[Verse 1: Musical-theatre female belter, crisp over the driving live drums] Twelve years at a desk in the wings, stage left Black shirt, black jeans, and a pencil and a breath Every light you ever saw was a word that I said Every blackout, every snowfall came out of my head I know every line in the show, every step, every note I've been mouthing them in the dark with a frog in my throat Closing night, packed house, and the star cannot speak And the understudy's home with a fever all week [Pre-Chorus: Musical-theatre female belter] Thirty minutes to places and a room full of faces And I'm the only one who knows all the spaces [Chorus: Musical-theatre female belter] Standby, I've been standing by Twelve years in the dark while you all got the light Standby, standby, but the headset's mine I'm calling my own cue, and it's go this time [Verse 2: Musical-theatre female belter, the bright stabbing guitars] Director's on his knees and the money's on the phone Company manager pacing with a face as white as bone I pull the headset down and I say I know the part Every word and every step, I've had it twelve years by heart Wardrobe pins the dress on me, it's two sizes too wide Hair and makeup, five minutes, and the pit is tuning up inside I hand the book to Teddy, he's my second and he's green Say call it like I taught you, keep it clean, keep it mean [Pre-Chorus: Musical-theatre female belter] Thirty minutes to places and a room full of faces And I'm the only one who knows all the spaces [Chorus: Musical-theatre female belter] Standby, I've been standing by Twelve years in the dark while you all got the light Standby, standby, but the headset's mine I'm calling my own cue, and it's go this time [Bridge: Musical-theatre female belter, cue call, she calls the standby herself and the band lands on the word go] Standby lights ninety-nine Standby curtain, standby me Lights ninety-nine Go [Verse 3: Musical-theatre female belter, full belt, the band wide open] And the light I called ten thousand times comes up on my face Fourteen hundred people and I'm standing in the place Every cue I ever gave is landing right on time Teddy's calling from the desk and every word is mine Curtain call, they're on their feet, the star is crying in the wings And I bow toward the desk where I learned all of these things [Final Chorus: Musical-theatre female belter] Standby, I've been standing by Twelve years in the dark while you all got the light Standby, standby, but the headset's mine I'm calling my own cue, and it's go this time [End]
