santy claus

THEATER 1
-winter 1974
My theater debut was in a 1st grade Christmas pageant at Jefferson Elementary in Van Wert, Ohio, in which i had the starring role of Santa Claus. Our musical director, a tall, close-cropped fellow with glasses, picked me for this plum role. As part of a segue, i came onstage and delivered my one line (something like "Ho ho ho, children. And what have we here?"). I then stood back while the six-year olds warbled. What made the experience more fun was that my sister Jaymie, three grades ahead, was a stagehand. What made the whole concept funnier was that they had picked the skinniest kid to play one of the plumper roles in modern mythology (nobody could pull in their stomach to make a human skeleton like me...believe me, i embarrassed all challengers). In retrospect, i wonder why? My chief personality trait at that time was quietness, i recall. Anyway, i stood there in the wings, big pillow under my coat. In retrospect a bit too big, for as i tramped out, my pillow headed south. I had to do the scene one-handed, as my second hand was trying, with marginal success, to contain my "bowlful of jelly". I seem to remember the audience getting a laugh out of it. I said my line on cue, my sister was there to hug me when i went off…what more could anyone want?