The Puppets Player / Aragoz (Cairo, 26.03.2007) - december 2021
phonographie d'un marionnettiste du Caire 5'55''
Tous les matins du monde / Middle-East PhoNographic Mornings

One morning in this small alley called rue Champoleon Street in Downtown Cairo, which is by the way a very baroque contraction of Champollion and Napoleon, kids were running behind this guy who throws them ritornellos, even the big ones follow him, and when he finds the audience big enough, he stops, leans against an iron curtain, he lifts his djellaba to the top of his head, between his fingers: wooden rods. And then emerge from the pleated white pan two sheaves of rag puppets, very similar to those Klee brought back from Morocco. The Puppets Player first distributes a thousand tricks to onlookers to sharpen his palette of voices, then he begins a show whose main protagonist is Aragoz, the average but skillful plebeian, and the interactions with members of his audience start. At first a certain bigot in the audience will seek him quarrel but in the end he is the one who has been beaten by his lover.

Transcription

Aragoz, singing a classic song by Abdel Halim Hafez
I’m dreaming of you
and I’m longing, waiting for you
but if you don’t care about me
so it’s enough for me that I’m dreaming of you
I’m dreaming of you...
First Man
Peace be upon you, please Aragoz…
Aragoz
Go to hell, you!
First Man
Hello, hello, hello!
Aragoz
Hello!
First Man
I was telling you…
Aragoz
What?
First Man
What are you going to bring us tonight for dinner?
Aragoz
What do you want to eat?
Audience laughs
First Man
What I wanna eat?
Aragoz
Yes!
First Man
Pray for the prophet...
Aragoz
God bless him!
First Man
I want fried shrimps...
Aragoz
Yes!
First Man
and Bolty fish...
Aragoz Yes!
First Man
and rice…
Aragoz
Here you are, the rice!... What else?
First Man
Rice with milk…
Aragoz
Sure, rice with milk!... What else?
First Man
Tea
Aragoz
A tea?
First Man
Yes!
Aragoz
Ok… Come on, mister!
singing the same song like before
I dream of you my love… You made my days full of happiness...
Do you know since when I'm dreaming of you?...

Second Man, calling himself “uncle Othman”
No God but Allah, Mohamed is his prophet...
You boy!
Aragoz
Yes?
Second Man
God bless you…
Your uncle Othman is coming from Sudan to work with you!
Say: no god but Allah!
Aragoz
No God but Allah… Our master Mohamed is his prophet!
Second Man
I want to work with you as a doorman...
Aragoz
Ok, sure! Come after me, take this (a stick), mister !
Second Man
What is this?
Aragoz
This is for the taxman!
Second Man
What if a thief would show up?...
Aragoz
Hit him with your stick!
Second Man
and what if he is wearing a weakling? a special long hat like the one Aragoz is wearing, called Tartur
Aragoz
Break him!
Audience, laughs
Aragoz
What is happening here?
Second Man
Go back to your house, master… Uncle Othman wants to sleep!
Say: no god but Allah!
Third Man, singing
Mostafa, oh Mostafa… I love you Mostafa!... – Peace be upon you...
Aragoz
May Allah save me, this time…
singing a classic song by Mohamed Roshdy: One night, my love came to me
and knocked at the door… I smiled as usual and I said: you door are telling lies to me…
and then my love calls me through this door...
Forth Man
What is this?
Aragoz, pretending to pray: Allah is the greatest!
Allah is the greatest!
Third Man
Let him pray, boy… Pray when you hear the Azan (pray call)…
Pray for the prophet to win, boy... – Haaa!
Aragoz
Allahhhh is the greatest
Second Man
A thief… he beats the puppet player
Aragoz
Please, God, help me!
Second Man
Son of thieves!
Audience, laughs
Second Man
Whoever prays upon the prophet must win!
Aragoz
For the sake of the prophet, protect us, God!... God, protect us!

Now Aragoz is knocking at Othman's door
Second Man playing the doorman
Who is knocking at the doorman’s door?
Aragoz
Come out of the door and look at me... Hahahah!
Third Man singing
Oh boy, Hadokka... Hadokka, oh Hadokka...
As long as I am with you, we can eat dokka (very poor food)
Hadokka, oh boy, Hadokka...
seeing Othman through his door – oh God!
Mister Othman, great doorman! Who has beaten you that way?
Aragoz
The one who has beaten him, will beat you!
Third Man
Oh, really?
Aragoz
Wow, the body’s place his lover has hit is now swelling!

Third Man
Do you want to kiss me?
Aragoz
Yes!
Third Man
I won’t kiss you
Aragoz
Why not?
Third Man
I swear by the prophet that I will not lean down to kiss you...
Aragoz singing
Ya salam, salem – I am satisfied and happy!
As many times I suffer and shout my “Ahs!”, please say “Hi!” and “salam!”
Third Man singing
I’m waiting for someone precious full of luck...
come on, stranger, let our lovers listen to Abdel Wahab
Aragoz singing
Oh my heart’s eyes, the sweetest eyes...
Let’s live, enough sadness...
Lololololoyyyyyyy !
(a traditional scream that ladies used to scream
through wedding parties or after exams success or at any happy event,
this scream is called Zaghrotah)

Translation by Hoda Farah & Ashraf Ibrahim, SM