The Noise Next Door | Ep. 313

Have you ever been annoyed?

Irritated?

Hot under the collar and bent out of shape?

We all get rankled sometimes; it’s a natural part of life! And as we’ll hear in this week’s story, how we respond can speak volumes!

Our tale is called “The Noise Next Door.” Versions of this tale come from the Caribbean country of Haiti.

We recorded this episode before a live audience of excited kids and grown-ups at the Glendale Performing Arts Center in Glendale, CA. Joining host Rebecca Sheir on stage was a star-studded cast of actors whom you’ve heard in many other Circle Round episodes: Feodor Chin, Mary Faber, Helen Hong, and Jessica Rau. Providing a live score on the musical anvils (learn more about these very cool percussion instruments below) was Eric Shimelonis.

This episode was adapted for Circle Round by Rebecca Sheir. It was edited by Dean Russell. Original music and sound design is by Eric Shimelonis. Our artist is Sabina Hahn.

GROWN-UPS! PRINT THIS so everyone can color while listening. We’re also keeping an album so please share your picture on Facebook and Instagram, and tag it with #CircleRoundPodcast. To access all the coloring pages for past episodes click HERE. Our resident artist is Sabina Hahn and you can learn more about her HERE.

Now It’s Your Turn

Now it’s your turn.

Is there someone with whom you have a strong friendship? If so, why not do something kind for them this week?

Perhaps you could send them a card, write them a song, or just share some caring words to remind your pal how much you value their friendship!

Musical Spotlight: Musical anvils

A musical anvil is in the percussion family. It’s inspired by the traditional blacksmith's anvil: a heavy, solid block of hardened steel or steel-topped iron blacksmiths use as a surface for forging, shaping and bending hot metal.

To play the musical anvil, you strike its surface with different kinds of mallets. The resulting vibration produces a metallic, ringing sound. The musical anvils Eric Shimelonis used to score this story are specially tuned; they produce different pitches depending on where they’re struck!

Script:

NARRATOR (host Rebecca Sheir): Many suns and moons ago… in a tropical, mountainous land… a new president came to power.

The president and her husband could hardly wait to move into the presidential palace: a splendid, sprawling abode with glittering chandeliers twinkling from each ceiling, and priceless works of art hanging on each wall.

Her first morning on the job, the new president woke up in her tall feather bed…

PRESIDENT: (yawn/stretch)

NARRATOR: …slipped into her fine tailored suit…

PRESIDENT: (as if admiring her reflection) Looking good, girl!

NARRATOR: …then went down to the dining room for breakfast. Her husband, who had been given the title of “First Gentleman,” was already at the table, sipping hot coffee.

FIRST GENTLEMAN: Good morning, darling! Are you ready for your first day as president?

PRESIDENT: I’ve been ready my entire life! Back in kindergarten… when the teacher asked our class what we wanted to be when we grew up… all the other kids said “firefighter”… or “teacher”… or rock star. (beat) I said I wanted to be president!

FIRST GENTLEMAN: And I said I wanted to be First Gentleman! Dreams really do come true. (beat) Here, Madam President. Have some coffee.

NARRATOR: The First Gentleman filled his wife’s mug to the brim. But before she could take a sip, the palace suddenly echoed with the sound… of banging!

[SOT: banging percussion]

NARRATOR: Then clanging! 

[SOT: clanging percussion]

NARRATOR: Then clinking! 

[SOT: clinking percussion]

NARRATOR: Then clanking!

[SOT: clanking percussion][continue beneath the following]

NARRATOR: The president dropped her mug and threw her hands to ears.

PRESIDENT: (talking over the clamor) Uggggh! What is that noise? I’ve never heard such an awful racket!

FIRST GENTLEMAN: (misunderstanding; talking over the clamor) You’ve never burned such a waffle’s jacket????

PRESIDENT: (correcting him; talking over the clamor) No! I’ve never HEARD such an AWFUL RACKET!

FIRST GENTLEMAN: (misunderstanding again; talking over the clamor)You’ve never blurred such a lawful basket? 

PRESIDENT: (talking over the clamor) No! … Uggghhhh. Never mind. I’m going to investigate!

NARRATOR: The president sprang from her chair and followed the noise. The cacophony led her out of the dining room, out of the palace, and into the yard.

Built around the palace was a high wall. The noise seemed to be coming from the other side. And when the president unlocked the gate and went bursting through, she was met with a most unusual sight!

