KEEP ON MOVING BY SHAUN BLAKE

Extract

A SMITH SCRIPT

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Keep on Moving

A Jukebox Musical based on Boyband songs By Shaun Blake

Characters:

Note due to difficulty it can be to source 10 men, the other ‘male’ characters who are not in the bands are all gender neutral, also 1 member of each band (Nick and Dave) are optional so you can have 4 piece bands instead of 5.

Cast size recommended – 8 male, 6 female, 3 can be either male or female and 2 other optional characters male.

The Monday Boys / Jetpax

Jason Anthony – Lead singer of Jetpax

Dan Riffster – second main singer and generally band leader

RU (Ryan Ugo) – bad boy persona

Sam Garber – most musical person/ and backing vocalist, wishes to be singer but Jason is selected due to looks etc.

Nick Genio – dancer. Very camp and OTT (Optional character – most of his lines can be either cut or re- allocated to the other guys if the character doesn’t feature)

Catapultz

Scott Bernard – Leader and lead singer. Talented but not the brightest person.

Gary Lynch – A confrontational jerk

Mike Prater – Scott’s friend and has an interest in Kayla.

Zack Johnson – The comedian of the group.

Dave Raymond (Optional character, only use if you have Nick or enough men in the cast – has very little dialogue but does share a song if he features)

Fans of Catapultz

Kayla Bernard – Scott’s sister and Jason’s potential girlfriend

Christine Mosely – Scott’s girlfriend

Michelle Whyte – friend of Kayla and Christine. Also serves as a backing singer

Georgie Lynch – friend of Kayla and Christine. Also serves as a backing singer

Others

Richard/Ruby Robertson – and manager of Jetpax

Amy Sullivan – A Choreographer

Judge Smith – A Judge (can double with other characters)

Charlie Hudson – Lawyer prosecuting (can double with other characters)

Debra Thomas – Lawyer defence (can double with other characters)

Craig Cowell Bateman – Reality TV Judge (can double with other characters)

Guard & Journalist (can double with other characters)

Boyband Song List

Act 1

Larger Than Life (or Everybody Backstreet’s Back)– Backstreet Boys

When Will I Be Famous – Bros (Matt Goss version)

Take On Me – A1 (Closer to A Ha version)

Everybody Get Up – 5Ive (only the chorus)

I’m Glad You Came – The Wanted (Megan Nicole version)

Everybody in Love – JLS (just the chorus once, based on their acapella version)

Let’s Dance – 5Ive (shortened to a bridge and chorus)

Blame It On the Boogie – Big Fun (Soul City version) or -

Uptown Girl – Westlife

Invisible – D-Side (only a verse and chorus)

I Want It That Way – Backstreet Boys (Max Schneider and Alyson Stoner’s version)

No Place That Far – Westlife (Sarah Evans and Vince Gill’s version – Only the chorus once)

Live While We’re Young – One Direction (Megan Nicole version)

Bye Bye Bye – Backstreet Boys (Lily Rouge version or a Jazz version from Karaoke Version)

If Ya Gettting Down – 5ive

Act 2

Step By Step – New Kids on the Block

All Rise – Blue

All or Nothing – O-Town (optional song if you need time to change the scene from courtroom to jail)

Fool Again – Westlife (Penelope Matanguihan version)

Picture of You –

Baby Can I Hold You – Boyzone

Gave It All Away – Boyzone

Knockout – Triple 8/Super Junior

The Wild Boys – Phyxx

Flying Without Wings – Westlife (based a little on Bryan McFadden and Deltra Goodrem’s version for vocals but with the Westlife version backing)

Can you Feel It – V (Based on a choir version similar to The Jacksons version)

Keep on Movin – 5Ive Synopsis

Act 1

The show starts with a load of fans at a big concert. The concert is for a band named Catapultz, and they perform (Everybody Backstreet’s Back or Larger Than Life). They are cheered by their fans and the lead singer, Scott greets his girlfriend Christine along with his sister Kayla and Michelle and Georgie. On the way out the boys mistreat some of their stage crew/and front of house staff, Dan, Sam and Ryan, and Catapultz taunt them. Dan, Sam and Ryan, feeling a bit jealous of Catapultz success (and wondering why they are acting like jerks to them) vent to each other and decide to try to form their own band, spotting an ad for auditions (When Will I Be Famous).

Christine talks about her excitement about Catapultz and her boyfriend’s futures with Kayla, Michelle and Georgie (I’m Glad You Came). People are trying to set Kayla up with Catapultz member Mike, but she is not interested in him.

