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NCRF, part only, final, and fini
Bubbling from NCRF, had a GREAT TIME. I will miss details, I will not remember names, but I will tell you lots of cool stuff, by the time I am done, even if it’s out of order. With that said, off to the NCRF closing weekend recap…
DRIVING, DRIVING
Due to scheduling conflicts, we left MD around 7pm. We had heard about some nasty traffic issues on 95, so we took 301 and the back roads to Richmond and made it down to NC around 1 am. Upon arrival at our hotel, I saw a notice that said that there were no rooms available for anyone without a reservation. Well, the faire had made a reservation for us weeks ago, so I knew I was ok. I went in and gave my name and…there was no room…check again please. Nope, no reservation. Can you make sure? What’s your confirmation number? I don’t know, the faire management set it up, look again. Well, we have you for the last two weeks, but not this one.
SO WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO ABOUT THIS?
The night clerk finds a room that was not sold, it’s a single with a queen bed. There are 3 of us. We don’t have a choice, so we take it. We go to the room, and it wasn’t cleaned that day. We head back to the office and ask them what to do. They tell me that there was a room that they were about to cancel the reservation on since it was a cash room and they hadn’t showed. It was still a single, and smoking, but it was a warm room with a bathroom. We took it. They took my credit card information and said they wouldn’t charge it unless they found out that the faire wasn’t going to adjust the info. Grand. I am expecting some “conversation” in a few hours.
THIS IS INTERESTING
So Elvisolb is a gentleman and takes the comforter and the floor (and a pillow since Trinket and I brought our own) and Trinket and I crawl into the bed to sleep. The room smells smoky, it’s after 2 am before we start to fall asleep, the bed is sagging and she and I keep rolling toward each other unintentionally. No one slept well. At 6:30, we are up and packing everything in hopes we can get a double that next night. I talk to the hotel clerk who checked us in the night before and he tells me that he talked with his manager and we won’t be charged for the room. I ask him about switching and give him the keys from the old room. He says he will leave a note and find out later if he can switch us, I am not comfy with it, but I don’t have a choice. Off to site we go.
PROPS AND OTHER MISSING ITEMS
So the word is that the weather is going to misbehave at some point late on Saturday into Sunday, To prepare for this, I am trying to organize something to lift items up off the ground, just in case the rain gets bad. We hit Harris Teeter on the way to site to get roses (for the show) and a few other items. They have NONE of the things I need, not even roses. CRAP. We are doing the new show twice today, which means we need 6 roses, and I really don’t want to spend a lot of money on items we are just going to destroy (no offence EJ). We head to site thinking that the day is just going to be…interesting.
PREPARATIONS
We get to the site early, unload the car and park. We have the set up down to a great system with Elvis setting up the tarp, Elvis and Trinket running cables to my new sound system (did everyone like it? Not too obvious, was it?) and me setting up the main board and checking levels. Trinket and I take the mics to the pub stage and sound check to “I knew a man.” I have switched mics with her since the one she had was quieter and I am the louder of our two voices…no comments please. Back on White Flower, we reset the mics and set levels for this stage. Then, it’s time to get dressed.
PRESHOPPING
So last week, because of the cold, we purchased some socks from one of the vendors near the enchanted oak stage (I think). We were amazed because they were over the knee socks that stayed up all day, which is virtually unheard of with long socks. They are so good, that we go back to get more today. They get mostly stripey ones, and I get mostly solids and a few stripey pairs. They are all the rage, with even the lady from Barely Balanced is wearing them, on her stilt feet. We take our haul back and head out to gate.
THE INVASION BEGINS
A number of Marylanders begin to pour through the gates, as well as those from the local areas. The energy is festive and I chat with many as they enter. We even get a number of photographers taking pics of the 3 of us, they contact juggling, me looking cute…or something. I provide show times and locations, I hug, I pose. There is a lot of media on site. They are filming a documentary and many cameras are around. It’s that time and we head to start our show.
REALLY EXCITING THE FIRST
So Elvis (Scapino) and I begin to hawk for the Really Exciting Show. We have decided not to do the wedding at all this weekend because the response to the new show has been so good. When we start, there is a good-sized audience, but as the tricks start going, the crowd keeps building and building. As Elvis mentioned later, we had a “Moonie-sized crowd”. During the whip section, I have been consciously trying to clip the second rose very close to his hand, for comic effect. Today, well, it half wrapped his hand, but not enough. I think it might have smarted a bit. While I don’t like hurting my actors for real, at all, it was very light and made for great comedy. The next rose is placed at his crotch…and it broke perfectly! At the end of the show, we were swarmed with well-wishers and people who told us how much they loved the show with words and without. We even sold a T-shirt, so someone who had never seen us before. WHOO HOO.
