What are your feelings about adult puppetry?

[muppetfan89]

I can take it or leave it. I can sit through it and find it funny, but it depends on the context, for me. If it's something like, Puppet Up! then I can watch it. However, sometimes it can too far with the humor, like the movie Team America World Police, it was funny, but some scenes were just weird and not something puppets should do.

 

[Jinx]

At the end of the day it's the perogative of the performer to do what they feel is right for their audience.

Personally, I have never felt the need to work "blue". A few years ago I enterd a talent competition that was held in a rural bar. The act right before me was a "comedian" who told the filthiest jokes I have ever heard (hey, if you're gonna hear dirty jokes a bar is the perfect place, right?). Any laughter he got was based solely on shock, and the laughter in the room was tinged with nervousness. Then I got up and did my squeaky-clean-bring-your-grandma magic show and I won the competition. As far as I'm concerned shock value is the lazy man's way to attempt to entertain, rather than studying the fine points of comedic structure, delivery, etc.

At the risk of heresy, this is why I hated Avenue Q. I thought the puppetry was brilliant, I thought the music was catchy, and I thought the show was a real piece of garbage. Yes, people laugh at gay puppets who drop the "F" bomb and watch porn on the internet, but for the whole duration of the show I just kept asking myself, "what might they have accomplished if they had taken an approach that did not rely so much on shock value?

On the other hand, I really gag at puppetry that is dumbed down and condescends to kids. It is an insult to everyone's intelligence. But puppetry for adults does not necessarily mean that it has to be so raunchy that kids can't attend.

My magic show is not a kids' show. I don't do kiddie shows or birthday parties. It is simply based on a more sophisticated (for want of a better word) humor that collectively kids don't get. But by the same token I do not have to change a single word of my show when kids are present. For over twenty-five years I have had a strict policy of not being paid until after my performances, and then only if they enjoyed the show. I have never been denied, and in fact I often get bonuses and referrals.

 

[muppetfan89]

That's a good way of putting it.

I myself also don't like kid's shows that talk down to kids. I like the kind of shows that kids will like and at the same time adults will enjoy it as well.

Also, you mention shock value, as an amateur comedian myself, I've seen guys say some most nasty things ever, for shock and it works and it CAN be funny, but sometimes it go too far. That's why if people see puppets do nasty things like saying the F word or whatever, it creates shock and it's funny for the one moment, but for it to happen a million times in whole show is just going too far and isn't necessary. You just feel saying, "Okay, we get it! You're trying not to be a puppet show for kids!"

 

[Super Scooter]

Personally, I have never felt the need to work "blue". ... As far as I'm concerned shock value is the lazy man's way to attempt to entertain, rather than studying the fine points of comedic structure, delivery, etc.

On the other hand, I really gag at puppetry that is dumbed down and condescends to kids. It is an insult to everyone's intelligence. But puppetry for adults does not necessarily mean that it has to be so raunchy that kids can't attend.

My magic show is not a kids' show. I don't do kiddie shows or birthday parties. It is simply based on a more sophisticated (for want of a better word) humor that collectively kids don't get. But by the same token I do not have to change a single word of my show when kids are present. For over twenty-five years I have had a strict policy of not being paid until after my performances, and then only if they enjoyed the show. I have never been denied, and in fact I often get bonuses and referrals.

I agree with that completely. I don't believe in going for the cheap laughs, and I don't want people to laugh at what I'm doing because of any shock value. It takes real talent to be funny without it. You appeal to a wider audience if you can be funny without the use of raunchy humor, and that shouldn't mean that your show is for kids, though I suppose with puppets, most people automatically assume that if you're not using "adult" humor, than you are for kids. It's just not so.

I don't know if any of you are familiar with Brian Regan, but he's one of the funniest comedians around. AND, his shows, for the most part, could be for pretty much anyone. http://www.brianregan.com/experience-av.html

That being said, I personally don't like alot of the "adult" stuff (I hate using the word "adult" for stuff I personally think is "immature"). Some is okay, but some goes too far. On the other hand, I appreciate it because it gets people who might think that puppetry is strictly for kids to realize that this is something anyone can like. Maybe it'll get them looking into other people's work. If it helps people recognize puppetry as an art, and something to be respected as more than just children's entertainment, I'm for it. But I suppose some of the raunchier stuff doesn't always qualify as art (or deserving of respect).

 

[wes]

I Love it I just don't see why some people have to take it to a tripple X rating, I love working puppets for adults I like to use jokes that kids would get but adults do! Smart humor I guess, I once heard it said (By Groucho Marx I think, but don't quote me) It's easy to get a laugh with four letter words, but try to do it with out thats hard and thats Comedy!. I Guess I would rather work really hard to come up with "clean Comedy" than to take an easy route with four letter words and such.

 

[Jinx]

Yes, I believe that laughs must be earned. And four-letter-word jokes are almost never actually funny.

I still remember Red Skelton closing an HBO concert in the mid 80's. The audience had just laughed themselves silly for 2 hours, and in his closing remarks he mentioned that it had all happened without profanity, and it galvanized something in me as I realized just how correct he was. Also, master that he was, he was able to take you from a laugh to a tear in a heartbeat, and make you glad you were along for the ride. That man earned every laugh he got.

 

[PlanetRzepkoid]

Yes, I believe that laughs must be earned. And four-letter-word jokes are almost never actually funny.

I still remember Red Skelton closing an HBO concert in the mid 80's. The audience had just laughed themselves silly for 2 hours, and in his closing remarks he mentioned that it had all happened without profanity, and it galvanized something in me as I realized just how correct he was. Also, master that he was, he was able to take you from a laugh to a tear in a heartbeat, and make you glad you were along for the ride. That man earned every laugh he got.

This is one of the reasons why I love the older comedians like Skelton (who was an absolute genius), Milton Burle, Dean Martin, Harvey Korman, Tim Conway, Bob Newhart, Don Rickles, etc...because they all were funny as ****, but never fell into the whole 'working blue' stuff.

Oh and whoever posted that Brian Regan link, the man is one of the funniest comedians I've ever seen. I got a chance to meet him after a show, and he was also super nice, too.

Another hilarious comedian I enjoy who doesn't use hardly any profanity is Sean Cullen. He is completely random and hilarious, and is awesome at impersonations.

I've always said that profanity doesn't automatically make everything funnier...actually, I think the 'bleeps' they use during censored shows actually are funnier than actually hearing the words, hehe.

Just my two cents.

- Matty

 

[dkmontgomery]

Red Skelton get's a big A+ in my book!

 

[Muppet Loverr]

I enjoy Adult Puppetry, I LOVE Avenue Q! And Puppet UP! I love it

 

[Twitch92]

agreed.