:: Frequently Asked Questions ::

Faq's About Esther's

What's the story about the undersea mural?
The original Esther's Pool at 515 E. Sixth Street was the site of the first mural, which was painted by Doug Jaques (who also painted the mural on the Drag at 24th St. across from Tower Records). He painted the entire wall with a real and imaginary underwater world of fish, sunken treasure ship, coral reefs, and make believe denizens of the deep. The theater burned down in 1983, and the mural went with it, but Doug volunteered to re-create the original in our current home in 1990, when we moved in at 525 E. Sixth Street. He also painted a smaller version that hangs above the ticket desk as the audience enters the lobby.

What's the music the magician uses for his illusions?
The Cane Trick - Father Figure by George Michael
Frank and Lucky (Saw the Girl in Half) - Tied Up by Yellow
Impaler - Uninvited on City of Angels soundtrack
Flashback Shake Your Groove Thing
The Claw - The Orgy Scene from Conan the Barbarian soundtrack
The Lamp - "Diamonds are a Girls Best Friend" from Moulin Rouge soundtrack
Broom Trick - At Last by Etta James
Levitation Trick - Stardust by Nat King Cole
Robot - Hard Times by Human League

Who is esther/why are you called "esther's follies"?
Esther is Esther Williams of 30-'s and 40's swimming movie fame. We always enjoyed the campy, splashy fun of her musical numbers in her film career, and when we were just starting our theater troupe in 1977, we did a parody water ballet in the hot summer at Liberty lunch, our first restaurant, and called ourselves the "Esther's Hard Corps du Water Ballet," spitting water and doing synchronized swimming choreography. We have a diving Esther on our building forever swimming above Sixth St.

Who is the guy outside the window with the flower? Does he work for you? Is he part of the show?
Carl Hickerson-Bull is indeed part of the show experience, bringing the street into the theater with his antics spinning flowers, dancing, and being generally eccentric. He has been voted Austin's Favorite Eccentric by the Austin Chronicle far more times than Leslie, twirls and sells flowers for a living, but keeps drunks away from our windows with his giant squirt gun, and in his off time enjoys UT Baseball games, and Competitive Scrabble.

The role of the Window at Esther's

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Who are the three giant figures in your lobby, and what is their story?
They are Patsy CLine as played by Shannon Sedwick, the Amazing Frank, Ray Anderson's well stuffed sexy alter ego, and Chi Chi LaBamba, Margaret Wiley's memorable bombshell character who always started the show after the News Medley by going out into the audience and picking out three contenders for "Hunk of the Night", asking them questions, and letting the audience decide who was the hunkiest to dance with her in sombrero and maracas. Margaret was our wild and wonderful star from 1980 - 1999, one of our major writers, creative choreographer and costume/prop maker extraordinary. She appeared in a Steve Ray Vaughn video, built floats for Ann Richards Inauguration Parade, and made all our wigs towering beehive masterpieces. She died a few years ago. We will miss her always.

Who's the portrait in the lobby?
The portrait is of William Dente, Esther's first star, in his character Dame Della Diva, who sang comic opera in the Follies in its early days, and branched out to all manner of comedy as he learned the trade. WIlliam joined the cast in 1977, and his Dame Della Diva was an outrageous opera singer who could cluck like a chicken, bray like a donkey, and sing glissandos like his favorite, Joan Sutherland. He also could whistle incredibly well, and performed "The Whistling Mozart" to thunderous ovations at our yearly Paramount Theater Birthday Bashes. He died in 1989 of cancer, but his spirit lives on at Esther's forever.