Dan then goes to his friend Jason to try to persuade him to audition for his band. The auditions are held by manager Richard and after a bunch of interesting auditions, Jason shows up at the last minute, along with new member Nick. The band is formed and they are called The Monday Boys. They begin practice after being introduced to choreographer Amy (Everybody In Love/Let’s Dance)

During a party celebrating Catapulz’s award, the two bands have a dance/off competition to try to impress the crowds. During said party, Jason catches the eye of Kayla and the two start a romance (Blame it On The Boogie or Rock the Party). This is broken up when Dan and Scott cause a scene and the party is drawn to an abrupt halt.

Jason tells the guys of his newfound feelings for Kayla (Uptown Girl). The Catapultz continue to prank Sam, during which Mike sees Kayla who tells the boys to leave Sam alone. Mike shows worrying signs of stalking Kayla (Invisible). Kayla and Jason meet up again (I Want it That Way). Kayla tells Jason the story of Scott and herself and how Scott has lost his way with fame (No Place That Far).

Christine believes Scott is going to propose on their next date, but instead he sets up the mood, only to gloats about his career and then announces he’s added additional dates to his tour meaning they will spend less time together. The girls cheer her up with an impromptu ‘Hen Party’ mistakenly believing Scott is about to propose (Live While We’re Young). However at their date, Scott does not propose, and spends the whole time talking about himself and his career. Getting fed up with his absenteeism and flippancy she gives him an ultimatum (Bye Bye Bye).

Catapultz, who are less than pleased with the growing success of Jetpax, plus unhappy with discovering that Jason has started dating Kayla, and then after a conflict over booking the same studios, challenge them to a dance off (If Ya Getting Down). Ryan gets out of control and a brawl ensues and Scott is injured after Mike from Catapultz stages an incident to make it look like it was Jason’s fault.

Act 2

Jetpax attempt to continue working without Jason, with a bit of assistance from Amy (Step By Step). After rehearsal Amy discovers Sam is a songwriter and tries to give him encouragement to step up his game. With the negative stories about Jason in the press as he has been accused of assault. Jetpax contemplate that they may need to continue without him. After a court case, Jason is put into custody (All Rise). Jason is however concerned for his future, realising that although he loves Kayla, he feels he cannot be with her if she remains friends with Christine, who is adamantly loyal to Catapultz. Therefore he tries to end things with her but she refuses to give up on him and convinces him to rejoin Jetpax. However feeling responsible for what happened to Scott he pushes her away (Fool Again).

Sam worries about how the band will be able to perform at their upcoming festival, especially without Jason, when they have a chance to show themselves up and to prove their worth to Catapultz. He confides his fears to Amy and shows her more of his talents (Picture of You). During her choreographing his dancing, the two then realise they have feelings for each other in the rehearsal (Picture of You) Jason is acquitted when it is discovered Mike was the one who pushed Scott however this is kept from the rest of Catapultz. Christine helps Scott to recover. ()

Jason, Kayla, Richard, Scott and Christine talk to various supporting characters to try to reflect on their choices and actions and where they will go from here (Gave It All Away). At the pop festival, Jetpax and Catapultz are both performing. Catapultz, being a major established band, feel they have their fans in the bag, and even attempt to one up Jetpax by stealing their setlist. Scott recovers and performs with his bandmates (Knockout), Jetpax are forced to improvise at the festival with a different song (The Wild Boys). Jason and Kayla reconcile (Flying Without Wings). The truth about Scott’s accident is revealed to have been a set up by member Mike, resulting in him being kicked out of the band.

The fans show their appreciation for both groups and they come together, finally having found a mutual respect after Mike is kicked out of Catapultz. Catapultz apologise for the way they treated the others when they were tech crew etc to their new crew and Jetpax decide not to one-up the other groups. After a decision from Scott to go solo, he proposes finally to Christine, Kayla is given another chance at a music career and the bands combine for the finale (Can You Feel It and/or Keep on Movin)

Staging My recommendation is that if you have a live band, this is one of the shows where you can have the band on stage behind the cast at the back. Advantages to this means if you do not have an orchestra pit, it could help the sound (feel free to have drum shields). The idea is much of the show is to look like either a pop concert or a recording studio or a rehearsal studio. So that’s the look to head for so you can have a black background and use the band almost as the set to a degree. Also you can use handheld mics for much of the singing and make use of them in the choreography If you wish to use headsets this is ok as well, but again, it’s ok if these are visible due to the nature of the show. It may be an idea also to have at least one mic if not two fixed that look like a recording mic. However this can just be a prop and does not have to be real. Keep the sets for the hospital/bedroom and pub to a minimum. Scenes/sets: Act 1

Prologue Backstage Scene 1 On Stage Scene 2 Pub Scene 3 Rehearsal Studio Scene 4 Rehearsal Studio Scene 5 Dance Hall or Club Scene 6 Pub Scene 7 Front of tabs/outside? Scene 8 Recording Studio – transitions into stage Scene 9 Bedroom & Open space Scene 10 Restaurant Scene 11 Rehearsal Studio & Open space

