Sunday, September 01, 2013
Back in the old days, when the gentle little puppet cut up the draft card, those were the early days of the Mime Troupe and though the newspapers described the event as an "anti-war" rally, it kind of was, but we preferred the name "Peace Rally." We were rallying all the people to empower them to be peaceful and gentle, to bring out their good side and not succumb to more violent reactions to the police laying things down heavy on them.
Other women attached to but not really performing onstage would go out to call and beckon people to the puppet show at the Peace Rally. We would fan out and run to places like "U-Save" supermarket on the corner of University and Shattuck, and go inside the store with one of the attendent actors or mimes. On this occasion the attendent actor was a also a carnival actor, "Red Balls" the juggler. (he later played the soldier with no arm and just a bloody stick at the end which he pointed with, which evolved into more complicated stage prop when he was again a soldier and the play had evolved, and he would point the stump with some mechanical help inside his costume and at that time he would also give a salute with that mechanical stump).
So "Red Balls" was with us, and Heidi ran up and down the aisles telling everyone a circus was in town come to the square, a peace rally to see the puppet show ("it's a really good puppet show"), and red balls would be juggling his balls in the produce section and people would gather around a bit, so it was easier to get their attention to tell them to go to the show ... and he would sometimes juggle fruit, too to the surprise and occasional concern, if not horror of the nice Japanese family who owned that little section of the supermarket ... And I would sing made-up ditties to the people as I thought of the words and combined them with the events ... and, truthfully now, I can scarcely remember what any of THOSE might have been, but probably a mix of old pop tunes from the 50s and 60s that people might recognize the melody of, and old folk tunes that would have the appropriate lyrics, and combine them spur of the moment and on the spot. But sometimes, that would grow tedious, because my imagination would falter and stutter, and I would shout "I've had it!" And high-jack a couple of friendly looking hippies, just shanghai them into service, and I would say, "That's it, brother! You're being shanghai'ed into service" and I'd turn them around and give them a gentle little nudge, and I'd march them, and make them march in step hup two three four hup two three four all the way to the corner of University and Shattuck (and crossing the street was hard because I'd have to command them to "march in place! march in place!" and take them across the street and point down to where Provo Park was.
¶ 9/01/2013 10:13:00 AM
Other women attached to but not really performing onstage would go out to call and beckon people to the puppet show at the Peace Rally. We would fan out and run to places like "U-Save" supermarket on the corner of University and Shattuck, and go inside the store with one of the attendent actors or mimes. On this occasion the attendent actor was a also a carnival actor, "Red Balls" the juggler. (he later played the soldier with no arm and just a bloody stick at the end which he pointed with, which evolved into more complicated stage prop when he was again a soldier and the play had evolved, and he would point the stump with some mechanical help inside his costume and at that time he would also give a salute with that mechanical stump).
So "Red Balls" was with us, and Heidi ran up and down the aisles telling everyone a circus was in town come to the square, a peace rally to see the puppet show ("it's a really good puppet show"), and red balls would be juggling his balls in the produce section and people would gather around a bit, so it was easier to get their attention to tell them to go to the show ... and he would sometimes juggle fruit, too to the surprise and occasional concern, if not horror of the nice Japanese family who owned that little section of the supermarket ... And I would sing made-up ditties to the people as I thought of the words and combined them with the events ... and, truthfully now, I can scarcely remember what any of THOSE might have been, but probably a mix of old pop tunes from the 50s and 60s that people might recognize the melody of, and old folk tunes that would have the appropriate lyrics, and combine them spur of the moment and on the spot. But sometimes, that would grow tedious, because my imagination would falter and stutter, and I would shout "I've had it!" And high-jack a couple of friendly looking hippies, just shanghai them into service, and I would say, "That's it, brother! You're being shanghai'ed into service" and I'd turn them around and give them a gentle little nudge, and I'd march them, and make them march in step hup two three four hup two three four all the way to the corner of University and Shattuck (and crossing the street was hard because I'd have to command them to "march in place! march in place!" and take them across the street and point down to where Provo Park was.
¶ 9/01/2013 10:13:00 AM
