Getting ready to lead my first 

CPAC workshop tomorrow...

Tomorrow begins yet another leg of my Fellowship Year journey...the start of my three-part workshop series on building theatre for children.  I am excited, and filled with nervous anticipation.  The roster tomorrow includes so many amazing artists and teachers--I cannot wait to see what the day brings.

As an artist, myself, I have built a method of creating that I call "found" theatre--it involves a combination of devised and scripted theatre, that also works very well in the classroom.  At its roots is the belief that the arts are best as a collaboration, as a true ensemble piece that gives every artist involved a voice, and ownership of what they have contributed and created.  It is always amazing to me what arises from these collaborative group partnerships, and I am left in awe of the trust, peripheral awareness, and unified energy that develops out of the process.  In adult artists, I have seen it bring a new set of eyes, an awakened understanding of how important they are in what they create--and I have watched them develop a new sense of what and how much they have to give to other artists, other people...and how it is okay to let what someone else is giving them IN.  In children, I have watched it help with a blooming process, and with communication, cooperation, awareness of self-worth, and a realization of self-confidence. It encourages children be children, and revel in it, and to feel how right it is to be who and what they are.

I am nervous about tomorrow, only because I am so excited to see what grows...and because I am so passionate about making this kind of theatre.  Tomorrow is the absolute perfect start to this part of my journey...and I am so pleased and proud to be taking the first steps with all of the people who will be joining me.

Let the games (and the blooming, the growth, and the heart) begin! 

The Bluest Skies You've Ever Seen Are In Seattle...

Part One 

 

The Seattle Children's Theatre

A trip back home to Seattle...a place of infinite beauty to me, filled with a hustle and bustle that is so magical.  The air, the earth, the GREEN of the place energizes everyone who lives there, and many who go to visit opt to stay.  It is this incredible energy and life that feeds the artistic environment that is the heart of this city, and I can honestly say that Seattle is the most kid-friendly place I have ever been.  The amount of programming for children and families in Seattle is incredible.  Everywhere you turn, there are signs for children's theatres, organizations, programs, activities.  Family festivals are everywhere.  And so, going to Seattle for my Fellowship was a no-brainer.  Yes, I was going home, but not actually to spend time with my genetic family---to spend time with my artistic family.

Scheduling with theatres in Seattle was easier than in any other city I've visited, or talked to.  All four of the organizations that I reached out to not only welcomed me with open arms, but planned whole days for me to spend with them.  The Seattle Children's Theatre even sent me several excited emails as the time of my visit grew ever-closer, each one saying how glad they were I was coming.  Once I arrived, there was so much to see, so much to hear, so much to say, so much to do. I will break the experience down into two posts, to avoid confusion (and because each of these stories is involved.)

Teatro Zinzanni

Director of Education at Teatro Zinzanni, Nadia Tarnawsky, greeted me and immediately presented to me all of the different types of programming for kids that they provide, then walked me through a tour of the building (which is filled with a dazzling cacophany of sights and sounds and VERY busy costume and crafts artisans, among other things), and introduced me to much of the staff, and several of the artists who work there.  Zinzanni (whose tag is "Love, Chaos & Dinner") is a circus.  Literally.  They perform under a century old spiegeltent called The Moulin Rouge.  It is one of only two still existing, and it is STUNNING.  The history of the tent alone is long and colorful, and best saved for another time. Being what they are, it is not surprising that their educational program is called Circus Camp (and I believe that the play on words is probably intended, ahem.) 

Their program is innovative, and reaches out to parts of the community that have never seen anything like what they have to offer.  Their performers are their teachers, and the children get intensives on how to clown, juggle, stilt-walk, do basic aerial silks, etc.  But they are also taught how to be a part of something wonderful--as a team--and how to be comfortable with who they are.  And in one program, they are taught Shakespeare.  In the first program, what they learn to do is quiet, physical, but then they are given another program that teaches them to combine these skills to express themselves through language, and even present shortened versions of entire, circus-filled Shakespeare plays at the end of the camp season. This amazing programming brings kids from every walk of life together, and teaches them to care--for themselves, and for others, in a way that only circus people can. I am in love.

