Help with Puppetry Stigma

[Buck-Beaver]

And bottom line, if you knew the director’s tendencies, then you knew what you were getting into.

Well, I don't think that knowing someone's tendencies should excuse their ridiculous behavior. That's a bit like blaming a victim who gets robbed in dark alley. Perhaps common sense dictates the person shouldn't have been in the alley to begin, but they still shouldn't have been robbed.

 

[Jinx]

Buck-
I hope you know that I do hold you in the very highest regard. I would unhesitatingly classify your posts as being the most valuable on the entire forum.

Certainly there is no excuse for ridiculous behavior! I would never blame a victim for getting robbed in a dark alley, although I would admonish him not to go into alleys where known robbers convene! If I know them to be robbers it is not wise to presume that they will not rob me, so it's in my best interested to avoid them. It does not justify their behavior in any way.

My point is merely not to villify all directors. While I have certainly worked with some extremely incompetent ones, my experiences on the whole have been overwhelmingly positive.

Kar Ma-
Glad you got through the show! I too would have been upset at holding the show simply because the director was late! (I hate being late for anything!) A director who is late is quite indicative of the skills (or lack thereof!) that they possess.

Becoming conditioned to performance situations is an interesting thing. The first time I did Little Shop I remember one rehearsal being inside pod #3 just sitting and waiting for my cue to move. (This pod sits absolutely still onstage for about 20 minutes before the big Feed Me/Git It scene/song.) After about 8 minutes I could not bear the heat and had to open the pod to breathe. I remember being afraid that I would not be able to do the scene as written because just the waiting was unbearable. Never mind the manipulation, I was dying just from the waiting! And the puppet wasn't even finished being built! There would only be more weight and more layers to trap more heat inside!

Well, after a few weeks I was able to go longer and longer and by the time we opened I was perfectly comfortable inside the pod. More interestingly, the next time I did the show was about 4 years later. Much to my surprise I was able to acclimate to the #3 pod in only about 2 rehearsals!

As far as preparations before the show I would usually have a hearty meal of pasta/meat followed by about 20 minutes of stretching exercises. I also made sure that I had gatorade available to pass into the #4 pod in act II during the brief scenes that the screen was down in front of the puppet.

Let us know how the rest of the run goes!

 

[Buck-Beaver]

Oh I wasn't meaning to vilify all directors and I'm glad to hear you've had mostly positive experiences. My original point was simply that I have found - as I said in my experience - that it's the less talented directors who tend to be egomaniacs and make ridiculous demands of their performers. There are good and bad directors, just like there are good and bad puppeteers. And what I think constitutes "bad" is not the same as what anybody else does of course.

I will say that the most talented directors I've met or seen are all really incredible and positive to work with, almost without exception actually. Talent and confidence seem to come in a package as does a lack of talent and insecurity it seems. I'm making generalizations here, but this is the overall trend that I've noticed.

 

[Kar Ma]

Going well

Today was a much better day. We performed two shows in the morning. Dang, my arms were tired. But I had a serious carb/protein breakfast and stretched for about 15-20 minutes. Both helped tremendously. I was spot on today.

My arms did get tired but they did not stiffen. Actually, I puppeteered entirely with my left but I hold a small pile of glitter (which I toss over the flat when Starbright grants wishes) in my right hand. I can't relax my arm or some of the glitter spills (no matter how tight I close my hand). My left is working and my right is tense the whole time.

Then we had one more show this evening. I found, for all three shows, doing a little extra stretching before each of my scenes helped tremendously. I was careful not to overdue it. I didn't want to pull anything before performing. Also, I drank a lot more water. It meant more trips to the bathroom but it was worth it.

Kids and adults alike looove the show. The audience favorite is the Mime. He does some pretty amazing physical work, including tap dancing, serious splits, and a no-hands backflip! Everyone goes crazy when he does that.

TheCreatureWork,

I think it's cuz my pictures are in MySpace. You could say I used the Nip Tuck Method cuz Starbright doesn't have a pattern. I was in a rush. The first time I tried to build her was a disaster (but that was mostly cuz the director asked someone without any puppetry knowledge to design it - it was a baaaaaad design - but I did everything within my knowledge to make it work but, alas, I approached her to allow me to redesign. She said 'yes' but I had little time to build her since we were going into tech earlier this week).


Buck-Beaver & Jinx,

It's all right. I did what I could working with the director of the show. I agree that there are some directors that shouldn't, well, direct. But that could be said about anyone doing just about anything. I think artists (whether they be directors, actors, writers, puppet designers, etc) are more likely to express what they are thinking/feeling. Artists have specific ways we want to do things because of a belief and/or an emotion and sometimes that is denied or blocked or downright ignored or criticized. And that can be heartbreaking.

I think what I've taken from this production is that not everyone shares the same vision and some individuals are not very competent with the vision they have. It's just unfortunate when such individuals are the ones in charge, so to speak. However, I met one of the director's friends, Doug, who is also a director, and he is all about articulation. I made sure to plug that I designed the puppet. He was very excited because he loved how articulate the actors and their characters, including Starbright, were.


Incompetence happens. But somehow, someway a great show still came out of it. I firmly believe that was in due part of the actors themselves and very sweet stage managers. Everyone developed their characters and worked very hard to make them clear onstage. The kids who saw the show today were asking for our autographs and asking tons of questions. They kept asking me to do Starbright's voice (which is fairly high, especially her giggle, and I have a naturally low voice). They begged David, the Mime, to do his backflip over and over. They even got him breakdancing. He's a gymnast so he's flippin' amazing. It has been worth the suffering and pain to see underprivileged kids be exposed to theatre, most for the first time.

I still do not want to work with the same director again. But I am glad I have stuck it out for my reputation and, ultimately, for the kids.


For anyone in the Los Angeles area we have two more public performances of The Arkansaw Bear on Saturday, May 12 @ 11am & 7pm at California State University, Los Angeles (CSULA) in the Arena Theatre (aka MUS 101).

CSULA
5151 State University Dr.
Los Angeles, CA 90032

For reservations you can call (323) 343 - 4118.
Regular $8
Students/Faculty $6
Children 5 & under FREE

 

[Kar Ma]

Puppetry rocks!

I have discovered my routine before a show. First, I eat a hearty carb/protein meal no later than 90 minutes before the show. Second, I rub monkey balm (which is a milder version of tiger balm and smells like a mild version of Icy Hot) on my arms and shoulders, especially if they are soar (which they were almost the whole run of the show). Then I stretch for 20 minutes, get into costume (which was just blacks for The Arkansaw Bear), and do a vocal warm-up. Starbright had a few tongue-twisting lines. So running a few tongue-twisters helped tremendously (especially Peter Piper).

We have two more shows for kids being bused in from schools again this Friday. I'm just disappointed that many people, both faculty and students, from our department did not see the show. How does one survive in the theatre community if they are not supported by its members (unless of course everyone is working on a show at the same time - then it's totally excused). Oh well. At least a few people loved the show so much they saw it twice. Yey!


I got a lot of compliments on Starbright. She was a favorite amongst several audience members. My friend, Kenny, a vocal artist, said he used to do voiceovers. He tried picturing my face when I puppeteered. He said I played the role so well that he found it impossible. I am so grateful to hear that, especially this being my first puppeteering role.


Puppetry rocks!