Circle Of Two – Bambolina & Dodo

5:30pm, 5th July 2014 – Watch This Space, St Johns Church

The drizzle stops. There’s this fella in a stripey jumper who’s got a young lad in tow. The lad’s dressed as if he spends his time up chimneys rather than at school. The man in the stripey top and painted face can’t even talk and seems to want to fob the chimney boy off on strangers. No chance. Chimney boy can’t even count backwards from ten properly. He needs us to do it for him! 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 1. How we laugh. The boy, clearly bananas, laughs too! Who wants a laughing bananas chimney boy who cannot count? No matter how cute! Browsing away from the Argentina vs Brussels score on my smart phone I am searching for the NSPCC phone number when matters turn peculiar.

The fella in the stripey top, painted face and outsize footwear has found a giant doll in a wheel barrow. Who’d have thought. In Waterloo. Lucky the possibly homeless boozers, lurking on the dark side of the garden, didn’t find her. I would be listening to a rozzer’s answering machine rather than Esther Rantzen’s for a start. Probably for the best anyway. Better up a chimney than a care home that’s for sure. Anyway the silent stripey man with painted face saves the giant stiff doll in a wheelbarrow from the marauding possibly homeless boozers who sit quietly round the corner. The stand off is invisible to those who cannot look around corners.

The stripey man then starts throwing around the giant doll who is, as giant dolls are, ironing board stiff like a little doll. A crowd is gathering and laughing. The stripey man uses a tickle stick and can of oil to loosen up the ironing board stiff giant doll. Bending an arm one way the other swings round to slap him on the back of his neck. Ouch. Honestly, it is comedic. Local boy Charlie Chaplin would be proud.

As giant ironing board stiff doll comes to life she takes a fancy to a stranger who had earlier refused the offer to have chimney boy. She’s chasing him round the park much to the hilarity of the rest of us. Everyone’s laughing except the disgruntled stripey man. He pulls giant doll back onto a podium with a giant key. It dawns on me that these park jokers, possessive stripey man with painted face and gradually loosening giant doll, are not that different to us people.

Back on the wooden podium with a big key gradually loosening giant doll ushers chimney boy out of his hiding from the NSPCC. Chimney boy has to ask us strangers to help him count to three with each wind of the key. Three! Forwards! Bananas chimney boy! Now the giant ironing board stiff doll is turning round and round on her toes. She’s so silly. Like a giant doll in a giant music box.

Foolishly a group of young real female strangers let out a squeal which spooks giant ironing board stiff doll. Giant ironing board stiff doll lunges for the group of young real female strangers who scatter every which way, screaming in fear and squealing with laughter. Don’t be afraid. They’re not so different to you and me these park nutters. They just look different. Chimney boy is dragged out from hiding to balance on the shoulders of giant ironing board stiff doll who is herself standing on the shoulders of stripey top man with painted face. Bananas chimney boy! He’s cute. Who would want to give him away?

Scrumptious, truly truly scrumptious.

Where is Bananas Chimney Boy?

Tags: acrobatics, clowns, slapstick