Drama (graphic novel)

Drama is a 2012 graphic novel by Raina Telgemier.

It's another semester, and time for a school play. Callie is on the tech crew, loving the selected musical Moonlight Over Missisipi. She asks if she can build a cannon for it, in addition to working on sets. The tech crew is a nice distraction from the fact that her crush Greg is ghosting her, and Greg's brother Matt has become a jerk towards Callie.

Then Callie meets the identical twins Jesse and Justin. Justin wants to audition for the play, while Jesse is too shy and opts to join tech crew with Callie. It seems that Jesse forms a bond with Callie, as new leading lady Bonnie starts an affair with her costar West and berates Jesse since he's tutoring her in math. Can Callie survive the drama, and get that cannon working in time for opening night?


 * Actually Pretty Funny:
 * Bonnie is rude to Matt when asking where his brother is. Callie cuts in to say they just saw Greg, but Bonnie says she was talking to Matt, revealing Greg is not talking to Bonnie. Then Callie snidely asks if Bonnie wants her to pass on a message. Bonnie walks off, and Matt smirks. When Callie apologizes for cutting in, Matt says he doesn't mind missing a conversation with Bonnie.
 * Jesse is too shy to audition. He asks why Callie doesn't do it. She promptly marches on stage and belts horribly. The casting director cuts her off early, but the whole auditorium bursts out laughing. Jesse can't hide his giggles.
 * Alpha Bitch:
 * Greg is the Jerk Jock version of this. He's more popular than his brother Matt, bullies him, and belittles Callie as well as her interests. Callie doesn't even know why she crushes on him.
 * Bonnie is a straight example. She's got a Girl Posse, is rude to anyone who isn't Greg, and is a full Drama Queen.
 * Bittersweet Ending: In the end, She takes it well after Jesse apologizes for . The play, itself, goes on without a hitch, and Loren is so impressed by how dedicated Callie was that he nominates her to take his place as stage manager next year. It's a unanimous vote and Callie says that she has lots of ideas for next year.
 * Could Have Avoided This Plot: Callie has spent most of the book sending signals at Jesse, which he responds to and parries at the same time. When she learns that.
 * Giftedly Bad: Callie loves musicals, but she's a terrible singer. As Jesse finds out at the auditions, when she tries out to make him laugh and coax him out of his stage fright. Flashbacks show her practicing her vocals at home, much to her family's horror.
 * Homage: Moonlight Over Missisipi is said to be a homage to Gone with the Wind. Liz and Callie watch the movie together so Liz can get ideas for costume design.
 * Incompatible Orientation: This is why.
 * Performance Anxiety: This is why Jesse doesn't want to perform in the school play. He says that he's too shy to go onstage and would rather let his twin brother shine..
 * Reality Ensues: Most works of media have it as a protagonist's shining achievement when they step in to take the place of someone during a play. Not-so-much here; Bonnie locks herself in the closet after Act One on the last night of the play . While.
 * Toe-Tapping Melody: The song that Maybelle sings with the leading role in Moon Over Mississippi is supposed to invoke this. It's the moment where she and the Union general have their first kiss, building up the dramatic tension. Callie is always entranced when Jesse sings it, partly because she has a crush on him.