"... And the Rockets Red Glare ..." right on cue.

My "gorilla storytelling" continues every Friday night at Little Man Ice cream in the lower highlands of north west Denver. Each performance continues to offer new challenges.  The usual challenges are; performing outside, in the dark, trying to get and hold the attention of the patrons in line and those already seated.  They are there for the best ice cream in town. The nightly entertainment is incidental. Most are unaware that there is a storyteller performing here on a regular basis. Although the regulars know that Little Man offers something in the way of entertainment every night of the week during the summer. "The American Irish Seanachi"  is Friday night's flavor of the week. It seems these daunting challenges are never enough.  Ah, no, the storytelling-challenge-gods are always throwing down new and more demanding ones, like Zeus pitching lightening bolts through a soft, unsuspecting summer night.  This past Friday, July 3rd. was hardly the exception.

Last Wednesday, on my own dime,   I went up to Denver and sussed out the possibilities of incorporating Little Man's speaker system with my own. Now I've learned the hard lesson of never trusting any venues equipment but my own. But  I wanted to reach more folks in the long lines that form down 30th and behind this crazy venue. Well, I measured plotted it all out and purchased an additional 25 feet of speaker cable for Friday's show. I also pushed back the starting time.  Over this past month it became obvious that there were more adults waiting in line after nine than there were children.

I arrived on Friday, excited be able to be heard far and wide with three speakers only to find that someone had pinched the 10 foot speaker cord! The very one I was intending to couple with my own that would make three speakers possible. Okay. Was a nice idea anyway.  Show must go on and, because of starting later there were kids waiting for me to begin.  Well, I  got set up, pulled the youngsters in with my "Rickity-Tickity-Man," did my shorter kids program and sure enough, the kid population dwindled enough by 8:45 so that I could take a little brake. I walked the line and gathered  material from the growing line of patrons to use in my improv bit.  By now it's dark and I am cooking.  The improv went well, as did the short-short stories. There's that buzz you get when you can feel you are connecting. I was balancing new material with older material, having forgotten all  about the technical problems and I am taking chances telling more mature, personal stories.  I am right at the punch line of one of these stories when ... no, my main speaker didn't blow out, but there was an explosion.

Little Man, as I think I've mentioned before, looks down over Denver.  Just to the left of this fantastic view is Coors Field, home of our Colorado Rockies.  There,  every Fourth of July weekend, beginning on Friday night, they have a fabulous fire works show which this particular Friday night began just as I hit a "quiet" storie's punch line. Knowing there was no way to compete with this distraction, I went to my "plan b", which until that moment I didn't even realize I had.

I turned up the i Pod music I incorporate (one of the Irish jigs I use for The Rickity-Tickity-Man's dance) and let the folks enjoy both, what was in front of them and the star-spangeled explosions behind me. This went on for a good fifteen, twenty minutes. When the last of the rocket's red glare faded from the night sky, I returned to the mic. "I hope you enjoyed our extra added attraction at no extra charge." I said. "I was happy to put it together for you lovely people, though it did take me all week to do so.  Now this next story..."

This little bit of working with what the storytelling-challenge-gods had thrown at me served me well.  No one felt poorly for the upstaging of The American Irish Seanachi by the celebration of America's birthday.  Every one had enjoyed the fire works and were now more than happy to give their attention to the storyteller. Who seems to invite adversity at every turn.  Proving to me once again that if you play it safe, you'll not be able to play it as it lays.

Hope to see you this Friday at Little Man, and/ or on Saturday, July 9th. at the Colorado Irish Festival. I'll be appearing at the Cultural Events center there at 4:30.  Hopefully with the perfect sound system and no fireworks.

'Til next time  ... see you on down the road ... may it rise up to meet you.  Now go out and kiss somebody.
Peace and Grace, Den