ONLY A PACK OF CARDS [Cold Open — courtroom ambience] KING: Rule forty-two! QUEEN: Off with her head! [Gavel] KNOCK! [Alice — quiet] No. [Silence] QUEEN: What did you say? [Heartbeat enters] I said… No. [Verse 1 — restrained female lead] I followed the Rabbit I fell through the ground Changed every shape While they pushed me around Cried me an ocean Ran nowhere fast Forgot who I was While they told me who I am Too big for the room Too small for the door Every time I found an answer They changed what answers were for [Bass begins growing] But I’m still here. [Pre-Drop] Card by card Face by face Every crooked rule Falls out of place Crown looks heavy Voice sounds hard But underneath— You’re only cards. [MAIN DROP] ONLY A PACK OF CARDS! Paper crowns Paper hearts All that noise And that’s all you are ONLY A PACK OF CARDS! Stacked up tall One breath from me— And the whole thing falls! Flip-flip! Snap-snap! Scatter that fear You were only ever powerful While I kept you here! [Instrumental Callback Section] (Tick-tick…) (Drip-drip—SPLASH!) (Run-da-round…) (Kick—WHOOSH!) (Sss-ka…) (Tss-tss—CLANG!) [Alice] I remember everything. [Verse 2 — stronger delivery] Caterpillar asked me Who I thought I was Cheshire left smiling When the rest of him was gone Tea stayed pouring Time refused to move Queen kept shouting Like volume made it true Turtle kept crying Lobsters hit the floor Trial kept talking— I don’t believe it anymore. [Pre-Drop — rising voice] I grew through the questions I grew through the doubt I grew every time You tried to shut me out Look at me now Look where you are I’m standing above you— And you’re only cards. [SECOND DROP — ensemble attacks] QUEEN: OFF WITH HER HEAD! HATTER: CHANGE PLACES! RABBIT: TOO LATE! PIGEON: SERPENT! DODO: EVERYBODY WINS! [Alice shouts] ENOUGH! [Bass impact] ONLY A PACK OF CARDS! Shuffle and spin Bring every nightmare Back again ONLY A PACK OF CARDS! Fly through the air I know what you are— And I’m not scared! [Card-shuffle Dance Break] (Flip-ka, flip-ka, snap-ka-snap!) (Shuffle—cut—throw—attack!) (Ha!) BRRRAH—FALL! [Bridge — enormous soulful vocal] I am not the size Of the room that tries to hold me I am not the name Someone else decides to call me I am not the fear That kept me underneath I became myself When I decided to believe— In me. [Everything drops to a heartbeat] QUEEN — distant Off with her— [Alice] You don’t have the power. [FINAL DROP] ONLY A PACK OF CARDS! Tear through the sky Every suit falling Every crown flying ONLY A PACK OF CARDS! Break that spell Take every lie They tried to sell Tick-tick! Splash-splash! Claw-clack! Hiss! Every road I traveled Led me into this I fell down But I rose this far And all you ever were— WAS A PACK OF CARDS! [Total sonic collapse] (Cards flying) (Wind) (Heartbeat) [Hard silence] [Morning birds] [Alice — barely awake] What a curious dream.
