Every Story is a Love Story

AMNERIS
Every story, tale, or memoir
Every saga or romance
Whether true or fabricated
Whether planned or happenstance

Whether sweeping through the ages
casting centuries aside
Or a hurried, brief recital,
just a thirty-minute ride

Whether bright or melancholy,
rough and ready, finely spun
Whether with a thousand players
or a lonely cast of one...

Every story, new or ancient,
bagatelle or work of art
All are tales of human failing
All are tales of love at heart.

This is the story of a love
that flourished in a time of hate
Of lovers no tyranny could separate
Love set into motion on the Nile's shore
Destiny ignited by an act of war
Egypt saw the mighty river

as its very heart and soul
Source of life for all her people
that only Egypt could control.
Destruction of her southern neighbor justified
Nubia exploited, left with little more than pride...

GO BACK TO THE TOP



Fortune Favors the Brave

SOLDIERS
Oh oh
Fortune favors the brave
Oh oh
Fortune favors the brave

RADAMES
We have swept to glory;
Egypt's mastery expands
from the Nile's northern delta
to the dry, dry southern sands.
The more we find, the more we see,
the more we come to learn
The more that we explore,
the more we shall return

SOLDIERS
Oh oh
Fortune favors the brave

RADAMES
It's all worked out, my road is clear
The lines of latitude extend
way beyond my wildest dreams
toward some great triumphant end!
We seized the day, we turned the tide
We touched the stars, we mocked the grave!
We moved into uncharted lands...

RADAMES and SOLDIERS
Fortune favors the brave!

RADAMES
The more we find, the more we see,
the more we come to learn
The more that we explore,
the more we shall return.
Nothing is an accident.
We are free to have it all.
We are what we want to be:
it's in ourselves to rise and fall
This is easy to believe
when distant places call to me
It's harder from the palace yard
Fortune favors the free
Fortune favors the young
Fortune favors the brave!

GO BACK TO THE TOP



The Past is Another Land

AIDA
You know nothing about me,
and care even less
How could you understand our emptiness?
You've plundered our wisdom,
our knowledge, our wealth
in bleeding us dry
you long for our spirit
But that you will never possess.

The past is now another land
far beyond my reach
Invaded by insidious
foreign bodies, foreign speech
Where the timeless joys of childhood
lie broken on the beach.

The present is an empty space
between the good and bad
A moment leading nowhere,
too pointless to be sad
But time enough to lay to waste
every certainty I had

The future is a barren world
from which I can't return
Both heartless and material,
its wretched spoils not my concern
Shining like an evil sun
as my childhood treasures burn
Shining like an evil sun
as my childhood treasures burn.

GO BACK TO THE TOP



Another Pyramid

ZOSER
While you've been away cavorting,
matters here have run apace
Now I need you home supporting
all the plans I've put in place.
First of all, that means your wedding.
You'll recall your future bride?
For the way that Pharaoh's heading,
time's no longer on our side.

According to the hawk god Horus,
our most regal invalid
is not that much longer for us.
Build another pyramid.

There are many who'll be tearful
as our leader fades away
But our architects are cheerful,
and each dog must have its day
If our country is to flourish
then my son must take the lead
Be our inspiration, nourish
all our hopes, our dreams, our creed!

Soon our monarch will have filled a tomb
just like his fathers did
Summon Egypt's greatest builders
Re: another pyramid.

MINISTERS
Build it, build it
Another pyramid

ZOSER
There will be a time for mourning,
but for now, put plans on hold
For I give the nation warning
that before the corpse is cold
we'll extend fair Egypt's power,
Egypt's glory, strength, and style
We shall have our finest hour
far beyond the mighty Nile

He must have a vault that's grand by
any standards, floor to lid
Put five thousand slaves on standby,
build another pyramid!

MINISTERS
Build it, build it
Build it, build it
Build it, build it
Build it--
Build it, build it
Build it--

ZOSER
He must have a vault that's grand by
any standards, floor to lid
Put five thousand slaves on standby,
build another pyramid!

GO BACK TO THE TOP



How I Know You

MEREB
I grew up in your hometown--
at least, began to grow
I hadn't got to my first shave
before the body blow
Egyptians in the courtyard,
my family in chains
You witnessed our abduction,
which possibly explains
How I know you
How I know you

Before that fateful morning,
my family enjoyed
a privileged existence,
for my father was employed
as advisor--to the king, no less--
which surely rings a bell,
for as you are his daughter,
you probably can tell
How I know you
How I know you

AIDA
You know too much, and what you say
is better left unknown
And now I'm just a slave, like you.
Our lives are not our own.

MEREB
I never have abandoned--
and nor, I think could you--
that spark of hope for freedom
no terror can subdue.

AIDA
My only hope is silence;
you've never seen my face!

MEREB
No, you remain a princess
in any time or place

AIDA
You don't know me

MEREB
Yes, I know you

AIDA
You don't know me!