DOWN AND UP
We clear the stage and I hawk the next show…and I announce the wrong group. I swear, I kept trying to hawk the right group and inevitably, each time I tried, I named the wrong one. We pack up the mic systems and reset the next show so we don’t have to worry about it. I pull out the braids (yes, I have to because of how I wear the wireless mic for this show) and I eat a small bite before hitting the streets. I am really amazed at how hungry I am today, it’s not normal for a faire day, but the energy was up, so it made sense. Trinket and I take different paths and flirt our way into an audience…as well as encouraging women to join us, cause they get the jokes. About 10 minutes before our show, we head over to the stage and set our mics.
INTERPRETATION, TAKE 1
So the crowd today is full of mundanes and Marylanders, as well as locals and repeat audience members. We are given the stage by Fletcher Moone and we step up to start. We have been working out some technical glitches we have discovered in performing the music live. There are still some to be fixed, but I think we can make them work. It’s funny listening to the audience and hearing when each one gets a joke. A woman in regular clothing thanks us for removing the kids from the pub before our show. We warn the crowd that the show is written for a pub, where there is alcohol, where children traditionally are not, and the standard warning about if the kids get the jokes, etc. There are a larger group of kids, so we do it again, just to be sure.
THE DYNAMICS OF LIVE PERFORMANCE
It’s fascinating to me to watch the crowd sing or not sing along and who does what; to watch them get the jokes and see which group gets it before the other group; to see how each group reacts to different humor; to see which men/women laugh at what; to hear the room go silent as we sing a song they don’t know or one that is more “moving” than others. The sound system is being a bit tweaky today, so Elvis has to sit by the sound system and play with the board during the show. Afterwards, we wander the crowd with our baskets and receive compliments from all different areas. People tell us they were laughing so hard their were tears streaming down their faces, that they haven’t laughed that hard at a show from faire in years, that we have on par comic timing with Moonie, and more. It’s a bit overwhelmiing, but it makes all the hard work from the past few months seem worth it.
PAUSE, WASH, REPEAT…AND WE’RE BACK
We clear the stage area for the next act, Silent Lion, and go to eat, fix, reset (since elvis broke down the mics early, whoops), and walk about flirting with the men and welcoming the women, making sure we aren’t approaching people with kids. Some regulars sent one person into the faire with the kids so THEY could see the show. Second show at 2:00 was also VERY fun. I even saw Dinty the Moor on the side of the house trying to be discreet…and he actually laughed out loud at one point. High praise, if I do say so myself. The woman laughing hysterically at the first show comes back. More hat bills 10 and larger, which, in and of itself, is high praise. We sell another Tshirt too. In the audience are some of the women I told about the show who had a wonderful time and thanked me for letting them know about the show. At the end of the show, I let the audience know that at 3:30, I will take Scapino, put him in a straight jacket and try to set him on fire. Gets a huge laugh and, once we start that show, I see some of the previous audience there.
RESET FOR ACTION
We start our 3:30 show, and despite the crowds, the audience is a bit thin. No worries though. After Scapino blows his nose (while mic’ed) and we start up, the crowd starts building, and building, and building. The house is packed into the streets and the audience is enthusiastic, cheering and laughing heartily. Again, the audience is generous and happy. I still cut the rose very close, but don’t whack Scapino. We are all having a good time. After the show, we pack up as much as we can, resort, go sell off our ones to vendors who might need them (thanks for the stripper tip, dude). I see the Nickel Shakespeare girls and Trinket sitting in the grass and go to join them. I learn that one of the ladies is leaving that day and won’t be there for closing, so Trinket and I sang Parting Glass to her for her goodbye. A few not so dry eyes later, and I go to do the one thing I haven’t been able to do all season.
HERE SHE COMES
Opening weekend, there was no room in the car for Stupina, so she stayed home, second weekend, she was there, but it was WAY too cold to be able to play her, so today was the day. Around 5:00, I finally made it out and did one circle of the faire. It took over an hour. In this time, I met two cameramen, himself (so she calls him), Zenobia, multiple other vendors, the Shakespeare girls, Lady Vixen Foxchase and Colleen, Trinket and Scapino, and the queen. It was a whirlwind tour. Vixen and Colleen ask me why I don’t have a stick. I tell them that I don’t take them, they are given to me as gifts, as I am heading away, I hear calls to me, they are coming back. Vixen has a pinecone and Colleen a split stick. They slide together well so the cone is floating in the stick, and I have a free hand again. They ask me what I am going to call it. I say pinecone, which I amend to “Coney.”
AL A IMPROVISATION
When the next group asks, I add that, well, since it looks like Coney is floating, I will call it …Coney Island. Upon sharing this information with Scapino and Trinket (while being filmed, mind you), Scapino asks me if it’s a boy pinecone or a girl pinecone. I take a brief second and without blinking say, “ Well, no MAN is an Island, so it must be a girl.” Scapino, Trinket, AND the Cameraman all start laughing. I won.
