Line #18 EstablishingCharacterMoment/Theatre


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9	* ''Theatre/SeventeenSeventySix'' starts with [[HotBlooded John Adams]] ranting [[NoIndoorVoice loudly]] about [[SurroundedByIdiots the uselessness of Congress]], ''to'' Congress, and demanding that they vote for independence RIGHT NOW, while they all tell him to sit down and shut up.
10	* ''Theatre/TheBookOfMormon'':
11	** This glimpse into one of Elder Cunningham's major character arcs during "Hello!":
12	--->''Buzz!''\
13	'''Elder Cunningham:''' '''''[[NoIndoorVoice HELLO, WOULD YOU LIKE TO CHANGE RELIGIONS, I HAVE A FREE BOOK WRITTEN BY JESUS!]]'''''\
14	'''Missionary Leader''': No, '''''no''''' Elder Cunningham! That's ''not'' how we do things around here! You're making things up again!
15	** The entirety of "You and Me (But Mostly Me)" is an Establishing Character Moment for Elder Price, based around his trait of ItsAllAboutMe. Price believes himself to be a great Mormon savior who will change the world. He wants to "do something incredible that blows God's freakin' mind". He discounts the idea that Cunningham has anything to offer right off the bat.
16	--->'''Price:''' Heavenly Father has chosen you and me--just mostly me!
17	* The opening scene of ''[[Theatre/CompanySondheim Company]]'' does this for several of the characters. First, it shows Bobby's popularity and his friendship with the couples. Sarah and Harry's competitive and combative relationship is established as they give him their present. Amy's neurotic nature is shown as she presents him with the present from her and Paul. Joanne's cynical and sarcastic nature is shown when she snarks at the other wives and, when one of them asks Bobby who she is, responds thus:
18	-->'''Joanne:''' That is I, miss. I'm very rich and I'm married to him, and I'd introduce him but I forgot his name.
19	* ''Theatre/CyranoDeBergerac''
20	** Cyrano doesn't even appear until about half-way through Act I, but when he does, not only does he appear ''from the audience'' (when the play is performed), but he's yelling at one of the actors to get off the stage because, as we find out shortly afterward, said actor had been hitting on Cyrano's girl. Actually...''all'' of Act I is Cyrano's EstablishingCharacterMoment.
21	** Until Act II Scene III, We have seen Ragueneau as a PluckyComicRelief character. But at Act II Scene IV, when Cyrano confronts him about the attitude of his [[FalseFriend friends, the poets]], Ragueneau reveals that he knows he is a White Knight about the poet's lifestyle, and he does not care of the consequences of his ConspicuousConsumption as long the poets pay [[AttentionWhore him attention]]:
22	--> '''Cyrano''' ''(who has been watching, goes toward Ragueneau):'' Lulled by your voice, did you see how they were stuffing themselves?
23	--> '''Ragueneau''' ''(in a low voice, smiling):'' Oh, ay! I see well enough, but I never will seem to look, fearing to
24	--> distress them; thus I gain a double pleasure when I recite to them my poems;
25	--> for I leave those poor fellows who have not breakfasted free to eat, even
26	--> while I gratify my own dearest foible, see you?
27	* Theatre/DearEvanHansen:
28	** Evan: The first lines of the play is his letter to himself, where he types that today will be an amazing day because he is [[BeYourself being himself]]. But as soon as he finishes typing that, he ends up rambling on all the minor details to being recognized, as well as recounting a failed encounter with someone he loves. He is socially awkward and wants to connect with other people.
29	** Heidi: She tries to give Evan the enthusiasm to start his school year happily, but all Evan can elicit is FlatJoy. Her song that occurs afterwards, "Anybody Have a Map?", highlights the amount of effort she puts into connecting with Evan, and her desperation when her actions fail.
30	** Connor: At his breakfast, he claims that he doesn't feel like going to school, and is revealed to have smoked drugs. His interactions with the rest of his family show that he has a severely strained relationship with them.
31	** Cynthia: In her part in the song "Anybody Have a Map?", she sings about how her lifestyle, like cooking for Larry, Connor and Zoe, is increasingly difficult, and always complicated.
32	** Larry: When Cynthia asks Larry to convince Connor to go to school, he only tells Connor to do so, in a nonchalant manner. Cynthia then chides him on his lack of effort to persuade Connor, believing that he is busy on his email. He then responds that Connor cannot listen to him. Two things are established; he is emotionally distant from his family, and he is more dedicated to his work.
