EvanL
11-24-2003, 08:01 PM
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20031124.wafghan1124/BNPrint/Entertainment/
Canadian Press
POSTED AT 4:04 PM EST Monday, Nov. 24, 2003
Kabul — Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan were treated to a bawdy, barn dance-style performance Monday at their first show tour since being deployed to Afghanistan in mid-August.
They were crude and rude. But what do you expect from hundreds of homesick soldiers who've been denied the taste of Canadian entertainment for months in a country rife with danger?
Singer Jana Jana appeared to be the hit of the show as she and two other short-skirted young dancers gyrated and twirled through several pop medleys to hollers of “take it off” from the audience.
“They were a bit raunchy,” Diana Frances said of the soldiers at Camp Julien.
Frances, the managing director of the Rock-Paper-Scissors Improv Comedy group, which helped entertain the troops, says she expected that, and didn't mind putting up with some low-brow enthusiasm while performing.
“Even though these boys are a little sassy, I enjoy doing these shows because they need it,” said Frances.
“Knowing what the boost in morale does to the troops, you can let the raunchiness slide because they need the release that laughter can bring.”
After months of working overtime to secure the city of Kabul, and toiling on mountain slopes day after day, only to find the countryside littered with explosives and debris from two decades of war, these men — and women — were ready for some release.
The soldiers at Camp Julien are limited by an honour system to two drinks per day, although most don't even have that, despite a joke circulating at the base about the two drink quota meaning the two that you count — the first one and the last one.
As well, fraternizing is forbidden.
The nine-day tour, which runs until Dec. 5, is a first for up-and-coming country star Adam Gregory.
“This totally reminds me of the [television] show M.A.S.H.,” said the two-time Canadian Country Music Award nominee.
“I could never imagine what they're going through,” said Gregory as he recalled some teary-eyed soldiers he spoke with at the camp earlier in the day.
“Just the amount of pressure being put on [the soldiers] on a day-to-day basis. I really respect what they're doing.”
Comedian Dave Broadfoot, a veteran of Canadian Forces show tours, said it was important to him that the performers brought a little bit of home to the soldiers.
“When they're in the audience watching a show like this, their delight is coupled with homesickness,” he said.
“And the fact that we're here means an awful lot to them. They react as if we have gone through a lot of trouble and sacrifice in order to be here.”
For some watching the show Monday, however, homesickness took a back seat to just being entertained.
“For myself, it's nice to have some entertainment, simple as that,” said Scott Medley, a base civilian worker from Mission, B.C.
“It's good for morale, but it's entertainment. It's great to see a show.”
© 2003
Canadian Press
POSTED AT 4:04 PM EST Monday, Nov. 24, 2003
Kabul — Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan were treated to a bawdy, barn dance-style performance Monday at their first show tour since being deployed to Afghanistan in mid-August.
They were crude and rude. But what do you expect from hundreds of homesick soldiers who've been denied the taste of Canadian entertainment for months in a country rife with danger?
Singer Jana Jana appeared to be the hit of the show as she and two other short-skirted young dancers gyrated and twirled through several pop medleys to hollers of “take it off” from the audience.
“They were a bit raunchy,” Diana Frances said of the soldiers at Camp Julien.
Frances, the managing director of the Rock-Paper-Scissors Improv Comedy group, which helped entertain the troops, says she expected that, and didn't mind putting up with some low-brow enthusiasm while performing.
“Even though these boys are a little sassy, I enjoy doing these shows because they need it,” said Frances.
“Knowing what the boost in morale does to the troops, you can let the raunchiness slide because they need the release that laughter can bring.”
After months of working overtime to secure the city of Kabul, and toiling on mountain slopes day after day, only to find the countryside littered with explosives and debris from two decades of war, these men — and women — were ready for some release.
The soldiers at Camp Julien are limited by an honour system to two drinks per day, although most don't even have that, despite a joke circulating at the base about the two drink quota meaning the two that you count — the first one and the last one.
As well, fraternizing is forbidden.
The nine-day tour, which runs until Dec. 5, is a first for up-and-coming country star Adam Gregory.
“This totally reminds me of the [television] show M.A.S.H.,” said the two-time Canadian Country Music Award nominee.
“I could never imagine what they're going through,” said Gregory as he recalled some teary-eyed soldiers he spoke with at the camp earlier in the day.
“Just the amount of pressure being put on [the soldiers] on a day-to-day basis. I really respect what they're doing.”
Comedian Dave Broadfoot, a veteran of Canadian Forces show tours, said it was important to him that the performers brought a little bit of home to the soldiers.
“When they're in the audience watching a show like this, their delight is coupled with homesickness,” he said.
“And the fact that we're here means an awful lot to them. They react as if we have gone through a lot of trouble and sacrifice in order to be here.”
For some watching the show Monday, however, homesickness took a back seat to just being entertained.
“For myself, it's nice to have some entertainment, simple as that,” said Scott Medley, a base civilian worker from Mission, B.C.
“It's good for morale, but it's entertainment. It's great to see a show.”
© 2003