From: daviderl31@yahoo.com   
      
   4-17  The Play's The Thing   
      
       First airing was March 15, 1999.   
      
       The story starts in a field of wild flowers. Gabrielle and Xena are in   
   Yoga poses.  Gabrielle drops hers and says she can't get the fact that she   
   lost her favorite scroll out of her mind. It charted their history and was a   
   more intimate examination of their relationship, etc. Xena tells Gabrielle   
   to go back for it in Paraeus while she goes to help a prince in Arcon.   
      
       Paraeus seems to be the Grecian center of theater. Joxer is thrown out   
   of a tavern at Gabrielle's feet. It is the first time Joxer has seen the new   
   Gabrielle. He likes the look. He asks if her 'tattoos' hurt. She says she   
   would wish for Sophocles to be her mentor She says she looking for her   
   scroll. A woman and a man walk up with the scroll. She says her name is   
   Zehra, she is a producer and she read the scroll and it should be made into   
   a play so everyone can see it. After flattering Gabrielle about how great it   
   is, Gabrielle agrees to rewrite it for the stage to show everyone the   
   lessons she learned in India about peace and happiness. But first she wants   
   to send word to Xena.   
      
       After she leaves Zehra and Milo laugh about it. She says if the people   
   she is thinking of sees it they will kill Gabrielle.   
      
       Zehra takes Gabrielle and Joxer into the Apollo Theater. It looks long   
   abandoned, but Gabrielle sees the potential in it. Zehra tells Gabrielle she   
   should direct because no one else could interpret her vision of the story.   
   Gabrielle makes Joxer her assistant.   
      
       There is a line of women dressed as Xena and Gabrielle for a casting   
   call. Gabrielle is having trouble finding someone to play herself. She hires   
   the first one, who can do forward and back flips, to play Xena. Minya shows   
   up for the part and is too late, but Gabrielle tells her she can be a   
   villain.   
      
       A centaur named Dustinus Hoofmanus shows up to audition,  but refuses to   
   play the part of a quadruped because  he is an "actor."   
      
       Gabrielle is worried because a play by Sophocles is opening the same   
   night hers it, but realizes that she only cares if the right people see her   
   play.   
      
       The warlord Kaelus is talking to Zehra and Milo. She promises him a   
   return of 75% on his investment of the play. She also promised warlord   
   Therax 75%. Zehra says if the play is a failure they won't try to collect   
   and they can keep the investments.   
      
       Zehra talks Gabrielle into making Joxer the producer so she won't have   
   to deal with ticket sales, promotion and publicity.   
      
       Gabrielle tells the players she cast herself to play Gabrielle.   
      
       They rehearse  a scene and Minya thinks there should be more clobbering   
   of skulls and not just talking about the message of peace. Everyone chimes   
   in about renaming the play and Gabrielle gets angry and leaves. Joxer tells   
   them about changes he want to make in the play.   
      
       Gabrielle meditates to calm down and goes back to the theater to   
   apologize for losing control. They begin to rehearse again but when   
   Gabrielle sees the changes Joxer made, she leaves again. She goes across the   
   street to talk to Sophocles, but when she sees a scene from his play with   
   dancing girls and sword fighting, she goes back to the Apollo and says she   
   want more sex and violence and blood. They are going to cram the message of   
   peace down everyone's throat for their own good.   
      
       During rehearsal, Minya and the Xena actress get into a fight. Gabrielle   
   tells Zehra she needs more money. After they leave, Zehra and Milo talk   
   about  increasing the budget will decrease their profit. She decides to   
   bring in warlord Cleon as another investor.   
      
       Gabrielle has second thoughts until Joxer tells her they sold out the   
   first night.   
      
       Cleon agrees to invest when Zehra tells him all of Xena's secrets will   
   be revealed in the play.   
      
       Kaelus and Therax sneak in to watch the rehearsal and both tell Zehra   
   they love it. Zehra tells Gabrielle that she has inspired the warlords to   
   invade a neighboring country. Gabrielle decides to return to her original   
   vision.   
      
       The play starts and Gabrielle tells the audience if they came to see   
   blood and violence they came to the wrong place.   
      
       As the play starts, the warlord Cleon is back stage and he and Joxer   
   fight. The fight spills onto the stage. The real Xena shows up and she   
   fights Kaelus and his men, and Therax and his men. The audience thinks it's   
   part of the play. A critic isn't impressed with "Xena." Another mentions the   
   opening of "Buffus, the Bacchae Slayer" opening across the street.   
      
       Xena defeats the bad guys.   
      
       Later the three warlords are tied up and Xena gives them the option of   
   keeping their investments  or donating them to an orphanage. The agree to   
   donate it.   
      
       Zehra says she has seen the error of her ways. Then rushes off to tell   
   Dustinus she is opening a new agency and wants to represent him.   
      
       As they  are leaving Gabrielle tells Xena it was stupid to think people   
   would want to hear about peace and love instead of sex and violence. Xena   
   tells her peace is what people really want.   
      
       Minya and the Xena actress run up and Minya tells Gabrielle if it wasn't   
   for her she would have met Paullina. And she realizes that she really is a –   
   thespian.   
      
       Joxer, who was accidentally caught by the feet and is hanging upside   
   down in the theater yells for help.   
      
   ………………..   
      
       And after four serious episodes, another comedy.    Some of it was   
   humorous, and some of it wasn't.   
      
       Gabrielle is still in her India outfit, and is now wearing sandals. She   
   was barefooted in 'The Way' and 'Devi'. And she is wearing earrings. I   
   didn't notice them in previous eps, if they were there.   
      
       I thought she looked cute in the flowered wreath.   
      
       Many of the Gabrielle wannabes were wearing the green-top outfit to   
   audition in. In the background were actors dressed as Callisto and Ares.   
      
       During rehearsal, Gabrielle  mentioned 'scene 84', and 'Act 8'. Talk   
   about a LONG play!!!   
      
       Nice to see Minya again. She's always good for a chuckle or two.   
      
        Zehra seemed to know just what buttons to push to feed Gabrielle's ego   
   as a bard.   
      
       I guess Xena got finished in Arcon early and showed up just in the nick   
   of time. And I guess she knew Zehra as the Queen of Cons from a previous   
   encounter.   
      
       I did like the line, "There's the opening of  'Buffus, the Bacchae   
   Slayer' across the street."  I have to admit, despite being a Buffy fan, I   
   completely missed that the first couple of times I saw this episode.   
      
      
   [continued in next message]   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)