And just in case you wonder, no: Sir Simon is most definitely NOT appeased.

I went to see Canterville again last night, and things kept happening. First, Mr. Otis had to croak his way through, thanks to a gigantic throat-ache. Then the points keeping Sir Simon’s cloak in place gave, so the cloak dropped to the floor and mingled with the chains, very nearly sending our poor Ghost a-tripping. And finally, we suffered (very much, believe me!) through two and a half missed entries.. and one of them the Great Felicita, playing Mrs. Umney, saved with such aplomb and humourous grace that Nina decided to convert her little improv into a permanent bit of business – but still. Oh, and what of the impromptu music cue that floated up for half a second at the wrong moment and then disappeared?

I was sitting in the back again, this time with Nina’s husband – an actor himself – and Felicita’s son, and we had a slightly nerve-wracking experience.

Now you must not think… This is so very, very far from the norm. As a rule, the Company works smoothly and brilliantly, with impeccable timing and well-practiced ease… so we all wonder: what is it with this play?

What have we done to displease Sir Simon de Canterville? He didn’t seem to have too many objections back in April… What has changed since? Well, we have a new Virgie Otis, but she is a perfectly nice girl. And I added a couple of new scenes, but I fail to see how they could offend… And it can’t have been the little origami ghost (complete with chains) I made to decorate the cake for the First Night dinner, can it?*

And yet there must be something – or why would Sir Simon harry us like this? Any suggestions on how to make friends with a mischievous ghost, anyone?

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* Oh… is this a story that I see before me? I suddenly want to write a haunted backstage thing. Two things, actually: an eerie story, and a humourous play – think Noises Off with ghosts…