Come one, come all to this tragic affair...

GOD HOW MANY AUS DO I EVEN HAVE

fallingaparttocuttime:

Let’s try to make an actual list:

Bandom:

• Pretentiousart (onstage and off)
• Wibbly Wobbly Timey Wentzy***
• 16C (sad spencer smith edition)
• Angelverse*
• Tabooverse**
• Stockholmverse***
• Cityverse*
• Aronofskyverse
• Songbirdverse*
• Everyone is fictional and Pete is sad ‘verse
• Conservatory AU
• Patrick Gets Accosted By Hipsters AU
• MOON COLONY
• Saviorbent [homestuck crossover]

* = shared with sara and/or reili

** = shared concept with reili but not the same continuity

*** = sometimes reili writes in my universes

(there’s also teenies ‘verse and marching band ‘verse but…I haven’t touched them in a while and don’t really want to all that much?)

Homestuck:

• Scandalstuck
• Killjoystuck
• Circuitstuck
• The Midnight Calliope
• Kinkstuck
• Collegestuck
• Starfleetstuck

(note that most of these are shared with sara and/or em and some I actually have very little to do with but I will still worldbuild if asked)

….that’s all I can think of off the top of my head.

BASICALLY IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT ANY OF THESE AUS (from “what the fuck is aronofskyverse” to “does william make any interesting character decisions about the patient in pretentiousart?”) HERE IS A COMPREHENSIVE LIST.

ALSO IF I’VE FORGOTTEN ANY OF MY OWN WRITING POINT IT OUT SO I CAN ADD IT.

THIS IS A POST FOR ME AS WELL SO I CAN KEEP TRACK OF ALL MY GODDAMN UNIVERSES.

oh wait I just found my list of AUs.

(also added saviorbent, SARA DO WE HAVE ANY MORE STUCKS FROM RECENT TIMES???)

Quick note to point out that the character of THE LOVER has been renamed as THE STUDENT, and all previous mentions of her in other posts have been edited as such.

Further canon can be found here!

flashandthunderfire asked: talk to me about AESTHETICS. costumes, sets, the whole nine yards.

HERE’S THE THING, I’M NOT A VISUAL PERSON so I don’t have too many thoughts about this (most of my thoughts about the stage adaptation vs. the album are about the music—who would sing which lines, what would be altered, etc) but I am dedicated to FULLY FLESHING OUT THIS SHOW so I’ll try.

Most of the costume designs we already have—The Patient has the same getup Lukas Haas did in the WTTBP video (hair and all. Gerard briefly argued with William about shaving his head, but he lost that battle pretty quickly). Mother War’s costume can also be seen in the video, but it’s probably easier to see in the official Black Parade booklet, where you can also get a sense of the general aesthetic of the show—black, white, and shades in between. Skeletons, ghosts, and dust.

The Soldier’s costume is Mikey’s Black Parade uniform, with the medal, but his glasses are the ones from the Ghost of You video. When he steps downstage for his part in the story (there’s a very dramatic moment about halfway through Act 2 when he steps off the band’s platform to say his first lines), he dons a WWII helmet and carries a gun, exactly like the ones the War Heroes have.

The Student only has one scene, but she’s wearing a very simple black dress, with a bit of dust on it. She’s still alive, so her only appearance is as one of the Patient’s memories. She needs a simple costume anyway, so she can put on the Mother War dress over top of it before Mama can start. AND BELIEVE ME, THAT DRESS TAKES EFFORT TO GET INTO.

Fear and Regret’s outfits can be seen in the booklet linked above (the figures on the far left and far right of the group photo). Gerard tests all makeup techniques on himself before making it part of the final design, of course.

The War Heroes wear standard WWII outfits (there’s a reason Ghost of You is in the show, guys, and it’s not because I like the song) but they’re coated in a layer of dust and dirt—both from the war they fight and from the time that’s passed.

The Black Parade is just like the video—monochrome but still vibrant with detailed costumes and the energy they put into the performance. Brendon gets one of his weird boyfriends to come in and help with the designs. He likes circuses or something.