AN AUDIENCE WITH THE QUEEN
I wander away to my collapsed compatriots and wend my way to court where an unusual game of tic-tac-toe is being played. The queen stops the game and welcomes me in. I grovel up and present her with Coney after explaining the story of it. She accepts it graciously and I take my leave after a few pleasant moments with the court. I go and cuddle with Percy, one of the hounds. At first, he looks at me askance, but slowly, he starts to cuddle up to me as I lie down, When I start to move, he puts his paw out as if to ask to me to stay, which his guardians note. I stay for a few more moments. Actually, I got a lot of puppy love throughout the day, which I appreciated.
TIME TO SEND HER HOME
It was almost 6:30, so I head backstage to start packing up for the night. We try to start talking through a rain plan to make sure tomorrow’s set up is will be easy. Trinket needs to stay on site to fulfill a few promises with friends while Elvis and I head to Jeremy’s to see the new house and eat burgers. MMMmmMMMmmMmmmM. They complained mine was too bloody, but Elvis wanted briquets anyway. I had a great time but felt the energy draining fast. As we are walking out the door, Bob Davinci arrives and I find myself sitting down again. After another 20 minutes of catching up, I head out with Elvis to get Trinket on site.
BURN BABY BURN
We arrive and meet her and many others at the fire. I finally get to chat with Cheezer, Ghostrider, and others. She finishes what she needs to do and we start to head out when we realize there is a second place she needs to stop. By the time we leave to go to the hotel, it’s almost 11:30. We head to the hotel to get our new keys. That same “only if you have a reservation” note is on the door, but I have been assured we have a room. I go in, and the woman can’t find our room. Panic sets in. We finally figure out that she is looking for a new reservation, not a current one that just needs keys. Panic resides and we head into our two bed, nonsmoking room…with no fridge…damn. Ah well, we can sleep in good beds, as these mattresses are much firmer, thanks to all the good people.
WHAT TIME IS IT?
We set a wake up call for 6:45 and I set my phone as a back up. Good thing I did, as I didn’t get a call. We rushed a bit and got out on time. Once at site, we surveyed the damage. After some brainstorming, we took a table from the “picnic” area and moved it backstage so we had a dry space to put props and the like. We cleared the stage and reset chairs. So far, it hadn’t rained, but the expected time for rain was anywhere from noon to 3. Morning meeting is relatively non-existent, but we did check in and stretch and run acro inside. Gate opens and about 6 people come in. While I stand there in the wind path, it seems anticlimactic and I realize that more people are inside as villagers this morning than there are guests. Quite the switch from yesterday.
TAKING A MOMENT
I realize that it would do more good for me to walk through the village and head slowly through. I get near our stage and see my cohorts watching the Pickle Brothers. I hadn’t watched the show yet, even though we had shared a stage for most of the run, so I take this quiet opportunity to expand their audience by one. It’s fun and they are having a good time. Sadly, at the beginning of their final trick, the rain starts. They rush through end I make sure to add to their hat, since the audience is scarce and their work is good. We help them clear their stage as it is really starting to come down. Two people are still at the stage, a kid from the court and a man in regular clothing. The kid says he is waiting for our show. We tell him it’s not for 20 minutes at least, go under cover somewhere. “I have a cloak”…GO AWAY AND STAY UNDER COVER. Reality is, we aren’t sure we can even do the show. We need at least 3 bodies. Let’s just say, he seemed to be taking his noble status too far and it just wasn’t the day for it.
RAIN SHOW
We stay behind stage and cover the sound system completely, cover the props and close off the stage to keep as much dry as possible. Scapino says we can bag the show, it’s up to me. I am from the school that if you can do something, you should. The rain lets up a bit and we decide to do a rain show. Cut most of the script, do a behind the scenes kind of recap. We leave all set and prop pieces backstage to keep them safe and pull them out as we need them. We call Trinket up to help up (“Trinket, do your job”). Then, while we are really wet, it’s time for the straightjacket. Um, wet fabric sticks together. Scapino pulls off his over shirt and does the straight jacket routine in a tshirt. He still doesn’t make it in time, but heck, the lighter wasn’t going to work in the downpour that started, the rain starts to get heavier…and heavier. I am melting mascara into my eyeballs, my contacts are fogging up, I am in eye pain and can barely see. NOW it’s time to do the target whipping. Actually, I do ok, I don’t kill him. We give a few backstage notes, explaining why certain jokes are in the show, but at this point, I am just trying to get through. The crowd is staying with us, we are laughing at the insanity, and the absurdity of it seems to fill the space with joy. We end with the final set of acro moves, which is pretty impressive in that weather. At the end of the show, we still pass the basket and make a little money…I take the basket away too soon and Scapino gathers more money in his pants…he could take up another job with that one.
