I never thought
I would say it, but at the Cherkassy conference, I was "thanking
my lucky stars" that a month ago, I landed in Heathrow airport
while it was embroiled in an airline strike. Stranded in London on
a Sunday, I had determined to see whatever show happened to be playing.
After checking at the theatres, I bought my ticket to the only show
in town that particular day: The Complete Works of Shakespeare (Abridged);
little did I know how serendipitous this viewing would prove.
At the Cherkassy
conference, we thoroughly embedded ourselves in the book of Ezekiel
- all 48 chapters. Chris, Sergey, Oleg, Artyom, and both Lenas offered
their insight into the eclectic chapters - some fantastical and others
monotonous. We read about visions of four-headed four-winged creatures,
adulterous sisters, cooking atop human excrement, valleys of dry bones,
shepherds, a blueprint for building a temple, and much, much more.
Before the conference, a few of us met to determine the schedule for
each day and divide responsibilities. Chris helpfully suggested to
several others, namely Anton, Dima, and Vanya, that they volunteer
their considerable talents to assist me, the new guy. After each assessing
the dramatic potential of different portions of Ezekiel, the four
of us, with several other additions, gathered for our first group
meeting.
We did not accomplish
a large amount at this first meeting. However, we did determine the
highlights of the book; we settled on seven distinct scenes or themes
that contained the essence of the book as well as the most promise
for humor and then assigned them to various people.
Our second meeting,
however, set the foundations for the fabulous spectacle that would
eventually result. Lasting only two hours, we attacked the problems
presented to us by the book. Where would we find four headed creatures?
How can we portray adulterous sisters? How in the world were we going
to be able to pull off this production? Again, my London holiday came
to the rescue. The London troupe had used the frame of a cooking show
to relay the message of Shakespeare's play Troilus and Cressida. Since
one chapter of Ezekiel mentioned cooking with human excrement and
a large cooking pot with strange ingredients, I decided this frame
could be humorously employed in our production. As we discussed the
other six scenes, it became apparent that the TV format should be
extended to include the entire production. From that point, our newly
formed snow-ball started rolling insatiably.
We were to perform
our creation Saturday night, the final night of the conference. That
afternoon, we met for over three hours, each bringing our individual
TV programs to the group for critique and practice. Several of the
cast members spent much of the time creating our primitive, yet creative
props. As we gathered in the kitchen before the big show, having never
fully practiced the entire play as one, many people, including myself
questioned whether we would succeed. By the way, I neglected to mention,
that, stealing another idea from London, we had decided to follow
up our presentation of Ezekiel in 27 minutes by presenting it again
in only 5.
However, as "Showtime"
arrived and the stage lights rose, everyone put on his or her stage
face and pulled off the initial play without a hitch. The final production
consisted of Anya and Olya "watching" television and deciding
to "switch channels" every so often in order to transition
scenes. The television programs were as follows: 1) Pantomime presentation
of Ezekiel's call complete with a "four-headed" creature
and edible scroll (chocolate candy bar); 2) Babushka (grandmother)
Fairy Tale Time - "The Two Sisters" played by none other
than Dima and Anton; 3) Celebrity Cooking Show with guest Ezekiel
(played by Chris) and the human excrement, pot and ingredients played
by the rest of the cast; 4) the Daily Prophet News where the prophecies
against Egypt, Tyre, Edom, etc had come to life; 5) A Ukrainian nature
program "These Curious Animals" documenting a herd of sheep
surrounding its sick members (Chris); 6) The Discovery Channel's on-site
presentation of the Valley of Dry Bones; and, finally, (7) "Doma"
a Ukrainian building show about constructing a temple (though this
program was shut off quickly due to boredom).
Flushed and out
of breath with excitement, we huddled in the kitchen and prepared
for the grand, five-minute sequel. A whirlwind of props, sprinting,
yelling, confusion, and laughter later, we had successfully done the
impossible. We presented Ezekiel, unabridged, in five minutes. However,
the most rewarding part of the experience was not the laughter, applause,
or praise of the audience. Instead, I found myself embraced in hugs
of relief, accomplishment, and joy with the other cast members, whom
I had barely known a few days before.
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