Too bad, though, I'd make a great president.
SYDNEY
Jesus!
CHARLIE
I could be him too. I'm an artist, Sydney, the world's greatest artist.
SYDNEY
No, Charlie, Picasso's an artist. You're just a guy who makes funny movies.
Listen, I've always been behind you. And I can't stand watching you throw
away your talent over some need to be politically important.
CHARLIE
You mean the talent that you never had?
SYDNEY
Charlie, I'm trying to help you.
CHARLIE
No, you're jealous of me. You're trying to stop me from making a difference.
SYDNEY
I'm trying to stop you from wrecking your career. Don't you get it, it's not
Charlie Chaplin who is loved by all America. It's the Little Tramp. And not
some Hollywood liberal trying to be the savior of every last citizen in
Leningrad.
CHARLIE
The hell with the Little Tramp, I'm not the Tramp anymore. I'm never going to
play him again. The Great Dictator was his last performance.
ALF has entered during the above exchange.
ALF
Charlie, there's a man on the phone from the Russian Allies committee. He
wants to know if you'll give them the honor of speaking at another of their
rallies, right here in L.A., Monday night?
SYDNEY
(Overlapping ALF)
No. Tell him no.
CHARLIE
(
Tell him yes.
SYDNEY
Dammit, Charlie, if you go ahead and speak at that rally, as your business
manager, I will not support you.
CHARLIE
You don’t have to, you're fired!
SYDNEY
You would fire your own brother?
CHARLIE
Apparently.
SYDNEY
Okay. Fine. Have fun saving mankind all by yourself.
SONG #14: "MAN OF ALL COUNTRIES"

SYDNEY exits; MUSIC under as we transition to HEDDA
HOPPER's office downstage and CHARLIE speaking at the
Russian rally on the same platform used to film THE GREAT
DICTATOR.
!
ACT TWO, SCENE 7: LIMBO / HEDDA'S OFFICE / MCGRANERY'S

OFFICE/MAN OF ALL COUNTRIES
CHARLIE
I am not a Communist, I am a humanist, a man of all countries, who cares
deeply for all of those whom the world has oppressed and forgotten.
HEDDA
HERE IS A PICTURE FROM THE COMMUNIST RALLY
AND THE MAN OF HONOR IS CHAPLIN.
HE SPOKE FOR THEIR CAUSE,
ENDORSED ALL THEIR LAWS,
WE CAN'T LET THIS KIND OF THING HAPPEN.
THE DANGER HAS SPREAD,
THE COLOR OF RED SHINES WHEREVER HE GOES.
THIS MAN OF ALL COUNTRIES,
WE NEED TO FIND OUT WHO HE KNOWS.
Her SECRETARY enters with a phone.
Have you got the Attorney General on the line?

SECRETARY
Yes. From his office in Washington.
HEDDA
(picking up the phone)
Mr. McGranery? Hedda Hopper here. No, thank you, sir, for taking my call. I
realize that the Justice Department is extremely busy but I have tapes of
Charlie Chaplin speaking at Communist rallies in San Francisco and Los
Angeles that I think you will find very interesting . . . Yes, certainly, I will air
mail them to you immediately. Of course, I'll be glad to help you in any way I
can, Mr. McGranery.
Lights change as we again see CHARLIE speaking at a rally.

!
CHARLIE
I need no borders to define what nation I am loyal to. I may travel on a British
passport, but I am nonetheless a citizen of the world. Patriotism is a love of
one's country. Nationalism is an obsession that starts wars. I speak for the
children of Russia, whom no one else in America speaks for.
CHARLIE freezes in mid-speech as McGRANERY appears in
his office on the phone.
MCGRANERY
Miss Hopper, Attorney General McGranery here. I received your Chaplin
tapes.
HEDDA
As you can see, he is not the true American patriot he wants everyone to
think he is.
MCGRANERY
It will take more than Chaplin speaking on tapes, Miss Hopper, to prove that
to me.
As HEDDA sings, the stage is flooded in a sea of red Russian

flags.
HEDDA
A MAN OF HIS FAME,
A MAN WITH HIS NAME,
CAN'T STEP TOO FAR OVER THE LINE.
THE PUBLIC BELIEVES,
WHAT THEY HEAR AND SEE,
THE EFFECT GROWS BIGGER WITH TIME.
HE CAN'T STAY IN THIS LAND,
AND PUT OUT HIS HAND,
AND THEN TOAST TO OUR ENEMIES.