The sets aren’t quite as stunning as the costumes—they spent a lot of money on Mother War’s dress and Gerard insisted on getting authentic-looking WWII uniforms, and Brian had to stop him somewhere. Act I is very sparse—pretty much all of it takes place in a hospital room, so there’s really not much but a cot and some white walls until the parade waltzes in. (oh, yeah, they spend most of the set budget on a parade float. Brian hates his life.)

Act II doesn’t really take place on the physical plane, so there are just some monochrome backdrops during I Don’t Love You indicating where the Patient and the Student met and fell for each other instead of actual sets. During the War Suite (which is…my weird nickname for the section from Teenagers through Sleep) Gerard makes good use of a fog machine, barbed wire, and driftwood to show the destruction and desolation of the war.

Gerard wanted a whole bunch of pyro to happen for Famous Last Words, but Brian nixed it. There’s only a small bunch of pyro.

Oh yeah, when the audience walks into the theater, there’s a projection of a clock (an open pocket watch, specifically) on the curtain, counting down until the opening number. There’s a soft ticking noise that gets gradually louder and louder once the lights dim, and then it morphs into the EKG beeps at the beginning of “The End.” After the curtain closes on the finale, the projection comes back, and the second hand continues to tick, but instead of numbers the clock just has question marks now. IT’S DEEP OR SOMETHING.

flashandthunderfire asked: WHAT IS THE ACTUAL PLOT OF THIS THING. NOT THE MUSICAL ITSELF, BUT THE STORY AROUND IT. (she says, as if she didn't come up with half of it.)

I’M SO GLAD YOU ASKED.

The story surrounding the Black Parade musical is your standard ridiculous Frank/Gerard romcom. I’m sorry if you were expecting anything different.

The musical starts because Ray has a lot of music in his soul and wants to put it somewhere, but he has no lyrics, so he calls up his buddy Gerard and asks if he wants to do some kind of project together. Gerard has a whole bunch of lyrics lying around that he’s been trying to put to music, so it’s a good time for them to work together.

Then, Gerard slips and hits his head in the bathroom and has an AMAZING VISION about parades, and suddenly they have a ~CONCEPT~.

But that’s all backstory. The important bits happen after they get a stage and a budget and a cast (HOW THEY DO THIS I DON’T KNOW, FUCKING THEATRE HOW DOES IT WORK) and Gerard is now in charge of handling a whole cast of young and drama-filled actors and actresses and a band founded partially on nepotism and partially on fuck, that guy who showed up late to the rhythm guitar auditions is a fine specimen of dude. Not that Gerard will admit any of this.

SO, MOST OF THE STORY TAKES PLACE DURING READINGS AND REHEARSALS. Gerard has to deal with handling the actors while Brian has to deal with handling Gerard, and Gerard has a big old crush on Frank the rhythm guitarist but HE CAN’T GO AND HIT ON ONE OF THE BAND, IT WOULDN’T BE PROPER. HE WOULD BE TAKING ADVANTAGE OF HIS AUTHORITY AS DIRECTOR!!

Pining ensues.

Meanwhile on Frank’s end, MORE PINING, because Frank has a massive case of musical crush on Gerard. Okay, and a regular crush too, but he certainly hasn’t missed out on the kind of talent this dude has, strutting around on stage and belting his heart out and Frank may or may not get something in his eye every time they rehearse Cancer. BUT HE IS THE DIRECTOR! HE CAN’T START HITTING ON THE DIRECTOR, IT’D BE IMPROPER AND ALSO HE DOESN’T WANT TO BE KNOWN AS THE DUDE WHO’S ONLY IN THE SHOW BECAUSE HE’S COZY WITH THE DIRECTOR.

(“I’m only in the show because I’m the director’s brother,” Mikey tells him.

Frank tells him to shut up.)

Also, due to a bizarre incident involving a skirt and a conversation about social justice, Frank comes to believe that Gerard actually has a crush on Brendon, one of the chorus boys.

PINING.

Spoilers Mikey locks them in a closet a week before opening night and refuses to let them out until they talk about their feelings.

And—HERE, CHATLOGS.

