Happy Birthday Winnie - Opening Night Gala

Shakespeare's "Midsummer Night's Dream"
Act IV

(Enter OBERON and TITANIA with their train)
OBERON:

Through the house give gathering light,
By the dead and drowsy fire:Every elf and fairy sprite
Hop as light as bird from brier; And this ditty, after me,
Sing, and dance it trippingly.
TITANIA:

First, rehearse your song by rote
To each word a warbling note: Hand in hand, with fairy grace,
Will we sing, and bless this place. Song and dance
OBERON:

Now, until the break of day, Through this house each fairy stray.
To the best bride-bed will we, Which by us shall blessed be;
And the issue there create
Ever shall be fortunate.
So shall all the couples three Ever true in loving be;
And the blots of Nature's hand Shall not in their issue stand;
Never mole, hare lip, nor scar, Nor mark prodigious, such as are
Despised in nativity, Shall upon their children be.
With this field-dew consecrate, Every fairy take his gait;
And each several chamber bless,
Through this palace, with sweet peace;
And the owner of it blest Ever shall in safety rest.
Trip away; make no stay; Meet me all by break of day.

(Exeunt OBERON, TITANIA, and train)

"May your day be fine and

your troubles few...Happy Birthday, Winnie."

For Winnie

I am honoured to present this reading for Winnie with felicitations on the occasion of her birthday. What a beautiful theatre! I have always wanted the chance to play Nick Bottom playing Pyramus:

O grim-look'd night! O night with hue so black!
O night, which ever art when day is not!
O night, O night! alack, alack, alack,
I fear my Thisby's promise is forgot!
And thou, O wall, O sweet, O lovely wall,
That stand'st between her father's ground and mine!
Thou wall, O wall, O sweet and lovely wall,
Show me thy chink, to blink through with mine eyne!

(Wall holds up his fingers)

Thanks, courteous wall:
Jove shield thee well for this!
But what see I?
No Thisby do I see.
O wicked wall, through whom I see no bliss!
Cursed be thy stones for thus deceiving me!

Shakespeare's Rush

I arrive at the theatre suitably gowned and prepared for my reading.

Over hill, over dale,
Through Brush, through brier,
Over park, over pale,
Through flood, through fire,
I do wander everywhere,
Through gypsy camp, through Hermitage,
Swifter than Moonbeam's sphere;
I serve our Enchantress dear,
To dew her orbs upon the green.
The donkeys all her pensioners be:
In their varied coats spots you see;
Those be rubies, fairy favours,
In those freckles live their savours:
I must go seek some serpents here and dewdrops there,
And hang a pearl in every donkeys ear.
Farewell, thou lob of spirits; I'd best be gone.

Vi
With my deepest apologies to William Shakespeare, the greatest Bard of all time.

apologia pro poemate meo

To flee, or not to flee: that is the question:
whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer
the insults of angry Duwamish residents
outragèd by the nocturnal visitors
to their sceptored isle and from
that nether world
return once more to safety and the shore
and bid farewell to those brave ferrywomen
who, in their anger, all now have gone on strike?
Devoutly to be wish'd. To flee, to dream;
To dream: perchance to dream of that other world
wherein our heavy, mortal bodies lie.
Or ask wherefore we do desire to stay
in fair Lemuria, there to dwell
in pleasant creativity of thought.
To enter again that brave hermitage
where we have known such peace as cannot yet be found
here in our earthly lives unless we travel
to the flowing waters of the bath house
and, in sweet communion with dolphins bright,
wash all the cares away that wear us down.
Or quail before the Gorgon and prepare
a song or dance in which she might delight
and in return, each shall a gift receive:
a snake who will a true companion be.
No traveller returns, without that s/he
a visit to a nearby fountain makes
and in its healing waters seeks forgiveness.
But soft, who goes there? we hear a footfall
Of one who does approach for earnest speech,
us to the nearby gypsy camp to invite
where we, the lucky ones, will fortune find
inside the soft darkness of mad Rosa’s tent
for she will tell us what we need to know
and set us forth upon our path once more
when we will bless that fairest of enchanters
And sing Heather’s name aloud.

(with apologies to Shakespeare)

For Winnie's Birthday and Marvellous Theatre

Winnie Sweetest,
For your birthday, may there be many more, I open a skin of my finest Elven Ale.
For your theatre, may the curtain calls be many, I lift the glass of brilliance.
For you dear, nothing but the best will do.

Opening Night - For Winnie

It’s opening night
rehearsals are done
the doors are open

The guests are arriving
dressed in their finery
clutching program
they eagerly await
the seating call.

The foyer’s abuzz
with anticipation
the doors swung wide
ushers with torches
escort to seats.

When all are seated
lights go dim
the theatre is quiet
the curtain is raised.

It’s opening night
At the Rose and Swan.

© Megan Warren 31/8/2005

The rose and the swan

Thank you for the invitation to join in the opening night festivities. I shall be honoured to participate and take this opportunity to wish you a very happy birthday

Gala Opening Night - Hosts Arriving

Sibyl Enchanteur and Edwina Peterson Cross arriving at the Lemurian Theatre Opening Night.

The Rose and The Swan