WRINGING OFF
I am wringing out the newspaper and everything else we have on stage. We clear the stage and Issac, who is on after us, calls his show. I head into the bathrooms to put makeup back on my face for the Interpreters show at 12:30. My eyes are bloody red from the makeup/contacts/rain. I hope I don’t look like too much of a drug addict, but I look like I am bleeding eye internally. Ick. I put stuff away and see that backstage is becoming even more of a moat than before. I head into the yurt and we hear rumors of closing. We wander around waiting for word. The rain is starting to lighten a bit, but there are more threats of rain and tornados. We finally hear official word that the outside vendors are being allowed to break down now and the faire is closing at 12:30…RIGHT BEFORE our next show. Sigh.
BREAKDOWN
We start to slowly and carefully pack stuff up. I find the flint and steel that Fletcher Moone had lent to me and head to return it. Turns out, he is on stage and is the last show of the day and the only one still going on. In between songs, I drop off the flint and ask him if he would like Trinket and I to sing with him to end the faire with Parting Glass. He says ok, but has a few songs to do still. We sit down…the Virgo in me is getting twitchy since Elvis is packing up and there is much to do. I don’t like to leave the work to my cast, it’s all our job. We wait a song or two and look at the time, we figure we aren’t going to get to do it, so we start to head back. It’s 12;35ish, I am at the stage cleaning up, and I hear “COLUBMINA, IT”S TIME! GET OVER HERE” and I go running across the street…in a bodice…to sing. Pant pant…great.
THE PARTING GLASS
Fletcher introduces us and we take a moment to do our intro and sing the Parting Glass. A number of the audience knows the song well and join us. It seems to be the perfect way to close the faire, as we all seem to be leaving earlier than we wanted. I hug people goodbye and go back to trying to pack. Travis is trying to help as well, but my pattern is off, so things aren’t fitting quite right. I have them bring everything out so I can see what we have, and I resort. I have to change, because my costume has to fit in a box that goes in early and I want Scapino and Trinket’s stuff more accessible for them. I get most of the packing done, then head off to get business done. I say goodbye to the Pickles. At the office, I see Kat and Bob Davinci and Issac Fawlkes and say brief goodbyes. I know that management is concerned as the sun has come out and the day looks GORGEOUS. It reminds me of the tale of MDRF’s one day that they closed early. MGMT tells us that while this is a window of good weather, the rain is supposed to be back in the next two hours. To be honest. I commend her for closing and allowing the vendors/performers to pack up and get out of there before the worst hits again. It was a hard call, but I respect it.
FINAL GOODBYES, THE TASTY WAY
I head back to find my cohorts and we partake in indulgences that I have avoided for almost 2 months…CHOCOLATE…the winner was the Giant brand dark chocolate with Espresso, thought the other ones, including Fetch’s Cote d’or were tasty. And the crowd can attest to the fact that again, that first bite make be burst into tears. Yes, chocolate can make me sob under the right circumstances. We have sorted, packed and are now just taking in the moment. Fletcher toasts our motley family and touches us all. He reminds me how my dearest friends are almost all from faire, and those that aren’t from there, have been there and love it. How my family at faire is almost more than my blood one. What joy we share together. We head out as the storm is on it’s way again and the rain is starting. Trinket, Scapino, Fletcher, Terrible Turnip, and I head out to Crazy Fire for Mongolian Barbecue, where I had SEAFOOD! Calamari, scallops, shrimp and veges cooked perfectly, accompanied by a cosmo and a cape cod…hell, I wasn’t driving. Thems’ the rules.
AND SO IT GOES
After lunch/dinner, we say our goodbyes and hit the road around 3-4pm. Trinket, Elvis and I drive through rain, share stories, laugh, and I hug Pig…oh, right, Pig. Well, Kohls is selling little stuffed animals of the Boyton animals, ya know, chicken, rhino, pig and one other. When I got goofy showing my cast mates before opening, Scapino asked if I wanted one…and he bought me Pig. That’s it’s name, Pig. Pig got a remant flannel yellow blanket and traveled with us, being our good luck pig for the season. He now is sitting on my couch. I don’t own other stuffed animals…but I love Pig. Pig and I slept together on the way home. We got in late, but safe and we unloaded the car just as the rain started. We got everything, took a moment to watch the Tudors, updated my cat sitter on the events, and went our several ways.
IN CONCLUSION
I had an incredible time this year. My favorite NCRF year bar none. I had a great and understanding staff, I had two new exciting shows that were very well responded to, I broke some personal records, got to expand my repetoire of skills and found such joy in performing. People were quoting our shows at us, People were singing along to music I wrote. People were laughing and impressed with the skills of all of my troupe. I was damn proud of them. This was a DAMN good year at NCRF. Hope to see you down the road.
