Understudy Joined: 10/13/08
SPOILER
His fake arms and legs are attached to a door while the actor pokes his head through a hole in the door. So when the arms and legs are up off he appears to simply be hanging on the door. That's how it looked to me at least.
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/31/69
This is NOT an optical illusion- the black knight dies at each show and the part is recast before the next performance.
Wait - so the black knight doesn't pull a jesus on a daily basis?
Don't be ridiculous, he doesn't die.
They just have to find actors who have no arms and legs and replace his artificial limbs every show. It is a wonderful opportunity for talented disabled actors.
(Note: One person on this thread is actually telling the truth, and it's not me.)
It's such a good service. Like what happened in Side Show. Pity that didn't run longer.
I heard that the reason why "A Tale Of Two Cities" didn't run longer was because it was so expensive to find a replacement Carton every night. You can only guillotine so many baritones before the talent pool begins to shrink noticeably.
Understudy Joined: 10/13/08
how does he get behind the door without the audience seeing
Somebody points and shouts "look" while pointing in the other direction.
Gets me every time.
OY.
It's kind of blatant. They lower the curtain and hold a 10 second intermission so he has time to do everything just right.
. . . or they misdirect the audience with the "arms for the poor" bit. I forget which.
Yeah, that's basically it. I'm sorry, Tyler, but you can't expect entirely serious responses on a Spamalot thread!
Broadway Legend Joined: 8/16/04
I could explain it in explicit detail but that would ruin the hilarity.
Understudy Joined: 11/8/08
"This is NOT an optical illusion- the black knight dies at each show and the part is recast before the next performance."
LOL!
Monty Python humor makes it look cheesy and cheap, they are not aiming for Theatrical Special Effects.
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