Mme. Giry makes a bet.
No one but Madame Giry dared challenge Carlotta on this one. The whole house was unanimous--Richard and Moncharmin were indeed in love. It was Madame Giry who paid the price for their affection - 50 francs. Carlotta accepted her win graciously, singing loudly throughout the opera about this recent discovery.
DISCLAIMER: I have nothing against homosexuals. I hope it is fairly obvious that this particular comic is all in good fun. While I don't believe that Leroux's managers had feelings for each other, there is definitely some tension between ALW's ;)
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