33	** Zoe: She ends up swearing back at Connor, when Connor swore at her because she assumed he was definitely high. Not only is she a typical high school student, it's clear she despises her brother, and his attitude.
34	** Alana: She meets Evan and asks him how his summer was. Before Evan can reply, she interrupts with her having done so many extracurricular activities. The script directions state that before she encounters Evan, she puts on a fake smile. Not only is she wanting to help her community in any way possible, she is also shy like Evan, but conceals that with cheeriness.
35	** Jared: His first line is a joke to Evan regarding his broken arm, believing it to be Evan masturbating. Just like Alana, the script reveals another crucial detail: he enters with a "practiced swagger" that "only the deeply insecure" can use. He is not only a DeadpanSnarker and a complete joker, but he is someone who attempts to solve every problem with humor.
36	* ''{{Theatre/Hadestown}}'' has one for all of their characters, most notably Orpheus, who misses his first cue when he's introduced because he's inspired by a rag he was using to wipe tables (and humming his {{Leitmotif}}). [[TheNarrator Hermes]] cues him again, to which he turns to the audience and waves with a big, goofy grin on his face.
37	* ''{{Theatre/Hamilton}}'' has an excellent one for Aaron Burr that perfectly encapsulates his cautious, noncommittal personality from his ''very first line.''
38	-->'''Hamilton:''' Pardon me. Are you Aaron Burr, sir?
39	-->'''Burr:''' ''That depends. Who's asking?''
40	* The whole of Denmark is celebrating the new king's wedding yet {{Theatre/Hamlet}} is sulking in a corner wearing black because he's still mourning his father.
41	* The musical version of {{Theatre/Heathers}} quickly establishes all the main characters (except J.D., who turns up a couple scenes later) in its opening number "Beautiful." It establishes Kurt and Ram as {{Jerk Jock}}s, Martha as a ButtMonkey (but a lovable one who is a "sucker for a happy ending"), Heather Chandler as [[AlphaBitch a "mythic bitch"]], Heather Duke as the ButtMonkey of her own GirlPosse, Heather [=McNamara=] as the nicest of the trio, and Veronica as the [[DeadpanSnarker wry]], observant outsider who just wants to fit in.
42	** J.D. gets his, too: sitting quietly on the outskirts with a book, making a snarky, semi-flirty comment to Veronica, but otherwise minding his own business, until Kurt and Ram start harassing him.
43	-->'''Ram:''' Hey, Kurt, didn't this cafeteria have a "no fags allowed" rule?\
44	'''J.D.:''' Yeah, but they seem to have an open-door policy on assholes, don't they?\
45	''({{beat}})''\
46	'''Kurt:''' ...Hold his arms.\
47	''(Ram attempts to do just that, but J.D. beats the crap out of them both single-handed)''
48	* ''Theatre/JasperInDeadland''
49	** The show's first minute establishes the various reasons why everyone (apart from Agnes) sees Jasper as a failure, a loser, or a burden, and more importantly, that he doesn't even care enough to refute them.
50	** Gretchen's first scene establishes that she knows enough about Deadland to act as a NativeGuide, that she can no longer remember her time in the Living World, and that she isn't interested in remembering it.
51	* ''Theatre/TheMerchantOfVenice'' has one of these for almost every single character:
52	** The opening scene, when we find out that Antonio is chronically depressed, Salarino and Solanio are ThoseTwoGuys who want to cheer him up, Gratiano is a party animal who constantly goes off on tangents and Bassanio is Antonio's HeterosexualLifePartner who's blown a lot of money and wants to marry the fair Portia. (Oddly enough, Lorenzo, the other guy in the scene, doesn't really get his character established until later--although he does make a crack about Gratiano never letting him speak, and later on he chastises Launcelot for talking too much, so presumably talkative people get on his nerves.)
53	** Portia and Nerissa's first scene sets Portia's personality up for the rest of the play, besides establishing Nerissa as her best friend and [[StraightMan straight woman]].
54	** Shylock's status as a Jew and a usurer, plus his grudge against Antonio, are set up in his first scene, when he and Antonio argue about the theological implications of usury. Plus, he makes the "pound of flesh" bargain at the end of the scene. The CharacterDevelopment that turns him into an IneffectualSympatheticVillain--and leads to his famous "Hath not a Jew eyes?" speech--comes in dribs and drabs.
55	** The Prince of Morocco gets his character established as a precursor to his choice of the wrong casket. Arragon's speech also serves this purpose later on, but he's only in one scene...
