Page 28 Winter 1996 - 97
by
Rob Peck
In
my ongoing efforts to "make my deeds match my creeds" (as
Sid Simon says), I asked a bunch of fellow fools to donate their
talents for "United We Laugh," a benefit show to raise funds
for Benny Reehl's
I
was pleasantly overwhelmed when a host of New England's finest new
vaudevillians - ranging from wacky magicians to wily club-passers to
wordless physical comedians and wonderful musicians - all graciously
said they'd be pleased to participate.
Notables
among the cast of 18 Richmond,
two charter members of
The
latter's appearance typified
While
getting the "fab five" back John),
the ensuing excitement
It
was clear that the two main
The music built as the balances went from Kilbourn's hand-stand on a beach chair to Roger Reed's pillow spinning on a long stick to Linda Peck's big clear ball on a giant parasol to Jack Golden's rolling globe to crazy Alexander's pogo-stick to Gary Krinsky's heart-thumping fivehigh step ladder chin-balance. The size of the band also grew as, amoeba-like, it absorbed each cast member. By the time Jody Scalise started to sing his self-penned opening lyrics, everybody had joined the band, kicking off the show in a truly united way. ("This one's for you, Benny!")
But,
as usual, I'm getting ahead of myself. Suffice it to say, I knew I had
a great crew. My next task was getting the general public to attend.
Why would anyone in western Massachusetts would want to support a fund
raiser for a juggler in Maine most people had never heard of? I
realized it was unlikely that the masses would rally behind someone so
removed from their own communities.
Thankfully,
our local United Way was launching its fall fund drive at the same
time. The idea of a bunch of us pulling together to help a friend in
need was an endeavor clearly parallel to the work of that
Many
other pieces of the puzzle then began to fall into place. Someone on
the agency's
Perhaps
best of all, they arranged for us to have almost unlimited access to
the space so we were able to arrange a much-needed band rehearsal
Through
the United Way we also got the services of publicist Doris Kaldry, who
made sure everyone in a 25-mile radius received a flashy flier fully
describing the event. In addition to a phenomenal postering campaign
("Phoolish Filanthropists Unite!") Doris coordinated a
killer radio and print media blitz. I was interviewed by a local
newspaper reporter and collaborated with Wright Brother Jady Scalise
on a live radio talk show and a 30second public service announcement
that aired on seven separate stations... Boy, were my neighbors
impressed!
Of
course, as the old saying goes, "No good deed goes
unpunished!" First of all, while my attempt to choreograph a
12-person juggling finale came off surprisingly well in practice, in
performance it was another story. Between props colliding,
participants confusing their entrances and my wife packing away the
silicones I needed to force-bounce to the musical beat, the result was
more like the chaos
My
troubles actually began long before the finale. After writing and
rehearsing an opening monologue that at one point had me down on all
Mercifully,
Gary Krinsky rescued me by coming on stage and suggesting that I
"just talk into his bowtie" where his lavalier mic was
cleverly concealed. Although it's a bit tough to make eye-contact when
you're talking into a guy's larynx, the sheer novelty seemed to make
up for my cramped delivery. Happily, if it's true that
laughter is the shortest distance between two people, the scene
was a good reminder to the crowd that "United We Laugh." |
The Wright Brothers reunited: Sam Kilbourn supports (Jack Golden, Gary Krinsky, Jody Scalise and Lenny Zarcone. |