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Still here: While They Were Waiting - Upstairs At The Gatehouse

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As the song goes, time heals everything. Or as another song says, it's time after time. Yet waiting—for a moment, a minute, or even a while—can feel like a chore. In Gary Wilmot’s slightly absurd and silly While They Were Waiting, the focus is on waiting and wordplay. No opportunity is missed to find more than one meaning in what is said. A debate arises about the difference between a smidge and a whisker. There's a playful riff on how you can be here and over there at the same time, depending on your standpoint. If this piece has a point at all, it depends on what you find funny. The concept of waiting-related language is, in itself, amusing, and there is plenty to laugh about in this show. It’s currently playing at Upstairs at the Gatehouse . The premise is simple: Mulbery (Steve Furst) arrives for an appointment and is kept waiting. What the appointment is for, we are not clear about but he is waiting for a yellow door to open. Nobody answers when he rings. He’s joined by th...
Bad news...

Hearing about the death of a friend today has put blogging a little on hold... But coming home on the tube tonight I did listen to a song by William Finn which contains some great lyrics:

I believe,
And I have found,
Hyperbole, is not what makes the world go round,
Just living, just navigating firm and level ground,
Has power to astound,
I have found.

It's been said,
And I have heard,
That quiet, doesn't have to be a dirty word,
Just talking,is often more expressive than a shriek,
Its nice to merely speak,
I have found.

Look around

Contentment it seems,
Simply happens
It appears
Accompanied by no grovels
And no tears

from "I have found" - William Finn

And so life goes on...

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