The Hitman

The sink looked white and clean at first glance. It was only when you focused in on it that you noticed the dirt and the filth. It was the same with the mirror above it. It had splashing’s of toothpaste, soap and saliva.

He noticed it. He always noticed things like that, he couldn’t afford not to. A single hair, a single fibre, a single mistake and it would all be over. No, he could not allow that.
He leant forward moving his hands into the bowl of the sink, he nudged the tap with the side of his hand and water gushed forth into the bowl. It ran cold over his hot dirty hands; he caressed it with his fingers as it cleaned the blood from his hands. The bloody water pooled in the bottom of the sink. He watched it as it twisted its way down the plughole. It reminded him of a red rose being sucked away from the light by some unseeing hand.  A mirror of his life, he the all-powerful unseen hand.

He smiled as he stared at his reflection through the grime of the mirror. It was a crooked smile and made him look quite frightening. He didn’t see that though, he saw a successful man running his own business and getting very rich in the process.

The sound of a child crying distracted him from his reflection. The smile vanished from his face and he looked down. Beside the sink his hunting knife, the blade still gleaming red with blood lie waiting for him to complete the job. He picked it up, gripping the handle tightly, and then he stepped away from the sink and out of the bathroom. He walked up the hallway, so softly was his pace that not a sound came from his footsteps.
He passed the master bedroom, peering in; the sight of red splattered over everything caught his eye. He loved the colour of blood. It was so pure and real to him. He didn’t even glance at the mutilated bodies that lie on the bed. He had finished with them and now to him they no longer existed. All that was left was the red dripping and slipping slowly down the walls.
He kept walking, going to the door that had pink paper flowers stuck on it. He could still hear the sobs coming from within. Had the child not woken he probably would have left. She was of no importance to him, but now his blood was up and when a killers blood is up it is hard to stop killing when once one has started. He stopped just outside the room, putting his hands into his pockets he pulled out some latex gloves and put them on. Always the professional, he could not allow his passion to let him get sloppy. Reaching for the door knob he took a breath, and then grasping it, he turned the knob and stepped into the room….

Should I continue?

Driving Miss Daisy at the Theatre Royal in Sydney

For Tues 19th March 1 pm performance 2013

Today I had the pleasure of attending a performance of Driving Miss Daisy at the Theatre Royal. Having never seen any rendition of the story before, I was not entirely sure what to expect. I did know the basic storyline; an African American driving around a grumpy old lady called Daisy. I chose to see the play based on the cast, and it is true what they say, it doesn’t matter what the play is; if you have a good cast anything can be a hit.
In this case; the play and the cast were superb.
Put simply, I loved it. Being a history buff I enjoyed how the story moved through the major events happening in the background but didn’t encroach in anyway on the story. I liked the tastefulness of the story, given the era it was set it did not have to be so.  James Earl Jones in the role of Hoke Coleburn was brilliant. His actions coupled with his facial expressions brought the character to life and made the smallest quip hilarious. Angela Lansbury played the leading lady as Miss Daisy. She was perfect and I since found out she is 87 years old, a magnanimous performance. Although I have seen her in many roles and recognise her voice instantly, she played the part so perfectly that I forgot I was watching people perform a show, they both owned their characters and I doubt I will ever see two such fine actors on the stage together again. Boyd Caines played Daisy’s son Boolie. I have not seen much of his work before, but found him to be a great actor that played his character excellently and rather amusingly too.
The set was your basic play setting, and that was all it needed, a good script and a great cast don’t need any modern extras. I did enjoy the small part of the stage rotating, and the chair moving back and forth was adorable. As much as I admire them for smoking on stage, they might need to get a less stinky brand or better ventilation. It smelt like one of those nicotine free cigarettes actors smoke, which smell worse than the real ones. A few of the elderly people coughed a bit when the smell hit them.
The costumes were well suited, only Hoke maintained the same costume throughout, with slight changes. The others changed and the clothes suited the era being portrayed.

Source of picture
The venue itself was one I had never been to before. It was easy to find and the main show room was well designed with good sound quality around the room and decent visibility, however it could use better ventilation in that room. The venue has far too many stairs. Most of the audience were elderly and there was no lift at all. It was fine for me and some of the other young ones there, but it could do with a lift or escalator for the more infirmed.

The show concluded with a standing ovation as well it should, it was certainly deserving of one, and it is so nice to sit in an audience where the applause keeps going after the actors have left the stage. It seems to be a rarity these days.
A must see before it’s gone.