Zinzanni's main fare is actually adult-oriented--part circus, part vaudeville, part cabaret, and all five-star dinner (yes, dinner--which gets written into the story of every show.)  They feature world-class international circus artists, who do insanely daring and slightly dangerous things in a surprisingly small (and crowded) space.  This is combined with music, outrageous comedy, and audience participation. In a lot of ways, it is a grown-up Talespinner Children's Theatre.  Nadia guested me into one of their shows, and it was top-notch, jaw-dropping...dinner (which was exquisite) was included DURING the show, so the whole affair is over three hours long, but it passes in the blink of an eye.  Colors, music, shapes, movement, laughter--so much laughter.  And I, all unaware, was gifted with a most unexpected treat (on top of the clap-your-hands-giddiness provided by every other aspect of this visit):  I have followed a clowning-trapeze act called the Die Meiers for years.  They are, to me, the perfect example of the silent, slow-take, effortlessly timed comedy act.  Perfection.  They are my go-to when I try to explain how that timing works to people I am working with.  And suddenly, they were at my table.  No warning, no fanfare, just shaking my hand, and then wowing the entire crowd.  Yup.  I turned into a puddle of fan-girl goo.  It was the perfect icing on the perfect cake.  Oh, and I got to chat with Sabine, the female half of the duo, for quite some time after the show.  She and her husband (the other half of the act) have children--and that is one of the things that fuels their comedy, making them laugh.  It doesn't get much better than that.

Alison is the recipient of a 2016 Creative Workforce Fellowship. This Fellowship is a program of the Community Partnership for Arts and Culture. Funding for the Fellowship program is made possible by the generous support of Cuyahoga County residents through a public grant from Cuyahoga Arts & Culture.

 

Children's Theatre and Nature Conservancy in the Painted Desert...

And here, tardy, is my report on the trip to GORGEOUS Phoenix, Arizona, where I was welcomed with open arms by Nancy Smith, and an ARMY of beautiful puppets.

Phoenix is stunning.  Pure and simple. At the time that I went there, in March, the orange blossoms and bougainvillea were in riotous bloom; so much so, in fact, that the entire city was under one of the most beautiful clouds of natural perfume I have ever smelled.  Upon arrival at my hotel--which was simple, but clean, comfortable, and affording a priceless view of the Superstition Mountains, I was informed that there had been "a few scorpions sighted in the area," but that I should be fine.  Happily, I received no creepy-crawly visitors in my room, or anywhere else.

I was pleasantly surprised to find that my hotel was only a mile from the airport, and in an almost straight line only three miles from Great Arizona Puppet Theater.  After about a seven minute journey from my "suite," I arrived at a most beautiful site (spelling intended): GAPT is housed in an old (read: historical landmark) Mormon church building.  The building, reminiscent of an old Spanish Mission, is HUGE, made with infinite care, and thick, thick walls.  It is a beauty, and unlike many theatres, situated in the middle of a residential neighborhood of some means.

 

Stepping inside, I am greeted by dozens, upon dozens of puppets, of all kinds on display--all created by Nancy and her husband over many years of making theatre arts for children.

Soon, the theatre is packed to over-flowing--children in the front, parents off to the sides and in the back.  I begin to fear that the place will burst, there are so many children, babies, students, and parents in this place, but finally, all settles down to nothing but a murmur of anticipation.

GATP does puppet theatre from its heart.  The fare is a well-known story, The Three Little Pigs, and the PUPPETS...oh, the puppets.  Unfortunately, the sound system that they used to body-mic the actors left a great deal to be desired, so I, at least, sitting in the back, had a hard time understanding what was being said and sung, but the children in the audience simply ate it up.  And the puppets...