Standing in front of two tiny houses… banging, clanging, clinking and clanking away… was a pair of blacksmiths: metal-workers who use hammers and anvils, axes and chisels to forge things out of iron.

The blacksmith outside the tiny yellow house was hammering a pair of horseshoes.

[SOT: percussion continues]

NARRATOR: The blacksmith outside the tiny green house was hammering the wheel of a carriage.

[SOT: percussion continues]

NARRATOR: The president took a breath, then called out in her loudest voice!

PRESIDENT: (calling out) Excuse me! Blacksmiths?!? BLACKSMITHS!?!

NARRATOR: The two blacksmiths glanced up. When they saw who was standing there, they dropped their hammers and gave a polite curtsy.

[SOT: percussion stops]

BLACKSMITH 1: Good morning, Madam President!

BLACKSMITH 2: It’s an honor to meet you!

PRESIDENT: Thank you! (beat) But please! Tell me. Why are the two of you banging and clanging away, HERE? In front of two tiny houses in the middle of a neighborhood??? (beat) Don't you have a workshop or something? A nice quiet studio… with thick, sound-proofed walls… that's absolutely nowhere near my palace???

NARRATOR: The blacksmiths grinned.

BLACKSMITH 1: The two of us live here, Madam President! I live in this yellow house.

BLACKSMITH 2: And I live in this green one.

BLACKSMITH 1: We were hired by the former president!

BLACKSMITH 2: Your predecessor!

BLACKSMITH 1: He was such a fan of our work that he bought us two little cottages…

BLACKSMITH 2: …set side by side…

BLACKSMITH 1: …so we could forge iron for the people in town!

BLACKSMITH 2:  And ever since, we’ve been making horseshoes and carriage wheels…

BLACKSMITH 1: …candlesticks and cutlery…

BLACKSMITH 2: …hinges and hooks…

BLACKSMITH 1: …latches, locks, and more!

BLACKSMITH 2: The two of us work seven days a week!

BLACKSMITH 1: All day long!

BLACKSMITH 2: Morning, noon, and night!

NARRATOR: The president cringed. “Seven days a week”??? “All day long”??? “Morning noon and night”??? There was no way she could endure such relentless clamor. Something must be done. She just wasn't sure what.

PRESIDENT: Listen, friends. I have some official business to attend to. So how about we talk again later? (beat) (hopeful) And how about you take the rest of the day off?

NARRATOR: The blacksmiths smiled.

BLACKSMITH 1: We would love to talk later, Madam President!

BLACKSMITH 2: But we can’t take the rest of the day off.

BLACKSMITH 1: There’s too much work to be done!

BLACKSMITH 2: She has to finish hammering her horseshoes.

BLACKSMITH 1: And she has to finish hammering her carriage wheel.

BLACKSMITH 2: But we look forward to seeing you later!

NARRATOR: And with that…

[SOT: percussion]

NARRATOR: …the blacksmiths picked up their hammers and resumed their banging…

[SOT: banging percussion]

NARRATOR: … clanging…

[SOT: clanging percussion]

NARRATOR: …clinking…

[SOT: clinking percussion]

NARRATOR: …and clanking!

[SOT: clanking percussion]

NARRATOR: The president’s head was ringing and her heart was raging as she rushed back to the place and told her husband about their noisy neighbors.

PRESIDENT: (over the noise outside) I know they do good work for the people in town… but I must find a way to silence their clatter! Otherwise, I'll never be able to run this country! Let alone think!

FIRST GENTLEMAN: (over the noise outside misunderstanding) Get your own drink?

PRESIDENT: No!

FIRST GENTLEMAN: Set a bone pink?

PRESIDENT: Uch! Never mind! (to Narrator) Umm – hey, can we just go to the break now? I need a moment.

NARRATOR: Absolutely!

[percussion out]

NARRATOR: What do YOU think will happen next? Will the president overcome her noise nuisance?

We’ll find out, after a quick break.

[BREAK]

NARRATOR: I’m Rebecca Sheir and welcome back to Circle Round, live at the Glendale Performing Arts Center in Glendale, California!

Today our story is called “The Noise Next Door.”

Before the break, the new president discovered she lived next-door to two noisy blacksmiths. One blacksmith lived in a yellow house. The other lived in a green one. Both houses were tiny, and had been gifted by the former president, who had hired the women to forge iron for the people in town.

The new president was determined to cut the cacophony. So that afternoon, while the banging and clanging persisted outside, she strategized with her husband – the First Gentleman – about what could be done.

