Straight Monkey Business

A somewhat grizzly looking man sits to the far right of a decorated backdrop. He has with him a guitar, a harmonica, and an accordion. The backdrop has painted tropical plants scattered on it, with bursts of yellow and red fruits hidden subtly throughout. Two people dressed entirely in black are setting up quietly behind the backdrop, as light, airy music begins to filter from the musician.

            Once the music begins, children and families begin to gather round.  The youngsters aged one to three all giggle and fidget in excitement as their parents set them down and allow them to journey towards the enigmatic backdrop. Wide-eyed with eager smiles, the song ends and another, more upbeat one begins as the first monkey makes his debut from the left. Wearing only a blue beret cap, the monkey does a cute little jig to the music until another monkey who enters from the opposite side notices him. Both monkeys then go back and forth in bashful banter, as one covers his own eyes once the other looks in his direction.

            After that song finishes, the real excitement begins. A monkey with acrobatic talents is a real prizewinner, especially for those kiddies sitting amongst us. One balanced a metal bar across a moving platform, while another was able to juggle before our eyes. And one was able to get across a moving platform while on a pogo stick…. Unbelievable.

            It wasn’t until the end of the show when eerie music began to play that silence fell on the children. A skeleton monkey then entered from our left., and continued to move to the center of the backdrop. Suddenly, all of his limbs became detached from his body, and hysterics broke out from the children. All was well as this last act involved the monkey trying to acquire his escaping body parts, while dancing to the rhythm of the music.

            The puppet show then ended, and the two hidden figures in black gave a quick bow, as did the musician to the far right. To the children, these people had absolutely nothing to do with the show and its ability to proceed, and from an anthropological viewpoint, I am able to realize how imaginative and innocent children really are. They do not question or worry themselves. They enjoyed every second of that show and appreciated the monkeys for performing for them. Sitting amongst them, I was able to better value the monkeys for what they did. If I had not, and instead exhibited an impatient and negative attitude concerning their performance, it would have reflected itself in the outlook of the children concerning the shows success, which would have been good for no one.