The Sinister Screen Queen

A hush fell over the theater.

The cue music swelled, as Mary Poppins was due to descend from the heavens in song and sparkle.

Then the lights moved away from the stage, not as scripted.

A golden spotlight pierced through the velvet gloom and pinned itself squarely on Mary, standing in the audience.

"Honestly. The wind changes for one afternoon and this is what I return to?"

WHOOSH… and in front of hundreds of stunned eyes, Mary rises off the ground.

Gasps echoed through the crowd as a figure slowly drifted down, umbrella open and coat billowing like the wings of a storybook hawk.

Tanya slaps her own cheek. "Oh my god."

Then, a moment later, she squinted. "Wait… how do I get one of those umbrellas?"

"Madonna mia, is that wires?! Where are the wires?!" Allegra rapidly points in disbelief.

There were no visible rigs, no wires, no harness.

Mary floats down to the stage with amazing grace. Even the cast freezes on stage, uncertain of what's happening… but Mary gives them a knowing look as she lands.

Mary raises her chin to the stunned cast. "Well? Carry on."

"…?"

Then the cast, ever the professionals, snap back into character, seamlessly adapting to their unexpected upgrade.

Mary joins in the musical number without missing a beat and absolutely steals the show.

The flustered actors and actresses scrambled to keep up.

And somehow… they do.

The crowd buy it. They love it. They laughed, clapped, sang along.

Even the director, fidgeting in the wings, blinked furiously at his notes. "She's not mine… but she's brilliant."

Back in their box seats, Allegra leaned over the balcony, squinting harder. "Dio mio... was she on wires? Invisible wires?"

Tanya gave her a deadpan look. "She flew. Didn't you see that?"

"No…" Allegra replied flatly. "I saw a lawsuit waiting to happen."

Emilia gave a doubtful shrug. "I mean, it looked like flying…"

"That's because it was." Tanya's grin only grew.

They watched the rest of the show, as Mary Poppins upstaged every cast member on set, delivering lines with charm, twirling through choreographed numbers as if she'd lived in this world forever.

And then, just as the final bows began, Mary Poppins gave one dazzling smile to the audience, lifted her gloved hand… and with a puff of glittering smoke, vanished.

Thunderous applause followed.

Emilia claps wildly. "She is amazing, Tanya!"

"Ma come?! Smoke-a bombs don't-a work like that! I didn't even-a see her sneak off!" Allegra complained at the absurdity.

Backstage, the actual Mary Poppins actress, now purple with rage, stormed toward her magical usurper. "Who the hell are you, freak?! That was my role!"

She finds Mary calmly checking her bag near a costume rack.

"Do you think you can just float in here and steal my part!?"

Mary Poppins smiled. "Steal? Oh no, dear. I simply reclaimed it."

Mary lifts her gloved hand, blows a small cloud of sparkling dust, and the actress staggered back, sneezed once… and crumpled like a fainting Victorian aunt.

"Poor thing. Stage fright, no doubt."

A new show begins: Romeo & Juliet

The group stayed for the next performance.

Lights dimmed again.

Tanya's eyes widened as the spotlight revealed Romeo stepping onto the stage.

"Wait… is that—?" She gasped.

It was Robbert Patterson, unmistakably him, playing Romeo with poetic grace.

And then Juliet entered, floating in with radiant emotion.

"Emily Blunt?!" She whispered, stunned. "They're both here?"

Looks like someone caught the jackpot

The performance was mesmerizing. The chemistry, the drama, the unexpected casting it all left her breathless.

She gripped the edge of her seat. They're here. They're actually here.

The show continued with aching beauty, and Tanya couldn't tear her gaze away until the final curtain fell.

As the applause roared through the theatre, Mary, ever punctual, appeared at the box.

"We have to go, or we'll miss the game!" She tapped her watch.

Emilia, still glowing from the performance, leaned over with a mischievous smile. "Sleepover at my place. We need sweets, I have money!"

"All the sweets!"

Tanya gave a dazed nod. "I'll meet you in the car."

She said, already half turned toward the stage. She wasn't ready to leave.

Do you really want to snag another girl to your group Casey asked, annoyed at her host buddyism.

Of course, especially if it's a top-tier actress, she can use.

Tanya slipped backstage, hoping to introduce herself to Emily.

Tanya rehearsed constantly in her head how to introduce herself without sounding like a lunatic fan.

But the corridors twisted and turned, and soon she realized she was thoroughly going in circles.

"…"

Are you lost?

"…no?"

Hahahaa

"Shut up." Tanya grimaced.

She rounded a shady corner and paused.

She took another wrong turn.

Or maybe the right one Casey sang out to her.

"What?" Tanya questioned, but didn't receive an answer

Down the quiet, dimly lit hallway… a faint voice drifted through the silence.

Someone was rehearsing, alone. Tanya followed the sound, drawn like a moth.

There, in a small nook lit by a single spotlight bulb, a young woman stood delivering Shakespearean lines with fierce personality.

Her posture, her expression… it sparked something in Tanya's memory. She moved closer.

Tanya froze.

It couldn't be…

Jyn Erso. The rebel hero from Star Wars.

Was it really her? Was she even supposed to be here?