56	** Launcelot. "Certainly my conscience will serve me to run from this Jew, my master!"
57	** Jessica gives a soliloquy letting everyone know that she's Shylock's daughter, that she's ashamed to be his daughter, that she's ashamed of herself for being ashamed, that she's nothing like him, and that she's in love with Lorenzo and wants to marry him and become a Christian.
58	** The two scenes in which Lorenzo a) sets up his elopement with Jessica and b) carries it out.
59	* ''Theatre/{{Newsies}}''
60	** The song “Santa Fe” in the opening scene serves as an establishing moment for Jack Kelly, setting him up as an idealist and a dreamer who wants to escape New York. It also demonstrates how convincing he can be; just by talking about his dream of living in Santa Fe he manages to get Crutchie to share in it. The scene as a whole also sets up how much Jack and Crutchie care about each other [[spoiler: which becomes relevant after Crutchie’s arrest causes Jack to nearly abandon the strike, and when Pulitzer forces Jack to turn scab by threatening Crutchie.]]
61	** “Carrying the banner” also serves to establish the newsies characters, as well as the world they live in.
62	** Katherine’s establishing character moment comes when Jack tries to flirt with her and she replies with a sarcastic comment at his expense, showing that she is independent, clever, and good with words.
63	* ''Theatre/{{Ragtime}}'' has several in the first few scenes.
64	** The first thing Father says about himself is that he's "well off -- ''very'' well off", suggesting that that's the thing he values most about himself. He's also visibly taken aback by Admiral Perry having an African-American first officer.
65	** Also in the prologue, Younger Brother describes himself as DesperatelyLookingForAPurposeInLife. This becomes his major character arc.
66	** "Goodbye My Love" suggests that Mother is not entirely satisfied with her life and wants to be more than just a pampered, sheltered housewife.
67	** Edgar's "warn the duke" line is the first sign of his inexplicable abilities, although the exact meaning doesn't become clear until later.
68	** "His Name Was Coalhouse Walker" establishes that Coalhouse is a LadykillerInLove and that he self-admittedly treated Sarah badly.
69	** In the minor characters department, Emma Goldman ranting against JP Morgan and Henry Ford boasting about their wealth, calling them "the demons that are sucking your very souls dry".
70	* The Takarazuka version of Theatre/RomeoEtJulietteDeLaHaineALamour establishes the quarreling characters of Tybalt, Mercutio, and Benvolio all within 3 seconds, with Tybalt spitting on Benvolio as he holds his hand out for a shake, Mercutio rushing infuriated to his friend's defense, and Benvolio holding Mercutio back. Meanwhile, Romeo is introduced with a dazed smile and smelling a flower.
71	* ''Theatre/TwistedTheUntoldStoryOfARoyalVizier'':
72	** The Princess is first introduced freeing several imported birds, even though they can't survive in the region, declaring that an hour of freedom would be better than a lifetime of pampering in a cage, showing she's well-meaning but painfully naive.
73	** Ja'far's first scene has him hoping to make life better for the common folk while they constantly insult him, setting him up as a KnightInSourArmor.
74	** Aladdin's first appearance is cheerfully looting a dead guard before breaking into a musical number that he steals anything he can find because he doesn't want to get a job, informing the audience he's a combination of LazyBum and TheSociopath.
75	* ''Theatre/WesterosAnAmericanMusical'': Joffrey, who has StupidEvil tendencies, is introduced holding the decapitated head of a prisoner that his mother was intending to use as a ''live'' hostage.
76	* ''{{Theatre/Wicked}}'': Elphaba gets on stage, [[HotBlooded yells at her classmates]], [[TheSnarkKnight snarks at her sister, her headmistress and Glinda]], then immediately [[ChronicHeroSyndrome protects her sister - despite said sister being very cruel to her.]]
77	* Frank Wildhorn's 'Wonderland', does this for pretty much every main character. But possibly the most obvious example is the introduction of the Mad Hatter, which is not so much a scene as a musical number that's upbeat and catchy and makes the Hatter seem benevolent at first listen...but if you listen closely to the lyrics, the song shows a [[BigBad much more sinister side]] to the Hatter ("Shut up and toe the line"; "There is nothing I won't do/There is nothing too taboo/I will lie, I will cheat, [[ImpliedDeathThreat I will track you down and then hit delete"]]; "All you have to do is submit/And if you don't, my friend, well then in the end, there'll be nothing left to defend."; "I'm the best worst case for the choice you face."; "The right kind of wrong.", etc).
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Context EstablishingCharacterMoment / Theatre