Friday, February 1, 2013

Matilda

What do you do when your musical rehearsal for "Seussical" got canceled due to lots of snow? First you use your free time to clear the driveway, then you turn you daily poetry recitation/memorization into a play.

Was macht man, wenn die Probe für das anstehende Musical "Seussical" wegen starken Schneefalls abgesagt wird? Erst benutzt man die freie Zeit dazu, die Einfahrt freizuschaufeln. Dann benutzt man die tägliche Zeit des Gedichteinstudierens und -aufsagens, um eine kleine Theatervorstellung zu geben. 

View while doing dishes/Blick nach draußen beim Abwasch

Shoveling/Schnee schaufeln

Jonathan's poem for memorization right now is "Matilda, Who Told Lies and Was Burned to Death."

Jonathan lernt im Moment "Matilda, Who Told Lies and Was Burned to Death" (Matilda, die so schrecklich log) von Hillaire Belloc auswendig.  


   

    ATILDA told such Dreadful Lies,
    It made one Gasp and Stretch one's Eyes;
    Her Aunt, who, from her Earliest Youth,
    Had kept a Strict Regard for Truth,
    Attempted to Believe Matilda:
    The effort very nearly killed her,
    And would have done so, had not She
    Discovered this Infirmity. 

For once, towards the Close of Day,  
Matilda, growing tired of play,
And finding she was left alone,
Went tiptoe to the Telephone
And summoned the Immediate Aid
Of London's Noble Fire-Brigade.

    Within an hour the Gallant Band
    Were pouring in on every hand,
    From Putney, Hackney Downs, and Bow.
    With Courage high and Hearts a-glow,
    They galloped, roaring through the Town,
    'Matilda's House is Burning Down!'

    Inspired by British Cheers and Loud
    Proceeding from the Frenzied Crowd,
    They ran their ladders through a score
    Of windows on the Ball Room Floor;
    And took Peculiar Pains to Souse
    The Pictures up and down the House,
    Until Matilda's Aunt succeeded
    In showing them they were not needed;
    And even then she had to pay
    To get the Men to go away! 

    It happened that a few Weeks later
    Her Aunt was off to the Theatre
    To see that Interesting Play
    The Second Mrs. Tanqueray.
    She had refused to take her Niece
    To hear this Entertaining Piece:
    A Deprivation Just and Wise
    To Punish her for Telling Lies.
    That Night a Fire did break out-- 

    You should have heard Matilda Shout!
    You should have heard her Scream and Bawl,
    And throw the window up and call
    To People passing in the Street--
    (The rapidly increasing Heat
    Encouraging her to obtain
    Their confidence) -- but all in vain! 

    For every time she shouted 'Fire!'
    They only answered 'Little Liar!' 

    And therefore when her Aunt returned,
    Matilda, and the House, were Burned. 

 

11 comments:

  1. I remember learning this for our weekly poetry recitation in 7th grade. The lesson was on a Monday afternoon and you jolly well made sure you'd learnt it since you had to stand in front of the class and recite it!!

    Dave and Benedict's favourite is "The Train To Glasgow."

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    1. Did everybody have to recite it? We also had to recite poetry in grade 7, maybe it's a European idea :).

      Is the poem by Wilma Horsbrough? I looked it up and that was the only one I found with that title. That would have been the perfect poem for Jonathan when we were in London!

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  2. Woah, ganz schön viel Schnee!
    Hier heute Regen und einzelne Schneeflocken (weiter oben auf den Bergen schneit's natürlich).
    Eva, wollte mal nachfragen ob meine Neujahrsgrüße inzwischen angekommen sind? Deine noch nicht. Aber ich habe auch erst kürzlich erfahren, dass meine Post, abgeschickt Anfang Dezember erst diese Woche in Deutschland und Österreich angekommen ist, da ist wohl ein ganzer Sack Post eine Weile irgendwo liegengeblieben und dann vielleicht von einer Putzfrau gefunden worden, so stelle ich es mir jedenfalls vor, anders ist es nicht zu erklären. Also kann es auch sein, dass meine Post zu dir noch eine Weile braucht (die habe ich auch erst im Jänner abgeschickt).

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  3. that's very funny! well done, jonathan :) we had never heard that poem before.

    look at all the snow outside your window! wow. we haven't had any. we usually get several snowstorms each winter. this is the second winter without snow. so sad. i shall have to move north!

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    1. Thanks, Dorina. When I told Jonathan, Miriam said I should have filmed it, but I wasn't really thinking fast enough.

      I'll send you some snow. I would love to get rid of some. I'm longing for spring by now. It's kind of strange the difference in snowfall frequency between us. We are not even as far north as Albany. I think for us it's the lake effect snow.

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  4. Liebe Sybille,

    Deine lieben Grüße sind schon seit einer Woche hier, wer haben uns sehr gefreut!!! Ich wollte Dir schriftlich zurückschreiben, aber das ist bisher leider noch nicht passiert. Das ist aber dumm mit meinem Päckchen, sogar bei meinen Eltern ist unser Weihnachtspaket schon seit zwei Wochen da. Ich habe Dein Päckchen vor Weihnachten weggeschickt!! Hoffentlich kommt es noch! Die Post in Deutschland scheint inzwischen auch sehr schlecht zu sein. Hier geht es normalerweise noch ganz gut. Ein schönes Wochenende Dir und der ganzen Familie.

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  5. Da bin ich froh dass zumindest meine Post mal angekommen ist. Ich melde mich sofort, wenn deine hier ankommt.
    Schönen Sonntag,
    S.

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