The Puppetmaster's Regime

''Have you ever heard of the musical "The Puppetmaster's Regime"? Most likely, you haven't. In fact, even hardcore musical lovers often do not know the story of this little production. It was a 1934 stage musical written by anonymous authors of the music, lyrics, and book. It starred upcoming performers such as Timmy "cutie-pie" Wright, Sally Wilkes, Henry Gregory, as well as many others. At the time, it was the most expensive show to that date. It was advertised to be the biggest, most spectacular show you'd ever see.''

Exert from the testament of Tyler Warwick (1901-1983) "I went to see the show when I was about a week after I turned about thirty-three. The ticket was a gift from my sister, who knew how much I loved musicals. I remember the signs, they were huge. I also remember the playbill…it was just a single red dot with a doll-like face on it. It didn't make much sense to me. But it didn't matter, because I was going to see a Broadway show…"

Exert from the testament of Georgina Long (1911-1984) "…the cast was made completely of new people. Kids and adults alike who were longing to get back on stage after Vaudeville stopped being popular, it was quite charming really. I do remember how odd the whole thing was…all the playwrights and lyricists and everyone were all unnamed, and that playbill…it was a little red drop with a peculiar little face in it. Not even a title, just that little red dot. I had come to New York with my parents to cheer the family up after my grandmother had died…a Broadway musical seemed just like what we needed…"

Exert from the testament of Carl Hannigan (1920-1993) "…I remember the first act…then again, who could forget? The story was a little hard to follow at first…there was a little boy who lived in a puppet shop…or maybe he lived down the street…no, no, he worked in the puppet shop, but he was homeless…so they provided him a home there. The kid's name was Mori..Mortim…something weird…oh yes, it was Morietum…no, Morietur. Morietur, yes. Anyways, Morietur's employer, this old man named Mr. Obcisor…I remember his name, because he was so creepy. I think his character was a pedophile. The two of them sang this weird song about puppets…it wasn't a normal song…or at least, the music was normal. The lyrics were very enchanting, and the music did this odd thing where the high notes and the low notes sort of mixed with each other…it really set this strange mood. But we thought nothing of it, and the show progressed…"

Exert from the testament of Gabriel Johnston (1919-1976) "This little kid…Mori…Morietur…something like that…had a girl friend named Trahunt, and this other boy friend named Adolebit. Together, they talked about how much they loved puppets, and so they sang this cute little song about joining forced to raise money so they could afford to build their own puppet. Then…something really odd happened in the story… …the three all headed for school, and they had this really nasty teacher named Madame Reperio…or something like that. They had a reprise of the song from before and she overheard them…at first her remarks about the children's fantasies were somewhat comical…but then the light fixed on her and she sang this heartbreaking little song about…well, that was up for interpretation. It was somewhat about love, but it had all these strange puppet metaphors. Then, she just went on this little breakdown, we thought it was this strange character trait. She started singing off key and went to beat one of the kids. The curtain fell, and there was a scuffle heard onstage. We sort of dismissed it, though. So soon the curtain rose again, and we were back at the puppet shop…"

From the testament of Louis Roberts (1905-1967) "Morietur and his friends went into the town and sang a song about selling…dolls, I think it was. Because the little girl made dolls his her spare time, and she had to sell them. I remember those strange background characters. The company was so absolutely monotonous…they all wore some form of dark clothing, and each of them were very, very tall. I can remember how they all had their faces covered up by hair or hats or veils…none of them spoke. None of them even sang during the course of the show. They just walked in perfectly straight lines, as if they weren't even part of the show. Anyways, this strange song about buying dolls…it had absolutely no life. But for some reason, these kids were putting their all into it. I could see the pain in their faces as they hit those high notes. And something else…as the lyrics went on…they seemed to…get…a little…it is so hard to explain. They all looked like they were…dying a little inside. They looked so pale and nervous all of a sudden…it made me just a tiny bit anxious…"

From the testament of Carrie Laurie (1921-1995) "The kids all got their money from this strange man in cloak who sang a simple little tune…I still remember the lyrics:

Desperate falls of rain, little kiddies, Everyone needs a little song- Wooden dolls give you pain, little kiddies, Go on, little kiddies, run along…

His character was never really explained. But I remember how truly gripping the melody was…so haunting, it got you right there in the gut. Even the little kid actors seemed a bit unsettled by the new turn of the show. They all kept stuttering over their lines as they spoke and sang, and I still remember when a light bulb over the stage went out. Everyone kind of gasped and one man I think even laughed. The noise it made really spooked the little girl, little miss whatshername. All the names were so very odd. All I know is that light bulb had gone out, an the actors were stumbling across the show…and the whole thing looked like a terrible flop."

