Amidst this mostly pretty embarrassing assembly of what is now referred to on iTunes as "soft rock" is a collection of comedy records. The most prized of this subset is a double album recording of Groucho Marx at Carnegie Hall.
On the recording he tells the story of how when they were doing Animal Crackers on Broadway, they needed 2 minutes for a scenery change. To cover the delay, he wrote what he called a "ridiculous poem" that goes mostly like this:
Did you ever sit and ponder, as you walk along the strand,
that life's a bitter battle at the best.
And if you only knew it you would lend a helping hand,
then every man could meet the final test.
The world is but a stage, my friend, and life's but a game,
and how you play is all that matters in the end.
But whether a man is right or wrong, a woman gets the blame,
and your mother is your dog's best friend.
Then up came mighty Casey, and strode up to the bat,
and Sheridan was fifty miles away.
For it takes a heap of loving to make a home like that,
on the road to where the flying fishes play.
I can say with confidence that it is the only poem that I can recite from memory and it is one I often associate with live theatre.
Don't get me wrong, I have tremendous respect for the theatre--you can tell by my atrocious spelling. I go to the movies all the time, but there is something that happens when humans gather in the dark to listen to stories told by other flesh and blood humans that no amount of computers can match.
For performers, they talk about the interaction, the conversation that goes on between them and the audience. You can tell when the audience is paying attention in just the same way that they can tell when the performers are phoning it in. Actors get a high when they share that connection with the audience and, as audience members, we have all at one time or another felt the goosebumps that come from a terrific performance.
Once that's been experienced, on either side of the footlights, it's addictive and both audience and performer search for their next "contact high."
One lucky bidder at our event will have the opportunity to walk away from the auction and into the theatre of the Licking County Players with 4 gift certificates to their ongoing season. And they will be able to dress like insiders with a LCP tee, a scarf and a decorative pin featuring the masks of Comedy & Tragedy.
I think it might have been Shakespeare who observed that theatre is a lot like yogurt in that it's living and full of culture.
The Licking County Players are located at 131 W. Main St. in downtown Newark. Check out their website here.
Don't get me wrong, I have tremendous respect for the theatre--you can tell by my atrocious spelling. I go to the movies all the time, but there is something that happens when humans gather in the dark to listen to stories told by other flesh and blood humans that no amount of computers can match.
For performers, they talk about the interaction, the conversation that goes on between them and the audience. You can tell when the audience is paying attention in just the same way that they can tell when the performers are phoning it in. Actors get a high when they share that connection with the audience and, as audience members, we have all at one time or another felt the goosebumps that come from a terrific performance.
Once that's been experienced, on either side of the footlights, it's addictive and both audience and performer search for their next "contact high."
One lucky bidder at our event will have the opportunity to walk away from the auction and into the theatre of the Licking County Players with 4 gift certificates to their ongoing season. And they will be able to dress like insiders with a LCP tee, a scarf and a decorative pin featuring the masks of Comedy & Tragedy.
I think it might have been Shakespeare who observed that theatre is a lot like yogurt in that it's living and full of culture.
The Licking County Players are located at 131 W. Main St. in downtown Newark. Check out their website here.
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