Act 2

Scene 12 Rehearsal Studio and open space on the other side Scene 13 Courtroom Scene 13b In front of a tab if needed to clear courtroom Scene 14 Jail Scene 15 Recording Studio Scene 16 Hospital / Physio Scene 17 Backstage Scene 18 Jail Scene 19 Backstage / On Stage Scene 20 Rehearsal Studio Scene 21 Pub

Act 1

Prologue

During the audience entering, three guys come on stage (Dan, Ryan and Sam). They are dressed in all blacks (Ryan wearing a cap) and are carrying stage equipment (anyone in the audience would think they are stage crew for this show). They ad lib a bit giving each other directions of stuff to sort out on stage and generally moving some stuff around, showing off their personalities. Sam occasionally breaks out into song randomly, irritating Ryan. Most of what they are saying can be adlibbed until the real stage manager comes on and gives the que to start the show proper. Then the lights will lift and the dialogue will be as follows:

Dan: Ok you ready for a sound check?

Sam: (sings to the tune of Elton John ‘Are You Ready for Love’) “Are you ready? Are you ready for sound check? Yes I am, are ya!”

Ryan: Sam! Put a cork in it.

Sam: Sorry, didn’t realise that was out loud.

Dan: You can sing in a minute. Hear put this on. (puts a headmic on Sam)

Sam: Why we even bothering with a sound check? We know they’re gonna mime anyway.

Ryan: Mime? Isn’t that what those weird dudes with white makeup and silly wigs do with their hands, freezing still then suddenly out of nowhere, waving them all over the place over your faces hoping you’ll put money in their baskets. Wooooo look at mee! Yahoooooo wahaaaa (starts mimicking a mime artist very over the top, waving his hands over Sam’s face, irritating him, Sam slaps his hand away). Means this’ll be pretty crappy for a music concert.

Sam: Lip syncing you twat.

Dan: We’ve gotta soundcheck the band, and they’re gonna do shout outs to the crowd anyway. (Mimic’s) “Hey how you doing?”

Ryan: Who’d wanna hear them singing anyway?

Dan: 10000 many people apparently. Ok that’s on right. Can you say something?

Sam: Testing 1 2 3

Dan: Anything but that! You now have permission to sing, irritate us all you want.

Sam: Hey. My singing doesn’t irritate anyone!

Ryan: Hahaha ahem!

Dan: Ryan shut up!

Sam: Ok. Ummm. (Sings)

Dan: Ok that’ll do

Ryan: Ok I’ll admit, pretty good. Why don’t you let me do the singing on the sound check? Dan: Why don’t you sound test a bunch of voodoo and animal noises etc? You may as well do as that’s what you sound like!

Ryan: Now that’s uncalled for. I do good impressions I do. Like this (does a very cringworthy bad impersonation)

Dan: Aaaand…. That’s why we don’t let you do the sound check! Now get those lights sorted.

Catapultz (Scott, Gary, Zack, Michael and Dave) all enter from one side of the stage

Sam: Hey, have a great show guys!

Dave: Move out of our way losers! (Shoves Sam over, Michael laughs and points at him.)

Zack: The stars are coming through now. We’ve no time for little people like you.

Dan: Who are you to tell us………

Scott: We are here to tell you to just do as we tell you, when we tell you, how we tell you.

Ryan: Try saying that fast 50 times

Scott: Just get out of our way and do your job!

Catapultz exit

Sam: Nice fellas.

Dan: Come on, let’s just get to our posts.

Dan, Sam and Ryan exit

Scene 1

Christine comes on stage

Christine: Ladies and ladies and more ladies. Oh and gentlemen of course. Now is the moment you’ve all been waiting for! It’s only like the hottest boyband of our time! Please welcome to the stage, Scott, Gary, Mike and Zack. The one. The only! Catapultz!

Christine exits, the lights come up on Catapultz who are already in position. Big pop concert number this is.

Song: Larger than Life – lyrics removed

Sung by Catapultz – Scott, Mike, Gary, Zack and possibly Dave

Crowd goes nuts, lights go off Catapultz (who have returned to their starting positions before the number) and we are back to the crew. The Catapultz members exit during the ensuring dialogue ready to enter from off stage

Ryan: They really still going? This has been like the longest hour ever.

Dan: It’s their last song now. Besides our job’s done now, until we have to pack all this crap away.

Ryan: They get the easy job, one hour of performing then they just go. Whatever happened to musicians coming in and setting up their own equipment, with their own roadie, playing and the clearing away themselves like proper musicians’ right?

Sam: Why are you complaining? We get paid for this!

