Student Recital

“Mein Herr Marquis”

My dear Marquis,
You've insulted me,
A most impolite thing to do.
Though you were unkind,
I am too refined
To say what I think of you.
This delicate hand is so fine;
This foot of such tiny design,
My diction is perfection,
My bearing, my complexion--
You'll never see such features
In a lady's maid;
You'll never see the charms
That you find here displayed.
You really must admit, in fact,
Your words were quite devoid of tact!
You're amusing, ha, ha, ha,
You're delightful, ha, ha, ha,
Can't help laughing, ha, ha, ha,
Feeling spiteful, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha;
You're amusing, ha, ha, ha,
You're delightful, ha, ha, ha,
Can't help laughing, ha, ha, ha,
Feeling spiteful, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha;
A comical mistake, Marquis.

Look at this profile,
In the Grecian style,
A beauty of classical charms,
With a perfect smile,
Full of youthful guile,
A Venus with both her arms.
Perhaps you should use a lorgnette
To study my trim silhouette.
It's clear your eyes deceive you;
Of doubt let me relieve you:
You're wrong to think that I'm
Your precious ladies' maid;
Your mind is filled with visions of her, I'm afraid.
You think you see her face in me;
How wrong you are, my dear Marquis!
You're amusing, ha, ha, ha,
You're delightful, ha, ha, ha,
Can't help laughing, ha, ha, ha,
Feeling spiteful, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha;
You're amusing, ha, ha, ha,
You're delightful, ha, ha, ha,
Can't help laughing, ha, ha, ha,
Feeling spiteful, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!


“So In Love”

Strange dear,
But true dear,
When I'm close,
To you dear,
The stars fill the sky.
So in love with you am I.
Even
Without you
My arms fold about you,
You know darling why,
So in love with you am I.
In love with the night mysterious,
The night when you first were there.
In love with my joy delirious,
When I knew that you could care.
So taunt me,
And hurt me,
Deceive me,
Desert me!
I'm yours 'til I die...
So in love,
So in love,
So in love with you, my love, am I.


“Nothing”

I'm so excited because I'm gonna go to the High School of Performing Arts! I mean, I was dying to be a serious actress. Anyway, it's the first day of acting class and we're in the auditorium and the teacher, Mr. Karp, puts us up on the stage with our legs around everybody, one in back of the other and he says: "OK, we're going to do improvisations. Now, you're on a bobsled and it's snowing out and it's cold. OK, go!”

Ev'ry day for a week we would try to
Feel the motion, feel the motion
Down the hill.

Ev'ry day for a week we would try to
Hear the wind rush, hear the wind rush,
Feel the chill.

And I dug right down to the bottom of my soul
To see what I had inside.
Yes, I dug right down to the bottom of my soul
And I tried, I tried.

And everybody's goin' "Whooooosh, whooooosh ... I feel the snow... I feel the cold... I feel the air." And Mr. Karp turns to me and he says, "Okay, Morales. What did you feel?"

And I said..."Nothing,
I'm feeling nothing,"
And he says "Nothing
Could get a girl transferred."

They all felt something,
But I felt nothing
Except the feeling
That this bullshit was absurd!

But I said to myself, "Hey, it's only the first week. Maybe it's genetic. They don't have bobsleds in Claremont!"

Second week, more advanced, and we had to
Be a table, be a sportscar...
Ice-cream cone.

Mister Karp, he would say, "Very good,
except Morales. Try, Morales,
All alone."

And I dug right down to the bottom of my soul
To see how an ice cream felt.
Yes, I dug right down to the bottom of my soul
And I tried to melt.

The kids yelled, "Nothing!"
They called me "Nothing"
And Karp allowed it,
Which really makes me burn.

The were so helpful.
They called me "Hopeless",
Until I really didn't know
Where else to turn.

And Karp kept saying, "Morales, I think you should transfer to Girl's High. You'll never be an actress. Never!" Jesus Christ!

