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FREAK SHOW LIVE IN PRAGUE (1995)

This was an unusual project for The Residents. The stage show itself did not involve the group at all. Instead, the band hired the leader of the Czech band Uz Jsme Doma ("We're Finally Home") to direct the orchestra while seven actors, singers, and dancers performed on stage. Ron Davis, who designed the Cubo-Residents and the Shorty & Shirley puppets for Cube-E as well as Dixie's Story for Bad Day on the Midway, did the set and costume design. The new book The Residents -- Eyeball to Eyeball was released at the November, 1995, premier at the Archa Theatre in Prague.
The orchestra consisted of Miroslav Wanek of Uz Jsme Doma, director; Frantisek Svacina and Valdimir Helebrant, keyboards; Kamil Kruta, bass; Jindrich Dolansky, tenor sax; Lenka Kavalova, cello; Romek Hanzlik, guitar; and Hynek Schneider, drums. Before the show began, Tex the Barker (played by Wayne Doba) called the audience in from the lobby. The stage was set up as a circus tent similar to the one from the Freak Show CD-ROM. Over the stage there was a gallery on which stood three female vocalists, Roman Janousek, Andrea Jurcova, and Laurie Amat (who first sang with The Residents on God in 3 Persons). Tex introduced the freaks as they came on stage to sing their songs from the album. Wanda the Worm Woman (Andrea Novakova) played with neon rubber worms; Herman the Human Mole (Vladimir Gut) hid behind the curtain until Tex forced him to show himself; Benny the Bouncing Bump (Miroslav Matyas) did his dance. Harry the Human Head and Jack the Boneless Boy were represented by props and Mickey the Mumbling Midget was not in the show.
The second act moved the action back into the freaks' trailers, again like the CD-ROM. There were four trailers, each painted onto a scrim which turned transparent when the light inside was turned on. During the live performance, unlike in the CD-ROM, the characters in the trailers interact with each other.
A performance of Freak Show Live was taped by CT2, a Czech television station. Some of this footage was released on Kettles of Fish.