"At 5:45 in the grove of trees around the "Fountainside Gazebo" at the top of the hill, Be SURE to catch the "Ballet Foliáge". Here you will see a Large Tree (at least fifteen feet high!) come to life, inhabited by the spirt of the "Greenman" (shown right, below). His mighty Limbs blow softly in the breeze as the fluids of summer rise to free his roots from their earthen bonds. He is soon joined by his seasonal love, the quick and lithe "DaVine" (shown above, left). This female spirit of fruitful greenry, stretches from tree to tree, reaching for the support she needs to enable her plentiful grapes to rippen in the August sun. Finally the delicate Orchid joins the couple, to display her own fleeting beauty in flowing silks of green crowned in brilliant fuscia."
"This celebration of Mother Nature's bounty is being created by three very creative and dedicated Humans. They are: Cliff Spenger (as "The Green Man" in the background of the photo below, left), Priscilla Blight (as "DaVine", also called "DeVine" and "Divine" by other sources, standing in front of The Green Man in the same photo) and Heather Bram (as "Orchid" shown to the right of DaVine and The Green Man). To this intricate dance they bring the combined skills of a tightrope walker, stiltwalker, belly dancer, and Master costume designer and constructor."
"Did I mention the musical acompaniment is two guys playing those Austrailan spooky sounding tubes, The Diggerido... Yes this is one of my personal Favorites and NO you will not find them listed in the program... they are currently doing this only for Love and applause!" -- Stephen Geis

From Ryleh's point of view, the "Ballet" was truly one of the great "sleeper" performances at Bristol. Save for a brief line in the "Schedule of Events" on the back of the Faire map and the inclusion of Cliff, Priscilla and Heather's names under the "Errant Actors (et al)" listing in the program guide, there was absolutely no other publicity for this act. Since there was also no dialogue during the "Ballet"--much less an official description of their performance--what Ryleh got out of the "play" was essentially what he brought to it.
The choreography itself can be summarized quite simply: the Green Man approached the Fountainside Gazebo from the south, DeVine from the north and Orchid from the west. They met on the east side of the fountain with Orchid in front, DeVine behind her and the Green Man behind them all (photo, right). At that point, DeVine and the Green Man both extended an "arm support" each to touch a large, nearby tree and held that pose for a few minutes.
The trio then broke up: Orchid circled around the fountain first before approaching it, followed by DeVine who carefully picked her way through the enclosing flowerbed up to the flowing water and the Green Man taking a position between them but outside the bed of flowers. Then Orchid knelt down with one silk-encased hand touching the flowers (photo, left), DeVine bent over the fountain as though drinking the water while the Green Man extended his arm supports: one to touch the fountain, the other to touch another large tree immediately behind the diggerido players.
End of show!
This description, of course, does absolutely no justice to a trio of outstanding performers. For one thing, it does not even begin to describe how each moved "in character".
The Green Man, for example (right), had a slow, stately, even majestic pace, placing each "rootstep" with the firm precision of a natural Force personified. His movements seemed to exude an irresistible, relentless Power which, for me, recalled the "March of the Ents" in Tolkien's Lord of the Rings. Ryleh would not have been at all surprised had the ground shook and thundered with each of his "rootsteps". Now when he thinks of Ents, the image of the Green Man immediately leaps to mind!
DeVine,(below, left) on the other hand, had a curious gait: now quick, now creeping, moving from one support (a tree, perhaps) to another (a wooden scuplture, say) as befitted her role as a sentient, fruitful vine. Her very suppleness was extrordinary! There was such an eerie, "alien" quality in all her movements--heightened by the deadpan, emotionless expression on her green-tinted face--that there was never any doubt in Ryleh's mind he was actually watching a sentient plant on the prowl! And she played her role to perfection: when she would lean against a support (a telephone pole, for example) and "freeze", she created such a perfect imitation of an ivy-covered trellis that other Fairegoers, unaware of her act, would pass on by without a second glance!
Of DeVine, Frank Hui--who drove from Dallas to visit the Bristol Faire this year--said: "...my friends and I were at the final joust when...DeVine was performing--or I should say, unnerving!--patrons around 3:30 in the afternoon. There was one hilarious moment (when) she found a patron taking a rest under a tree...(she) just stood over him until he became aware of her, opened his eyes, looked up and noticed everyone watching them. He got very embarassed and immediately left!" --Frank Hui
Then there was Orchid: beautiful, sinuous, sensuous Orchid! It comes as no great surprise to learn that she was played by a belly dancer, for all her movements were fluid and her steps, graceful. Whereas the Green Man was an Earth Elemental and DeVine personified Life in all its myriad forms, Orchid seemed to portray the very sensual/senuous Nature of Life itself! In some ways, she was the most "human" of the trio. During one part of the performance, it even seemed as though she had designs on the Green Man--designs which brought her to a stand-off with DeVine. For a long moment the two faced each other before reaching a wordless agreement, which let the action flow into a general movement toward the fountain.
Honorable mention must also be made for a fourth performer who--although not officially part of the show--contributed to the Ballet by her "non-presence", so to speak. In the photo, (right), DeVine on the left bends to inspect a pile of clothing, accoutrements and personal items seemingly abandoned at the base of a tree. That pile of discards is, in reality, the "Raggedy Lady"--played by Carol Black--whom Ryleh met earlier in the day! According to Stephen Geis, her Faire name is "Lady Ettie" (short for 'Etiquette'). "...for while she dresses in rags and is missing her teeth, she always has perfect manners...", said Geis. During the entire 30-minute show, she remained absolutely motionless as though sleeping. Her "non-presence" as the sole human on stage gave the Ballet the effect of a surreal "MidSummer Night's Dream" being played out in broad daylight. Should you not think that an incredible performance in itself, just try remaining motionless (breathing and blinking your eyes is alright) for five minutes. Methinks you will then agree the "Raggedy Lady" truly deserved a portion, however small, of the enthusiastic applause accorded DeVine, Orchid and the Green Man.
Each alone would have been a "great" act. Taken together, however, they produced one of the most incredible, imaginative and memorable performances Ryleh has ever witnessed at Faire. The Ballet definitely deserves a "five-star, do-not-miss" rating when you are visiting Bristol. To think of it, had not Sir Clisto emphatically suggest he see their performance, Ryleh himself might have missed it entirely ...
...And that would have been a real tragedy, indeed!!!

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