Every once in a while something happens in life that just makes you scratch your head and ask “how did I get this lucky?”  Granted, that doesn’t happen too often but that’s all I could think as I stood behind Josh, our Darth Vader, waiting for our queue to march across the Dodge Theater’s stage in front of 3,000 people with a full orchestra playing the intro theme to Star Wars.  I was covered in goose bumps an I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t full of nearly uncontrollable 4-year-old glee.

About this time three years ago Kevin, Lancer and a couple of our other troopers (other troopers I don’t remember who you are so if you read this let me know and I will put your name s in).  decided to crash a Star Trek convention in downtown Phoenix.  They thought it would be funny for a bunch of troopers to show up amidst the Vulcans and Federation types.  Little did they expect to be a hit and to be asked to stay for the costume contest.  Since the contest wasn’t until later in the day they decided to walk down to a local bar for a beer and of course they did it in full gear.  The path to the bar just so happened to take them past he Phoenix Symphony Orchestra and as they walked past someone ran across the street to catch them.  He explained that he was the conductor and that the PSO just so happened to be playing Star Wars music that day.  Within the span of 3minutes our troopers were whisked off the street and away from their beers to appear on stage while the PSO blasted Star Wars music behind them.  That odd twist of luck was the beginning of the relationship between the DSG and the PSO.

3 years later Bob Moody, the conductor contacted Kevin and asked us to be involved again. 

When Trudy and I arrived at the Dodge Theater yesterday and finally made our way to the staging area I was really surprised to find that we (the DSG) had dressing rooms allotted for us.  I mean I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised but I had never in my life expected to have a dressing room.  We got geared up and headed to the stage to get directions from Bob about what we were going to do.  It was then that I found out Bob had asked our group to stage a light saber fight between Darth Maul and Qui-Gon-Jin just 3 days prior to the event.  But more on that later.

After we had been instructed on what to do and when, we were asked to make a surprise entrance into the main foyer to “patrol”.  We were then taken in an elevator to the highest point in the Dodge Theater.  Downstairs the conductor was in the foyer giving a presentation to what must have been at least 2,000 kids and parents.  Once he was done, the Imperial March theme was played throughout the building and we began to work our way down a giant staircase that took us from the top floor of the building all the way down into the crowd.  When we finally rounded the last corner and everyone in the foyer could see us there was an enormous audible gasp and then all kinds of hubbub.  And yes, I enjoyed that immensely.  Once we were down in the crowd the kids went crazy and we started shaking hands and taking pictures.  We did this for about 20min and then it was time to get ready for the show.  And I just get chills thinking about it.

Steve Colston is an awesome Darth Maul.  The pictures on his site just don’t do his costume justice.  As cool as it looks there it looks even cooler in real life and Steve has some sort of training in martial arts (not sure which or for how long Steve) so he pulls Maul off just perfectly.  As another member recently said on our forums, I’m to the point where the real Darth Maul doesn’t look right anymore because Steve does such a good job at it. 

Lance Dworshak is usually a Stormtrooper but he’s been fighting in armor for several years as part of the SCA.  Yesterday he showed up in what can only be described as a perfect Qui-Gon-Jin costume that his significant other, JoAnne put together in just a few days.  (not to mention this kick ass leather Jedi-belt that our CO Kevin O’Connor stayed up all night crafting). 

The show started with themes from the Phantom Menace and as Maul made his way onto the stage the rest of us snuck up backstage to watch the fight.  Steve paced back and forth like an animal, glaring at the audience with all sorts of hate.  Then Qui-Gon appeared and the two circled around one anther sizing each other each other up.  At a musically appropriate point they began to duel and I have to stay that standing back stage it was all I could do to keep myself from jumping up and down.  They must have ripped the duel right out of the movie because it was just perfect.  Qui-Gon punched Maul in the face and Maul belly kicked Qui-Gon between fairly furious exchanges of lightsaber fighting.  At one point Maul landed wrong and his belt was ripped half way off.  Steve improvised perfectly by standing up and furiously ripping the belt off, wiping imaginary blood from his chin, flicking it to the floor and then diving right back into the fight.  All us plain jane troopers in the back were silently pumping our fists.  At a predetermined point in the music Qui-Gon handed his saber off to Bob Moody, the conductor who was conducting the symphony in Jedi robes.  Moody surprised the heck out of me by attacking Maul at breakneck speed.  I mean he really went at it throwing a quick volley of attacks at Steve who seemed to eat it up.  Then it was time for the exit and true to form Maul literally dove off the stage in a flying leap with Qui-Gon in pursuit.  The crowd obviously loved it and cheered. 

A few more musical pieces passed and then it was time for me to get in position.

All us troopers lined up behind Darth Vader to the left of the stage.  Our job was to follow him as he marched from left to right in front of the stage.  Which brings me back to standing behind Josh, covered in goose bumps and wondering how on earth I got so lucky.  On queue we began to march.  And again, as we made our entrance there was a *huge* audible gasp from the crowd.  Josh has an amazing ability to really convey anger in Vader.  Somehow he can make that unchanging face look so damn furious.  As he marched across in front of the stage he flashed an angry glance at the audience and held out an upturned claw of a hand as if he was going to crush the thorax of everyone in attendance.  Perfect…just perfect.  Again the audience ate it up.  Once we had crossed and exited the arena we made our way quickly through the back stage maze and then stood behind the curtain for about a minute.  On queue we all marched out on stage to join Qui-Gon, Maul and Leia who were already there.  We took our placed on the stage and….

You know how I said that every once in a while in life you just can’t imagine how you got so lucky?  Well standing there on stage in front of 3,000 cheering people with a full symphony blasting the closing theme to Star Wars behind you is just overwhelming.  I heard someone say once that people aren’t looking to have a good life, they’re looking to have the experience of being alive.  It may sound geeky but standing up there I just felt alive.  It was something else and an experience that I will never forget.

After the performance we went back out in the foyer so that kids could have their pictures taken with us etc.  Two things happened to me out there that in their own way were more significant then the supper coolness of the stage experience.  I was shaking hands and taking pictures and giving high fives to little boys and just enjoying the hell out of myself when out of nowhere a little girl ran out of the crowd and nearly tackled me with a bear hug.  She was just so stoked to touch and hug something that obviously meant a lot to her.  I hugged her back and then she ran off.  Oh man…tearing up in the helmet…got to keep it together…mustn’t fog up the lenses..  Then a little boy about age seven came up and asked me for an autograph.  Now, I never in my life ever expected to give anyone an autograph and I have no delusions that without my armor no one would give two (you know what’s) about my autograph but in the list of cool experiences that one definitely makes it to the top 10.  When I die and go through the checklist of cool things that I got to do “getting asked for an autograph” can now be checked off ? Soon thereafter I was mobbed by autograph requests once the kids new it was ok to ask.  I kept pinching myself and asking how on earth did this happen? 

One final bit of coolness.  There is a large hallway behind the stage that allows you to navigate from one side of the stage to the other.  On the walls of the hallway are countless signatures, doodles and assorted bits of art created by the different artists who have performed at the Dodge Theater. 

-TK5911