Do you Do you Do you wanna Dens?
Just back from the opening of a four day run of Dens Wit Me at The Masque again in Muizenberg. That’s two shows in a row there in under a week. Written by Levi Saville & Vicki Bawcombe, directed by Vicki Bawcombe and performed by Bronwyn Reddy, Shimmy Isaacs, Carmen Maarman, Taryn Hendricks and Hein de Vries, the show’s blurb sells it as a ‘new Cape musical’. But really, what it is is gentle, heartwarming, cute and totally accessible entertainment. And certainly what I enjoyed most was the audience response during and after the show.
The story is ‘a three sentence story’, as Big Friendly so cleverly put it. One of a team of office cleaning cherries decides to audition to become a backing dancer for our own Danny K. Mean boss provides the conflict and dof handyman the romance.
But it is the performances, particularly that of Shimmy Isaacs, that make this show so lekker. Also, a cameo by Hein de Vries is also very delicious. The style is very sitcom, the characters are musical and sitcom stereotypes, the moves and songs are not original BUT…the performers work beautifully together and the humour is warm. The ou in front of me was very vocal, and whenever he agreed he would “is ja!” what was being said on stage. And hey, that’s what counts. This is the kind of show that will build a theatre audience. It will make people feel lekker. Even the ‘choronography’.
Theatresports hip hip hooray
Here’s why I love improvisation. And I wasn’t even there! 
I know you can’t even see this properly but it is a pic of a Theatresports performance in the car park outside The Intimate Theatre, lit by car light! Last Monday there was an Eishkom load shed at the exact time of the performance. Undaunted, audience and cast dragged chairs from the venue, set up outside and performed. Just like that. I am so proud of the team. And I am reminded of how portable and special Theatresports is. We performed at a corporate gig on Friday night and then we were "the cherry on the top" at a barmitzvah on Sunday. But honestly, it feels great to be writing a post that’s "we beat the blackout" and positive.
Interweb love
You have got to love the interweb! I have been in a bit of a funk for a few days. I confess, the Eishkom crisis, the rapid rise in crime, the resurgence of “leave speak” even among my family, and the political double speak triple lie nature of SA government biz has left me feeling down and blue. So, I really needed some cheering up, which happened in the funniest and most unexpected way. This is what is making me lag big time.
Big Friendly is furious. He is wanting to search for the guys who are going after the Scientologist guys in the US and A and send them to Steve Hofmeyr! Apparently, Steve himself read my opinion about his affair and took offence and wrote about it on his blog! He decided I was dumb because I couldn’t tell the difference between morality and him fighting for his cultural heritage (a bit Zumaesque in protest, if you ask me). Then, lower down he says I couldn’t understand that he had fallen in love! Blah blah blah excuse for kak (immoral) behaviour blah blah. I am delighted that I deserve a mention. You moeggoe Steve! If you fall in love, the idea is not to HURT those you love. It’s not only about YOU. Own up you big baby. Anyway, Big Friendly has a client who is a huge Steve fan and when Big saw her yesterday she had read my post and is equally pissed with him for his uiters kak behaviour. You can call me names boet, and say what you like, you are the guy that did bad.
kitty news
Just to say, we don’t have a kitty yet. we were both too emotional and tired yesterday. I think we’ll wait a few days and then go off to D.A.R.G to choose one. But a teeny piece of ‘good news’ is that one of the dogs, we have no idea how, left a small, dead, slightly squished and damp mouse for Big Friendly to pick up near our bedroom door when we came home last night.
Kissed By Brel revisited
Last night we went to see the final performance of the latest run of Kissed By Brel at The Masque in Muizenberg. It’s been almost exactly a year since I first saw the show and wrote about it here on megan’s head. Claire Watling and accompanist Godfrey Johnson have only improved what was an already fantastic, award winning piece of cabaret/theatre. Jacques Brel would be very proud of how they perform his amazing songs.
I don’t know what it is about Claire but from the moment she opened her mouth she had me in heart wrenching, back breaking, snot smearing tears. I sobbed my heart out from beginning to end of the show, with a few breathers during the funny songs. And I’ve seen the show before!
The Masque is a weird and old fashioned pros-arch venue, making it a bit formal for audience and performer. It also attracts a very particular kind of somebody, particularly for the 6.15pm show on a Saturday. Many Brel Grannies were in the audience, paying homage to Brel. I am certain they found some of Claire’s emotional stuff a little hard going. What do I care? I loved it. I wept.
all night kitty
These things happen in waves. I am going through animal stuff at the moment. Last night I came home happy after a brilliantly successful corporate gig. We were lucky. Corporates can go horribly wrong, especially if the group has had a lot to drink. But they were a wonderful group and they totally got what we were doing and it was lovely.
Then, Big Friendly and I jumped into bed. Above the wind though, I could hear something. A meow. Over and over again. Finally Big and I put on clothes and went outside. There was a teeny ginger kitten stuck in our neighbour’s front yard. She wasn’t there, and this poor and terrified little thing couldn’t get out. Big Friendly went to get a bowl of milk but when he went inside the yard the kitten escaped and ran underneath a parked car in the road. which is where it stayed, meowing plaintively but totally immobile. So there we were at 1230am, me lying on the pavement and glopping wet dog food under the car, and Big Friendly on hands and knees in the middle of the road going, "come kitty, come kitty." This tiny thing is obviously totally feral and was terrified of us. There was literally nothing we could do. We went back to bed. And lay there, eyes wide open, listening.
