Ushering In The New

prise (pryz) verb tr.

1. To force open or part something with a lever.

2. To extract information from someone with difficulty.

noun

A lever.

We stood by the side of the aisle positioned in such a way as to keep an open angle for approaching seat holders. Dressed in our blacks and whites, brandishing orange clip-on tags announcing our volunteer status, we intercepted every unsure ticket like penguins sliding into view. Penguins with little more than twenty minutes knowledge of the auditorium, its facilities, and its rules.

Free admission can certainly pad one's confidence in assumptions. When money's not involved, the accountability dissolves, and everyone's acting on integrity alone.

A scattered crowd witnessed the building, moody tunes of Califone, who performed forty-five minutes precisely, exiting to the excitement of second-round beers and the promise of the main attraction. With this transition, our roles quickly evolved into answering questions about restrooms and dancing and smoking--"But it ain't cigarettes, man!"--and then again into stalling conversations about the band or the theatre or if I saw the show last night or anything at all just to keep from ascending two more flights of stairs to a place where the music makers blur into a sighing distance.

This we did with somewhat reluctance, until the moment when the house lights dimmed and a bunny suit carrying drumsticks walked on stage, sat down and began feigning to drum on a box that changed colors with the beat. The bunny played with his sewed expression and mock intensity amid laughter and raised eyebrows. He left waving. Wilco followed and performed for two hours and me and Adrienne held hands and smiled--two penguins in front of the Northern Lights--surrounded by hippies dancing and air guitaring, fleeing from disgruntled security.

Wilco, too, left waving with thanks. And in a way, when we walked outside toward the Red Line, on our way to a new place to lay our heads, we waved as well. Our eyes finally free from the prise.