i'll wander mostly out of sight

the dwarf danced in the courtyard
as part of a mock bullfight
late one summer night
while his partner with her fancy leather strap
sat in his tiny lap
and held on tight
they were quite a sight
for the assembled crowd
who became fans of this new ballet;
at intermission, everyone grabbed a bite to eat
and were heard to say
"hell, there's no one here to pray;
we might as well settle in for a longer stay"
and even though the house was packed
the landlord wanted to toss them out
but he was quickly sacked
and went away.
a fevered applause grew into such a maddening clamor
so no one heard when a stage hand struck his golden hammer
on the shaking floor boards
and soon more and more hordes
of delighted people acknowledged the popularity
of dancing at night under a fragrant tree
with wild bands of roving gypsy
and priests wearing starched white vests
and ladies of the evening pushing up their breasts
so much that they shook violently!
a special trance descended completely
and it soon became clear
that an invitation to attend would always be considered dear;
no one would ever have to guess
there would be no code for how to dress
the bullfight would be so ornate
nobody would ever come in late
it was soon accepted and unanimously agreed
no one would perish before they were freed
all the people said they were fairly certain
the show must go on even without a fancy curtain
and that was more than forty years ago and now what little i know
is in my old age all the mindless rage is blinding me
and like a lonely maitre de
i'm hoping to be set free
in the dancing courtyard late at night
where i'll wander mostly out of sight
it won't matter if I'm wrong or right
when the gypsy hands me a drink and asks me what i think
i'll simply say sometimes it's nice to pay the dues
and sometimes it's nice to put on the dancing shoes.