Elliot Valentine Lee, Mel Hornyak - A Word To The Wise

★ Verse Intro ★
STUDENT 1 (Roswell)
Hey kid, you're new around here
So its okay if you don't know how this school runs

STUDENTS 1+2 (Roswell, Drew)
But the shit that they tell you
In orientation
Is nothing more than lesson number one

STUDENT 3 (Preston)
Hey kid, no need to worry
I can let you in on what it's all about
ALL STUDENTS
There’s a couple more things
On the down-down-low
You should know before you have to figure out

★ Chorus ★
STUDENT 4 (Adrian)
A word to the wise
Don’t you dare make a fuss
Asking for help shows you’re not one of us

STUDENT 1
A word to the wise
Don’t act like you’ve made it
Failure will find you- admissions delayed it!

ALL STUDENTS
Just ‘cause you made it in
Doesn’t mean that you’re done
A word to the wise:
You’ve barely begun

★ Verse 1 ★
STUDENT 2
There’s lots of little places to get lost in
STUDENT 1
There’s libraries that sprawl beneath your feet

STUDENTS 3 & 4 (Preston & Adrian)
Rooftops that nobody frequents
Where secret societies meet

STUDENTS 1 & 5 (Roswell & Lucia)
There’s ivy-wreathed arches and ivory towers
Sun-drenched verandas to study for hours

STUDENTS 2, 6, & 7 (Drew, Bertha, Christian)
But don't share what you find
Hidden in tomes on the shelf

ALL STUDENTS
A word to the wise:
It's every man for himself

★ Verse 2 ★
ALL STUDENTS (plus AMBROSE, BEATRIX and QUINCY)
We're too advanced for second chances
There's a standard to maintain
Every hall and dormitory
Bearing some great philosopher's name
So why should anybody here be impressed?
Who the hell are you to compete with the best?
You better figure it out
And figure it fast
‘cause, word to the wise
Filthy slackers don't last!

★ Chorus ★
AMBROSE
A word to the wise
The sons of lawyers and kings

AMBROSE,ROSWELL, and BEATRIX
Are taking your classes and appraising your rings

ALL STUDENTS (Exc. QUINCY and VINCENT)
A word to the wise
You better know your place
Or dorm room doors will get slammed in your face
So if you’re not upper crust
Or you’re a hair out of touch
A word to the wise:
Don’t stand out too much

★ Verse 3 ★
ALL STUDENTS (Exc. QUINCY AND VINCENT)
Just try to blend in, buy a three-button suit
Don’t let on where it fits wrong
Beatrix/ambrose/the marmorei
Join a club and gain acceptance-
If you’re not too exotic to belong!
There’s been a hundred years of students like us
And two or three of students like you
Your ambitions might burn
But tradition runs deep
A word to the wise:
Look before you leap!

★ Bridge ★
(THE ADMINISTRATION lines up facing the back of the stage, and BEATRIX recieves a press release from them, reading it to the students)

BEATRIX/THE ADMINISTRATION
(spoken)
The Phaethon Prize is a highly competitive award, given to a single senior in each graduating class

BEATRIX
Honoring the memory of Arthur Phaethon, who, during his undergraduate years, took it upon himself to isolate the radioactive elements produced by the decay of pitchblende. While the project claimed his life just shy of his graduation, today the phaethon prize is awarded to undergraduates who display similar tenacity, independence, and intellectual acuity, distinguishing them as the best that ardess university has to offer

BEATRIX/THE ADMINISTRATION
The nominees for the phaethon prize for the current graduating class are:
Quincy Cynthius Martin
Vincent Aurelius Lin
Ambrose Wellington Bassford

THE ADMINISTRATION
Beatrix valeria campbell

(BEATRIX tears her name out of the press release. THE ADMINISTRATION continues to read off names from as they are gradually covered by the music: David Elizabeth Hawthorne, Drew Roderick Harrison, Bertha Ruth Geiser, etc)

★ Verse 4 ★
AMBROSE/QUINCY/VINCENT
There’s a certain subset of exceptional
With a bulletproof reputation
Earn the right prizes, the school recognizes
Your usefulness more with each commendation

AMBROSE/QUINCY/VINCENT/BEATRIX
So if you get the chance in your senior year
Why not give it everything you’ve got?
Why not whitewash your flaws
With a Phaethon shine?
A word to the wise:
(to PORTIA)
Your life’s on the line!

★ Pre-Chorus ★
AMBROSE/QUINCY/VINCENT/BEATRIX
I'll let you in on a secret, kid
Don't let this place eat you like me

AMBROSE
Just try to fit in, learn to bear it and grin
Be the paragon it needs you to be

★ Chorus ★
QUINCY
A word to the wise
Never let yourself rest
They can try to despise you, but not your success!

VINCENT/QUINCY
A word to the wise

VINCENT
It’s no use getting through
When everyone else expects nothing from you

VINCENT/QUINCY/BEATRIX
A word to the wise

BEATRIX
Just be patient and wait
They'll have to give in once you do something great

★ Bridge 2 ★
VINCENT/QUINCY/BEATRIX/PORTIA
Don’t crack up, don’t break it
You’re not great, so fake it
Don’t falter, or show fear
Act like you belong here

ALL STUDENTS
Don’t crack up, don’t break it
You’re not great, so fake it
Don’t falter, or show fear
Act like you belong here

VINCENT/QUINCY/BEATRIX/PORTIA
(overlapping)
Don’t crack up, don’t break it
You’re not great, so fake it
Don’t falter, or show fear
Act like you belong here

★ Outro ★
ALL STUDENTS
If you don’t look the part or can’t keep your thoughts straight
Better prove yourself soon, or head back through that gate!
A word to the wise:

BEATRIX
Keep your eyes on the prize

QUINCY
Keep your eyes on the prize

VINCENT
Keep your eyes on the prize

AMBROSE
Keep your eyes on the prize

ALL STUDENTS
Keep your eyes on the prize

PORTIA
Keep your eyes on the prize