MEREB
How I know you!
How I know you...

GO BACK TO THE TOP



My Strongest Suit

AMNERIS
In life, one has to face a huge assortment
of nauseating fads and good advice.
There's health and fitness, diet and deportment
and other pointless forms of sacrifice
Conversation? Wit? I am a doubter.
Manners? Charm? They're no way to impress.
So forget the inner me, observe the outer:
I am what I wear and how I dress.

Oh, now I believe in looking
like my time on earth is cooking
whether polka-dotted, striped, or even checked
With some glamour guaranteeing
every fiber in my being
is displayed to quite remarkable effect.
From your cradle via trousseau
to your deathbed, you're on view,
so never compromise--accept no substitute
I would rather wear a barrel than conservative apparel
For dress has always been my strongest suit.

Staying in or hitting townwards,
from the top and working downwards
I ensure that every stitch is stitched in time
Whether wig or hat or turban,
whether clad boudoir or urban
Not to strut your stuff outrageously is a crime
And the few who are invited
to my wardrobe are delighted
as they wander through my things to find en route
that in negligee or formal, I am anything but normal
For dress has always been my strongest suit.

WOMEN (underneath AMNERIS)
Overwear, underwear, anytime, anywhere
Overwear, underwear, anytime, anywhere
Overwear, underwear, anytime, anywhere

AMNERIS
I am what I wear
I said anytime, anywhere
So bring me all my finest, most audacious, my divinest
most revealing, most expensive, and to boot
Most arresting, most heart-stopping
Most free-flowing, most eye-popping
Most arresting, most heart-stopping
Most free-flowing, most eye-popping
Dress has always been my strongest suit

My strongest suit
You know that I am what I wear
Dress has always been my strongest suit

So bring me all my finest, most audacious, my divinest
most revealing, most expensive, and to boot
Most arresting, most heart-stopping
Most free-flowing, most eye-popping
Most arresting, most heart-stopping
Dress has always been my strongest suit
My strongest suit
You know that I am what I wear
Dress has always been my strongest
My strongest, my strongest,
my strongest, my strongest
My strongest, my strongest suit!

GO BACK TO THE TOP



Enchantment Passing Through

RADAMES
To sail away to half-discovered places
To see the secrets so few eyes have seen
To see moments of enchantment on our faces
The moments when we smile, and those between...

AIDA (spoken)
Are you talking about Nubia now?

RADAMES (spoken)
Yes, in a way.

AIDA
If I could leave this place, then I'd go sailing
to corners of my land where there would be
sweet southern winds of liberty prevailing
the beauty so majestic and so free.

RADAMES
There'd be no ties of time and space to bind me

AIDA
And no horizon I could not pursue

RADAMES
I'd leave the world's misfortunes far behind me

AIDA
I'd put my faith and trust in something new

RADAMES and AIDA
But why should I tell you this?

AIDA
A stranger I've just met

RADAMES
A woman whom I hardly know at all,
and should forget

RADAMES and AIDA
A journey we can only dream of--
Enchantment passing through.
And how is it I say these things
so easily to you?

RADAMES (spoken)
I'll never take you sailing... I'm never going to leave Egypt again!

AIDA (spoken)
You talk as though you've been enslaved! If you don't like your fate, change it. You are your own master; there are no shackles on you! So don't expect any pity or understanding from this humble palace slave!

RADAMES But why did I tell her this?
A stranger I've just met,
a woman whom I hardly know at all,
and will forget!
Anonymous and gone tomorrow:
enchantment passing through.
And all I did was tell her things
she already knew.
She knew.
She knew.
GO BACK TO THE TOP



My Strongest Suit (Reprise)

AMNERIS
I may leave a great impression
as I race through a succession
of the latest crazes, chase the newest fad
I feel better when beguiling,
find that fashion keeps me smiling
But in my heart, I know it's rather sad

AIDA
That a life of great potential
is dismissed, inconsequential

AMNERIS
And only ever seen as being cute.
So I'll flutter to deceive--

AIDA
Oh no. No, you must believe
that one day you're bound to find

AIDA and AMNERIS
a stronger suit.

GO BACK TO THE TOP



Dance of the Robe

AIDA
It's knowing what they want of me that scares me.
It's knowing having followed, I must lead.
It's knowing that each person there compares me
to those in my past whom I now succeed.
But how can whatever I do for them now be enough,
be enough?

NUBIANS
Aida! Aida!
All we ask of you
is a lifetime of service, wisdom, courage
To ask more would be selfish,
but nothing less will do.
Aida! Aida!

NEHEBKA
Your robe should be golden, your robe should be perfect
instead of this ragged concoction of thread
But may you be moved by its desperate beauty
to give us new life, for we'd rather be dead
than live in the squalor and shame of the slave.
To the dance! To the dance!

