Thanks for the shout-out, City Paper. Read more here.
reminder
A message from shadow puppeteer extraordinaire Ange Tu’ulaupua and myself:
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great discussion of fair use
Shepard Fairey does a great job of explaining both his case and the law around fair use here. I found this to be a really interesting, useful read.
Ok, off to find more blacklights, a music stand, fluorescent paint, hollow a coconut…
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worthwhile pittsburgh road-trip
hiya fellow pittsburgh puppet lovers.
Looking for a way to get your puppet fix the weekend after the 24th? Road-trip to Cleveland to see my incredibly talented friend Basil Twist perform his hauntingly beautiful Dogugaeshi. Basil is a ridiculously skilled and well known puppeteer. This particular show demonstrates a very rare Japanese puppetry style. I guarantee it will be worth the drive. Read the New York Times’ review of Dogugaeshi here.
Presented by the Cleveland Museum of Art at the Brooks Theatre at the Cleveland Playhouse Thurs. April 30th – Sun. May 3rd at 3:00 pm Sat. May 2nd – Sun. May 3rd at 7:30 pm.
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April 24th: Pittsburgh Puppet Weekend!
Without any planning, the weekend of April 24th has shaped up to be pretty awesome for Pittsburgh puppetry. The Cabaret’s on Friday, the National Day of Puppetry’s on Saturday and here’s 3 more puppet-related events during those three days:
- Fellow Pittsburgh puppeteer Tavia La Follette (founder and director of ArtUP) just announced that world famous BREAD AND PUPPET THEATER will be performing in Pittsburgh on the Saturday and Sunday after the cabaret. I highly recommend getting out to see them!
- C.B. Fisher, a founding member of the Pittsburgh puppet troupe Major Arcana has a gallery opening on Friday, April 24th at ArtUp during the downtown Gallery Crawl.
- AND– Black Sheep Puppet Festival performer Rose Clancy will exhibit her work as part of the Brew House’s Distillery Program at the Gallery Opening on Friday, April 24th.
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I encourage you to go out and support your local puppeteers!
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why the highway puppets?
Why did I name my company the Highway Puppets? The family lore is this:
I’ve always been a stubborn kid. I grew up performing with my family. Mom made the puppets, wrote the shows and and booked the gigs. While she allowed my brother (Kyle) and I to ad-lib and contribute quite a bit, she had the final say on how things went down. After all, if Kyle and I decided to goof around, we might not get hired back. But, my five-year old self wanted her own artistic way all the time.
One especially memorable day, I asked Mom if Kyle and I could do a big finale by coming out front with a lot of puppets when she ended the show. She said no. Undeterred, I waited until Mom was out front and couldn’t see us, then convinced my brother to take the puppets out with me (“Mom said it’s okay! You don’t want to get in trouble do you?”). Needless to say, Mom was none too happy to see birds flying out in the wrong part of the story. I was very proud of myself.
However, after the show, Mom took me aside and very firmly explained,
“Flora, when you work with me, it’s my way or the highway.”
to which I responded: “One day I’m going to grow up and have my own puppet troupe! And it’s going to be called the HIGHWAY PUPPETS!”
After that, whenever Mom and I had another disagreement, I would always reiterate my anticipated rebellion. It actually happened!
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puppets are cool again?
Well, folks, Jim Henson created, muppet-style puppets are en vogue again. Last week’s 30 Rock, Apollo, Apollo, featured Kenneth’s muppetized-view of the world. The Daily Show has always been a fan. Ricky Gervais has been interviewed by Elmo. Recent romantic comedy Forgetting Sarah Marshall had an incredible vampire puppet opera finale build by the Creature Shop. And the movie’s director, Jason Segel, is slated to direct the new Muppet Movie.Perhaps the true sign that the Muppets are taking back their central role in pop culture is the fact that they have recently been invading Saturday Night Live. The latest skit aired this weekend: Muppet Bus.
I don’t think we’re going to have any muppet-style puppets in our cabaret. But it’s always great to hear about puppet shout-outs. While I love this type of hand puppets, I’m also truly excited about the diversity of puppet styles that will be represented at the cabaret in 10 days. Woo-hoo!
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thanks for summarizing, Paul Gallico
“For in spite of the fact that it was he who sat behind the one-way curtain in the booth, animated them and supplied their seven voices, the puppets frequently acted strangely and determinedly as individuals over whom he had no control. Michel never had bothered to reflect greatly over this phenomenon but had simply accepted it as something that was so and which, far from interfering with the kind of life he was accustomed to living, brought him a curious kind of satisfaction.” -Paul Gallico, Love of Seven Dolls: 1954.
I’m happy to report that my new cabaret puppets are developing their own personalities. Gallico’s right: it does give me a curious kind of satisfaction.
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