John Fasile

Gregory had decided that his group would perform a piece he'd written called Man in the Sea.

Man in the Sea starts with three mimes, all wearing black leotards.

And they're moving in slow motion, like they're underwater, stooping here and there to pick up pearls from the sea floor.

And at the center of the stage, a woman in a blue dress lies flat, arms and legs slightly raised, and she's waving them, undulating like she's part of the ocean current.

Gregory plays the pearl hunter, entranced by this woman underwater.

And as he comes closer, she rises, and they fall into this kind of slow-motion dance.

As the pearl hunter motors his arms, trying to swim towards the surface to breathe...

The mermaid summons her powers.

You stay here.

I love you.

You must be with me.

She extends her arms and thrusts them forward.

She can control the ocean's currents.

And the pearl hunter can't swim against it.

He's struggling, flailing.

Finally, his arms go slack and drift upward, above his head, like he's suspended in the water.

So many pantomimes end with death.

Happy ending or not, they got the gig.

This was exactly what Arkady Rykin and his producers were looking for.

And what's the message in Man of the Sea?