{ character in full }

[onlydancing]

THE CHARACTER SURVEY OF DOOM



Body and Appearance

1. Describe the character's height and build. Is she heavyset, thin, short, rangy?

Lilith is not as tall as one might have expected of a once successful ballerina at the Paris Opera Ballet, but she does have the build of one - strong limbs that are obviously accustomed to dancing, although they are still simultaneously looking elegant and almost fragile in their expression.

2. How old is she?

Born December 11th 1882, Lilith is 28 in 1910 where the musical is presumed to take place.

3. Describe her posture. Does she carry herself well or does she slouch?

Having grown up under the physical influence of ballet, Lilith carries herself very well. Her back is always straight and her posture good, as if she is constantly ready to perform any of the five positions of the arms.

4. How is her health? Is she fit or out of shape? Any illnesses or conditions? Any physical disabilities?

Lilith suffers from late stage pneumonia - an illness that is so quickly killing her that the doctors predict she only has a few more days to live. Other than that, she is also blind - a disability she has been the victim of since her mother accidentally blinded her by hitting her across the eyes with her fan a few years earlier.

5. How does she move? Is she clumsy, graceful, tense, fluid?

Before she became blind, Lilith was very graceful and moved with an almost warm fluidity where all her movements came together into a whole. However, after she lost her eyesight, she began moving with the searching uncertainty that comes of not being able to see. Even so, there is still a certain grace to her movements, a grace that is inherent to her body by now.

6. How attractive is this character physically? How does she perceive herself in the mirror?

Lilith is beautiful, though her outward beauty is far exceeded by her inner beauty. As she can no longer see, all her input on her own appearances stem from the word of others and her memories of how she looked. As such, she knows that men find her attractive enough to sleep with her for money and that she was once able to physically embody the light that shone down on her from Heaven.

7. Describe her complexion. Dark, light, clear, scarred?

Her complexion is light, with some scarring around the eyes.

8. Describe her hair: color, texture, style.

Her hair is light brown and curly. Usually she wears it down.

9. What color are her eyes?

Brown.

10. What is the character's wardrobe like? Casual, dressy, utilitarian? Bright colors, pastels, neutrals? Is it varied, or does she have six of the same suit?

Being poor and living mainly from day to day, Lilith doesn't own a lot of clothing. She has a few dresses, mostly in shades of red, to change between for when she's prowling the streets, but other than that, she has no noteworthy possessions of her own. Later, when she moves into the church, she's given a white nightgown, in order to get her out of her prostitute's clothes.

Speech

1. What does this character's voice sound like? High-pitched, deep, hoarse?

Lilith's voice is fairly high-pitched, but with a soft edge to it.

2. How does she normally speak? Loud, soft, fast, evenly? Does she talk easily, or does she hesitate?

She generally speaks softly and evenly, but she does have a tendency to hesitate, speaking much in the same searching manner that she moves.

3. What language/s does she speak, and with how much fluency?

Lilith only speaks French.

4. Is she a good impromptu speaker, or does she have to think about her words?

She always seems to think about her words before speaking, but not out of an inability to speak impromptu.

5. Is she eloquent or inarticulate? Under what circumstances might this change?

Although fairly eloquent, Lilith doesn't often speak much at a time and can therefore seem, at a first glance, a bit inarticulate. When speaking freely, however, her words are formed with great eloquence and passion.

Mental and Emotional

1. How intelligent is this character? Is she book-smart or street-smart?

Lilith is far from unintelligent, but her gifts are expressed less in a conventional academic intelligence and more in an emotional intelligence (in the shape of a great compassion for others), as well as in a physical intelligence (in the shape of a great talent out in ballet). Her power of abstraction, too, is very strong.

2. Does she think on her feet, or does she need time to deliberate?

Generally, Lilith needs time to deliberate and takes her time before making final decisions, whether it be in words or action. There are, however, exceptions - as when she clung to her mother during their fight and later, when she ran away from hospital.