!
HEDDA
I THINK IT'S TIME THAT WE FOLLOW
EVERYONE HE SEES.
MCGRANERY
(on the phone)
Miss Hopper, in order for me to launch a full-scale Federal investigation into
Chaplin, you're going to have to dig a whole lot deeper!
HEDDA / MCGRANERY
I THINK IT'S TIME THAT WE/YOU FOLLOW
EVERYONE HE SEES . . .
The flags swirl to reveal CHARLIE's office at Chaplin Studios.
ACT TWO, SCENE 8: CHARLIE'S OFFICE
ALF is finishing a phone call.

ALF
Yes, Sam, I'll let him know that you called. Again.
(ALF hangs up the phone.)
CHARLIE
My distributors?
ALF
Yes. They're worried that those pro-Russian speeches you've been making
are going to hurt future box-office.
CHARLIE
No need. You should have heard them - twenty thousand people cheering
my name at Madison Square Garden. They loved me; they listened to me;
they believed in what I was saying. They wanted to hear me.
ALF
I miss the days when you didn't speak.
CHARLIE
(
Excuse me?
ALF
When we just made movies. Silent movies.
CHARLIE
Go on . . .
ALF
I miss when everything was simple and none of us took ourselves so
seriously. I miss Sydney.
CHARLIE
Has he called?
ALF
No, I heard he went back to London. But I could try to call him there if you
want. If he came back maybe he could help you...
CHARLIE
Never mind. I don't need any help from anyone, especially Sydney.
ALF
Charlie, a lot of people around the studio are wondering if you really are, ya
know, a Communist.
CHARLIE
I don't give a damn what people around the studio are wondering, the whole
world still loves me.
ALF
Right-o, Charlie, if you say so.
CHARLIE
Thank you, Alfred. That'll be all for now.
ALF starts to leave, then turns back to CHARLIE.
ALF
Tell me, but was The Great Dictator really the Little Tramp's last
performance?
CHARLIE
( Yes, it was.
ALF
I'm sorry to hear that.
ALF exits. CHARLIE crosses to his director's chair and a
YOUNG BRUNETTE enters.
OONA
Oh, pardon me.
CHARLIE
Yes?
OONA
I don't mean to intrude but I'm here for an audition and I'm afraid that I'm a
little late.
CHARLIE
The auditions were yesterday.
OONA
Really late.
(CHARLIE looks up and sees her for the first time)
Forgive me, I'll leave.
CHARLIE
Wait. What is your name?
OONA
Oona O'Neill.
CHARLIE
Aha. Didn't I see your photograph on the cover of Life magazine? "Debutante
of the Year."
OONA
Unfortunately, yes.
CHARLIE
And your father is Eugene O'Neill?
OONA
Unfortunately, yes.
CHARLIE
I greatly admire his plays.
OONA
Yes. They're very long.
(
CHARLIE
He won the Nobel prize, didn't he?
OONA
Yes, for his plays, not his ice-cold heart.
CHARLIE
Ah, so it's that way, is it?
OONA
Yes, it is. Sadly.
CHARLIE
And so you're an actress? I'm sorry but I don't recall having seen you in
anything.
OONA
That's because I haven't been in anything. I'm in the process of finding out
whether or not I have any talent for acting. My father tells me that I don't. But
of course he hates all actresses. Forgive me. This is actually my first
audition.
CHARLIE
Really? That's very brave of you.
OONA
Funny, I think it's very foolish of me.
CHARLIE
Not really.
OONA
So, umm, do you want me to read a scene?
CHARLIE
No. Let's just try a little screen test.
(HE gets up, points a camera at OONA and turns it on.)
Action. Now, just tell me about yourself, Miss O'Neill.
OONA
(Laughs.)
You can call me Oona.
CHARLIE
You can call me Charlie.
OONA
What should I say?
CHARLIE
Say whatever pops into your mind.
(
OONA
Well, I'm Irish, obviously. Irish-American, that is. I'm quite shy most of the
time . . . and . . . it doesn't take much to make me happy.
CHARLIE
Tell me something that makes you happy.
OONA
Oh, I don't know. Children . . . children make me happy, I guess.
CHARLIE
Why?
OONA
Because I can always be, you see, myself when I'm around them.
(CHARLIE stops the camera and looks at her.)
CHARLIE
Cut.
OONA
Was that all right?
CHARLIE
That was perfect.
OONA
Thank you.
(Not knowing what to say.)
Well, I take it you're very busy and so I'll just...
(SHE goes to leave.)
CHARLIE
Actually, I'm not in the least busy. Tell me, do you know many people in the
movie business?
OONA
Orson Welles is a friend.
CHARLIE
And a very brilliant young man.
OONA
Yes. I'm actually seeing him tonight, for dinner.
(
CHARLIE
How lovely. So, I take it you have a car waiting outside for you?
OONA
No, I don't. Came by trolley, going home by trolley.
CHARLIE
I see. But the trolley can be awfully crowded this time of day. Could I
perhaps drive you home? You could tell Orson that you got a ride home from
Charlie Chaplin.
OONA
Thank you, but I came only for the audition. It's been nice to meet you,
Charlie Chaplin.
CHARLIE
And it's been nice to meet you, Oona O'Neill.
SHE exits. HE is deeply smitten. Transition to a Hollywood
street where HEDDA HOPPER chases down MILDRED
HARRIS.
SONG #14A: HEDDA'S A BITCH / CHARLIE FALLS IN LOVE
ACT TWO, SCENE 9: A HOLLYWOOD STREET
HEDDA
Miss Harris, Mildred, a moment of your time, please.
MILDRED
If you promise it's only a moment.
HEDDA
During the time you were married to Chaplin, did you ever hear of him having
any sort of affiliation with the Communist Party?
MILDRED
Is that what you're up to these days, Miss Hopper? Tracking down
Commies? Reds? Spies on our backlots?
HEDDA
If he's a Communist, I want to know it. To me it's all about discovering
( Chaplin's true character.
MILDRED
Character? That's a laugh. You shouldn't be talking, Hedda, about something
you obviously don't have.
THEY leave in opposite directions as we transition to CHARLIE

