Steve Whitmire Lecture/Workshop at the Center for Puppetry Arts

[spcglider]

This is the body of an email I just sent to a friend. I figured that since it was a good description, I'd copy and paste it here to save myself some time.

It was interesting in the lecture... as Steve was explaining things and getting us to understand the underpinnings of what makes a Muppet a Muppet, I thought to myself, "Somebody should tell the suits at Disney this stuff."

Within several sentences, Steve divulged that this was mostly the verbiage that was assembled to do just that... explain the intrinsic worth and function of the Muppets as a property... so the Disney Execs could stop trying to apply a formula to the Muppets when they already had a very successful and much more far-reaching formula already their own.

I was also happy that Steve recognized me right off the bat when he walked in. He seemed genuinely surprised to see me. Which is just fine. He said hello.

I'm glad that I had a favorable impression on him from St.Paul. Later, in the workshop (which was basic, yet did MUCH to guide me to understanding more about performance AND how to teach that material to my own people here), he called me out by name... which maybe he cribbed from my sheet, but it was still very nice to have that recognition. NOTE: He also talked with several others he knew. It wasn't just me. I don't want to give the impression that the experience was all about, nor enhanced for everyone else by Steve talking about me. C'mon... I got an ego, but not that much of one.

He mentioned the shoot on Extreme Makeover : Home Edition and wondered why I'd make the trek all the way to Atlanta and I told him that we'd started a conversation in St.Paul that we didn't finish, so I had to come to Atlanta to do so.

He apologized for not being able to actually talk with me one-on-one, but the workshop was going to have to move forward and that just wasn't possible. Perfectly fine. I knew that. I also knew he'd be completely ragged out after two days of lecture and workshops! The man is a masochist! LOL!

What I didn't express was that he was going to be answering my questions WITH the workshop. They all pertained to the basic training techniques that I needed to impart to my puppeteers on TVTV. So, no matter whether it was a direct conversation or me taking copious notes, I got the answers I was looking for. At least for starters.

On the subject of Steve, I couldn't have imagined a more patient and generous teacher. His guidance was direct, firm, and patient. And it was nothing less than a fantastic experience.

Every participant (that I spoke with) was very interested in a continuing course. Moving to more advanced technique and more camera time. And I am certain that a much larger fee could be extracted for such an event. I mean, really... 40 dollars? That's insanely cheap for the experience we were treated to. That having been said... the next course will probably be $500 and I won't be able to afford it! LOL!

Anyway, it was a tiring weekend.. and the main focus was only 3 hours of it! Lots of walking... I didn't have a car!

Met some cool folks from here on the board. Looking forward to hearing from you guys!

Finally, I gotta share this. And I'd hoped to share it with Steve but didn't get the chance.

After the lecture on Sunday I was standing next to a daughter and father in the CFPA at the Jim Henson lobby exhibit. The little girl was watching the video that was playing next to the case that contained an ACTUAL Big Bird body puppet. When Big Bird appeared on the video, the little girl grabbed her daddy's hand and started saying, "Daddy! Big Bird! Big Bird!" The "object" in the showcase wasn't Big Bird to her. That image... the CHARACTER on the screen... THAT was Big Bird.

Which totally illustrates (quite succinctly) the thrust of Steve's lecture. There are intangibles involved with the value of Muppets.

-Gordon

 

[RomanaFraggle]

That was.. kinda beautiful. That last part there.. it was *so* true.

I mean, I remember hearing somebody say that learning about the Muppets (as in, seeing the puppeteers do their work) takes a little away from the magic.. but that simply isn't true. In fact, it seems even more magical to me.. because that character is coming from such a normal looking person (even though the video clips of Steve had him with some pretty wild hair XD)

And that's what made me want to try puppeteering. If I could play a character and be me at the same time, like these incredible people, I can learn to be just as comfortable with myself as I would be playing a character. I don't know if that makes sense, but.. it makes sense to me.

 

[lynxminx]

I've been lurking for a few months...didn't think to check here before attending the Whitmire lecture since it's not a local board....you long-distance travelers is crazy! I'm not a puppeteer- the workshop was my first experience- but I live in Atlanta, so it was easy enough to drop in (Sunday 1/17, 3pm).

