Claude Frollo's thoughts were interrupted by a familiar
voice. "Hello, Your Grace", said the young voice. He cast
his eyes upon this little girl; he smiled at once.
"Renée! How are you, dear child?" Claude and Renée
conversed for several minutes, then he asked, "But where is
Phoebus? Surely, he'd be with you."
Renée endeavored to
keep a straight face; she non-chalantly replied, "Oh, he's
helping with the entertainment -- He's setting up stage
sets, decorations....Where's Mlle Nisha?"
Claude smiled
again. "Oh she's here. She left momentarily, but she
hasn't returned."
UH...YOUR GRACE? DON'T LOOK ANY FURTHER THAN THE STAGE, FOR YOUR LADY IS ABOUT TO BE PART OF THE ENTERTAINMENT. ENJOY THE SHOW! :-)
"Look at the crowd!", Jacki said as I slipped into my
dress. Renée had helped design those marvelous sequined
gowns, after we'd shown her photos of old '60s girl groups.
"Oh, madame! They are so pretty!", she gasped, looking at
the photographs of Diana Ross, Ronnie Spector, Martha
Reeves, and dozens of other 'pretty ladies' of 1960s
rock-n-roll. She insisted on designing and making
the dresses.
And they were gorgeous gowns. Floor-length,
and covered with black and silver sequins, the gowns were
tastefully designed. Each gown hugged the figure without
appearing skintight; the sweetheart necklines and long
sleeves were expertly and finely detailed.
Jacki
insisted
that we carry the 'girl group' thing even further: We piled
up our hair into beehives and French twists, and applied
the classic, heavy black eyeliner that was so fashionable
in the 60s.
"Girls, y'all look like Ronnie Spector and Diana Ross
smacked into each other", Tony said when he walked into
our tent and
favorably assessed our costumes.
"You mean a 13-year-old
kid did this?", he asked when I told him of
Renée's original designs. "Wow! That's one kid'll go far!",
said Tony. He handed each of us a list.
"Oops, I almost
forgot, Pierre had these made up. It's real general, but
you get the idea. I thought in terms of music and stand-up,
we can ad-lib it."
I looked at the program. Yep,
looks
like everything's in order...
I glanced out and saw poor Claude; he looked so worried,
even though he was pleasantly conversing with Fern. I
hope he doesn't think I took off...Well, I was bored with
that last batch of performers...He probably thinks I'm
back at the Palace of Justice...Don't be angry,
sugarbritches...I know you'll be
pleased. Jacki, Shelli*, and I stood by waiting
patiently for our cue.
"Monsieurs and mesdames! Distinguished guests!" Pierre
nodded to the King and to Claude Frollo. "Just call me 'Tony', Pete", said Tony as he
came onstage. The crowd cheered as Tony, dressed in baggy
hip-hop clothes, an oversized baseball cap, and Nike
sneakers, launched into his "Chris Rock-meets-Flip Wilson"
impression. Soon the crowd was howling at Tony's dead-on
impressions; he even toyed with some members of the
audience. "I think Tony's winnng them over!", I said to Quasi, who
finally showed up in time. "Boy", Quasi began nervously,
"He's gonna be a tough act to follow."
The crowd erupted in thunderous applause as Tony took his
final bows. He rushed to us, out of breath, and excitedly
said, "Whew! I guess I got 'em all warmed for y'all!" Then
he looked at me and said, grinning, "And yo' man is in a
REAL good mood, now! Make him proud of you, baby!"
WONDERFUL! My Claude is in for a wonderful treat! I hope
you like this, honey...we worked SO hard! There goes
Pierre, giving us a nice slow build-up...
"Okay, girls, let's show 'em what we got! Jacki, is the
music machine working OK?"
What fun! The people of Paris are in for a treat! Go on
to Part 4!
*Shelli is Kyle's fiancée – See Back to the Frollo Ch. 17
Copyright©1998 by FrolloFreak
Just as promised, Pierre
Mannette, one of our closest Parisian friends, acted as
'warm-up' man, telling really bad, but funny, jokes. Then
he began his introductions.
"It gives me
great pleasure to introduce our final round of
entertainment. A special treat no less––straight from the
New World. The songs and comedy of their country come to
life right here on our stage. So without further ado, I
introduce to the first act!"
Tony waited for his cue as Pierre announced, "Direct from
the New World, an extremely funny fellow. Prepare to laugh
out loud as we listen to the comedic stylings of M. Antoine
Terrell!"
"Quasi, if you're
worried about YOUR act--Don't! You'll be fine!", I
reassured him, but deep down, I had a sneaky feeling
something just might go wrong. What if Quasi's crowned
King of Fools again? What if the crowd taunts him like they
did that time? Then Claude and I will fall out for
sure! Never mind! We have it covered...besides, after
our act, the crowd will be too pepped-up to pull
anything stupid...that is...if Quasi's crowned
King...
Jacki answered me as she flipped the switch on that magical
boombox that needs no electricity. "Ready to assault these
15th Century ears with some good ol' Motown?"
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