This morning we feel like we were hit by trains. And there is no sign of the kitten.
What is equally disconcerting, although a separate animal story, is that the mice have returned. About three of them pulled in yesterday. Teeny, unafraid, scampering adventurers going from one end of the kitchen to the other, they have totally freaked us out. Big Friendly had to plug in the super sonic blaster repellent, but it takes a while for the mice to get the message.
We are both in tears now, talking about Saskia, our cat who was run over last year. Big Friendly and I are going to DARG to look for a kitten to love this morning. We’ve decided. 
In the meantime, here is a picture of the most amazing, hilarious, beautiful, clumsy, fearless, sweet, bandy legged, child friendly, dog abusing, feet attacking, under bed crawling, mouse catching, feather duster toy playing, irreplaceable, special place in our hearts and memories cat.
Don’t be scared. It is just a phase. At some point really soon I will blog about all the other stuff.
synchronicity
How beautiful and strange is the universe? After writing my dog saga this morning I got an email from a family member who lives overseas to let me know that her doggie had died. She also sent a poem that she had written about her dog long ago and when I read it I cried. Here it is, with her permission.
FAMILY DOG
Ragged black flag
Held high
She skitters
Down
Stairs
Full of purpose
And pee.
To think of her
Is to feel the feel of her.
The hard little head
That ducks
And butts
Under my hand.
The warm silk of belly
Humbly exposed.
Her compact body
Is dense with love
I am pack leader,
But she is queen of time.
For she doesn’t know
–As I know–
That we won’t sit here
Adoring
For ever.
It’s a dog’s life!
Other than my ‘what’s in it’ here on megan’s head I haven’t written much about the Taiwanese refugees Bayla and Gally, who are my (and Big Friendly’s) big loves. Bayla, the Collie x has been part of my life for almost eight years and Gally the Labby x for six. I love these dogs. They are total personalities and give us mountains of joy and hours of amusement.
Bayla, the black dog, is neurotic and complicated. She is terrified of fireworks and thunder, the hosepipe, hates plastic bags and is completely traumatised by kites, but she adores motor bikes, garbage trucks and beetles. She guilt trips me, blackmails me and refuses to eat when she is in a sulk, making me feel terrible and like a bad mother. She has weak back legs (from an abscess she had when living on a dump in Taiwan as a puppy) and jumping into the back of Big Friendly’s bakkie is a daily challenge and saga. Yet she is playful and coy and loves all other dogs, especially big scary ones.
Gally is white and gorgeous. She is uncomplicated and kind and full of love. She needs affection after supper and can go into a bit of a trance from head massages. When she walks her hips sway. On the beach she will find a piece of something and take it far away to bury it, digging the hole with her paws but covering it with her nose. She doesn’t enjoy public displays of affection. It was Gally who stamped her approval of Big Friendly on his knee when we first met by putting her paw firmly on it. That was the beginning of a huge love story, between me and Big Friendly and between Big Friendly and Gally. Gally is scared of big dogs, loves Jack Russell types and when she gets scared or intimidated she hits other dogs on the tops of their heads with her strong front paws.
We walk the girls every morning, come rain or shine. Bayla is always impatient to leave because she bounces up in the morning ready to rock ‘n roll. Gally takes her time in the morning, staying in bed and easing into the day.
Neither dog is interested in fetching balls. Bayla will play soccer with a ball for two minutes, but only in the house. She has a soft toy frog that she loves and nibbles him very gently, never breaking the fabric. Gally doesn’t get it at all. Which is why today on the field the two of them were totally hilarious. Bayla found a bit of a sprinkler system and showered, played in and chewed at the water, having the best time ever. Then Gally found a small stick! Bayla somehow got the stick from Gally and ran around with it in her mouth like a cigar! Then Gally got the stick back, ran around with it, lay down on it and rolled on it. Oh the fun! Back home, they are lolling around in the passage. Tired and happy.
Crazy Games
I was at my local having a very long and delicious chat about life, work, kids (hers), dogs (ours), vets (shared) politics (ours and theirs) and history (personal and global)with an interesting and amazing somebody, when we bumped into lekker and super funny guy Kurt Schoonraad and both of us wanted to talk and laugh about Kurt’s new TV job presenting Crazy Games with Rob van Vuuren. Big Friendly and I caught a bit of an episode on TV and we almost sobbed with laughter. 
It’s a most bizarre game competition live show where teams compete by doing the strangest physical challenges. I didn’t see a whole show but I almost died of laughter when the contestants, two at a time, dressed in Dassie suits had to row, run, go on a conveyor belt to catch a big foam worm and then jump into a hole in a pink moving mountain thinggy and then end by waving the worm through another hole. I can’t explain. It is the funniest thing ever. Apparently the show has become a huge success. Try and catch it. It’s on on Saturdays on SABC2. What a lag!
Here’s a pic of Kurt I stole from his website.
toingtoing
I am finding toingtoing fascinating reading. Dip in. It is eclectic, academic, futuristic, funny and completely out there. RRN finds the weirdest stuff and makes such interesting connections. Check it out.
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Randomness
