Amadeus Page #30

MOZART:

No one calls you that.

LEOPOLD:

She does. She says I sleep all day.

CONSTANZE:

And so you do! The only time you

come out is to eat.

LEOPOLD:

And what do you expect? Who wants to

walk out into a mess like this every

day?

CONSTANZE:

Oh, now I'm a bad housekeeper!

LEOPOLD:

So you are! The place is a pigsty

all the time.

CONSTANZE:

(to Mozart)

Do you hear him? Do you?

Explosively she opens the door.

CONSTANZE:

(to Lorl)

When can you start?

LORL:

Right away, ma'am.

CONSTANZE:

Good! Come in. You'll start with

that room there.

(indicating Leopold's

room)

It's filthy!

She leads the maid into Leopold's room. Mozart steals back

into his workroom and gently closes the door. Leopold is

left alone.

LEOPOLD:

Sorry, sorry! I'm sorry I spoke!

I'm just a provincial from Salzburg.

What do I know about smart Vienna?

Parties all night, every night.

Dancing and drinking like idiot

children!

INT. MOZART'S WORKROOM - DAY - 1780'S

Mozart stands trying to blot out the noise of his father's

shouting from the next room.

LEOPOLD (O.S.)

Dinner at eight! Dinner at ten! Dinner

when anyone feels like it! If anyone

feels like it!

The ensemble of Ah, Tutti contenti! Saremo cosi from Act IV

of Figaro resumes, coming to his aid and rising to greet the

listener with its serene harmonies. Relieved, Mozart languidly

picks up his cue and plays a shot on the billiard table: he

is sucked back into his own world of sound.

INT. SALIERI'S SALON - NIGHT - 1780'S

The music fades. We see Lorl, dressed in a walking cloak,

sitting before a desk, talking to someone confidentially.

LORL:

They're out every night, sir. Till

all hours.

A hand comes into frame offering a plate of sugared biscuits.

On its finger we see the gold signet ring belonging to

Salieri.

LORL:

(taking one)

Oh, thank you, sir.

SALIERI:

Do any pupils come to the house?

LORL:

Not that I've seen.

SALIERI:

Then how does he pay for all this?

Does he work at all?

LORL:

Oh, yes, sir, all day long. He never

leaves the house until evening. He

just sits there, writing and writing.

He doesn't even eat.

SALIERI:

Really? What is it he's writing?

LORL:

Oh, I wouldn't know that, sir.

SALIERI:

Of course not. You're a good girl.

You're very kind to do this. Next

time you're sure they'll be out of

the house, let me know, will you?

Confused, the girl hesitates. He hands her a pile of coins.

LORL:

Oh, thank you, sir!

She accepts them, delighted.

EXT. MOZART'S HOUSE - VIENNA STREET - AFTERNOON - 1780'S

The final movement of Mozart's Piano Concerto in E-flat (K.

482) begins. To its lively music, the door of the house bursts

open and a grand forte-piano augmented with a pedal is carried

out of it by six men, who run off with it down the street.

Following them immediately appear Wolfgang, Constanze and

Leopold, all three dressed for an occasion. They climb into

a waiting carriage which drives off after the forte-piano.

As soon as it goes, Lorl appears in the doorway, peering

slyly around to see that they are out of sight. Then she

shuts the door and hurries off in the opposite direction.

CUT TO:

EXT. AN ORNAMENTAL GARDEN - VIENNA - AFTERNOON - 1780'S

An outdoor concert is being given. Mozart is actually playing

the final movement of his E-flat concerto with an orchestra.

Listening to him is a sizable audience, including the Emperor,

flanked by Strack and Von Swieten.

The crowd is in a happy and appreciative mood: it is a

delightful open-air scene. We hear the gayest and most complex

passage. Leopold and Constanze listen to Mozart, who plays

his own work brilliantly. We stay with this scene for a little

while and then

CUT TO:

EXT. VIENNA STREET - AFTERNOON - 1780'S

A carriage clopping through the streets. Lorl is sitting up

on the box beside the driver. Inside the vehicle, we glimpse

the figure of Salieri.

EXT. AN ORNAMENTAL GARDEN - VIENNA - 1780'S

We hear more of the concerto. Perhaps the slow interlude in

the last movement of K. 482. Mozart is conducting and playing

in a reflective mood. Abruptly we

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