Puppets in Austin & the O'Neil Puppetry Conference

Met an actor/puppeteer the other night - Caroline Reck. She is friends with Connor Hopkins, of Trouble Puppet Theater. A recent graduate of the Towson University MFA Theater program, Caroline is currently working on a new puppet show -- "Fup Duck" to be performed at SVT March 17th-20th. The White Ghost Shivers band will be in the show, too!  Very exciting!

A graduate of the Lecoq School of Physical Theatre in Paris, France. She served as Artistic Director and host of “Cabaret Le Cochard,” a musical revue on a barge on the River Seine in Paris. An actor/ director and frequent collaborator on devised work, her background is in mime, object theatre and puppetry. Her international collaborators include the Paris-based Sous Un Otre Angle, Mangiare Theatre Company in Sligo, Ireland and RedStarDogFish in Sydney, Australia. Since returning to the States in 2006, her New York productions include Nutmeat, a Burlesque Fairytale (NYC Fringe) and several productions for Red Fern Theatre at the 78th Street Theatre Lab.

When we were chatting, Caroline reminded me of this festival...

O'Neil Puppetry Conference

I would love to go to this... someday!

2010 PIP Workshops!

After a year dedicated to puppet improv study, research, travel and performance, Sara Farr is bursting with gathered industry skills and trade secrets. And one of the best things she learned about last year was the seemingly ironic generous nature of puppeteers. Making a living off their ingenuity, puppeteers who should be reclusive and stingy with their trade secrets, are in fact VERY generous and willing to share their magic tricks!

In the same vein, Sara is ready to share FOR FREE what she has worked hard to learn. But a years worth of info won't fit into just one workshop. So instead, Sara has parceled the sweet stuff into 3 shiny workshops, each with its own focus!

Puppet Mechanics and Manipulation

Learn how to bring LIFE to inanimate objects and make ppl CARE about your CHARACTERS. Using scripts, games and a variety of puppet types & set pieces, students will explore and play with the basics of puppet manipulation -- eye contact, breath, staging, etc.

PREREQ: none
TEACHER: Sara Farr
REQUIRED SUPPLIES: none -- puppets will be provided
DATE: 12-3pm Sun. 2/28
LOCATION: At the Studio Theater at Salvage Vanguard Theater, 2803 Manor Road

RSVP to Sara to save your spot in class

Puppet Building

Joined by Avimaan Syam, Sara will share with students the tools and techniques used by professional puppet builders to create your own cast of unique puppet characters. Sara will be sharing the skills and techniques she learned for making felt & foam, muppet-style puppets, and Avimaan will be sharing the ancient art of Paper Mache puppets (a la "Punch & Judy"). The paper mache' puppets require a 2 day building process with dry time, so we will cover both techniques over the course of two 3 hour workshops

PREREQ: none
TEACHER: Sara Farr and Avimaan Syam
REQUIRED SUPPLIES: Tools provided, supplies not. A list of recommended supplies will be sent upon registration.
DATE: 12-3pm Sat 3/27 & Sun 3/28
LOCATION: Sara Farr's house

RSVP to Sara to save your spot in class

Improv With Puppets

Learning to improvise outside your body (and into the body of a puppet) can be both liberating and eye-opening. In this 2 hour workshop, we get into some improv games & scenes to explore how improvising with puppets can get you closer to PLAY and out of your head. A fun class to take, whether you're looking to expand your improv tool-belt with puppets, or just looking for a fun afternoon with puppets.

PREREQ: Some beginning level improv training and puppet manipulation experience
TEACHER: Sara Farr
REQUIRED SUPPLIES: none -- you are welcome to bring your own puppets, but puppets will also be provided.
DATE: 7-10pm Wed 4/14
LOCATION: At the Studio Theater at Salvage Vanguard Theater, 2803 Manor Road

RSVP to Sara to save your spot in class

Updated the site

I guess since the PIP is going strong, I can't help but think about the future of the PIP. One of the things this forward looking has driven me to do is add 2 categories to my site: "Past Shows" and "Workshops".  I've moved some of the past years content into those sections, and hope to keep adding. This coming NEW YEAR, I'm hoping to host both puppet building, puppet manipulation, and improv puppet performance workshops. There seems to be a constant interest in these topics, so I'm happy to share what I know. Cool thing is most of the work on my end has already been done. So that leaves mostly scheduling, and yet scheduling is a beast. Yet, I can't worry about that... yet. :-)

Crack! The Improvised Puppet Musical = Success

Dear Readers,

It's getting close to the end of my "one year of doing improv puppets."  I've learned a lot since my first show -- "Wild Wild Puppets," with Jessica Arjet's FTM show last spring.  Six (6) months later, we did "Crack!" on the SVT mainstage, and it was a hit. We had a nice sized audience and made $ over the rent of the theater. On the first of the two nights, the audience gave us a standing ovation. :-)

Lessons Learned
And on that note, here is a list of the stuff I've learned. Successful puppet-improv shows require:

• Strong puppet training on top of strong improv skills
• Strong ensemble; having everyone know how to work & perform in scenes with puppets
  
• Right cast for the target audience
  
• Performer with a stong skill base; you can't expect them to learn EVERYTHING in the rehearsal process; they need to come to the project with an existing knowledge base to build on
  
• Imps who can handle the physical exertion of working with puppets

"Crack!" was a success because we cast imps skilled in narrative improv (some good singers) and taught them to:

• improvise singing & dancing (some already had this)
  
• puppet
• work together as a group

What's next for the PIP?
Next year I hope to keep going with the PIP.  First off, we've been asked to do a run of "Crack!" in the summer. I hope to make the show stronger with improved puppets, more puppet tech, and a new cast (that fits the schedule).

I'd like to work towards having a core PIP ensemble cast that we pad with guest imps for specific shows.

I'd like to work up a puppet improv show to take "to the people" -- either at fairs, parks, or on the streets. With that in mind, I've built this last set of props to be portable.  I'll be working to modify my original PVC theater to make it sturdier for a street performance.

Crack! Special Guest Star, Jordan T. Maxwell !!!

We had our final rehearsal, & technical run through last night -- and we got to greet & play with our special guest star, JORDAN T. MAXWELL!!!  Jordan is a powerhouse musical improviser visiting from Los Angeles and he really makes this fun show awesome. I'm so excited for this show and can't wait until FRIDAY -- Wahoooo!!

Crack! -- Tickets on sale NOW!

This show, two nights only, is a first in Austin, TX. An improvised puppet musical! There will be two acts, with a short intermission. Act I will consist of games and scenes based on audience suggestions.  In turn, those scenes will inspire the themes in Act II -- a completely improvised puppet musical.

Locally produced and directed, this show stars an adorable cast of puppets and their Austin improvisers.

Grab your tickets now, while you still can!  Tickets can be purchased at the Event Brite Website -- Crack!

Crack! -- Final Rehearsal

... is tomorrow night! We will be doing a run-though of the show with a full cast -- including our special guest star, Jordan Maxwell! It will be great to finally be in the space and have all our puppets and props and stuff.