ACK! Help!

[SesameKermie]

I'm kinda proud but also very scared and unsure how to continue. Due to my efforts to get a puppet ministry going at my church, I have been asked to do a 15-min. performance at a Literacy Night program. The group that is hosting the program is doing a spaghetti supper fundraiser, and then students from the local college will read to groups of children while the parents listen to a speaker. Then I'm supposed to perform. The proceeds from this go to buy books for underprivileged children.

That's all wonderful and good, but the scary part is, I've never really done a 15 minute show with my puppets. They've mostly been used for 5-minute 'children's moments' in church and/or extemporaneous performance like going around to the kids and asking 'how are you?', commenting on outfits, blowing kisses, playing peek-a-boo, etc. after the service. The performance isn't until November, luckily, so I have some time to prepare, but I'm drawing a blank as to what to do next. I've got some script ideas, but they're not coming together, yet.

Any help?

P.S. While I'm sure religious people will be in the audience, this is a secular program. That's another challenge for me.

 

[staceyrebecca]

Ok so it's a literacy night. Take a story that you like and adapt it to puppetry!

Our first kids' show was terrible. We tried to make up our own story. Our 2nd was was fantastic as we did 3 Little (Talkin) Pigs. We had so much fun writing the story. And really, that's the thing, if you have so much fun writing it, you'll definitely have fun performing it and it will all show through to your audience.

What are your favorite stories?

 

[MGov]

Take a classic story and two narrator puppets. They both claim to have read the story. One puppet is the straight man the other the goofy character that gets the story wrong in funny ways. The straight man's dialogue writes itself (telling the story, correcting mistakes). The funny one can say almost anything (as long as it's funny).

It's the Smothers Brothers.

Are you performing alone?

 

[SesameKermie]

Yes, I'm performing alone, but that might be doable. Just the 2 puppets and minimal scenery.

Hmmm. Now to find some fairytales to fracture . . .

 

[DannyRWW]

Use music. Maybe have puppets do a choreographed song. You can play a tape and have them lip synch. I admit I have no idea what song you could use (maybe a sesame street one) since I ussually do religious performances. We ussually for a performance like that do a skit, switch puppeteers and do a song, switch puppeteers and do another skit. If time allows we do another song too. Fifteen minutes goes by fast.

 

[DannyRWW]

sorry didn't cacth that your performing alone.

 

[SesameKermie]

That's ok. I hope to have a team eventually, but while everyone smiles and says "those puppets are great" I haven't found someone who seems interested in the behind the scenes stuff.