Noël Coward - The Wife of an Acrobat Lyrics

1932 West End
Words and Music the Musical - The Wife of an Acrobat Lyrics

Music and lyrics by Noël Coward.

(Refrain: 1)
I'm the wife of an Acrobat
And the world has passed me by.
Pm dressed in tights
To play the ‘ Twice a Nights ’
And only God knows why.
What a life I for an Acrobat
As he flies from hoop to hoop
I have a sort of feeling,
When our souls have passed away
When giving shows in Heaven,
Three performances a day.
I’ll sav what all the angels are expecting me to say
‘Allez Oop—Allez Oop—Allez Oop I ’

(Verse: 1)
Always travelling to and fro,
And always packing to go
Is apt to derange one.
I believe I should lose my head
If once I slept in a bed
That wasn’t a strange one.
Never topping the Bill at all,
In each Variety Hall
We open or close them.
Apart from waving my hand about
When he’s finished a trick
I do nptfiing but stand about
Feeling slightly sick.
Even if I had lovely legs
I’m not the type of a girl
Who blatantly shows them.
When I look at the pair
I’ve got it seems a little bit hard
To have to expose them.
People say that a pride in Tricks
Every animal feels.
I’d prefer to be one of six
Old Performing Seals.

(Refrain: 2)
I'm the wife of an Acrobat
And our eldest boy’s a scout.
I hate the lad
To come and see his dad
Entirely inside out.
Now the wives of the Acrobats
Form the most exclusive group
You’ll seldom see us riding ‘Haute Ecole’ along the park
And many of us look as if we’d come out of the Ark
Our conversation meagrely consists of one remark
'Allez Oop—Allez Oop —Allez Oop I'

(Refrain: 3)
I'm the wife of an Acrobat.
When my old man don’t feel well
To hold each prop
And wonder if he’ll drop
Is my idea of Hell.
What a life for an Acrobat!
When I watch him loop the loop
I wonder what he’s thinking upside down on the trapeze
And if he’s really happy with his head between his knees
And then his face gets crimson
And I know he’s going to sneeze!
‘ Allez Oop—Allez Oop—Allez Oop I ’

(Refrain: 4)
I’m the wife of an Acrobat
When our kids are in their cots
It’s kind of sad
To realise their Dad
Is tying himself in knots.
Now the wife of an Acrobat
Is the c Dead Pan ’ of the troupe
I’ve stood about for twenty years,
My hair is turning grey
I hear my old man gasping as
I watch him swing and sway
And if he broke his bloody neck
I know I’d only say
'Allez Oop—Allez Oop—Allez Oop !'

Words and Music the Musical Lyrics

Maggie
Let's Live Dangerously
Children of the Ritz
Mad Dogs and Englishmen
Planters' Wives
Let's Say Good-bye
Mad About the Boy
Housemaids' Knees
Three White Feathers
Something to Do With Spring
The Wife of an Acrobat
The Younger Generation
Midnight Matinée
The Party's Over Now