The Hobbit (with Puppets) in Seattle

[Buck-Beaver]

Looks kinda cool......check it out if you are near Seattle:

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Northwest Puppet Center presents

J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit

Running September 26, 2003 through October 26, 2003

performed by
Carter Family Marionettes and
Oregon Shadow Theater

ASL interpreted performance 9/27/03 @ 1:00 p.m.

Join Bilbo Baggins, Gandalf the Wizard and the dwarves on their mythic quest. As Bilbo travels through Middle Earth to find the dragon Smaug's treasure he learns the dangers of greed and discovers his own bravery.

J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy world is brought to life with hand puppets, rod puppets, shadow puppets, actors, and original music performed live. This delightful and enthralling tale, full of humor and adventure, will introduce a new generation to the fantastical world of Tolkien.

This production is a collaboration by Seattle's own Carter Family Marionettes and audience favorite Oregon Shadow Theatre.

 

[Don'tLiveonMoon]

Cool!!!!!! (from someone who lives nowhere near Seattle...) My brother made a Gollum puppet a couple years ago. It was awesome!!! The local Youtheatre is putting on "The Hobbit" soon and I tried to get him to audition, but he was defiantly uninterested. Ah, well, we will definitely be in the audience anyway!
Erin

 

[ScrapsFlippy]

Wow! Sounds absolutely magical!

Don't think I'll be able to make the trip up to see it, but if anyone does, PLEASE post a review here!

-Scraps

 

[BJC899]

That shounds So amazing! I wonder how hard it was to get all that legal stuff out of the way.

If someone goes, take pictures!

 

[Buck-Beaver]

That shounds So amazing! I wonder how hard it was to get all that legal stuff out of the way.

Not very actually. The Hobbit has been a stage play for many years, almost any theatre company or group is able to do it if they are willing to pay the license fee to the rightsholder (not sure who controls the rights to the play).

They probably won't allow a camera in the theatre (most shows don't).

 

[Buck-Beaver]

Here's a review of the show from http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/theater/141296_fam26.html:

Friday, September 26, 2003

This 'Hobbit' is a fellowship of puppets

By DOREE ARMSTRONG
SPECIAL TO THE POST-INTELLIGENCER

You've never seen Bilbo Baggins and Gandalf the wizard quite like this. Starting tonight, the Northwest Puppet Center presents an hourlong version of "The Hobbit," performed by the resident Carter Family Marionettes in collaboration with Oregon Shadow Theatre.

The puppeteers had to condense the thick prequel to "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy, but there's still a dragon, a wizard who can do magic and lots of funny dwarves.

So, the puppeteers had to change a few things. First off, instead of a dozen dwarves, there are only five. But the story line acknowledges such changes with humor -- one dwarf says, "I thought there were supposed to be a dozen of us," and another answers, "Oh, well, we've had to downsize; economic recovery, you know."

And wait until you see how puppets with no real hands can take off their cloaks and hang them up. Many of the jokes are aimed at adults, making sure they're just as entertained as the children.

"The four of us are extremely interested in the comedic elements," explains Mick Doherty of Oregon Shadow Theatre.

Husband and wife Stephen and Chris Carter have been professional puppeteers since 1976. They trained with master puppeteers of Romania, Sicily and China. Stephen received a Fulbright Award for puppetry studies in 1984, and holds a postgraduate degree from the Institute of Theater and Cinema in Bucharest. The Carters have performed all over the world, and presented their plays in five languages.

"The Hobbit" follows little Bilbo Baggins, who leads a very quiet life in the Shire, but suddenly finds himself thrust into the middle of a quest to save Middle-earth from a dark evil. A little band of hobbits, dwarves and wizards travels to the realm of Rivendell, land of the Elves, and to the underground cave of Gollum, and finally to the lair of the dragon Smaug.

The production combines hand, rod and shadow puppets, with humanettes (humans looking like puppets) and is accompanied by live music. Even when there are five dwarves, a wizard and a hobbit on stage, only three puppeteers are manipulating them.

While most shows don't combine all the different forms of puppets, "there are no rules in puppetry," Chris Carter explains. "But this combines them in a more elaborate way than ever before."

Most of us think of shadow puppets as making bunny ears on a wall. But Deb Chase of Oregon Shadow Theatre creates elaborately carved black and white flat puppets seen behind a screen, as well as "polarized puppets," using clear plastic that, when held above an overhead projector with polarized filters, turns into incredibly colorful characters projected on the screen.

"I'm shy, so I get to come out behind the screen and be loud and obnoxious in ways that I can't be normally," Chase says.

Doherty works the lights and provides the musical accompaniment to the show, playing mandolin and hammered dulcimer.

Before the show, visitors are encouraged to play in the front-yard playground, then walk through the museum with puppets from around the world. There's also a puppet research library.

The performers say children lose themselves in the story and quickly forget the puppets are not real. After the show, the puppeteers go out into the audience so they can see the puppets up close.

"We're holding the puppets and kids don't look at us," Chris says. "They will hold long conversations with the puppet, and we don't even exist."

 

[Don'tLiveonMoon]

Sounds like it was a pretty cool show!
Erin

 

[Buck-Beaver]

Here's another positive review of this show from Seattle - http://www.spectator-online.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2003/10/17/3f90d173a3c1f