Musos Muses - Intermission
Had I been a relative outsider, I could have completed my business and bowed out politely; but I was the son of one of their own and already knew most of them. The fact that I was neither an accomplished musician or drinker never seemed to cross their minds. I was simply a member of the family with a glass that needed topping up; and, apparently, my money was no good there. When they finally departed, I felt suddenly alone, abandoned. One minute there was merriment and the heady confusion of ad lib chit-chat, the next a return to the peaceful ambience of the moment I had first arrived. Had I been dreaming? Sliding a hand into my jacket pocket, I withdrew some pieces of paper - they appeared a little blurry, but they were the tickets I had come to collect. So, the boys must have been there and, I guessed, the intermission was over. They were back in the pit, and I had to complete one last movement and get home.
The station was just over the road from the theatre, so I made it without getting lost. In those days they had no monitor screens outside the platforms, just large boards displaying the destinations of the various trains in big white letters - easy enough to read, except for one who had just met friends who happened to be musos on a break. I was sure I'd gone to the correct platform, right up to the time I was there in the carriage, rising from my seat as the train came into my station. Only it didn't slow down, it didn't even stop! Flustered and frowning, all I could do was sit and wait until it eventually did. Disembarking in a stumbling rush, I found myself staring in dismay at a sign - Mitcham Junction - and my heart sank. This was one of those places no-one visited. Maybe nobody lived there at all, so only the odd train ever stopped!
I don't know how long I waited for one to take me back, but I eventually got home - some time before midnight, I think. I tried excusing my tardiness to my wife, but smelling like a distillery didn't help my case. The fact that I hadn't forgotten to pick up the tickets was irrelevant - they weren't for her anyway. As for explaining about the generosity and garrulous nature of musos, what was the point? She just didn't know them like I did.
Musos Muses - stage shows and the summer season
Musos Muses - The Final Curtain
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