I went to see a show – it was just one man on stage, a stool, no microphone, he had a glass of water. He just talked to us really. He was telling us a story (a long one), about a man who decides to commit suicide but who takes so long to write his last letters that it's difficult to get around to actually committing suicide. The man telling the story first told us that he had stomach problems and was concerned about having to run off stage at any minute (he never did). But just in case, for a story about taking your time, it was told at breakneck speed ... mostly. We were about twenty minutes in, suddenly the man stopped telling the story and turned to a woman in the audience,
Man: What, are you doing?
He walks closer to the woman who's sitting in the fourth row.
Everyone laughs.
Man: Are you writing something?
Everyone laughs.
Woman shakes her head.
Everyone laughs.
Man: It's ok, I don't mind at all.
Man walks back to the middle of the stage but then turns and walks back to the edge, closer again to the woman.
Man: I'm just curious.
Woman says nothing and tries to slide down in her chair.
Everyone laughs.
Man: I get distracted really easily you see, I'm not trying to have a go at you. It's perfectly alright that you were writing something, I just wanted to know what it was.
Woman: I was just … drawing a lion.
Some people laugh, but not everyone's sure about what she said. Some people probably think they couldn't have heard her say she was drawing a lion. I was thinking – did she say 'lion?' Or 'line?' Other people probably couldn't hear much of what she said at all.
Man: A lion? You were drawing a lion.
He walks back to the middle of the stage with his head down, he turns,
Man: Well. That's one of the finest critical reviews I've ever had. What did you think of the show? Well, I drew a lion.
