Elemental: A Spectacle, Genesis for the New Year

    A play with giant puppets and people on stilts acting as forest spirits began The Spectacle at Blue Lake this evening. Every child watching had a lantern at the end of their fishing pole and they whispered to each other in astonishment. "The owl is going to eat the lizard!" one screamed as the twilight dimmed. When the men on stilts made the sound of the wind, the audience dispersed to let them pass and they lead the procession of lanterns to the Mad River bridge.

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    Standing on top of the bridge was the perfect view of the fire-lit story that played out its drama behind a sheer canvas. A third giant puppet overlooked the procession as flame-twirlers performed alongside the Mad River. What was surprising is that they were children! The youngest girl of them all was the most talented. She did a solo act with a flaming hula-hoop, which she worked up and down her entire body even while she stood on her head! When she finished, all the flame-twirlers came out for their finale, at which point a dozen lanterns were lit and tossed toward the night sky, one at a time.

My friend, Bridget, and I stood on Mad River bridge and watched the lanterns drift skyward until they became tiny dots and eventually disappeared.

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