Wednesday, June 1, 2016

Lynnwood Stake's Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat: Part V - Poor, Poor Joseph/One More Angel in Heaven

"Next day, far from home, the brothers planned their repulsive crime."

"Let us grab him now. Do him in while we've got the time."

"This they did and made the most of it. Tore his coat and flung him in a pit."

Oscar found it impossible to wear his sunglasses in this scene. He was so sweaty from the previous dance that they'd fog up too much for him to see out of. He put them back on after they'd dumped Joseph in the pit.

"Then some Ishmaelites, a hairy crew came riding by."
The Ishmaelettes came through the aisles of the audience, so I was instructed to extend my arms out to help people see them. It didn't quite work. Most people kept staring at the stage.

"Poor, poor Joseph whatcha gonna do? Things look bad for you, hey, whatcha gonna do?"

"Could you use a slave, you hairy bunch of Ishmaelites? Young, strong, well-behaved, going cheap and he reads and writes."

"In a trice, the dirty deal was done. Silver coins for Jacob's favorite son."
"Then the Ishmaelites galloped off with a slave in tow off to Egypt where Joseph was not keen to go. It wouldn't be a picnic he could tell."

"And I don't speak Egyptian very well."
"Joseph's brothers tore his precious multicolored coat. Having ripped it up, they next attacked a passing goat. Soon the wretched creature was no more. They dipped his coat in blood and guts and gore!"


"Poor, poor Joseph sold to be a slave. Situation's grave, hey, sold to be a slave."
The scene changes and the brothers strut back into their home in Canaan with Reuben singing "father we've somethin' to tell you, a story of our time, a tragic but inspiring tale of manhood in its prime. You know you had a dozen sons, well now that's not quite true. But do no sorry, do not weep, he would not want you to.
 Other brothers chime in with "when I think of his last great battle, a lump comes to my throat"
"It takes a man who knows no fear to wrestle with a goat!"
Reuben then reveals the coat the brothers had desecrated and says "his blood stained coat is tribute to his final sacrifice. His body may be past its peak, but his soul's in paradise."

Jacob is then escorted away to mourn the loss of his favorite son Joseph.

"But Joseph the things that you stood for, like truth and light never die."
He's gone! 5,6,7,8!
 Then their real feelings about Joseph's absence come out!
 Those of us watching from the sidelines were always blown away by this awesome hoedown.
The only detriment of being a narrator was that I didn't get to dance with Oscar in this scene.
I rehearsed it with him a few times, and it is exhausting! Fun, definitely, but super tiring. Oscar was always covered in sweat after it, especially during rehearsals when they would repeat it over and over.
"Yeehaw!"


The lights go down with a musical interlude, and a few minutes later Joseph and the Ishmaelites can be seen wandering through the audience on their way to Egypt. The Ishmaelites were played by some of the ladies who'd danced in the previous scene, so they had to change into their black robes first for buying Joseph, then quickly into their cowgirl dresses for the hoedown, then quickly back into their robes for this scene. It gave the stagehands time to get set up for "Potiphar."

Joseph wanders through the desert while being mocked by a vulture singing "poor, poor Joseph, whatcha gonna do? Things look bad for you, hey, whatcha gonna do." The camel then echoes the same refrain before I come out and sing "Joseph was taken to Egypt in chains and sold, where he was bought by a captain named Potiphar."

Part I - Auditions/Rehearsals/Backstage

Part II - Cast and Crew

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