and OONA coming out of a Hollywood restaurant together and
being accosted by a photographer. OONA is holding a rose in
one hand.
ACT TWO, SCENE 9A: OUTSIDE A HOLLYWOOD RESTAURANT

PHOTOGRAPHER
Mr. Chaplin, Miss O'Neill. One quick shot, please!
HE takes a flash photograph of them and hurries off.
CHARLIE
Oh sorry! I'm afraid we've become the tabloid couple of the year.
OONA
It's all right. I'm even starting to get used to it. Still, it's one of the reasons
why I didn't want you to drive me home when we first met. Afraid that we'd be
photographed together and my father would somehow see it.
CHARLIE
Oh, I though it was 'cause of your fondness for Orson Welles.
OONA
Orson and I are just friends.
CHARLIE
I'm glad.
OONA
Why, Charlie Chaplin, are you jealous of Orson?
CHARLIE
A little.
OONA
Only a little?
(
CHARLIE
Alright, a lot.
OONA
Charlie, I haven't told you, but you should know. My father called me last
night and said he never wants to see or speak to me ever again.
CHARLIE
All because you've been seeing me?
OONA
All because I've been seeing you.
CHARLIE
I'm sorry about turning your father against you. I really am. I never should
have called you. But I was so damn jealous of Orson Welles. I remember
how surprised you sounded when you heard my voice.
OONA
Yes, and even more surprised when you offered me a lead in your picture.
CHARLIE
Not as surprised as I was when you turned it down.
OONA
I told you. I'd decided that my dream of an acting career was merely a
passing fancy that had already passed.
CHARLIE
It's a shame to think that your acting career ended before it ever began. So,
will you play one last little scene with me?
(Referring to the rose in her hand)
You're already holding the prop.
OONA
I am? I thought this was for me.
CHARLIE
It is. Do you remember the end of City Lights when the blind flower girl has
regained her sight. The Tramp sees her working in the flower shop and
stares at her through the shop window until she comes out and puts a coin in
his hand...
(
OONA
(taking his hand)
. . . And when she feels his hand, she realizes that he was the one who had
paid for the operation that had given her back her sight and she says, "You?"
CHARLIE
He nods, "Yes. It's me." He takes a rose from her and holds it to his face,
hoping that she is not disappointed in what she can finally see.
(THEY look at each other for a moment.)
People have often asked me what would have happened to them if the film
hadn't ended there.
(OONA kisses him. HE is surprised.)
Song #15: WHAT ONLY LOVE CAN SEE
OONA
LET ME SHOW YOU
THE BEST THAT'S INSIDE YOU.
LEAVE THE FILMS BEHIND YOU,
JUST STAY AND TALK TO ME.
THE TRAMP CAN CHARM ME
WITH A LOOK THAT MAY BE FUNNY.
BUT HE CAN NEVER TELL ME
WHAT ONLY LOVE CAN SEE.
THROUGH TOMORROW AND DAYS OF SORROW,
I WILL FOLLOW AND ALWAYS REMAIN.
IF YOU SHOW ME THE MAN BEHIND THE MOVIE,

