prelude

sitting
strumming
steel strings
blackbirds feed and sing

speeding cars pass
rattling ice cubes
in a whiskey glass

on the wall
a misty painting
where blue smoke
and cherry trees
meet

    fade in

curtains open
spreading the scene
for hungry eyes
wide

absorbing
every trace
in a dizzying
trance

lights flash
reflecting
three masked figurines
slumping in a stupor
weaving their dance

cast a bone
on stage
prism horsemen
fly

fur coats
fall flaming
lending hands
at crossroad skies

roll over
listen
whispers laced bright
lips turn white
clenched teeth bite silent
dying of the night

    fade out

darkness spreads
peeling off the backdrop
walls close
through you

dressed in costumes
buttons and zips
the rail leans empty
fading into mist

follow the road
down the blinking tunnel
funneling scripted verse

bowing in roses
spread
across the floor
disappearing in a blink
falling
through the trapdoor

curtains wail
shrieking
halting to a close

words dead
finished
burnt pile of ash
buried pages
torn into pieces
scattered in the trash

    au revoir