The opera company is "taking five" at the rehearsal of Gilbert and Sullivan's Princess Ida, and Arac's little sister Anita has come into the theatre from her job at the strip joint next door.
She has already heard her brother Arac practising that song in which he gradually removes all his cumbersome armour (Their aid I thus disclaim), and she decides it is also a song for her.
Arac and his fellow guardsmen stand back and watch in great amusement
as she performs her stripper version of the song for them.
Performed by the dwsChorale in one of its sillier moments.... listen for the increasing excitement of some of the audience as the song progresses!
lyrics
This blouse in skimpy form,
Was meant to keep us warm,
It's not much cop
And flops a lot,
As many a stripper knows,
So off, so off that white blouse goes.
Audience (one of whom gets more and more excited)
Yes, yes, yes,
So off that white blouse goes!
(Giving her blouse to an attendant)
Anita:
This tight-fitting brassiere
Just hides my lovely pair,
It's so elastic,
And feels like plastic,
This tight-fitting brassiere
just hides my lovely pair,
A stripper can't keep it square
When she struts in a brassiere
So off, so off goes that brassiere
Audience
Yes, yes, yes,
So off goes that brassiere
(Removing brassiere)
Anita:
These panties truth to tell,
May look uncommon well,
But when I flirt
and lift my skirt,
They're like a frilly shell,
They're like a frilly shell!
Audience
Yes, yes, yes,
They're like a frilly shell.
(Removing her panties)
Anita:
These tights I treat the same
When I go on the game
They hide my thighs from men's keen eyes
Their aid I thus disclaim,
Their aid I thus disclaim,
Audience (in which one member loses control absolutely
Yes, yes, yes,
Their aid we thus disclaim!
=====
For comparison, the original words in "Princess Ida" were:
This helmet, I suppose,
Was meant to ward off blows,
It's very hot
And weighs a lot,
As many a guardsman knows,
Chorus.
Yes, yes, yes,
So off that helmet goes!
Arac.
This tight-fitting cuirass
Is but a useless mass,
It's made of steel,
And weighs a deal,
This tight-fitting cuirass
Is but a useless mass,
A man is but an ass
Who fights in a cuirass,
So off, so off goes that cuirass.
Chorus.
Yes, yes, yes,
So off goes that cuirass!
Arac.
These brassets, truth to tell,
May look uncommon well,
But in a fight
They're much too tight,
They're like a lobster shell,
Chorus.
Yes, yes, yes,
They're like a lobster shell.
Arac.
These things I treat the same
I quite forget their name
They turn one's legs
To cribbage pegs —
Their aid I thus disclaim,
Their aid I thus disclaim,
Though I forget their name,
Though I forget their name,
Their aid, their aid I thus disclaim!
All.
Yes, yes, yes,
Their aid I thus disclaim!
credits
from The Stripper (Their aid I thus disclaim),
released February 28, 2015
performer: dwsChorale
composer: Sir Arthur Sullivan
original lyrics by W S Gilbert
parody lyrics by D W Solomons
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