One week to go

PREFACE: The previous post was published today, just in time to advise tonight's speech. The E-R did not observe the usual seven-day wait, and released it in a timely manner. I hope it's because I wrote it.

Now, to the penultimate week of that American talent. And it has been characteristically American: everyone has spoken and/or sung in English, and none of them groused about being discriminated against or mistreated. All the losers, when asked, expressed thanks for the opportunity. . . the ultimate entitlement.

Four acts remain. America finally abandoned the opera singer, for, I suspect, the same reason I did. . . she dropped her voice an octave and sounded like Cher. Everyone had been urged to show versatility, but that was too much. Nobody channels Cher.

Remaining are the pop group, Poplyfe, which, unfortunately did a Michael Jackson medley, the Sinatra channeler who switched to Dean Martin, the dance group that lights up in the dark (when you can see it), and my personal favorite, Silhouettes. This is a large group of people who range in age from three to adult which creates silhouettes by dancing before a backlighted scrim, thus creating tableaux of famous American-themed places and events, pictures of which are then superimposed to prove how close the group has come to the original. It is not only clever and beautiful, but uplifting, and the versatility they show is the ability to create an increasing number of such scenes of American history.