When I am in Hell . . .- Page 2

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 4/8/09 at 11:05pm

Crackle. Crackle. Crackle.

[Schmerg_The_Impaler]

Posted: 4/8/09 at 11:08pm

*Flashbacks to Sartre's "No Exit"*

Which, actually, is one of the better student productions I've seen... Right. I'll shut up now.

[PalJoey]

Posted: 4/8/09 at 11:33pm

My Grampa Abe was in a production of My Fair Lady at his senior citizens' apartment complex. Nearly everyone in the cast had a Yiddish accent, which kind of rendered incomprehensible Henry Higgins's efforts to teach Eliza how speak correctly.

But since Eliza was a spry little 76-year-old who resembled Molly Picon, she was too cute for it to matter.

Higgins was played by an 84-year-old whose only idea of acting was to imitate a Borscht-belt comedian, so after every line,he would turn to the audience, shrug his shoulders like Jackie Mason and say something like "Eh?" or "Nu?" or "Oy-yi-yoy-yi-yoy!"

The highlight of the show was the Rain in Spain number--although with Eliza's accent, you couldn't really tell when she "got it"--you just had to go with the flow, which went something like this:

ELIZA: De ren in Spen stez menly in de plen.

HIGGINS: Agen? (To audience) Eh?

ELIZA (A little louder): De REN in SPEN stez menly in de PLEN!

HIGGINS: I tink she guddit! (To audience) Nu? By Judge, she guddit!

ELIZA (singing): De ren in Spen stez menly in de pleh-hen!

HIGGINS: Now, vunce agen... (To audience) Oy-yi-yoy-yi-yoy! (To Eliza) ...veyr duzzit REN?

And so on. My Grampa Abe played Freddie Eysnford Hill, but like Johnny One Note, he could only sing one note. He was so tone deaf, all the lyrics of the song came out on the same, single atonal note:

Ihaveoftenwalked
Downdisstritbefaw
Butdepavementalvays
Stayedbeneat'myfitbefaw.
AllatVUNCEemI
Severalstorieshigh
KnowingI'mon

Then he would raise his hands out to the audience because isn't that what you do when you sing the title of the song?

I'M ON DE STRIT VERE YOU LIVE!

I wish I had a bootleg. No one believes me.

Updated On: 4/9/09 at 11:33 PM

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 4/8/09 at 11:36pm

Yeah, I was going to accuse you of making that up. But to bring this thread full circle, I think you've just described a vision of Heaven. So long as there was a deli platter and some sweets.

[Jane2]

Posted: 4/8/09 at 11:42pm

PJ, I'm LOLing-thanks!

[PalJoey]

Posted: 4/8/09 at 11:56pm

At the end of the show, they all lined up and sang in unison, with big smiles on their faces that almost gave away the surprise:

Ve're getting merried in de mawnink,
Dink-donk de bells iz gonta chime!
Pull out de STOPPEH!
Let's hev a VOPPEH!

And then came the big payoff:

But get us to de SHUL on time!

They rehearsed for 11 months and everyone was so excited that not a single cast member dropped dead.

[killertofu333]

Posted: 4/8/09 at 11:59pm

PJ, I'm actually tearing up from laughing at both of your posts!!!

[Q]

Posted: 4/9/09 at 12:02am

"They rehearsed for 11 months and everyone was so excited that not a single cast member dropped dead."

Everything was worth it for me for that line alone.

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 4/9/09 at 12:03am

11 months! Maybe that would have helped Guys & Dolls?

[GlindatheGood22]

Posted: 4/9/09 at 12:03am

Productions of musicals in senior citizen homes are more common than you would think. The folks in my great aunt's complex put on a talent show, and three old broads did You Gotta Get A Gimmick, stripper costumes included. It was great. :)

[papalovesmambo]

Posted: 4/9/09 at 8:37am

here he comes to save the day! paljoey is on the way!

[Schmerg_The_Impaler]

Posted: 4/9/09 at 9:05am

PJ, I have tears in my eyes from laughing! That was better than Ben Brantley could have said it.

[VonTussleGirl]

Posted: 4/9/09 at 11:09pm

That was hysterical, PH. Reminds me of summer before last - I saw a "junior theatre" production of The Jungle Book in which all of the performers, save for the teenage girl playing King Louie, lip-synced to the Disney soundtrack. Everyone else in the show had some form of speech impediment - you had at least three or four kids with lisps, and the kid playing Mowgli couldn't pronounce his R's. It was cute and spirited but at many times, painful to watch.

[TheActr97J]

Posted: 4/10/09 at 12:25am

Thank you so much for that, PJ! I'd die to see a video of that production!