(
OONA (CONT’D)
YOU'LL START A WHOLE NEW STORY
THAT ONLY LOVE CAN SEE.
THROUGH TOMORROW AND DAYS OF SORROW,
LET ME FOLLOW
AND I WILL REMAIN.
CHARLIE
People will talk about us?
OONA
LET THEM WHISPER AND SEARCH FOR THE ANSWER.
BUT WE MUST REMEMBER WHAT ONLY LOVE,
WHAT ONLY LOVE,
CHARLIE and OONA kiss and exit

together as we once again transition
to a Hollywood street where HEDDA
HOPPER now encounters LITA GREY.
ACT TWO, SCENE 9B: A HOLLYWOOD STREET
HEDDA
Miss Grey, you received the largest divorce settlement in California history
from your ex-husband Charlie Chaplin. Would you be willing to share
something with me that your ex-husband would never want anyone to know?
LITA
Yes, I'll share this with you. Charlie Chaplin was the most arrogant,
demanding and self-centered person I ever knew. . . until I met you.
LITA exits, leaving HEDDA standing with egg

on her face as we once again transition to
Hedda's office, where her secretary is on hand.
!
ACT TWO, SCENE 10: HEDDA'S OFFICE

SECRETARY
Did you get anything from Lita Grey?
HEDDA
No, she, uh, wouldn't speak to me. Damn that Chaplin! Nothing sticks to
him. He marries half the women in Hollywood and no one cares. He makes
a film about Hilter and it’s a big hit. He speaks at a communist rally and
everyone thinks he’s a patriot. What’s a poor gossip columnist to do”
SECRETARY
I've already done it for you.
(SHE opens the door and a very pregnant WOMAN enters.)
HEDDA
And your name is?
JOAN BARRY
Joan Barry, Miss Hooper, and Charlie Chaplin is not the man most people
think he is. He's the reason why I'm in this condition. He said he loved me.
HEDDA
I'm sure that he did.
JOAN BARRY
And then he got a restraining order against me.
HEDDA
Why did he do that?
JOAN BARRY
'Cause I broke into his house in the middle of the night, woke him up, and
pointed a loaded gun at his head.
HEDDA
Oh, you poor thing. That must have been terribly upsetting for you. And
what do you plan to do about this, uh...
JOAN BARRY
I'm planning to make him pay for what he did to me, to make him own up to
his moral responsibilities. I’m filing a paternity suit tomorrow.
HEDDA
You're doing the right thing, dear, and, as a woman, I'll be happy to help you
in any way I can. I’ll even find you that lawyer.
(
JOAN BARRY
Thank you, Miss Hopper.
SONG #16: PRE-EXILE

HEDDA
Oh, no . . . thank you, Miss Barry. For the exclusive rights to your story.
JOAN BARRY exits.
HEDDA (CONT'D)
WHATCHA GONNA DO WHEN IT ALL FALLS DOWN?
WHATCHA GONNA DO WHEN IT ALL FALLS DOWN?
(
ACT TWO, SCENE 11: LIMBO - CHARLIE'S OFFICE
Sydney enters.
CHARLIE
Syd, I thought you were in London.
SYDNEY
I was. Then I read about all the hot water you've gotten yourself into and I
just had to come back. ‘Cause I know that you’re not going to be able to get
out of this mess… without me.
CHARLIE
I guess this is the place where I admit that I was wrong? I don't think I've
ever done that before.
SYDNEY
Oh, go ahead, Charlie, you can do it.
(SYDNEY playfully enjoys CHARLIE trying to
get up the courage to apologize.)
CHARLIE
Would you tell my business manager that I made a mistake in firing him?
He's always looked out for me and I was wondering if you would you ask him
to come back?
SYDNEY
You fired me as your business manager, but you could never fire me as your
brother. That's a job I have for life and, trust me, it's not an easy one.
(SYDNEY starts to leave.)
CHARLIE
Sydney . . . I'm sorry.
SYDNEY
Let’s get to work!
ACT TWO, SCENE 11A: LIMBO - MAN OF ALL COUNTRIES
Transition to McGRANERY on the telephone.

MCGRANERY
Thank you, Miss Hopper, for being so helpful. The Department of Justice will
take it from here.
McGRANERY hangs up his phone. Sings.

!
MCGRANERY
A MAN OF THE PEOPLE,
MAN OF ALL COUNTRIES,
CITIZEN OF THE WORLD.
HEDDA & MCGRANERY

HEDDA & REPORTERS

JUST ANOTHER DAY IN HOLLYWOOD . . .
Transition to CHARLIE alone as OONA enters.