NUBIANS
Aida! Aida!
All we ask of you
is a lifetime of service, wisdom, courage
To ask more would be selfish
but nothing less will do.
Aida! Aida!
Aida! Aida!
Aida! Aida! Aida!

AIDA
I know expectations are wild, and almost
beyond my fulfillment, but they won't hear
a word of a doubt or see signs of weakness
My nigh-on impossible duty is clear:
If I can rekindle my ancestors' dreams, it's enough
It's enough
It's enough

NUBIANS
Aida! Aida!
Aida! Aida!
Aida! Aida!

AIDA
It's enough!

NUBIANS
Ah ah ah ah ah ah!

GO BACK TO THE TOP



Not Me

RADAMES
I once knew all the answers
I stood on certain ground
A picture of true happiness
confidence so effortless
No brighter could be found.

MEREB
Oh no...

RADAMES
I never asked the questions
that trouble me today.
I knew all there was to know
Love worn lightly, put on show
my conquests on display.

MEREB
I can't believe he's changing...

RADAMES
And who'd have thought
my confidence could die?
Not me, not me.
That all I took for granted was a lie?
Not me, not me.
Who'd have guessed I'd throw my world away
to be with someone I'm afraid will say
Not me

MEREB
This can never be

RADAMES
Not me.

MEREB
He's in love, but he's not the only one
who'll be changed.

AMNERIS (spoken)
Why hasn't Radames come to see me again? We're to be married in three days, and yet... Aida, I must make things right with him.

AIDA
I shall not envy lovers,
but long for what they share.

AMNERIS
An empty room is merciless
Don't be surprised if I confess
I need some comfort there.

AMNERIS and AIDA
And who'd have thought
that love could be so good?
Not me, not me.
My secrets and my passions understood?
Not me, not me.
Who'd have guessed he'd throw his world away
to be with someone 'til his dying day?
Not me, not me.

RADAMES, AIDA, and AMNERIS
And who'd have thought that love could be so good?
Not me, not me.
My secrets and my passions understood?
Not me, not me.
Who'd have guessed [I'd/he'd] throw [my/his] world away
to be with someone 'til [my/his] dying day?
Not me, not me.

RADAMES
Not me.
Oh, not me.

GO BACK TO THE TOP



Elaborate Lives

RADAMES
We all lead such elaborate lives
Wild ambitions in our sights
How an affair of the heart survives
days apart and hurried nights
seems quite unbelievable to me
I don't want to live like that.
Seems quite unbelievable to me
I don't want to love like that.
I just want our time to be
slower and gentler, wiser, free.

We all live in extravagant times
playing games we can't all win.
Unintended emotional crimes
take some out, take others in.
I'm so tired of all we're going through.
I don't want to live like that.
I'm so tired of all we're going through.
I don't want to love like that.
I just want to be with you,
now and forever, peaceful, true.

This may not be the moment
to tell you face to face,
but I could wait forever
for the perfect time and place.

RADAMES and AIDA
We all lead such elaborate lives
We don't know whose words are true
Strangers, lovers, husbands, wives...
hard to know who's loving who

AIDA
Too many choices tear us apart
I don't want to live like that.

RADAMES
Too many choices tear us apart
I don't want to love like that.
I just want to touch your heart.
May this confession

RADAMES and AIDA
be the start.

GO BACK TO THE TOP



The Gods Love Nubia

AIDA
Take me in my dreams recurring
cheerful as a childhood dance
into one more taste of freedom
One more longing backward glance.

In the sway of somber music
I shall never, never understand
Let me slip into the sweeter
chorus of that other land...

The gods love Nubia
the beautiful, the golden,
the radiant, the fertile
the gentle and the blessed
The pain of Nubia
is only of the moment
The desolate, the suffering
the plundered, the oppressed....

NEHEBKA
The gods love Nubia,
their glorious creation.
Their songs roll sweetly
across the harvest plain.

AIDA and NEHEBKA
The tears of Nubia
a passing aberration
They wash into the river
and are never cried again!

AIDA, NEHEBKA, and NUBIAN WOMEN
The gods love Nubia
We have to keep believing
Though scattered and divided,
we are still its heart

ALL NUBIANS
The fall of Nubia
ephemeral and fleeting
The spirit always burning
though the flesh is torn apart.

Take me in my dreams recurring
cheerful as a childhood dance
into one more taste of freedom
One more longing backward glance.

The gods love Nubia,
the beautiful, the golden,
the radiant, the fertile,
the gentle and the blessed
The pain of Nubia
is only of the moment
The desolate, the suffering,
the plundered, the oppressed....

The gods love Nubia;
we have to keep believing
though scattered and divided,
we are still its heart
The fall of Nubia ephemeral and fleeting
The spirit always burning
though the flesh is torn apart.
The spirit always burning
though the flesh is torn

AIDA
apart...

ALL NUBIANS
Take me in my dreams recurring,
One more longing backward glance


END OF ACT I

GO BACK TO THE TOP