Went to church, praying, "Santa Maria,
Send me guidance, send me guidance,"
On my knees.

Went to church, praying, "Santa Maria,
Help me feel it, help me feel it.
Pretty please!"

And a voice from down at the bottom of my soul
Came up to the top of my head.
And the voice from down at the bottom of my soul,
Here is what it said:

"This man is nothing!
This course is nothing!
If you want something,
Go find another class.

And when you find one
You'll be an actress."
And I assure you that's what
Fin'lly came to pass.

Six months later I heard that Karp had died.
And I dug right down to the bottom of my soul...
And cried.
'Cause I felt nothing.


“Dancing Through Life”

The trouble with schools is they always try to teach the wrong lesson.
Believe me, I've been kicked out of enough of them to know.
They want you to become less callow, less shallow,
But I say, “why invite stress in?
Stop studying strife,
And learn to live the unexamined life.”

Dancing through life, skimming the surface,
Gliding where turf is smooth.
Life's more painless for the brainless.
Why think too hard when it's so soothing?

Dancing through life, no need to tough it
When you can slough it off as I do.
Nothin' matters, but knowin' nothin' matters
It's just life, so keep dancing through.

Dancing through life, swaying and sweeping
And always keeping cool.
Life is fraughtless when you're thoughtless.
Those who don't try never look foolish.

Dancing through life, mindless and careless.
Make sure you're where less trouble is rife.
Woes are fleeting, blows are glancing
When you're dancing through life.

Let's go down to the Ozdust Ballroom.
We'll meet there later tonight.
We can dance 'til it's light.
Find the prettiest girl, give her a whirl
Right on down to the Ozdust Ballroom.
Come on, follow me,
You'll be happy to be there.

Dancing through life down at the Ozdust,
If only because dust is what we come to.
Nothing matters, but knowing nothing matters
It's just life
So keep dancing through!


“One Song Glory”

One song, glory
One song before I go, glory
One song to leave behind
Find one song, one last refrain, glory
From the pretty boy front man
Who wasted opportunity

One song, he had the world at his feet
Glory in the eyes of a young girl, a young girl
Find glory, beyond the cheap colored lights
One song before the sun sets
Glory on another empty life
Time flies, time dies

Glory, one blaze of glory
One blaze of glory, glory

Find glory in a song that rings true
Truth like a blazing fire, an eternal flame
Find one song, a song about love
Glory from the soul of a young man, a young man
Find the one song before the virus takes hold,
Glory
Like a sunset, one song to redeem this empty life

Time flies
And then no need to endure anymore
Time dies

“What Is It About Her?”

What is it about her
That makes me want her?
What is it about her
That turns me pale?
Something in her smile
Something that I'll never understand
Her wild abandon
What is it about her
That parts the waters?
What is it about her
That hoists the sail?
Something in her hair
Instructing where to touch
Why do I need her so much?
This woman makes me cry
This woman makes me burn
This woman's eye can cut me to the core
The hatred that I see
Has been reserved for me
Yet I want more
And more
And more
And what is it about her
That pulls me closer?
What is it about her
That tips the scale?
This girl is all I have
So soft, so fair, so fine
And she's forever mine
This woman builds me up
This woman tears me down
This woman speaks and I can break apart
Now comes another man
Pretending he can win her heart
Well, let him start
What is it about her
So slight, so secret?
Something in the way she catches light
Should I hold my own
Or be alone
Tonight?
What is it about her?
That jumbles feelings inside?

What is it about her
That mixes passion with pride?
Could I live without her
And let her go?
How loud must I scream
No!


