What I'm In For

"Slim Goodbody is my name
And I am here to guide you
On a tour which will explore
Everything inside you"

So begins the Musical Health Show, one of the two 50-minute presentations that will control my life for the next five weeks. You see, I am proudly portraying the famous Slim Goodbody on the road here in the Northeast. Yes, that Slim Goodbody. The one with the bodysuit that has all the organs on the outside that taught you about health. Yes, the one who was on Captain Kangaroo, PBS and Nickelodeon many years ago. Yes, he's still around and, yes, I'm him.

The last two weeks have been a whirlwind of preparation and orientation. Justin, who currently plays the role (but is off on the California leg while I hold down the fort here), was kind enough to show me the ropes while I shadowed his performances for five days. With him, I saw the good and the bad, from perfect children who played along beautifully, to surly fifth graders who did everything but throw tomatoes, to car problems, to school security officers who escorted me from the auditorium (during the show!) and questioned me about my association with the company. Between those experiences, and our daily post-show Starbucks stops, I think I have a pretty good idea of what to expect -- anything and everything.

And then it was time to rehearse. Michael, my director, worked me through the shows (the other one is called Lighten Up!) and shared tips from his years of experience with the role, both on the road and as a director. We worked, reworked, tried, retried, tooled and retooled a hundred bits of action, from my now-rolling robot assistant XRBOT (expect a introduction soon) to the gosh-darn-near-impossible-to-master "sugar spike" props (click here for a peek). And, you know what? We created two 50-minute shows, and a version of Slim, that feel very much like mine. Which, to be quite honest, I find somewhat incredible.

And now I'm on the road. Or, tomorrow at least. Which is at once exciting and terrifying. This is not my first experience with touring (my more devoted readers will recall the Alien Green Gorilla blog from Max & Ruby), but it is my first experience touring alone, in a Honda, with a GPS as my guide. And, while I have done one-man shows, they are nothing like the high-energy, always-on productions that are Slim Goodbody. And, while I'm just starting out, I realize that there are a long line of Slims before me, each of whom has made it, survived it and (in many cases) come back for more. I'm sure this tour will have its challenges, agonizing moments and heartaches (and you can expect tasteful reports right here), but, I'm not too worried. Truly, few things bring me more joy than a room packed with kids, each one smiling along with me. And, if what I've seen so far is any indication, that is certainly what I'm in for.



Kid quote of the day: (this one is from shadowing Justin) "Is that man naked?" "No, Jonathan." "Then why isn't he wearing any clothing?"

Call time: 6:45am, right outside my apartment.

P.S. For those interested in what this whole "Slim Goodbody" thing is all about, check out the company website. I'm doing the "School Assemblies" and, if you follow the links, you can check out short video montages of the two shows.