Ginny: and gee’s like “WAIT BUT NO I CAN’T” and frank’s like “BUT WHAT ABOUT BRENDON”
Sara: gerard’s like “…what does brendon have to do with anything.”
Ginny: “…wait, you mean you aren’t totally crushing on him?”
Sara: “…you know he’s dating Spencer, right?”
Sara: “and I think that kid with the fauxhawk and the eyeliner that hangs around sometimes. It’s apparently sort of complicated.”
Ginny: “…but you made him wear a skirt. without malicious intent.”
Sara: “THAT WAS FOR ART.”
Sara: and Gerard starts to ramble about heteronormativity, but Frank is so ridiculously relieved that he doesn’t have a crush on Brendon that he just. er. grabs Gerard and kisses him.
Sara: (v. effective method of shutting up a rambly Gerard.)
Ginny: and Gerard is effectively shut up for a while until he suddenly realizes what he’s doing, and pulls away to start spluttering about how THIS CAN’T HAPPEN I’M YOUR BOSS AND THERE ARE PROBABLY LAWS AGAINST THIS
Sara: Frank’s just kind of like “….”
Sara: “…you know, if you really don’t want to kiss me, you could just say so instead of making shit up.”
Sara: “Mikey, you jackass, I know you’re out there. Can you open the fucking door now?”
Sara: and Mikey does, and Frank just sort of storms out, and Gerard would like to know WHY THIS IS HIS LIFE.
Ginny: and Mikey does a lot of LINEFACING at his brother
Sara: “you like him, dumbass. he likes you. get over your stupid complex and stop hiding behind shit.”
Sara: “…why are you always right?”
Ginny: and Gerard has to plan a proper apology to Frank that will hopefully end in makeouts!
Ginny: and because it is Gee we are talking about, it is a very dramatic speech with choreographed hand motions that he rehearses in front of the mirror while he’s supposed to be doing his makeup for dress rehearsal
Ginny: which Frank just happens to walk in on, of course.
Sara: oh of course
Sara: because LOL GERARD’S LIFE.
Sara: and frank’s like “…are you talking to yourself?”
Sara: gerard is all “UM. WHAT? NO, I WAS TALKING TO YOU- I MEAN YES! TALKING TO MYSELF. JUST A LITTLE NERVOUS.” and kind of wants to die.
Ginny: and frank’s like “…you’re not adding extra lines to the script, are you?”
Ginny: and gerard’s like “…WHY YES, WOULD YOU LIKE TO HEAR IT FROM THE TOP.”
Ginny: and he barely gets halfway through before frank catches on and is like “…you could’ve just told me WHILE WE WERE STILL IN THE CLOSET”
Sara: “I WAS FLUSTERED! YOU KISSED ME.”
Ginny: “YOU KISSED BACK. YOU COULD’VE JUST CONTINUED WITH THAT PART.”
Sara: “…we could, um, try it again? Without the freaking out this time?”
Sara: and frank just looks at him for a minute, and gerard is already mentally preparing himself for the letdown, and then frank just goes “…you are such a fucking dork,” and kisses him.
Sara: gerard kisses back, and there are no freakouts, and they are late to dress rehearsal.
Ginny: and brendon teases them the whole time and mikeyway has his smug little smirk
Sara: and frank and gerard keep catching each other’s eyes and blushing a lot.
Ginny: but otherwise the rehearsal goes great, opening night is great, and the audience totally notices the chemistry between them
Ginny: and maybe there are onstage making-a-statement makeouts \o/
Ginny: (it’s totally in character, okay, gerard is just mocking the patient’s total lack of a love life or something.)
Sara: OH MY GOD YES YES YES AHAHAHA.
Sara: AND IT’S AMAZING AND THEY ARE STUPID IN LOVE AND GERARD’S LIFE IS AWESOME.
Ginny: AND THERE ARE AWESOME AFTERPARTIES AND EVERYONE CONGRATULATES THE HAPPY COUPLE AND RYAN ROSS BRINGS ABSINTHE
Ginny: (which gerard responds to with “dude :|” and brendon responds to with “DUDE :D”)

The end \o/ Or something. There’s probably a lot more but those are the basics.

Current Song List (exact order subject to change but most of it’s pretty solid)

ACT ONE:

1. “The End.”

2. “Dead!”

