Mr.Broadway Poem by Meg Harrison

A cricket named Mr. Broadway
A cricket was born in the theatre pit of a Broadway Theatre. Everyday he listened to instruments. Then the little cricket stayed on the musician’s arms and legs. The cricket watched the musicians playing their instruments. The little cricket would tap both of his legs together until he made the sound of a flute. When the cricket was bigger, he rubbed his wings together until he made the sound of the violin. Later the cricket learned all the instruments of an orchestra so he could play the same tunes of the Broadway show.
The cricket heard the musicians talk to each other and they said to a new musician “Hey mister, this is Broadway”.
So the cricket liked that name. He said “ I want to be called “ Broadway”.
I like the name Mister Broadway. Mr. Broadway stayed near this new musician on his arm, leg and then on his instrument case.
Mr. Broadway was on the instrument case of a musician as he was leaving the theatre. Then Mr. Broadway heard a nice sound so he jumped off the case and then he jumped from onto a park bench and onto more benches until he found a music box in a baby’s carriage. Mr. Broadway was in the carriage listening to the music because he never heard the song before. He jumped off the carriage because it was moving faraway from the bench.
The early evening came and He was in the grass then he heard the bad noise coming out of the tree. A cricket came down from a branch into the grass. Mr. Broadway was looking at the creature carefully and then he said “ you are a cricket and you look like me but you can’t play music.” The cricket asked him do you fly.
Mr. Broadway told him that I do not fly . Then Mr. Broadway used his wings to play the violin”. The cricket said “wow that is cool”
The cricket told him you fly with these wings. Mr. Broadway looked at his other pair of wings. Mr. Broadway followed the cricket and He said, “ Yes, I can do it! ” and then He was next to the cricket on a branch. Mr. Broadway said, “ I will call you “Solo”. Mr. Broadway showed Solo another way to move his legs. Mr. Broadway touched the Solo’s legs so Solo could tap his legs together. Solo tried tapping on different parts of his legs. Mr. Broadway said now you can play the flute. And Solo said “what a good sound”. Luckily there were other crickets watching Mr. Broadway. So the other crickets were playing the flute too. . Mr. Broadway said I am going back to my home. Broadway was flying and jumped down to the bench. Then Solo told him to come back to this tree.
Solo would look down from his tree everyday until Solo saw Mr. Broadway on a garbage can. Solo yelled, “ you forgot to how to fly ”. Then Mr. Broadway said “ No, I can fly and here I come”. Mr. Broadway told him I hope that you still play the flute. Solo said “ These are my parents.” Then Mister Broadway told Solo his parents are his size. Solo told him because I am a nymph. Then Solo has him meet the other nymphs. The nymphs were yelling to Mr. Broadway where do you come from.” And Mr. Broadway answered “ at the theatre”. The little crickets asked if we could come to the theatre. Mr. Broadway told them they could come.
All the crickets followed Mr. Broadway to the theater. They reach the side entrance and the door opened and they enter the theatre and Mr. Broadway whispered hush and listen. This way is the orchestra pit. Then Mr. Broadway told the crickets to follow him.
During the show the crickets had their eyes wide open and they did not move. They were watching Mr. Broadway while He was playing all the instruments during the show Finally the music stopped. Mr. Broadway turned around. The crickets were noisy. He told the crickets stay quiet and wait until the musicians exit the theatre. Mr. Broadway said wait until I come back. When the crickets could see Mr. Broadway. The crickets were excited when Mr. Broadway told them now you will all get a chance to speak.
One cricket said I like this sound. Mr. Broadway was shocked the little cricket learned to play the clarinet. I will call you the name of Clare. Mr. Broadway called the cricket playing the drum that he is his percussion. He heard a cricket play a trumpet and he was so excited. Mr. Broadway thought nymphs could only play the flute.
The crickets said “Can we stay here” then Mr. Broadway told them, “You can stay tonight.”
All night he was giving music instructions.
Clare and percussion had a private lesson. Then he gave separate music lessons to each group. The crickets playing the trumpet and flute; he called his woodwind family. Then String family played the violin. Then he notice he had cricket who could play first violin and second violin so he called his first violin players the treble and the second violin players his bass.
Mr. Broadway was so excited because he had an orchestra.
They practiced all night. The other crickets were sleeping but Solo and Mr. Broadway were talking and Solo told Mr. Broadway I looked at all the musician faces very carefully during the show. Mr. Broadway said, “Why did you do that.” And Solo replied “ So I can come back to this theatre.” Mr. Broadway said, “Do you remember their faces”
Solo said “one musician had a mustache and every musician had a box”. And then Solo told him when I leave I will take a careful look at the exit. Mr. Broadway said we should go to sleep now.
The crickets stay at the theatre during a show. Mr. Broadway had an idea. It was intermission but the crickets play instruments and the people stayed in their seats until the crickets were silent. Mr. Broadway signaled stop because the audience only has another 10 minutes till the show begins again.
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Mr. Broadway came near the sound and it is a little boy playing the flute. Mr. Broadway could fly onto the flute then the little boy said “wow”, I like you very much.”
Mr. Broadway said, “ What is the song you are playing on your flute? ” The little boy said, “ it is twinkle, twinkle little star.”
The boy said “ I like bugs and I am glad that I did not squat you! ”
Mr. Broadway stayed on the boy flute while he played the song. Mr. Broadway heard some wrong notes.
Mr. Broadway said “ you blow into the flute and use no fingers”. Then the boy is blowing into the flute and Mr. Broadway was jumping from one note to another. When Mr. Broadway finished playing the notes. The boy said “where did you hear the song twinkle, twinkle little star”. Mr. Broadway said “ a music box in a carriage”.
The young crickets were playing the flute very well. Mr. Broadway taught the crickets to play the “Birthday Song” in the summer.
When a early evening came and Mr. Broadway is in a tree which is above a picnic table at the Birthday party. The crickets hear a child say when can we sing Happy Birthday to Mary.
When the children sing Happy Birthday but adults with their mouth opened wide stare at the tree. Mary noticed the parents so she said look there is music coming from the trees. Mr. Broadway and the crickets put their legs together and it was silent.

Mr. Broadway hears a bad sound. And he finds a man snoring in his sleep on a hammock outside near trees. So the crickets play music into the man’s ear. The man with his eyes closed says I hear my wife playing her music and it is loud.

They are back at their tree ; Mr. Broadway tells all the crickets I can not stay here.
Mr. Broadway said “Goodbye to the crickets”
The crickets said “thanks”
Then Mr. Broadway goes back to the theatre. On his way Mr. Broadway looks back and Solo is behind him. Solo yells I know how to get to your theatre. Then Solo yells I will find you again.

The END