DRIVING, DRIVING
Due to scheduling conflicts, we left MD around 7pm. We had heard about some nasty traffic issues on 95, so we took 301 and the back roads to Richmond and made it down to NC around 1 am. Upon arrival at our hotel, I saw a notice that said that there were no rooms available for anyone without a reservation. Well, the faire had made a reservation for us weeks ago, so I knew I was ok. I went in and gave my name and…there was no room…check again please. Nope, no reservation. Can you make sure? What’s your confirmation number? I don’t know, the faire management set it up, look again. Well, we have you for the last two weeks, but not this one.
SO WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO ABOUT THIS?
The night clerk finds a room that was not sold, it’s a single with a queen bed. There are 3 of us. We don’t have a choice, so we take it. We go to the room, and it wasn’t cleaned that day. We head back to the office and ask them what to do. They tell me that there was a room that they were about to cancel the reservation on since it was a cash room and they hadn’t showed. It was still a single, and smoking, but it was a warm room with a bathroom. We took it. They took my credit card information and said they wouldn’t charge it unless they found out that the faire wasn’t going to adjust the info. Grand. I am expecting some “conversation” in a few hours.
THIS IS INTERESTING
So Elvisolb is a gentleman and takes the comforter and the floor (and a pillow since Trinket and I brought our own) and Trinket and I crawl into the bed to sleep. The room smells smoky, it’s after 2 am before we start to fall asleep, the bed is sagging and she and I keep rolling toward each other unintentionally. No one slept well. At 6:30, we are up and packing everything in hopes we can get a double that next night. I talk to the hotel clerk who checked us in the night before and he tells me that he talked with his manager and we won’t be charged for the room. I ask him about switching and give him the keys from the old room. He says he will leave a note and find out later if he can switch us, I am not comfy with it, but I don’t have a choice. Off to site we go.
PROPS AND OTHER MISSING ITEMS
So the word is that the weather is going to misbehave at some point late on Saturday into Sunday, To prepare for this, I am trying to organize something to lift items up off the ground, just in case the rain gets bad. We hit Harris Teeter on the way to site to get roses (for the show) and a few other items. They have NONE of the things I need, not even roses. CRAP. We are doing the new show twice today, which means we need 6 roses, and I really don’t want to spend a lot of money on items we are just going to destroy (no offence EJ). We head to site thinking that the day is just going to be…interesting.
PREPARATIONS
We get to the site early, unload the car and park. We have the set up down to a great system with Elvis setting up the tarp, Elvis and Trinket running cables to my new sound system (did everyone like it? Not too obvious, was it?) and me setting up the main board and checking levels. Trinket and I take the mics to the pub stage and sound check to “I knew a man.” I have switched mics with her since the one she had was quieter and I am the louder of our two voices…no comments please. Back on White Flower, we reset the mics and set levels for this stage. Then, it’s time to get dressed.
PRESHOPPING
So last week, because of the cold, we purchased some socks from one of the vendors near the enchanted oak stage (I think). We were amazed because they were over the knee socks that stayed up all day, which is virtually unheard of with long socks. They are so good, that we go back to get more today. They get mostly stripey ones, and I get mostly solids and a few stripey pairs. They are all the rage, with even the lady from Barely Balanced is wearing them, on her stilt feet. We take our haul back and head out to gate.
THE INVASION BEGINS
A number of Marylanders begin to pour through the gates, as well as those from the local areas. The energy is festive and I chat with many as they enter. We even get a number of photographers taking pics of the 3 of us, they contact juggling, me looking cute…or something. I provide show times and locations, I hug, I pose. There is a lot of media on site. They are filming a documentary and many cameras are around. It’s that time and we head to start our show.
REALLY EXCITING THE FIRST
So Elvis (Scapino) and I begin to hawk for the Really Exciting Show. We have decided not to do the wedding at all this weekend because the response to the new show has been so good. When we start, there is a good-sized audience, but as the tricks start going, the crowd keeps building and building. As Elvis mentioned later, we had a “Moonie-sized crowd”. During the whip section, I have been consciously trying to clip the second rose very close to his hand, for comic effect. Today, well, it half wrapped his hand, but not enough. I think it might have smarted a bit. While I don’t like hurting my actors for real, at all, it was very light and made for great comedy. The next rose is placed at his crotch…and it broke perfectly! At the end of the show, we were swarmed with well-wishers and people who told us how much they loved the show with words and without. We even sold a T-shirt, so someone who had never seen us before. WHOO HOO.