The show was darling, the students and families happy and bubbling...and once they had all departed, what I consider the REAL magic started. Nancy happily took me on a tour of the entire building--workshops, scene shops, backstage, offices, EVERYWHERE.  She is proud of what they have achieved and maintained for decades.  And she should be.  To not only continue in their given community, but to SERVE it, and to make it a better place, they have partnered with such agencies as the Nature Conservancy and the Desert & Water Conservancy in their area, creating puppet programs to travel to ANYWHERE they are needed in their community to teach about preservation, conservation, and green living.  They have also developed programming with a local dentist, to help educate very young children about how and why you go to the dentist--and to teach about health and nutrition in a way that children and families can hear.  Nancy is such a firm believer that this is the right way to reach out to children and to schools and families to make them aware, that these have become their biggest educational outreach programs.  She showed me the puppets created for these shows, and they are stunning.  And highly accessible to small eyes, ears, and hands.

GAPT showed me the art of Making a Difference in your community in action and practice.  I left there, wheels turning on ways to make more of an artistic difference in my own community.  As beautiful as it is, I am not moved to relocate to Phoenix, but I definitely brought some of it, and some of its artistic ideals and ideas home with me...hopefully to help make my own community an even richer place through the arts...

Very special thanks to Nancy Smith for taking a BIG chunk out of her day to host me...

                                                            Live long, and PUPPET ON!!

Alison is the recipient of a 2016 Creative Workforce Fellowship. This Fellowship is a program of the Community Partnership for Arts and Culture. Funding for the Fellowship program is made possible by the generous support of Cuyahoga County residents through a public grant from Cuyahoga Arts & Culture.

Shiny Shadows, and I Have Found My Tribe...

Bedlam Design Center, a co-op design studio for area puppet artists.

Minneapolis...oh, Minneapolis.  

Two days of whirlwind activity, and my heart was snagged about an hour after I got off the plane.  In the two days I was there, I was shown such incredible generosity of heart and art, endless open arms and shaken hands, artists who LIVE the childlike glee of faeries as they weave their magic for the world, and easy camaraderie...I traveled from polished and shiny, to the bohemian tribe that I remember from my childhood growing up in the artistic community in the Pacific Northwest.  And the polished and shiny was beautiful, engaging, and so well done...but the eclectic, gypsy, wildly creative world that I encountered afterwards made my heart sing, and my spirit soar.  All of this, both ends of the spectrum.  THIS is why we do this.

Lobby displays of past productions at The Children's Theatre Company

Seeing THE SNOWY DAY AND OTHER STORIES was a surprise.  Not seeing it, actually--I'd bought my ticket in advance of the trip, after all--but the fact that it turned out to be largely shadow puppet work was the surprise.  The Children's Theatre Company is one of America's oldest, and probably the foremost theatre of its kind in the US.  It is shiny, and polished, and eye-catching, and heart-stoppingly lovely. The lobby is turned into a dreamhouse through stunning displays from past productions:  costumes, masks, puppets, posters, banners...There is a well-appointed gift shop in the center, but I was a little sad to see that it was not filled with things directly from the theatre, but rather the type of stuff that could be purchased in a high-end kids' store.  I would have liked to have seen things that were more directly related to the organization, itself, just to continue the wonder.

I had purchased a mezzanine seat, off to the side, so that my 5'10" frame wouldn't block the view of any little peeps.  I discovered that I had a wonderful eagle's eye view of not only the stage, but also the audience below, and so got to witness firsthand the excitement and anticipation of the growing crowd. The lights dimmed, and we all settled down...and I was instantly surprised and delighted (as were the small ones in the audiences, judging from the number of gasps and excited hand-claps) to be confronted by enormous shadow puppets of simple, yet magical abilities (and I'm STILL trying to figure out the movement mechanisms they used on these...they did things that sort of defied my puppet-logical brain...)  The mix of puppets, live-action, and music that ensued was wonderful.  At the peaceful pace it set, it did tend to feel a little long, and small bodies were beginning to squirm a bit by the end, but the applause and laughter that accompanied the curtain call proved just how much it was enjoyed.  I think I had a small grin on my face for the entire 65 minutes of the show.  Simple, lovely, sweet, gentle, and magical.  All that is right in the world.

