Dead Darth

The other thing that happened in Reading was rain. It rained a lot – although not when we were actually performing, thank goodness. But everything did get a little damp. And Darth (our faithful sound system, so called because his speakers look like Darth Vader’s helmet (I am slightly perturbed to note that my spell checker actually accepts both Darth and Vader…)) decided to give up the ghost. We had hoped that the clickings and poppings that were emanating from him were merely signs of a desire to become more like R2D2, and that once he had dried out he would go back to his normal ways, but the next day, when we plugged him in in the Space in Stroud, there was no improvement. Yes, your right – we didn’t get there by boat, it was a van job. Grrrr….

Anyway – it wasn’t too much of a problem in Stroud, because they had there own sound system. And we kept our fingers crossed that once he had REALLY had a chance to dry out, everything would be OK.

The other problem that the rain brought was that the Kennet was quite full. And full rivers really want to be empty. The only way they can achieve this is to try and get rid of their water as quickly as possible.

The next day, Anna, Adrian and Ruth disappeared to enjoy their days off. Tyseley had to move up to Woolhampton, and I had again enlisted Jo’s help. We knew that the journey was going to be a long one, and that the locks were going to be tough, but we had steeled ourselves for a day of serious boating. Just as we were about to set off, we were hailed from the towpath. All of a sudden our crew was boosted to 4. The friends of Mikron machine had worked its magic, and help was at hand. A journey that I had thought would take us somewhere approaching 9 hours took just over seven. Not bad going!

The Rowbarge has changed a little bit since last year. Last year it was in the hands of temporary landlords, but this year it has been taken over completely, and totally refurbished. It is VERY smart – and full of square leather armchairs. The conservatory has also been replaced by an extension to the restaurant. This means, of course, that there is no insidew option for us to perform in if it rained. As it very seriously threatened to do. In fact, it did more than threaten; it rained all day.

But there is nothing to do other than set up and hope for the best. Rob – who has performed with Mikron for the last 3 years, was visiting, whilst taking a break from his current job with Illyria, another touring company who do outdoor shows, although by van rather than by boat, and had an amazing Gazebo style shelter with him. Having teased him about it, I reluctantly agreed that perhaps it was worth putting up, as ours is very ropey.

The thing is amazing. It goes up in less than a minute, and comes down in about the same time. I am completely converted, and am now in the throes of trying to get the office to invest…

Unfortunately, during the day off, I had tried to get Darth working again, and had failed miserably, but luckily, Adrian had been able to bring a tiny guitar amp that would have to do the job for one night, at least, before we could find a suitable replacement.

By some strange miracle, the evening turned out to be fine, if cold, and we had a great show. The next day, the rain started again. And didn’t really stop. Adrian and I drove into Reading to replace Darth. Well, to be a bit more accurate, Adrian drove, and I sat in the passenger seat. But the net result was that, after spending an age talking to people who didn’t really seem to know much more about the subject than we did, we got a keyboard amp that should be fit for the job, But I got the impression that if we said we were going to use it as a submersible, they would still have tried to sell it to us. Time will tell.

Miracle of miracles, the rain cleared again – and the show was fine. The only trouble is that even though the shows are going aheas, the audiences are not appearing in such great numbers as we would hop. I know it is not surprising, given the weather, but it is a little disappointing.