DOWN AND UP
We clear the stage and I hawk the next show…and I announce the wrong group. I swear, I kept trying to hawk the right group and inevitably, each time I tried, I named the wrong one. We pack up the mic systems and reset the next show so we don’t have to worry about it. I pull out the braids (yes, I have to because of how I wear the wireless mic for this show) and I eat a small bite before hitting the streets. I am really amazed at how hungry I am today, it’s not normal for a faire day, but the energy was up, so it made sense. Trinket and I take different paths and flirt our way into an audience…as well as encouraging women to join us, cause they get the jokes. About 10 minutes before our show, we head over to the stage and set our mics.
INTERPRETATION, TAKE 1
So the crowd today is full of mundanes and Marylanders, as well as locals and repeat audience members. We are given the stage by Fletcher Moone and we step up to start. We have been working out some technical glitches we have discovered in performing the music live. There are still some to be fixed, but I think we can make them work. It’s funny listening to the audience and hearing when each one gets a joke. A woman in regular clothing thanks us for removing the kids from the pub before our show. We warn the crowd that the show is written for a pub, where there is alcohol, where children traditionally are not, and the standard warning about if the kids get the jokes, etc. There are a larger group of kids, so we do it again, just to be sure.
THE DYNAMICS OF LIVE PERFORMANCE
It’s fascinating to me to watch the crowd sing or not sing along and who does what; to watch them get the jokes and see which group gets it before the other group; to see how each group reacts to different humor; to see which men/women laugh at what; to hear the room go silent as we sing a song they don’t know or one that is more “moving” than others. The sound system is being a bit tweaky today, so Elvis has to sit by the sound system and play with the board during the show. Afterwards, we wander the crowd with our baskets and receive compliments from all different areas. People tell us they were laughing so hard their were tears streaming down their faces, that they haven’t laughed that hard at a show from faire in years, that we have on par comic timing with Moonie, and more. It’s a bit overwhelmiing, but it makes all the hard work from the past few months seem worth it.
PAUSE, WASH, REPEAT…AND WE’RE BACK
We clear the stage area for the next act, Silent Lion, and go to eat, fix, reset (since elvis broke down the mics early, whoops), and walk about flirting with the men and welcoming the women, making sure we aren’t approaching people with kids. Some regulars sent one person into the faire with the kids so THEY could see the show. Second show at 2:00 was also VERY fun. I even saw Dinty the Moor on the side of the house trying to be discreet…and he actually laughed out loud at one point. High praise, if I do say so myself. The woman laughing hysterically at the first show comes back. More hat bills 10 and larger, which, in and of itself, is high praise. We sell another Tshirt too. In the audience are some of the women I told about the show who had a wonderful time and thanked me for letting them know about the show. At the end of the show, I let the audience know that at 3:30, I will take Scapino, put him in a straight jacket and try to set him on fire. Gets a huge laugh and, once we start that show, I see some of the previous audience there.
RESET FOR ACTION
We start our 3:30 show, and despite the crowds, the audience is a bit thin. No worries though. After Scapino blows his nose (while mic’ed) and we start up, the crowd starts building, and building, and building. The house is packed into the streets and the audience is enthusiastic, cheering and laughing heartily. Again, the audience is generous and happy. I still cut the rose very close, but don’t whack Scapino. We are all having a good time. After the show, we pack up as much as we can, resort, go sell off our ones to vendors who might need them (thanks for the stripper tip, dude). I see the Nickel Shakespeare girls and Trinket sitting in the grass and go to join them. I learn that one of the ladies is leaving that day and won’t be there for closing, so Trinket and I sang Parting Glass to her for her goodbye. A few not so dry eyes later, and I go to do the one thing I haven’t been able to do all season.
HERE SHE COMES
Opening weekend, there was no room in the car for Stupina, so she stayed home, second weekend, she was there, but it was WAY too cold to be able to play her, so today was the day. Around 5:00, I finally made it out and did one circle of the faire. It took over an hour. In this time, I met two cameramen, himself (so she calls him), Zenobia, multiple other vendors, the Shakespeare girls, Lady Vixen Foxchase and Colleen, Trinket and Scapino, and the queen. It was a whirlwind tour. Vixen and Colleen ask me why I don’t have a stick. I tell them that I don’t take them, they are given to me as gifts, as I am heading away, I hear calls to me, they are coming back. Vixen has a pinecone and Colleen a split stick. They slide together well so the cone is floating in the stick, and I have a free hand again. They ask me what I am going to call it. I say pinecone, which I amend to “Coney.”
AL A IMPROVISATION
When the next group asks, I add that, well, since it looks like Coney is floating, I will call it …Coney Island. Upon sharing this information with Scapino and Trinket (while being filmed, mind you), Scapino asks me if it’s a boy pinecone or a girl pinecone. I take a brief second and without blinking say, “ Well, no MAN is an Island, so it must be a girl.” Scapino, Trinket, AND the Cameraman all start laughing. I won.