And then...then my world exploded in glee.  

After the show, I walked across the hall to the Minneapolis Institute of Art, where it had been arrange for me to meet Krista, the wife of a friend from Cleveland's cousin.  I was welcomed warmly, and given a pass that allowed me to wander the exhibits freely while she finished up a class she was overseeing.  After viewing some delicious pieces from Asia and India, she re-joined me, and we left to meet her husband, Mark, who is the head puppeteer for In the Heart of the Beast's MayDay program.  We walked in the balmy (did I mention it was 70 degrees??) sunshine to an AMAZING and funky little vegan restaurant, where I had, among other extremely tasty things, a locally brewed ginger beer (non-alcoholic) that was the best I've ever tasted.  Mark joined us, and we were all soon talking like we'd known each other forever.  Krista left us to go and take her daughter to a performance of her own, and Mark whisked me away on what was to become a glorious trip to the Land of Oz.  Or Narnia.  Or Avalon...I'm not sure which it was, but it was like stepping through a door into another realm.  He drove me all over the city, introducing me to a bohemian clan of artists that was wide-spread, but incredibly close-knit.  Artists whose passion for their work enveloped them like an aura.  People with open hearts, kind eyes, old souls, playful smiles and energy, and endless, endless creativity.  Everyone greeted me like they'd known I was coming (they didn't) and like they had always known me (they hadn't.)  And in moments, we all became friends.  We talked in the rhythm of people who need to create.  Who see beauty in everything, and are endlessly curious.  These were some of the gentlest, kindest people I've met in a long time, and there was a natural wildness about them that was glorious.  I know I'm rambling on...but I was blown away and felt like I had come home.  

Mark (my host), Dan, and Moonear.  

After meeting so many people and being filled with so much creative wonder, we stopped at a fabulous group studio, where several different artists, puppet and cardboard, work.  There I was given a tour that included a two-and-a-half story crocodile tail (and head to match), a tiger that was bigger than a mini-van, and various and sundry other marvels.  I met a brilliant cardboard artist named Julian, and a very small and snorty pug--who was even friendlier than the people I met.  Then, we headed off to In the Heart of the Beast Theatre.  HoB is housed in an old porno house that was purchased and refurbished (at the point of sale, the marquee was made to read: "goodbye porno--hello puppets!") to become a modular, multi-usable performance space and art gallery.  The theatre itself is rough and filled with a sort of controlled-chaos vibe, but electric and alive, and infinitely welcoming.

After giving me a backstage tour, Mark took me across the street to a "bodega-mall" for a dinner of authentic folk-food (more on this later.)  Then we headed back to the main event, where the box office manager greeted us and said, "hey, the ushers never showed up.  Do you two feel like ushering?"  We said, "sure," and happily began folding programs for the show that we were seeing that evening--BASEMENT CREATURES.  After the day we'd just had, I was highly anticipating the show--which I'd been looking forward to, in the extreme, from the moment I stumbled on their website description that called it an "aerial rock opera with puppets for older children."  A gong sounded, everyone was seated (including us), and the show began.

BASEMENT CREATURES lobby display

BASEMENT CREATURES was...extraordinary.  In every sense of the word.  To say it was flawless would be a lie, but flawless isn't so important when what you are seeing is mind-blowing and life-changing.  Simple.  Stunning.  Magical.  Haunting.  The only thing that I saw that would make it for "older children" was that some of the basement creatures were a little scary, but the story itself was playful, and extremely creative--and there was DEFINITELY enough kid-friendly to keep a younger audience rapt. There was an aerial chain artist, incredible black light creatures, amazing music, and surprising special effects. All in an extremely small, intimate space.  The audience could have, literally, reached out and touched any actor or puppet at any time in that space.  While the story might not have been as cohesive as one might have wanted, every single other aspect of the show made up for it. And did I mention that one of the songs was belted out by a tiny woman with insanely big pipes, as she--playing a a spider--hung upside down and danced in a silken-aerial display? That happened.