PRESIDENT: (talking over the clamor for the rest of the scene) The way I see it, I can’t FIRE them!

FIRST GENTLEMAN: (talking over the clamor for the rest of the scene) You can't HIRE them??? I thought your predecessor did that!

PRESIDENT: No! FIRE!

FIRST GENTLEMAN: (still misunderstanding) Wire???

PRESIDENT: Fire! FIRE! As in, give them the boot!

FIRST GENTLEMAN: (misunderstanding) LIVE them with FRUIT???

PRESIDENT: (GROAN!) This will never do. Come here!

NARRATOR: The president grabbed her husband’s arm and pulled him into the broom closet.

[SOT: percussion softer]

PRESIDENT: Ahh! It’s a little quieter in here! (beat) What I was saying was, I cannot endure another day of the blacksmith’s noise! But… since the townspeople depend on them… it wouldn’t be right to FIRE them!

FIRST GENTLEMAN: (finally getting it) Ohhhh! FIRE!

PRESIDENT: I don’t want those women out of a job. I just want them out of HERE!

FIRST GENTLEMAN: So… why don’t you send them away?

PRESIDENT: I can’t have them ‘banish-ed’! I’m a president! Not a queen!

FIRST GENTLEMAN: Excellent point. (beat) Well then… why don’t you offer them something? A nice big wad of cash if they’ll move somewhere else?

PRESIDENT: Hmmm… That actually might work. Their homes are no bigger than this broom closet, after all. I’ll bet they’d LOVE to move somewhere else!

FIRST GENTLEMAN: Then it’s settled! We’ll get you two big bags of coins, you’ll go back to the blacksmiths, and you’ll make your offer! (beat) Hopefully they’ll say yes. Otherwise OUR home will be no bigger than this broom closet – because we’ll be LIVING in here!

[SOT: percussion louder]

NARRATOR: Minutes later – with two bags of money in hand – the president was back in front of the yellow and green houses, where the blacksmiths were still banging and clanging away.

PRESIDENT: Excuse me! Blacksmiths!!! BLACKSMITHS???!!?

NARRATOR: The blacksmiths put down their hammers and gave another curtsy.

[SOT: percussion stops]

BLACKSMITH 1: Hello again, Madam President!

BLACKSMITH 2: Glad you could come back and see us!

PRESIDENT: As am I! (beat) My friends? I’ve come… with an offer.

BLACKSMITH 1: / BLACKSMITH 2: An OFFER?

PRESIDENT: Yes! To backtrack a bit, I think it’s wonderful that my predecessor was such a fan of your work. And it’s no wonder! You're extremely talented.

BLACKSMITH 1: Thank you, Madam President!

BLACKSMITH 2: We’ve been honing our craft for years!

PRESIDENT: (pained) Of course you have! Seven days a week! All day long! Morning, noon, and night! (beat) However… in looking at these HOUSES my predecessor gave you… I can’t help but notice how unsuitable they are.

BLACKSMITH 1: “Unsuitable”...? I love my yellow house!

BLACKSMITH 2: And I love my green one!

PRESIDENT: But don’t you realize how TINY they are? (beat) The two of you have been working so hard, for so long… Don’t you deserve a better place to live?

BLACKSMITH 1: With all due respect, Madam President: we’re happy in our houses!

BLACKSMITH 2: And besides: we don’t make enough money to buy new ones.

PRESIDENT: Oh! You needn't fret over money! Here!

NARRATOR: The president held out the bags.

PRESIDENT: I will give each of you a big bag of cash. You can use the money to leave your current house and get another one somewhere else! …Anywhere else!

NARRATOR: The blacksmiths exchanged a look.

BLACKSMITH 1: Madam President? We appreciate the offer. Truly.

BLACKSMITH 2: But… what about our customers?

BLACKSMITH 1: They’ve come to depend on us!

BLACKSMITH 2: To make horseshoes and carriage wheels!

BLACKSMITH 1: Candlesticks and cutlery!

BLACKSMITH 2: Hinges and – (gets interrupted by PRESIDENT)

PRESIDENT: (interrupting, annoyed) No need to go over the whole spiel again! I got it the first time. (beat) And no need to worry about customers! You’re both so talented, your customers will follow you wherever you go!

NARRATOR: The blacksmiths took each other’s shoulders and went into a huddle. When they came out again, they were beaming from ear to ear.

BLACKSMITH 1: Alright, Madam President!

