This past August, Mrs. Félix and I were in Stratford, Ontario to catch some theatre, and where she took the picture used for my post on the Tilley song.

During an afternoon matinee of Macbeth at the Festival, there sat near to us a interesting elderly woman who kept chatting to herself, and rummaging through the ample bag she had taken with her, examining her meds, and counting change. The usher was kind to her, keeping her company as much a possible and despite the disruption, not asking her to leave.

However, the patrons around her did not care for the noise, and migrated to empty seats as far away as possible, leaving a large swath around her unoccupied.

After intermission, she got progressively louder, and in a clear voice announced, “I left my nitro in the restroom!”, meaning her nitroglycerin pills, I assume, not the high explosive. Later in the performance, Act 5, scene 5 to be exact, Seyton enters and informs Macbeth, “The queen, my lord, is dead”. The elderly lady loudly responds with “Oh my God!” to general laughter through the hall. It’s a wonder the cast kept it together.

This, I thought, deserves a song.

So here it is for your enjoyment. The references should now be obvious.

The Queen Is Dead ©Robert Pelletier/Félix and the Cats 2016

Verse 1

A moat of empty seats surrounds
The frail old woman all alone
Will she begin to make a sound?
A cough or a frustrated groan?

 

Chorus

She left her pills in the restroom
The plastic bottle on the shelf
She sees the actors in their costumes
But she keeps talking to herself

Verse 2

The click and clacking of the coins
That she is counting once again
In the dark of the theatre
Oh my God, the Queen is dead

Chorus

Bridge

When she was a young
So many men around
Catering to her every whim
Oh! What a pretty dream
Oh! What a pretty dream

Verse 3

A moat of empty seats surrounds
The old frail woman once again
Will she begin to make a sound?
Oh my God, the Queen is dead

Last Chorus

Chorus

She left her pills in the restroom
The plastic bottle on the shelf
She sees the actors in their costumes
But she keeps talking to herself
But she keeps talking to herself
But she keeps talking to herself

 

Until next week, be well!