AN AUDIENCE WITH THE QUEEN
I wander away to my collapsed compatriots and wend my way to court where an unusual game of tic-tac-toe is being played. The queen stops the game and welcomes me in. I grovel up and present her with Coney after explaining the story of it. She accepts it graciously and I take my leave after a few pleasant moments with the court. I go and cuddle with Percy, one of the hounds. At first, he looks at me askance, but slowly, he starts to cuddle up to me as I lie down, When I start to move, he puts his paw out as if to ask to me to stay, which his guardians note. I stay for a few more moments. Actually, I got a lot of puppy love throughout the day, which I appreciated.
TIME TO SEND HER HOME
It was almost 6:30, so I head backstage to start packing up for the night. We try to start talking through a rain plan to make sure tomorrow’s set up is will be easy. Trinket needs to stay on site to fulfill a few promises with friends while Elvis and I head to Jeremy’s to see the new house and eat burgers. MMMmmMMMmmMmmmM. They complained mine was too bloody, but Elvis wanted briquets anyway. I had a great time but felt the energy draining fast. As we are walking out the door, Bob Davinci arrives and I find myself sitting down again. After another 20 minutes of catching up, I head out with Elvis to get Trinket on site.
BURN BABY BURN
We arrive and meet her and many others at the fire. I finally get to chat with Cheezer, Ghostrider, and others. She finishes what she needs to do and we start to head out when we realize there is a second place she needs to stop. By the time we leave to go to the hotel, it’s almost 11:30. We head to the hotel to get our new keys. That same “only if you have a reservation” note is on the door, but I have been assured we have a room. I go in, and the woman can’t find our room. Panic sets in. We finally figure out that she is looking for a new reservation, not a current one that just needs keys. Panic resides and we head into our two bed, nonsmoking room…with no fridge…damn. Ah well, we can sleep in good beds, as these mattresses are much firmer, thanks to all the good people.
WHAT TIME IS IT?
We set a wake up call for 6:45 and I set my phone as a back up. Good thing I did, as I didn’t get a call. We rushed a bit and got out on time. Once at site, we surveyed the damage. After some brainstorming, we took a table from the “picnic” area and moved it backstage so we had a dry space to put props and the like. We cleared the stage and reset chairs. So far, it hadn’t rained, but the expected time for rain was anywhere from noon to 3. Morning meeting is relatively non-existent, but we did check in and stretch and run acro inside. Gate opens and about 6 people come in. While I stand there in the wind path, it seems anticlimactic and I realize that more people are inside as villagers this morning than there are guests. Quite the switch from yesterday.
TAKING A MOMENT
I realize that it would do more good for me to walk through the village and head slowly through. I get near our stage and see my cohorts watching the Pickle Brothers. I hadn’t watched the show yet, even though we had shared a stage for most of the run, so I take this quiet opportunity to expand their audience by one. It’s fun and they are having a good time. Sadly, at the beginning of their final trick, the rain starts. They rush through end I make sure to add to their hat, since the audience is scarce and their work is good. We help them clear their stage as it is really starting to come down. Two people are still at the stage, a kid from the court and a man in regular clothing. The kid says he is waiting for our show. We tell him it’s not for 20 minutes at least, go under cover somewhere. “I have a cloak”…GO AWAY AND STAY UNDER COVER. Reality is, we aren’t sure we can even do the show. We need at least 3 bodies. Let’s just say, he seemed to be taking his noble status too far and it just wasn’t the day for it.
RAIN SHOW
We stay behind stage and cover the sound system completely, cover the props and close off the stage to keep as much dry as possible. Scapino says we can bag the show, it’s up to me. I am from the school that if you can do something, you should. The rain lets up a bit and we decide to do a rain show. Cut most of the script, do a behind the scenes kind of recap. We leave all set and prop pieces backstage to keep them safe and pull them out as we need them. We call Trinket up to help up (“Trinket, do your job”). Then, while we are really wet, it’s time for the straightjacket. Um, wet fabric sticks together. Scapino pulls off his over shirt and does the straight jacket routine in a tshirt. He still doesn’t make it in time, but heck, the lighter wasn’t going to work in the downpour that started, the rain starts to get heavier…and heavier. I am melting mascara into my eyeballs, my contacts are fogging up, I am in eye pain and can barely see. NOW it’s time to do the target whipping. Actually, I do ok, I don’t kill him. We give a few backstage notes, explaining why certain jokes are in the show, but at this point, I am just trying to get through. The crowd is staying with us, we are laughing at the insanity, and the absurdity of it seems to fill the space with joy. We end with the final set of acro moves, which is pretty impressive in that weather. At the end of the show, we still pass the basket and make a little money…I take the basket away too soon and Scapino gathers more money in his pants…he could take up another job with that one.