3. Describe the character's thought process. Is she more logical, or more intuitive? Idealistic or practical?

She is definitely both more intuitive and very idealistic, sensing the moods and thoughts of others while, almost stubbornly, believing in the best in them at the same time.

4. What kind of education has the character had?

Lilith has received the by law required 7 years of tuition, but her primary training has been with the Paris Opera's ballet school.

5. What are her areas of expertise? What, if anything, is she interested in learning more about?

Ballet is her area of expertise, though after being taken in by the Sisters, her interest has been in learning more about God.

6. Is she an introvert or an extrovert?

I think she is by nature an extrovert who meets people openly, but after losing her eyesight and years of prostitution, she has become more of an introvert who keeps her emotions internally aimed.

7. Describe the character's temperament. Is she even-tempered or does she have mood swings? Cheerful or melancholy? Laid-back or driven?

Lilith is even-tempered, her temperament tending towards melancholy and depression. The drive she once had to make her mother love her through their shared passion for dancing has become a disillusioned acceptance of her situation without the love of neither her mother nor (by separation) Jean-Paul or God.

8. How does she respond to new people or situations? Is she suspicious, relaxed, timid, enthusiastic?

She is most often uncertain, since she can't see what's going on around her.

9. Is she more likely to act, or to react?

React.

10. Which is her default: fight or flight?

Flight.

11. Does the character have any diagnosable mental disorders? If yes, how does she deal with them?

Since losing her eyesight, Lilith has suffered from a severe depression. So severe that it has even made her attempt to take her own life.

12. What moments in this character's life have defined her as a person?

The day she lost her eyesight.
The day she ran away from Paris.
The day she was reunited with Jean-Paul and could extend her forgiveness to her mother before dying.

13. What does she fear?

Lilith's biggest fear is never seeing the light again, meaning to never see God's love and mercy. As a consequence, she fears not going to Heaven, but rather ending up in Hell where all her sins indicate she belongs. She is also afraid that she will never see Jean-Paul and her mother again, before dying.

14. What are her hopes or aspirations?

Her greatest hope is to receive God's judgement and still go to Heaven. And that, once in Heaven, all the dirt will be washed off of her, that she will regain her ability to see and most importantly, be able to dance again. She also hopes to be reunited with both Jean-Paul and her mother before standing before God.

Relationships

1. Describe this character's relationship with her parents.

Lilith has no contact to her biological father whom Justine couldn't marry. Growing up as Justine's daughter was a cold, loveless experience with a great amount of emotional neglect and abuse, her mother failing to care much about her and when she did care, it was only in order to direct both jealousy and anger towards Lilith.

2. Does the character have any siblings? What is/was their relationship like?

Lilith has a twin brother, Jean-Paul. Because of the conditions under which they grew up, they've become exceedingly close and share a thick bond that can seem almost spiritual.

3. Are there other, unrelated people whom she considers part of her family? What are her relationships with them?

At some point during her childhood, Justine married Duke Leblanc and changed her maiden name, so that Jean-Paul and Lilith were even more estranged from her, not even sharing a last name... Duke Leblanc was not a harsh man and generally did right by Justine's two children, so that Lilith would have no reason to dislike or hate him. Instead, she was happy on her mother's behalf for having found someone to love her, since obviously the love of her children wasn't enough.

4. Does she have any close friends?

None that we know of. She is content with just her relationship to Jean-Paul.

5. Does she make friends easily, or does she have trouble getting along with people?

She has no trouble getting along with people, but she is a somewhat secluded kind of person, due to her disability and thus doesn't make friends easily either.

6. Which does she consider more important: family or friends?

Family.

7. Is the character single, married, divorced, widowed? Has she been married more than once?

Single.

8. Does she have any rivals or enemies?

None that we know of, but her mother is somewhat of an adversary.