Not to harsh anyone's mellow, but the lecture could use some honing. He got a little cosmic for a 1-hr (or for that matter, 10-hr) lecture. Not everything can be reduced to a flowchart, but an outline or procedure for building or deconstructing a character, based on the principles of sentience he discussed, would have been more practical. The workshop by comparison was a total blast, and I hope he might consider doing longer classes or series of classes at the Center some day.

 

[DrmaticEmphasis]

I've been lurking for a few months...didn't think to check here before attending the Whitmire lecture since it's not a local board....you long-distance travelers is crazy! I'm not a puppeteer- the workshop was my first experience- but I live in Atlanta, so it was easy enough to drop in (Sunday 1/17, 3pm).

Not to harsh anyone's mellow, but the lecture could use some honing. He got a little cosmic for a 1-hr (or for that matter, 10-hr) lecture. Not everything can be reduced to a flowchart, but an outline or procedure for building or deconstructing a character, based on the principles of sentience he discussed, would have been more practical. The workshop by comparison was a total blast, and I hope he might consider doing longer classes or series of classes at the Center some day.

I 100% agree... you could tell he was very very not used to doing lectures. He was not very good at bringing things back to his original point. He also read his slides... which is the #1 no no of doing lectures...

But hey... if he does more, he will get better at it... and may I please volunteer my services, Mr. Whitmire, in making your powerpoints look nicer. hehe

 

[DrmaticEmphasis]

You know something that really surprised me about the lecture though, was the audience. For some reason, I just thought it would be more women than men. I just didnt think this stuff appealed to guys as much as girls... I guess I always knew that 90% of the Muppeteers were men... but... I dont know... I was surprised...

Im prolly insulting 70% of the board, but I really dont mean it like that... I just for some reason always assumed it was a girl thing... maybe from ex-boyfriends telling me it was... but the audience was a good majority of the male persuasion.

I was just surprised.

 

[spcglider]

Well, as far as the lecture goes, he did say that it was basically the information he assembled to explain the Muppets to execs at Disney... which kinda takes it out of the "educational lecture" category and places it more in the "business presentation" category... which is really a different animal (no pun intended).

He was digging into the philosophical DNA of the characters to bring us all around to his flow of thought. Maybe it was too deep for a 1.5 hour lecture... he had to skip the final six pages of his presentation for time... but it wasn't like it didn't apply. Could it have been a little more succinct? Yes. But he's an artistic guy who's job necessitates being absorbed in detail and minutia. I can't blame him for his presentation style.

-G

 

[lynxminx]

He was digging into the philosophical DNA of the characters to bring us all around to his flow of thought. Maybe it was too deep for a 1.5 hour lecture... he had to skip the final six pages of his presentation for time...-G

Yeah...reading through this thread (which I should have done in the first place), it sounds like he made it further into his material on other days, and some of that material dealt with expressing sentience through a puppet. Wish I'd gotten a chance to hear...:/

It was all pertinent, just broad in scope for the time allotted. Consciousness is a huge and widely-discussed topic. Puppetry not so much...

 

[spcglider]

Anybody else go?

-Gordon

 

[wes]

yeah I Did...

I agree with some above the Lecture was a little deep, I'm glad i didn't bring my whole group after all. It was exactaly what i teach but with alot of Five dollar words...But hey the guy works in Hollywood.

Know the workshop was awesome! I love the hands on stuff and i learn stuf i really never knew.

I didn't think i would learn anything new...but i did, and i didn't really understand how much different T.V. Puppetry was from Live puppetry.

I guess my only issue was i wish they could have been longer and that we could have had more time with Steve it Felt abit rushed...but if i had all those classes to do i'd be rushing to...but i have to say the whole thing was organized very well...like a fast well oiled machine.

 

[spcglider]

I understand the desire for more. It was a great learning experience and I'm sure that if Steve was more of an Energizer Bunny than he already is, he would have made the classes 2 hours long just to be more than fair to everyone.

And I'm not playing apologist here, but for $30 (non members)? I'd pay 3 times that much just to sit in a room with Steve Whitmire for an hour and a half listening to him spin tales much less actually get instructed and coached in tv puppetry basics by him.
I got no complaints.

One of the things I was purposely doing during the workshop was "participating" from the sidelines. When I was sitting in the chair, I had the puppet on and was working along with the folks on-camera. At least in lip synch and non-over-the-head ways. When Steve was talking about the little dip in the voice in a song and telling us to take advantage of that in the performance, I would face my puppet towards myself and work it along with the music. Might as well make the most of "down time", right?

-Gordon