From the testament of Marcus Edger (1918-1968) "…So After that light bulb went out, the whole set started falling apart. We, the audience, tried our best to ignore it. But we found it near impossible. The set piece for the puppet shop screeched it's way onto the stage, and we could see in the far back the paper sky background falling down. The lights went dim in what we assumed was an attempt to hide the malfunctioning set pieces. The kids, with the help of an oddly monotonous Mr. Obcisor, constructed the puppet…and this strange song played. To this day I don't know what they were saying. It sounded somewhat like Latin, but I went on to study Latin in college the next year, and found it to be in no way the language. I remember how it enchanted me, though. It enchanted all of us. We all began to feel this…thing…course through us. I remember a few people around us who were humming in an attempt to rid themselves of the sound, and I could hear people in the front rows crying out in what sounded like pain. The actors themselves sounded as though they were about to pass out at any moment. They were doing this odd sort of ballet and they were tripping all over themselves, and I can remember a few more lights flashing and breaking. We all sat and waited for the song to end, when…when…I'm sorry. (pause) I'm so sorry…I can't…"

From the testament of George Frank (1899-1999) "…The lights were going on and off at random, and we were all praying the damn song would end soon. It had this force going with it…it was sucking us in. We could feel it. The little kids and the puppet man were dancing all around when…well, you see…(pause)…I really thought I could do it. I thought I could do it…but I can't…"

From the testament of Carolyn Mark (1901-1949) "…The lighting was completely out of control. It was a mess. And that song…it was awful. But something about it…it was powerful. It had a force. I watched intently as the dancers began to skip around and…and…we…I thought they were…the lights…"

''The actual events of the final scene of Act 1 of "The Puppetmaster's Regime" has been up for debate for many years. Not many people are willing to speak out about what happened on stage during the final scene. Many believe that there is no actual record of an interview with somebody who was willing the tell the story…this is not true, as one testament survives from a Billy Prescott, who was only six at the time of the show. At such a young age, one might assume he was unaffected by what he recalls happening:''

"…I don't remember a lot, because I was just a kid. All I can remember is that song…it was giving me a headache. I turned to father to ask him if we could leave, when suddenly I saw the stage illuminate with this red light. The music stopped as one instrument after another died out, and swear I heard pounding underneath the stage. Everyone was questioning what was happening…even the actors. I remember that teacher lady being pushed through the door of the shop…and some assembly members ran onstage for some reason, and just stopped. I remember a few people started crying right there on the stage when suddenly this…curtain…came forward. It's hard to describe what it looked like. It was a clear plastic wall, and it came down from above. Several years later I saw "Carrie: The Musical" on Broadway during one of it's few runs…that thing that came down on the promgoers when Carrie was using laser lights to kill everyone? It was just like that. A bunch of set pieces from earlier scenes came down on the sides of the stage, trapping all of the actors in the center. Then chaos erupted. The actors were pounding on the plastic wall thing when suddenly the curtain flew out and left us in the dark. The audience, at the time, thought it was just a really twisted ending to a terrible musical. We were about to get up when suddenly the curtain opened up again, revealing a single light, and in it was the little boy, Morietur. He had clawed his way through the plastic wall…we could see the blood on his hands…but I remember how he looked. There were strings attached to every part of his body…like a puppet. Not only that, but we could all see his stomach…or lack of, anyway. It was like somebody had put a huge ice cream scooper in his belly. He was sobbing all over the stage, and everyone looked at him, not knowing what to do…and then he spoke… "Help me…..please….help me…" was all I could make out, and then he vomited and suddenly collapsed. The lights all came on, and we saw the cast. They were all dead…every one of them looked exactly like the little boy. Everyone had those strings attached…and we watched as all of them, even the little boy…as their strings were pulled on. Their lifeless bodies rose on cue, and they bowed."

''However, we cannot be certain that this a credible account…but unfortunately, it is all we have to work with. "The Puppetmaster's Regime" sparked horrible debate among the theatre companies. Several audience members had to be treated to special therapy for years to come…and the show itself was covered up by police. For years to come the theatre company. As well as the police department that never managed to solve the gruesome murders of the cast of the show, denied that the play ever existed. However, in recent years the story has resurfaced…sparking much new debate on the subject. The theatre that housed the show still refuses to acknowledge the show's existence, and most theatre historians know nothing about the show in general. To this day, the identities of the anonymous lyric and music writers are unknown, and all copies of recordings of the songs and police reports have been destroyed. However, through ancient illigal copies of interviews and theatre record, we can gather a bit of information on the show. The show itself had it's first workshop in London durring 1928. One of the songs, "Get A Puppet" was recorded with vocals by twelve-year-old Garris Creely. However, this recording has been lost, an is only available in the black market of the internet. Other than that, no official recordings (that we know of) were ever made. Some ancient accounts say that an illegal taping of the final scene of Act One was recorded from backstage, but we cannot be certain that this is anything but a rumor. As for any official memerabilia, very little of anything was ever made for the show to be remembered by. Oddly enough, the show was never advertised, and yet it somehow was well-known enough to have booked tickets for several months to come. Playbills from it's premiere night were given out. Most audience members destroyed their copies after seeing the show...but legend has it, around ten to twelve survive. On another note, over the years the show has grown a small cult fan base, and here recently, an off-Broadway revival has been scheduled to be premiere soon.''