QUIET ON SET
Light falls gold through the Ginko
or maybe it is the leaves
themselves in their seasonal drop
The lemon gum shrugs its skin
into creases at the junctions of its boughs
scenting the air fresh
The lull before the stab at Shakespeare
performed in glade
on lawn between the ponds
In the wings the bats unfurl
their leather coats
shake and rustle like the assembling players
No need to bring down the lights
the earth’s turn
will stage manage that well enough
The stars strut the stage
outshone by their celestial counterparts
await their audience’s hush
Jane Downing’s work has been published around the world including in Meanjin, Rabbit, Social Alternatives, Live Encounters, e.ratio, Last Stanza, and Best Australian Poems. Her collection is When Figs Fly (Close-Up Books, 2019).
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