CHARLIE
Oona, good, you're here! I've got to tell you right away. There is this crazy
woman who is claiming that...
OONA
Yes, I heard about it on the radio. Is it true?
CHARLIE
Of course not. It's Hedda Hopper again, still trying to ruin me. She's found
this desperate young actress who says I'm the father of her unborn baby. I
know her, Joan Barry, she's mentally ill and has stalked me in the past, but I
haven't set eyes on her in more than two years so I can scarcely...
OONA
I understand, Charlie. So there's nothing to her story?
CHARLIE
Absolutely nothing. I promise.
OONA
I believe you.
HEDDA & CAST VOICES
WHATCHA GONNA DO . . .
(
CHARLIE
Oona, remember The Tramp and the flower girl?
OONA
Yes.
CHARLIE
Do you think they would have ended up staying together?
OONA
I would hope so.
CHARLIE
And do you think they would have wanted never to spend another day
without seeing each other.
OONA
Sure, but why are you asking?
CHARLIE
(going down on one knee)
Marry me.
HEDDA & CAST VOICES
WHATCHA GONNA DO . . .
OONA
You've been married three times, Charlie.
CHARLIE
I know, but I always asked that question before 'cause I thought it would
make me happy. I'm asking it now 'cause I am happy.
SONG #16A: THE EXILE

CHARLIE
We could make a great life together. I can be your family and you’ll be mine.
OONA
And we’ll have children?
CHARLIE
Of course, two or maybe even three.
CHARLIE HEDDA
Marry me, Oona O’Neill! WHAT'CHA GONNA DO WHEN IT ALL
FALLS DOWN?
OONA WHAT'CHA GONNA DO WHEN IT ALL

All right, yes. Yes, I will marry FALLS DOWN?
you, Charlie Chaplin!
(
THEY hug.
ACT TWO, SCENE 12: THE EXILE

REPORTERS
TELL US, MR. CHAPLIN, 'BOUT THIS SCANDAL SHE'S UNCOVERED.
TELL US, MR. CHAPLIN, 'BOUT THIS STORY SHE'S DISCOVERED.
CHARLIE and OONA try to exit and are surrounded by

REPORTERS, PHOTOGRAPHERS, STARLETS, F.B.I.
AGENTS, etc.
STARLETS
JUST ANOTHER DAY IN HOLLYWOOD.
SECOND GROUP - REPORTERS

ALL REPORTERS
(The following two lines are sung in counterpoint:)
STARLETS AMERICAN LEGION MEMBERS

IT'S JUST ANOTHER DAY IN AND YOU WILL KNOW HIM BY THE
HOLLYWOOD . .. LITTLE RED FLAG . . .
( (
!
HEDDA
WHAT YOU GONNA DO WHEN IT ALL FALLS DOWN?
During the following sequence, CHARLIE and OONA are

pursued by REPORTERS and PHOTOGRAPHERS. An F.B.I.
AGENT tosses CHAPLIN'S personal papers into the air. Movie
seats swirl around the CROWD.
The following FIVE GROUPS are sung in counterpoint:.

HEDDA
WHATCHA
GONNA DO
WHEN IT ALL
FALLS DOWN . STARLETS AMERICAN
AND YOU WILL LEGIONNAIRES
..?
AND YOU WILL REPORTERS 2
KNOW HIM . . .
WHATCHA A MAN OF THE
KNOW HIM BY REPORTERS 1
JUST ANOTHER
GONNA DO PEOPLE,
THE LITTLE TELL US,
DAY IN
WHEN IT ALL MAN OF ALL
RED FLAG . . . MISTER
HOLLYWOOD.
FALLS DOWN . COUNTRIES,
AND YOU WILL CHAPLIN,
JUST ANOTHER
..? CITIZEN OF THE
KNOW HIM BY 'BOUT THIS
DAY IN . . .
WORLD.
THE LITTLE STORY SHE'S
A MAN OF THE
RED FLAG . . . DISCOVERED.
PEOPLE,
TELL US,
MAN OF ALL
MISTER
COUNTRIES,
CHAPLIN,
CITIZEN OF THE
‘BOUT THIS
WORLD.
STORY SHE’S
DISCOVERED
!
As the MUSIC builds, movie chairs settle and a large movie

screen descends on the sound stage in the Chaplin Studios. At
the front of the stage, we see rows of theatre seats facing
upstage. The LEGIONNAIRES, REPORTERS and STARLETS
sit in the seats. We see headlines projected on the screen of
the Joan Barry trial, films boycotted, and other CHAPLIN
scandals. The headlines change more rapidly now, indicating a
passage of time and the country turning against CHAPLIN.
One by one, CHAPLIN'S audience deserts him, leaving
HEDDA alone.
ALL
The sequence climaxes with a projection on the movie screen