9. What is the character's sexual orientation? Where does she fall on the Kinsey scale?

After having lived as a prostitute for several years, Lilith has become distinctly asexual.

10. How does she feel about sex? How important is it to her?

Thanks to her profession, Lilith thinks of sex as something sinful and dark and dirty that relates purely to money and survival. She finds no pleasure in it and it is only as important to her as putting food on her table.

Beliefs

1. Is this character religious, spiritual, both, or neither? How important are these elements in her life?

Lilith has always been religious, feeling God's presence through her dancing. Later, when she lost her eyesight and became a prostitute, she simultaneously lost her religion, something that caused her to sink down into a deep depression. After the Sisters took her in, she has slowly been rediscovering her relationship to God and takes great pleasure in reading the Bible.

2. Does this character have a personal code of morals or ethics? If so, how did that begin? What would it take to compromise it?

All Lilith's thoughts on morality and ethics centre around the notion of sin versus love, darkness versus hope. At times, sin and darkness overcome her and rob her of her otherwise unwavering belief in the hope for God's love, but generally she is hopeful and believes strongly in God's unending mercy and love for his creation. As of yet, only her experience with her mother has come close to compromising this belief and even then, a part of her remained hopeful and pure.

3. How does she regard beliefs that differ from hers? Is she tolerant, intolerant, curious, indifferent?

Lilith is very tolerant and will always listen to other people's beliefs, but she will also attempt to show them the world from her own point of view, more so than actually try to sway them into thinking like she does herself.

4. What prejudices does she hold? Are they irrational or does she have a good reason for them?

A person like Lilith doesn't hold many prejudices anymore. She has been crawling in the dirt herself and although she still considers the livelihood of a prostitute sinful, she doesn't judge, since it would require that she judges herself just as harshly.

Daily Life

1. What is the character's financial situation? Is she rich, poor, comfortable, in debt?

Poor. She lives from day to day. In Pecq she stayed at various brothels. Once she's taken in by the Sisters, she stays in the church and lives off their charity.

2. What is her social status? Has this changed over time, and if so, how has the change affected her?

She used to rank highly in the Parisian community and was admired for her talent out in ballet, but after she became blind and then, a prostitute, she sunk into the dirt of the gutter in Paris' suburbs. It has affected her feeling of self-worth very much and she considers herself a fallen and sinful woman at this point.

3. Where does she live? House, apartment, trailer? Is her home her castle or just a place to crash? What condition is it in? Does she share it with others?

At the church with the Sisters who take care of her.

4. Besides the basic necessities, what does she spend her money on?

She has no money to spend, hardly even on the basic necessities.

5. What does she do for a living? Is she good at it? Does she enjoy it, or would she rather be doing something else?

Before coming to the church, she was a prostitute and before that, a ballet dancer. She was a fantastic ballet dancer, her dancing likened to that of angels. As a prostitute, she was popular amongst a certain group of men who liked the fact that she couldn't see and thus, she never really lacked a clientele, but she hated working the streets and sleeping with these men made her feel dirty.

6. What are her interests or hobbies? How does she spend her free time?

Her main interests are ballet and the Bible. The first she studied intently before she lost her eyesight, the second she has begun studying more in depth after returning to Paris, being taken in by the Sisters and afterwards, being told that she's dying from pneumonia.

7. What are her eating habits? Does she skip meals, eat out, drink alcohol, avoid certain foods?

When she worked as a prostitute, Lilith ate what she could afford. Often, she had to skip meals to save her money. After moving into the church, she is given healthy meals at regular intervals and she eats everything she is offered with much gratitude.

Associations
Which of the following do you associate with the character, or which is her favorite:

1. Color? White.
2. Smell? Rose.
3. Time of day? Evening.
4. Season? Winter.
5. Book? The Bible.
6. Music? Arvo Pärt's Spiegel Im Spiegel.
7. Place? Paris.
8. Substance? Pearl.
9. Plant? Lily.
10. Animal? Owl.


END