the Party

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The party unfolds without delay

time's a memory we all can share

it's 1909, conjure Rousseau 

le peintre moderne, notre ami Henri

onboard that leaky boat 

the battered  Bateau-Lavoir is sailing 

down market et Montmartre a foxy plan 

is hatched in the nimble le Lapin Agile 

invite everyone, tip them off spare nobody

'cept of course poor Henri, he

the tribute the guest of honour

stalks tigers in city parks

Alice Gertrude Pablo Harriet et al

dreaming Paris herself would be there 

Andre Georges Apollinaire Kiki 

Fernande screams more bread

our guest d'honneur floats on aires

the cast assembled intends mayhem

how did this soiree, le diner grow to legend

oh dear, Sonia later claims as hers

inevitably the galleon begins to sway

too tight to swing the cat, she creaks

hundreds spill and some lay bare

like wine, splashed in gutters too

looking up at stars that fateful night

from the very start, proceedings fell apart 

spontaneous music erupts new dances

shouted over hollering laughter, who cares

by Act two the game was nearly up

songs and speeches drag on too long 

Guillaume's loud farting barely softens

Marie lurching, face-firsting dessert

none really remember Act three or more

who danced with whom and what gems

passed lips or when leaving whose shoes

unmatched, point up splayed in the air 

after all this, one epilogue can be drawn

one hundred years slip-by and the din

can be heard and for some 

time stands still long enough to sing 

Viva Le Douanier Henri Rousseau 

image: The Dinner 1909 / (detail) oil and synthetic polymer paint on linen on board JS