reading: "CHAPLIN BANISHED FROM AMERICA"
HEDDA
HEDDA exits and we see a movie on the screen where
CHARLIE at last falls off the tightrope wire .
!
ACT TWO, SCENE 13: A MOVIE THEATER
SONG #17: " WHERE ARE ALL THE PEOPLE?"
CHARLIE
ONCE UPON A TIME I HAD THE WORLD UPON A STRING.
ONCE, THEY STOOD IN LINE
TO SEE MY FACE UPON THE SCREEN.
I'D WALK INTO THE THEATER
AND THEY ALL WOULD CALL MY NAME.
AND I LIVED FOR THOSE MOMENTS.
NOW THE TIDE HAS TURNED,
AND ALL THE GLORY'S SLIPPED AWAY.
NOW THERE'S SOMEONE NEW,
AND THEY CANNOT RECALL YOUR NAME.
THEY LOVE YOU FOR THE MOMENT.
OH, BUT NOW THEY LET YOU BE.
WHERE ARE ALL THE PEOPLE THAT ONCE LOVED ME?
NOW THE WORLD'S CHANGED TO COLOR,
SO WHAT CAN YOU DO?
YOU'RE STILL BLACK AND WHITE, SO NOW YOU'RE OLD NEWS.
THE MOVIES ARE TALKING, SO YOU'RE NEVER HEARD.
YOU'RE JUST AN OLD PICTURE,
FROM A FAR DIFFERENT WORLD.

(
CHARLIE (CONT’D)
AND NOW ALL THAT I HAVE
IS JUST A DISTANT MEMORY
A WALL THAT'S FULL OF PICTURES,
OF THE WAY THINGS USED TO BE.
YOU SEARCH FOR YOUR TOMORROW,
BUT THE PAST IS ALL YOU SEE.
AND WHERE ARE ALL THE PEOPLE?
WHERE IS MY TOMORROW?
WHERE ARE ALL THE PEOPLE
THAT ONCE LOVED ME?
OONA enters.
OONA
Charlie?
CHARLIE
This was my last chance. My last picture and nobody showed up to see it.
OONA
It's all right.
CHARLIE
Is it?
I brought this along to show the crowd who was supposed to be here tonight.
I thought they might be interested to see how it all started for me.
(HE puts on the LittleTramp's coat.)
Did I ever tell you what it was like when I first became the Tramp?
OONA
Many times.
CHARLIE
(HE puts on the Little Tramp's hat.)
The people liked him. The people loved him.
OONA
I know, Charlie.
CHARLIE
I wonder if they would have shown up tonight if I had been playing him again.
I know I'm older and a bit slower, but I could still be him. I could. It could still
work! That was my mistake, giving up on him all those years ago.
OONA
Stop.
CHARLIE
I could play him one last time.
OONA
No, you couldn't.
CHARLIE
I could . . .
OONA
But you don't have to.
CHARLIE
I could be on top again.
OONA
Charlie, stop! You're not the Tramp any more and never will be again.
Please. You have to let him go.
CHARLIE
You mean be forgotten? You don't know what it's like to be forgotten.
! Abandoned. Left behind.
OONA
Listen to me, Charlie. Maybe the best thing that ever happened to you was
being put in that workhouse. If you had never been in one, you'd never have
had to run away from one. Chances are, you might never have ended up
with Karno and so Sennett would never have discovered you, so the world
would never have known your name, and you'd never have either married or
slept with half the women in the country and become so discontent that by
the time you met me you might never have realized how wonderful I really
am.
CHARLIE
You are. And I know that through the years I've often been difficult.
OONA
Yes, you have.
CHARLIE
And arrogant.
OONA
True.
CHARLIE
And self-centered.
OONA
Of course.
CHARLIE
It would help if you wouldn't agree with every bad thing I say about myself.
OONA
No, it wouldn't, because I know all those things and they don't matter to me.
Yes, the world loved the Tramp...
...but you are who I love.
SONG #18: "WHAT ONLY LOVE CAN SEE" (REPRISE)
CHARLIE
YOU HAVE SHOWN ME THE BEST THAT'S INSIDE ME.
A ONCE FADED MEM'RY THAT ONLY LOVE CAN SEE.

(
OONA
TIME HAS SHOWN US THERE'S NO YEARS BETWEEN US.
A LOVE SO AGELESS THAT ONLY WE CAN SEE
CHARLIE & OONA

THROUGH THE GOOD TIMES
AND ALL THE HARD TIMES

CHARLIE
NOW I'VE COME TO FIND THAT LOVE CAN REMAIN
(MUSIC continues as OONA kisses him. CHARLIE takes off

the Little Tramp's coat and hat.)
CHARLIE & OONA
TIME WILL WHISPER
AND GIVE US THE ANSWER.
BUT WE MUST REMEMBER
WHAT ONLY LOVE,
WHAT ONLY LOVE,
MUSIC continues under as OONA gently takes CHARLIE'S