BLACKSMITH 2: Now that we've had a chance to discuss it…

BLACKSMITH 1: …we will take your money…

BLACKSMITH 2: …and move to new houses…

BLACKSMITH 1: …just as you asked…

BLACKSMITH 2: …by tomorrow morning!

NARRATOR: The president could hardly contain her joy – or relief!

PRESIDENT: (overjoyed, relieved) You’ll move that quickly??? Really How marvelous! Here! Take your money, and best wishes on your move! It’s been wonderful knowing you. (under her breath) Just not HEARING you!

NARRATOR: That night, the president went to sleep with a smile on her face. She could hardly wait for the sweet, peaceful silence that would greet her come morning!

And yet, the next day… the moment she and her husband sat down for breakfast… they heard it.

First… a banging!

[SOT: banging percussion]

NARRATOR: Then a clanging.

[SOT: clanging percussion]

NARRATOR: Then a clinking.

[SOT: clinking percussion]

NARRATOR: Then a clanking!

[SOT: clanking percussion]

NARRATOR: The president’s jaw dropped so low it nearly landed in her pancakes.

PRESIDENT: (over the clamor) What is THAT?

FIRST GENTLEMAN: (misunderstanding over the clamor) “Shut the cat”? We don’t HAVE a cat!

PRESIDENT: Never mind! Hang on!

NARRATOR: The president leaped from the table, sprinted out the door, and burst through the gate.

And guess what? On the other side of the palace wall… banging, clanging, clicking, and clanking in front of the yellow and green houses… were the two blacksmiths: one hammering a horseshoe, the other hammering a carriage wheel.

PRESIDENT: Excuse me! Blacksmiths!!!! BLACKSMITHS????

NARRATOR: The blacksmiths put down their tools and looked at the president.

PRESIDENT: Uhhhh… what's going on here? Don’t you remember our deal from yesterday? I gave both of you big bags of money so you could leave your houses and move into new ones! Yet you’re still here! How dare you break your promise?

NARRATOR: The president fixed an accusing eye on the blacksmiths. She couldn’t put her finger on it, but something about the women seemed… different. The one outside the yellow house spoke up first.

BLACKSMITH 2: Madam President. We assure you. We did not break our promise.

BLACKSMITH 1: She’s right!

NARRATOR: Now the blacksmith outside the green house piped up.

BLACKSMITH 1: We did move! Just as you asked!

PRESIDENT: Then… why are you still here?

BLACKSMITH 2: Well… what you must understand is that the two of us are very close!

BLACKSMITH 1: We’ve been friends forever!

BLACKSMITH 2: And we didn't wish to move away from one another!

BLACKSMITH 1: In fact… we didn’t wish to move away from this neighborhood at all!

BLACKSMITH 2: We like it here!

BLACKSMITH 1: And our customers are so happy and loyal!

BLACKSMITH 2: HOWEVER… we did promise you that we would move.

BLACKSMITH 1: So… we worked out a plan!

PRESIDENT: “A plan”?? What kind of “plan”? You haven't moved at all!

BLACKSMITH 2: But we DID! You see, we decided… we would swap our bags of money…

BLACKSMITH 1: …and buy each other’s houses!

PRESIDENT: You WHAT???

BLACKSMITH 2: We bought each other’s houses! I moved into HER YELLOW house…

BLACKSMITH 1: …and I moved into HER GREEN house!

BLACKSMITH 2: After all, you DID say we could move “anywhere else.”

BLACKSMITH 1: So… we DID!

NARRATOR: The president gave the blacksmiths a long look. And that’s when she realized what was different about them!

They had changed places!

Now the blacksmith outside the yellow house was hammering a carriage wheel! And the blacksmith outside the green house was hammering a pair of horseshoes. The exact opposite from yesterday.

BLACKSMITH 1: But here’s the thing, Madam President.

BLACKSMITH 2: We didn’t swap ALL the money you gave us.

BLACKSMITH 1: Instead, we set some coins aside!

BLACKSMITH 2: That way, we could buy you…

BLACKSMITH 1: / BLACKSMITH 2: …THESE!

NARRATOR: The blacksmiths reached under their worktables and pulled out two boxes… of earmuffs! One pair for everyone in the palace! Not the kind of earmuffs that keep your ears warm, but the kind that protect your ears from noise!

The president couldn’t help but smile. Because all at once, as she beheld the hardworking women, she understood something. She understood that friendship and loyalty were powerful things.

So powerful, in fact, they could be as strong as iron!