Scott and Jack walk on unnoticed by Ryan, but noticed by Sam and Dan.

Ryan: Yeah well when I signed up for stage crewing at this arena, I thought I was gonna be working for (mentions some famous bands) not these Disney princesses.

Scott and Jack are joined by the other three, who during this next speech start to surround Ryan looking unamused. Sam and Dan try to gesture Ryan to shut up.

Ryan: I bet they haven’t worked a day in their lives. Hey hey, I reckon their mamma’s still do their washing, makes their beds etc. And they probably like watch chick flicks in their limos all day, while drinking prosecco. Never beer, always prosecco. You know I bet also that they rehearse wearing tutu’s, with bloomin hairbrushes in their hands which they use as mics, and they’re so vain they comb their hair in the middle of their rehearsals too. Cause sings, ‘they’re so vain, they probably think this speech is about them’ stops singing. They’re standing behind me aren’t they? (turns starts to back away)

Scott: And that, pal, is why we go out there, and you’re stuck in here, laying down our red carpets, and cleaning out our trash.

Zack: Yeah maybe you guys would actually get somewhere in life if you didn’t hang around with Captain Idiot over there.

Dan: Look I’m sure he didn’t mean any of that. Ryan: You know what I did actually. Who do you think you guys are, pushing us around like earlier? You know, you wouldn’t even have a bloody show if it weren’t for us.

Gary: Please, if we didn’t have you guys, we’d find some other stupid unqualified muppets to take over the running of our shows. Actually even better, why not we get some people who actually have a life.

Dan: Makes you feel big does it? Shoving around guys you feel you’re superior to? Acting like you own the place.

Scott: Sooner or later we will own the place. We’ll own the whole music industry, while you guys will still be cleaning our toilets for all I care.

Mike: Why we wasting our time with you losers? You’re never gonna amount to anything. We’re going up up up to the top.

Zack: We’ll see you losers at the our band of the year award party. Where we’ll show everyone the difference between you and us. Where we are the top. And you are the flop.

Catapultz exit

Sam: Why don’t we start our own band?

Ryan: What you’re having a laugh aren’t you?

Dan: No I think Sam’s onto something here. Let’s do it!

Ryan: Do what?

Dan: Form our own band. We’ll start out with gigs in pubs, rise up the circuit, maybe do some festivals, maybe get an album out. And then when we’re big and famous. We can one up those guys, and show them who’s bros!

Sam: You mean ‘boss’

Dan: Right. Boss!

Song: When Will I Be Famous – lyrics removed

Sang by Dan, Sam and Ryan

During this number the guys are generally messing about with various bog standard mundane items and some of of their tech gear. The idea is they are looking rather normal and acting playful but bored of their ‘normal lives’. Playing around with a brush while sweeping the floor etc.

All exit in beat to the music, whistling.

Scene 2

The scene changes during the next song as we set up a pub a few tables and chairs and Jason and Dan meet, shake on it, and head over to a table with a couple of bottles of beer. Once the first chorus is done, we go into dialogue.

Song: Take On Me

Sang by ensemble and Dan

Dialogue

Dan: Heya check this out (gives Jason his phone, Jason looks at it)

Jason: What’s this? Boyband auditions tomorrow? You’re not going for that are you?

Dan: Why not? It’ll be a laugh.

Jason: Yeah a laugh at your expense.

Dan: Look you know I’ve been to your shows in here many a times, you’re good, you can do better than the pub circuit.

Jason: Look, I know these kind of auditions, they’ll have you queing for hours, then they’ll wave some silly camera around everyone, get a bunch of “crowd shots” to make it look really popular, do a bunch of filming of some dorky presenter messing up his lines, then wait for ages while they set up the rooms they could have done at the start, then you wait even longer, then get like 30 seconds of singing only for them to give you a no with no feedback and you’re on your way back on a train having wasted the last 12 hours.

Dan: Come on, its only a few days until that Catapulz band have their celebration party for winning that stupid award. We gotta go in there and have something to show for it?

Jason: You mean they actually invited you guys?

Dan: Oh get real. Only to try to show us up. You only get one life Jason. Time to take a risk, what you just gonna hang around here for the rest of your life not knowing what you’re doing? You gotta get out there man.

Jason: Ok I’ll think about it.

Dan: I’ll take that as a yes.

Jason: But

Dan: Great, I’ll meet you at 11 tomorrow!

Jason: sings the end of Take on Me All exit

Scene transition, this happens to the music of “Everybody Get Up”

Sam walks by only to pass Mike, Zack and Gary. He tries to go the other way or ignore them in the hope they don’t see him. However they spot him, run after him, grab him and tip into a trash can. They exit laughing. Sam then picks himself up, scrapes himself off and exits with no complaint.