WRINGING OFF
I am wringing out the newspaper and everything else we have on stage. We clear the stage and Issac, who is on after us, calls his show. I head into the bathrooms to put makeup back on my face for the Interpreters show at 12:30. My eyes are bloody red from the makeup/contacts/rain. I hope I don’t look like too much of a drug addict, but I look like I am bleeding eye internally. Ick. I put stuff away and see that backstage is becoming even more of a moat than before. I head into the yurt and we hear rumors of closing. We wander around waiting for word. The rain is starting to lighten a bit, but there are more threats of rain and tornados. We finally hear official word that the outside vendors are being allowed to break down now and the faire is closing at 12:30…RIGHT BEFORE our next show. Sigh.
BREAKDOWN
We start to slowly and carefully pack stuff up. I find the flint and steel that Fletcher Moone had lent to me and head to return it. Turns out, he is on stage and is the last show of the day and the only one still going on. In between songs, I drop off the flint and ask him if he would like Trinket and I to sing with him to end the faire with Parting Glass. He says ok, but has a few songs to do still. We sit down…the Virgo in me is getting twitchy since Elvis is packing up and there is much to do. I don’t like to leave the work to my cast, it’s all our job. We wait a song or two and look at the time, we figure we aren’t going to get to do it, so we start to head back. It’s 12;35ish, I am at the stage cleaning up, and I hear “COLUBMINA, IT”S TIME! GET OVER HERE” and I go running across the street…in a bodice…to sing. Pant pant…great.
THE PARTING GLASS
Fletcher introduces us and we take a moment to do our intro and sing the Parting Glass. A number of the audience knows the song well and join us. It seems to be the perfect way to close the faire, as we all seem to be leaving earlier than we wanted. I hug people goodbye and go back to trying to pack. Travis is trying to help as well, but my pattern is off, so things aren’t fitting quite right. I have them bring everything out so I can see what we have, and I resort. I have to change, because my costume has to fit in a box that goes in early and I want Scapino and Trinket’s stuff more accessible for them. I get most of the packing done, then head off to get business done. I say goodbye to the Pickles. At the office, I see Kat and Bob Davinci and Issac Fawlkes and say brief goodbyes. I know that management is concerned as the sun has come out and the day looks GORGEOUS. It reminds me of the tale of MDRF’s one day that they closed early. MGMT tells us that while this is a window of good weather, the rain is supposed to be back in the next two hours. To be honest. I commend her for closing and allowing the vendors/performers to pack up and get out of there before the worst hits again. It was a hard call, but I respect it.
FINAL GOODBYES, THE TASTY WAY
I head back to find my cohorts and we partake in indulgences that I have avoided for almost 2 months…CHOCOLATE…the winner was the Giant brand dark chocolate with Espresso, thought the other ones, including Fetch’s Cote d’or were tasty. And the crowd can attest to the fact that again, that first bite make be burst into tears. Yes, chocolate can make me sob under the right circumstances. We have sorted, packed and are now just taking in the moment. Fletcher toasts our motley family and touches us all. He reminds me how my dearest friends are almost all from faire, and those that aren’t from there, have been there and love it. How my family at faire is almost more than my blood one. What joy we share together. We head out as the storm is on it’s way again and the rain is starting. Trinket, Scapino, Fletcher, Terrible Turnip, and I head out to Crazy Fire for Mongolian Barbecue, where I had SEAFOOD! Calamari, scallops, shrimp and veges cooked perfectly, accompanied by a cosmo and a cape cod…hell, I wasn’t driving. Thems’ the rules.
AND SO IT GOES
After lunch/dinner, we say our goodbyes and hit the road around 3-4pm. Trinket, Elvis and I drive through rain, share stories, laugh, and I hug Pig…oh, right, Pig. Well, Kohls is selling little stuffed animals of the Boyton animals, ya know, chicken, rhino, pig and one other. When I got goofy showing my cast mates before opening, Scapino asked if I wanted one…and he bought me Pig. That’s it’s name, Pig. Pig got a remant flannel yellow blanket and traveled with us, being our good luck pig for the season. He now is sitting on my couch. I don’t own other stuffed animals…but I love Pig. Pig and I slept together on the way home. We got in late, but safe and we unloaded the car just as the rain started. We got everything, took a moment to watch the Tudors, updated my cat sitter on the events, and went our several ways.
IN CONCLUSION
I had an incredible time this year. My favorite NCRF year bar none. I had a great and understanding staff, I had two new exciting shows that were very well responded to, I broke some personal records, got to expand my repetoire of skills and found such joy in performing. People were quoting our shows at us, People were singing along to music I wrote. People were laughing and impressed with the skills of all of my troupe. I was damn proud of them. This was a DAMN good year at NCRF. Hope to see you down the road.