hand and leads him away. An Academy Awards
BROADCASTER appears.
!
ACT TWO, SCENE 14: THE ACADEMY AWARDS, 1972
An Academy Awards BROADCASTER appears.
BROADCASTER
Today in entertainment news: March 15, 1972: Charlie Chaplin, long
considered to be Hollywood's greatest all-time filmmaker, returns to Los
Angeles tonight to receive an honorary Academy Award. The Little Tramp,
who has been living in exile in Switzerland, has not been back to America for
two decades. His wife, Oona, is accompanying him. Their relationship was
controversial in the beginning, but they are still together after having been
married for nearly thirty years and having had eight children.
(We see Charlie, with OONA, as THEY stroll down the red
carpet.)
CHARLIE
I think tonight may be about forgiveness. Maybe I can finally forgive them . . .
and they me. So many people here, so many people not here. I wish that
Syd had lived to see this night. And Alf. Mum. Oh, Oona, what if they hate
me? What if I'm booed off the stage?
OONA
Steady, Charlie, you won't be. Because they still love you.
ANNOUNCER'S VOICE
Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the Little Tramp, Charlie Chaplin.
(We hear thunderous applause and shouts of "Bravo" as
CHARLIE stands at the podium.)
CHARLIE
Oh, thank you, thank you so much for the honor of inviting me here, and, oh,
you're wonderful sweet people. I've come to realize that life is not a movie.
You can't go back and edit it. It has laughter and tears -- all those things that
make a great film but that can also make a great life. It is perfect just as it is:
It has a beginning, a middle, and . . .
(He looks at OONA)
...an end.
!
ACT TWO, SCENE 14A: THIS MAN MONTAGE / FINALE

OONA watches from behind him and sings. The lights shine on
CHARLIE.
SONG #19: "THIS MAN"
OONA
THIS MAN, I WILL ALWAYS LOVE HIM
THOUGH THE WORLD MAY QUESTION WHY.
THIS MAN, THERE'S BEEN NO ONE LIKE HIM
A TYRANT, BUT STILL A CHILD.
SOMETIMES, THERE ARE DAYS I KNOW HIM.
THEN THERE ARE DAYS I LOSE HIM,
BUT I'LL ALWAYS LOVE HIM, THIS MAN.
(SYDNEY appears and sings.)
SYDNEY
THIS MAN WAS MY ONLY BROTHER,
A DREAMER SINCE JUST A BOY.
SYDNEY HANNAH
THIS LIFE, SO FULL OF HEARTACHE, THIS LITTLE CHILD
BUT ONE LIFE GAVE SO MUCH JOY WHO CRIED THAT NIGHT,
THIS MAN, SO FULL OF WONDER, THIS LITTLE CHILD,
YET SO FULL OF ANGER, MY CHILD
BUT GAVE SO MUCH LAUGHTER BECAME THIS MAN.
( THIS MAN.
(
(MILDRED appears and sings in counterpoint:)
MILDRED ALF
THIS MAN ONCE LOVED ME, THIS MAN
THEN I LEFT HIM LAUGHED,
ALL ALONE. AND THE WORLD LAUGHED WITH HIM
THIS MAN WAS SEARCHING THIS MAN
FOR A LOVE OF HIS OWN SMILED, AND THE WORLD SMILED
WITH HIM
MILDRED ALF / MACK SENNETT / MABEL

SOMETIMES, I BELIEVED I LOVED HIM THIS MAN WAS A GENIUS.
BUT COULD I FORGIVE HIM? HE WAS THE MOVIES
DID I EVER KNOW THIS MAN? I’LL ALWAYS LAUGH AT THIS MAN.
!
All parts below are sung in counterpoint together.

OONA
THIS MAN, I WILL ALWAYS LOVE HIM,
THOUGH THE WORLD MAY QUESTION WHY.
THIS MAN, THERE'S BEEN NO ONE LIKE HIM,
A TYRANT, BUT STILL A CHILD.
ALF
THIS MAN LAUGHED,
AND THE WORLD LAUGHED WITH HIM.
THIS MAN SMILED,
AND THE WORLD SMILED WITH HIM.
MILDRED
THIS MAN ONCE LOVED ME,
BUT I LEFT HIM ALL ALONE.
THIS MAN WAS SEARCHING
FOR A LOVE TO CALL HIS OWN.
SYDNEY
THIS MAN, MY BROTHER,
A DREAMER.
HANNAH
THIS LITTLE CHILD
WHO CRIED THAT NIGHT . . .
ENSEMBLE
THIS MAN, THE WORLD LAUGHED WITH HIM.
THIS MAN, THE WORLD SMILED WITH HIM

