The front

I have some theater background, mostly from college and mba days. And then I saw Phantom of the Opera 2 nights ago (highly recommended!) which is like a "theatre in theatre" since the content of the musical is about an opera house. Finally, today I went to one of the largest malls in this city - neon everywhere, lots of happy people with families/prams and impeccably clean stores & salesmen.

So what suddenly hit me as I walked around the mall today? The Front.

Malls are like this giant theater happening on mega scale. Just behind the "staff only" sign of the connecting door lies the equivalent of stage props, disused lights, green room smells and old buckets of paint. One doesn't want to know where the food has come from as long as it's presented in neon. One doesn't seek to ask who made that T-shirt and under what working conditions (non airconditioned is a given). One doesn't ask what domestic stresses the salesman is going through under that smiling face, all for a monthly salary of $2000. One doesn't know about the double shift of the bathroom cleaning bangladeshi worker and the fact that his mom is ill back in Chittagong but he's too poor to go & meet her.

The shoppers are like masquerade participants (from the phantom of the opera). Each with a smiling face, walking by exchanging pleasantries with others in the ballroom (i.e. atrium & aisles). In pairs or familiar groups, walking past the other actors in the production.

But just like we seek to "forget" in the hustle of a large mall & walk like robots guided by subliminal signals of neon, so too must the actors. Deaden out last night's argument with wife via a pleasant, non-meaningful exchange about a toaster's features with a potential customer. Besides, it pays the bills. The dark side of the moon is best not seen.

The show must go on. Encore monsieur!