“If I Could Tell Her”

He said
There's nothing like your smile
Sort of subtle and perfect and real
He said
You never knew how wonderful
That smile could make someone feel
And he knew
Whenever you get bored
You scribble stars on the cuffs of your jeans
And he noticed
That you still fill out the quizzes
That they put in those teen magazines
But he kept it all inside his head
What he saw he left unsaid
And though he wanted to
He couldn't talk to you
He couldn't find the way
But he would always say
If I could tell her
Tell her everything I see
If I could tell her
How she's everything to me
But we're a million worlds apart
And I don't know how I would even start
If I could tell her
If I could tell her
He thought
It looked pretty cool when you put indigo streaks in your hair
And he wondered how you learned to dance
Like all the rest of the world, isn't there
But he kept it all inside his head
What he saw he left unsaid
If I could tell her
Tell her everything I see
If I could tell her
How she's everything to me
But we're a million worlds apart
And I don't know how I would even start
If I could tell her
If I could tell her
But what do you do when there's this great divide?
He just seemed so far away
And what do you do when the distance is too wide?

It's like I don't know anything
And how do you say
I love you
I love you
I love you
I love you
But we're a million worlds apart
And I don't know how I would even start
If I could tell her
If I could


“And They’re Off”

Ponies in the sun
The race is soon beginning
My father bet the family fortune
On a sleek brown horse
My father had a hunch
We gave up lunch
So Daddy could make a wager
Ma would scoff
She would scoff
Hear her scoff
And they're off!
Yeah, they're off!
And they move in a herd
Like a four letter word
And they're off!
Tickets float to the ground
And the band starts to play
As the horses go round
And they're off!
Mommy sat and cried
But Dad was unaffected
He said, "Have you ever had
a better two minutes
In the last three years?"
She said, "But Dad, the dumb horse lost!"
He said, "Sometimes joy has a
terrible cost. I know that"
Ma would scoff,
Hear her scoff,
She would scoff
And they're off!
Yeah, they're off!
Mommy's biting his neck
As they roll on the deck
And they're off
There is blood on the ground
And the band starts to play
As the horses go round
Isn't life funny?

People lose money
And have fun
Betting, of course, is
Hell on the horses
And on families where the betting is done
It's a joke to believe someone's won
All they did was fight
Plus they discussed the weather
My father bet the family fortune
Till it disappeared
We also laughed a lot
That was a thing I often forgot to mention
But it's true
Yes, it's true
It is true
And he's off!
Daddy's off!
We get letters from Maine
Where he tries to explain
Why he's off
What was lost was not found
And the band starts to play
As the horses go round
And they're off!
They are off!
And they move in a herd
Like a four-letter word
And they're off!

There is blood on the ground
And the band starts to play
As the horses go round
And round and round
And round and round
And round and round
And round and round
And round and round
And round and round
And round and round

And they're off!


“Helpless”

Boy, you got me helpless!
Look into your eyes, and the sky's the limit, I'm helpless!
Down for the count, and I'm drownin' in 'em.

I have never been the type to try and grab the spotlight,
We were at a revel with some rebels on a hot night,
Laughin' at my sister as she's dazzling the room,
Then you walked in, and my heart went "boom!"

Tryin' to catch your eye from the side of the ballroom,
Everybody's dancin' and the band's top volume,
Grind to the rhythm as we wine and dine,
Grab my sister and whisper, "Yo, this one's mine…"

My sister made her way across the room to you ,
And I got nervous, thinking, “What's she gonna do?”
She grabs you by the arm, I'm thinking I'm through,
Then you look back at me, and suddenly…

I'm helpless
Oh, look at those eyes, oh
I am so into you
I know I'm down for the count, and I'm drownin' in 'em

One week later, I'm writin' a letter nightly,
Now my life gets better every letter that you write me,
Laughin' at my sister 'cause she wants to form a harem,
(ANGELICA: I'm just sayin', if you really loved me, you would share him)

Two weeks later, in the living room stressin',
My father's stone-faced while you ask him for his blessin',
I'm dying inside as you wine and dine,
And I'm tryin' not to cry,
Cause there's nothing that your mind can't do,
My father makes his way across the room to you;
I panic for a second, thinking we're through,
But then he shakes your hand and says, "Be true."

And you turn back to me smiling, and I’m… helpless!
That boy is mine, that boy is mine,
Down for the count, and I'm drownin' in 'em.
Helpless…