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the show opens with Jack and Rochester still looking for his golf ball from last week. Mary arrives to rush them off to the studio after a week of their search. Q to music, Don’s opening commercial, and musical interlude. The minstrel show is introduced, and the cast is all on hand complete with burnt cork. Even Virgil the soundman is present to do his job. After the fanfare, Don introduces each cast member with a minstrel style name. The minstrels enter and parade fashion with cheers from the crowd.
Tickets are taken, and concessions are sold. Ladies and gentlemen take their seats and get ready for the preshow one-liner jokes. The dock Benny minstrels take the stage and sing a medley of old-time songs. Amid mangled vocabulary, and phony accents the jokes flow freely. Dennis sings, Can’t You Hear Me Calling Caroline.
Minstrels file in, Phil and Dennis quarrel about stolen chickens. Doc Benny manages to break it up and sing that classic tune: Asleep in the Deep, a tune known for some notoriously low bass notes. Can Jack manage it? A few riddles are shared, which leads to Don using a riddle for the commercial. As a special feature Jack calls on Rochester for a song. He sings, Somebody Else, Not Me.
Jack takes a moment to comment on Rochester’s blackface makeup. As an after peace, Jack announces the play: Romeo and Juliet on Beale Street. In minstrel style, the troop performs the balcony scene. Jack has arrival once Phil Harris shows up. When Jack makes another attempt, Dennis interrupts to climb the ladder instead. Even Don cuts in. Will Jack ever make it to the balcony?