3. “My Way Home Is Through You”

4. “Heaven Help Us”

5. “House of Wolves”

6. “Disenchanted”

7. “Cancer”

8. “Welcome To The Black Parade”

END OF ACT ONE

[exit/intermission music: “Blood”]

[INTERMISSION]

ACT TWO:

[entrance music: Helena]

9. “Kill All Your Friends”

10. “I Don’t Love You”

11. “The Sharpest Lives”

12. “This Is How I Disappear”

13. “Teenagers”

14. “The Ghost Of You”

15. “Mama”

16. “Sleep”

17. “Cemetery Drive”

18. “Famous Last Words”

THE END

CAST AND CREW (also subject to change)

CAST LIST:

Gerard Way as THE BANDLEADER

William Beckett as THE PATIENT

Greta Salpeter as THE STUDENT

Greta Salpeter as MOTHER WAR

Michael Mikey Way as THE SOLDIER

Victoria Asher as FEAR

Alicia Simmons as REGRET

Ensemble: Brendon Urie, Bob Morris, Darren Wilson, Chris Faller (MORE TO BE ADDED LATER…MAYBE…)

BAND:

Lead Guitar: Ray Toro

Rhythm Guitar: Frank Iero

Bass Guitar (Act 1): Michael Mikey Way

Bass Guitar (Act 2): Matt Cortez

Percussion: Bob Bryar

Keyboard/Auxiliary Percussion: James Dewees

Director: Gerard Way

Book: Gerard Way

Music: Gerard Way and Ray Toro

Lyrics: Gerard Way

Stage Manager: Brian Schechter

DRAMATIS PERSONAE (subject to change. like, seriously, I add and remove characters every other time I listen to the album)

THE PATIENT: Our recently deceased protagonist.

THE BANDLEADER: Deceased guide of THE PATIENT, childhood acquaintance.

THE STUDENT: Former significant other of THE PATIENT, presumably still among the living.

THE SOLDIER: Younger brother of THE BANDLEADER, collateral damage

MOTHER WAR: Overseer of the WAR HEROES and memories of violence.

FEAR: Overseer of memories of fear.

REGRET: Overseer of memories of regret.

THE BLACK PARADE: Followers of THE BANDLEADER, escorts of THE PATIENT.

WAR HEROES: Denizens of MOTHER WAR’S realm.

THE BAND:

LEAD GUITAR

RHYTHM GUITAR

BASS GUITAR

SUBSTITUTE BASS GUITAR (ACT 2)

PERCUSSION

KEYBOARD + AUXILIARY PERCUSSION (backstage)

INTRO POST!

HELLO. This is a blog where I will put anything relating to the Pretentiousart Universe.

What is the Pretentiousart Universe, you ask?

THE PRETENTIOUSART UNIVERSE is a project Sara (flashandthunderfire) and I have been poking at on and off for the past year. It’s a universe in which Gerard Way wrote The Black Parade as, instead of a rockin’ concept album, a stage musical.

It started with some chatlogs, which I might post snippets of later, and eventually I started on a first draft, which consisted of normal fic about the people in question, and descriptions of the musical numbers.

Unfortunately, this first draft…kind of sucked. A lot. And, because I am loathe to look at my own writing once it’s passed a certain unstamped expiration date, I avoided going back to fix it.

So here we are today, and I’ve decided to take a new approach to the Pretentiousartverse. Instead of trying to write the final document from beginning to end, I’m going to do a shitton of worldbuilding with the help of anyone I can recruit to my cause, completely plot out both the stories of what happens onstage and off, and basically just muck around in this sandbox until I actually feel like compiling a final document to post onto my Livejournal. If that final document doesn’t happen at all, oh well. Let’s have some fun.

tl;dr, HERE’S WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT FROM THIS BLOG:

-character profiles

-cast lists

-chatlogs

-excerpts from the hypothetical Playbill

-worldbuildy meta

-ficlets

-art(?) (I DON’T DRAW, BUT IF YOU HAVE SUBMISSIONS, HIT UP THE SUBMISSION BOX)

Also, the askbox is open and even allows anonymous questions, so if you want me to babble at you about a character/actor/aspect of the universe you’re curious about, fire away!