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Dearth
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So, some more memories of our trip... we took the guided tour of the three Henson exhibits at 2pm, since it was only $2 extra per person. We were in the "Jim Henson: Puppeteer" room when the fire alarm went off and they had to evacuate the building.
I was about to say, "Um, if this building is on fire, can I go in and photograph the stuff NOW?"
But just as we hit the lobby, the alarm stopped and they motioned everyone back in, saying someone had accidentally nudged an emergency exit bar. I mostly forgot about it, although I did have one tense moment when we were in the "Wonders from his Workshop" area, thinking I could smell something burning.
The docent's speech was pretty familiar stuff... how Jim didn't set out to be a puppeteer, etc. I also thought at first that maybe she was nervous about public speaking, but she did relax as things went on, and of course she handled the fire alarm thing totally professionally.
When we first entered the smallest room, she made a joke about everyone needing to crowd in, and segued very smoothly into an explanation of live-hands puppeteering on characters such as Rowlf, which requires the puppeteers to be close.
I also think she's had some real experience puppeteering, because when she talked about the different performance requirements between lightweight puppets and weighted marionettes, it sounded like first-hand knowledge.
She engaged the group often, asking us to point out differences between the Kermit photo poser and the Sam and Friends Kermit seen in a photo. Or she would ask us if we had seen certain films, like Labyrinth, and seemed pleasantly surprised that most of the 20 or so hands went up. "Oh, that will make this easier then."
She told a funny anecdote about the Shaft of Hands gloves from Labyrinth, saying that the ad for additional puppeteers simply said "extras casting for David Bowie movie" and all these teen girls showed up. They had to lay on boards for hours up in the scaffolding of the set, with hot smelly latex gloves on. I blurted out, "And for a scene that David Bowie's not even in!" and the docent laughed, agreeing "Nowhere near that scene!"
I thought it was odd that the tour seemed to be going counter-clockwise through the Wonders section. Labyrinth first, then Fraggle Rock, then Big Bird. It seemed like we were going backward chronologically.
But I think she was saving Big Bird for last, because there was a parallel she wanted to draw between him and a previous Henson full-body costume, the La Choy Dragon, which we'd seen earlier. She said that in an interview, the character of Big Bird was asked about his ancestry, like had birds really evolved from dinosaurs, and BB replied as an inside joke, "I'm descended from a dragon."
It was a nice story that brought us full circle, but I was preoccupied because the docent called Carroll Spinney a "she". I almost corrected her, but a glance at the rest of the tourists showed me that none of them knew the difference, or cared about it.
I waited until the tour was over and quietly told her Carroll Spinney is a man, pointing out that he also performs Oscar the Grouch. She said, "That makes so much more sense now."
Alex
I was about to say, "Um, if this building is on fire, can I go in and photograph the stuff NOW?"
But just as we hit the lobby, the alarm stopped and they motioned everyone back in, saying someone had accidentally nudged an emergency exit bar. I mostly forgot about it, although I did have one tense moment when we were in the "Wonders from his Workshop" area, thinking I could smell something burning.
The docent's speech was pretty familiar stuff... how Jim didn't set out to be a puppeteer, etc. I also thought at first that maybe she was nervous about public speaking, but she did relax as things went on, and of course she handled the fire alarm thing totally professionally.
When we first entered the smallest room, she made a joke about everyone needing to crowd in, and segued very smoothly into an explanation of live-hands puppeteering on characters such as Rowlf, which requires the puppeteers to be close.
I also think she's had some real experience puppeteering, because when she talked about the different performance requirements between lightweight puppets and weighted marionettes, it sounded like first-hand knowledge.
She engaged the group often, asking us to point out differences between the Kermit photo poser and the Sam and Friends Kermit seen in a photo. Or she would ask us if we had seen certain films, like Labyrinth, and seemed pleasantly surprised that most of the 20 or so hands went up. "Oh, that will make this easier then."
She told a funny anecdote about the Shaft of Hands gloves from Labyrinth, saying that the ad for additional puppeteers simply said "extras casting for David Bowie movie" and all these teen girls showed up. They had to lay on boards for hours up in the scaffolding of the set, with hot smelly latex gloves on. I blurted out, "And for a scene that David Bowie's not even in!" and the docent laughed, agreeing "Nowhere near that scene!"
I thought it was odd that the tour seemed to be going counter-clockwise through the Wonders section. Labyrinth first, then Fraggle Rock, then Big Bird. It seemed like we were going backward chronologically.
But I think she was saving Big Bird for last, because there was a parallel she wanted to draw between him and a previous Henson full-body costume, the La Choy Dragon, which we'd seen earlier. She said that in an interview, the character of Big Bird was asked about his ancestry, like had birds really evolved from dinosaurs, and BB replied as an inside joke, "I'm descended from a dragon."
It was a nice story that brought us full circle, but I was preoccupied because the docent called Carroll Spinney a "she". I almost corrected her, but a glance at the rest of the tourists showed me that none of them knew the difference, or cared about it.
I waited until the tour was over and quietly told her Carroll Spinney is a man, pointing out that he also performs Oscar the Grouch. She said, "That makes so much more sense now."
Alex