(
ALL
THIS MAN WILL BE LOVED FOREVER,
FOR HIS TEARS AND LAUGHTER,
THE WORLD WILL REMEMBER THIS MAN.
GOOD NIGHT.
GOOD NIGHT.
SYDNEY
MY BROTHER.
(SYDNEY leaves.)
ALL
GOOD NIGHT.
(
MILDRED
MY LOVER.
(MILDRED leaves.)
ALL
GOOD NIGHT.
(
ALF
THE DREAMER.
(ALF leaves.)
ALL
( GOOD NIGHT.
HANNAH
MY LITTLE CHILD
(HANNAH & OONA leave.)
ALL
GOOD NIGHT.
CHARLIE
AND IT IS WONDERFUL,
OH, YES, HOW WONDERFUL YOU FEEL . . .
WHEN THE LIFE THAT YOU WISHED FOR
BECOMES REAL.
SONG #19A: FINALE / TRAMP REPRISE
YOUNG CHARLIE appears and gives the hat and the rose to
OLDER CHARLIE, who puts the rose in his lapel as
YOUNGER CHARLIE exits. CHARLIE tips his hat toward the
AUDIENCE and walks back into the screen. On the screen, HE
becomes the Little Tramp once more. We see him walk further
and further away, getting smaller and smaller until HE
disappears.
ALL
AND YOU WILL KNOW HIM
BY THE TIP OF HIS HAT.
AND THAT'S JUST HOW WE WILL SHOW HIM
THE WORLD'S BOUND TO LOVE HIM
WHEN THEY SEE THE LITTLE TRAMP.
(On the screen appear the words . . . "The End".)

CURTAIN
END OF ACT TWO

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CHAPLIN(BROADWAY((/(Opening(Night:(Sept.

Book By Thomas Meehan and Christopher Curtis

Music and Lyrics By Christopher Curtis

The audience enters to see the image of the Little Tramp

MUSIC begins under, lights come up to reveal our entire cast

Lights come blazingly on to reveal the full sound stage, on

Camera! Roll sound! Slating!

A youthful film CREWMAN hurries to downstage center with a

Underscore for "Look at All the People" begins.

SONG #1A: TRANSITION TO A LONDON STREET / SOUND STAGE

ACT ONE, SCENE 1: A LONDON STREET

HANNAH CHAPLIN enters holding the hand of YOUNG

(A young BOY carrying a hat runs across the stage pursued by

SONG #2: "LOOK AT ALL THE PEOPLE"

LOOK AT ALL THE PEOPLE,

AND SEE INTO THEIR EYES.

TRY TO FIND THE STORY

BEHIND EACH ONE'S DISGUISE.

WONDER WHERE THEY'VE COME FROM,

AND THE PEOPLE THEY HAVE KNOWN.

WE ALL HAVE A SECRET

A FACE WE NEVER HAVE SHOWN

Look at this poor fellow.

A sad TRAMP passes by, in tattered clothes, over-sized shoes,

TO HOLD HIS HEAD UP HIGH.

HE FIGHTS TO HIDE HIS SORROW

FROM PEOPLE PASSING BY.

MAYBE THERE'S A LADY

WHO HAS SADLY BROKE HIS HEART.

WE ALL WEAR DISGUISES,

THEN WE JUST PLAY A PART.

SOME HAVE ANGER,

SOME HAVE HOPE,

SOME HAVE COURAGE,

AND SOME JUST COPE.

An apparently RICH COUPLE strolls by.

(YOUNG CHARLIE imitates the DRUNK and then others on the

LOOK AT ALL THE PEOPLE,

( AND THEN LOOK INSIDE YOUR HEART.

"Look at All the People" ends to applause as a minimal set

ACT ONE, SCENE 2: ORPHEUM MUSIC HALL

SHE is suddenly on a small stage, about to sing for a rowdy

Underscore begins. There is a timpani roll under Master of

SONG #3: MUSIC HALL "WHAT'CHA GONNA DO?"

(MUSIC plays and HANNAH sings.)

ON TOP OF EASY STREET.

YOU'VE GOT A MILLION QUID,

A LIFE THAT CAN'T BE BEAT.

BUT YOU LOOK DOWN ON FOLK,

YOU'RE SUCH A MEAN OLD BLOKE . . .

(The CROWD noise reaches a fever pitch. HANNAH is frozen

YOUNG CHARLIE (CONT’D)

WHAT'CHA GONNA DO WHEN THE LANDLORD SAYS

"NOW GET YOURSELF OUTTA HERE"?

WHAT'CHA GONNA PAINT

WHEN YOU CANNOT PAINT THE TOWN?

REMEMBER WHAT'CHA GIVE IS WHAT ALWAYS GOES AROUND!

AND WHAT'CHA GONNA DO WHEN IT ALL FALLS

(YOUNG CHARLIE is cheered and applauded

ACT ONE, SCENE 3: KARNO'S ON STAGE

CHARLIE, YOUNG CHARLIE, ENSEMBLE

AND WHERE YOU GONNA GO FROM THERE?

WHAT'CHA GONNA DO WHEN THE MONEY'S GONE,