In meeting the cast after, I was hit with a wave of youthful exuberance, and surety that what they were doing was what they SHOULD be doing.  It took me back to where I was at that age...and resonated in me with the voice that tells me all the time now, "THIS. THIS. THIS."

After a whirlwind couple of days, I returned to Cleveland.  Exhausted, with food poisoning (from the meal we had right before the show, I'm positive of it...it tasted a little...odd...going down, but I was so hungry at that point I would have eaten my shoe, if need be. Granted, the shoe might not have made me so sick, but...) that made the travel home more of an adventure than I would have liked, I came home with a glowing heart, re-opened eyes, and an affirmation that THIS.  THIS is why we do what we do.

Alison is the recipient of a 2016 Creative Workforce Fellowship. This Fellowship is a program of the Community Partnership for Arts and Culture. Funding for the Fellowship program is made possible by the generous support of Cuyahoga County residents through a public grant from Cuyahoga Arts & Culture.

  

In the Heart of the Beast...and Other Stories...

I'm off to Minneapolis this morning!!  So excited to visit In the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre this weekend!  My host will be the amazing puppeteer, Mark Safford, who has kindly (squeeeee!!!) invited me to work with him in his studio on building MayDay puppets before I go to the theatre, itself.  I am over the moon!  If you look at imagery from the shows at this theatre, or read anything about it, you will find magic. Magic in their work, magic in the faces of the children they reach.  I've not even been there yet, and already, I love everything about this place.

 MayDay Parade participants

 
Also on this visit, and equally as exciting, is a visit to a wonderful establishment, Children's Theatre Company of Minneapolis.  I will start my day on Saturday viewing their production of The Snowy Day and Other Stories, take a tour of their theatre, and then whisk myself away to work on puppets and to see what else I can find in the area that pertains to children's theatre...

 Cinderella at Children's Theatre Company

Peter Pan the Musical at Children's Theatre Company

After this whirlwind day, it will be back to Heart of the Beast to see their "rock opera for older children," BASEMENT CREATURES--a piece that includes aerial artists, rock music, puppets and masks...and takes us on a trip with a subterranean explorer and his travels in the underworld.

Not gonna lie, this adventure has me ALL AGOG!!!

PS:  I have not forgotten that I owe you more information about BEND at Puppet Showplace Theatre.  Patience, my friends.  This is a journey that is still unwinding its yellow brick road...

 Alison is the recipient of a 2016 Creative Workforce Fellowship. This Fellowship is a program of the Community Partnership for Arts and Culture. Funding for the Fellowship program is made possible by the generous support of Cuyahoga County residents through a public grant from Cuyahoga Arts & Culture.

Good Will in the Eye of the Whirlwind...

Cranberry Puppets--some of the original puppets

that started Puppet Showplace Theater

Puppet Showplace Theater, in Brookline, Massachusetts, is the oldest continuously running puppet theatre in the United States.  From the moment you walk into this small, warm, charming brick theater, you feel the weight of its years, and the joy that has sustained it for over four decades.  On the day that I visited, they were gearing up for two very different shows in one day.  In the afternoon, THE MAGIC SOUP was scheduled to perform, and then in the evening, in their "Puppets at Night" series, was a piece for an older crowd--BEND, written and created by Japanese-American artist Kimi Maeda about her father's time in an Internment Camp, and the double loss of identity when he began to struggle with dementia in his older years.  Between the two performances, they were hosting a very large birthday party in their colorful, kid-friendly lobby, and after the second performance, they were holding a very important JACL artist's reception.  With all of this going on, the small, efficient, warm and friendly staff was not even vaguely ruffled.  I, a visitor, had made arrangements to see both shows, and to meet with both the Artistic Director and the Resident Artist.  I had no idea I had interjected myself into what had to have been an exhausting day...

The lobby of Puppet Showplace Theater

By the time MAGIC SOUP began, it was to a packed house of excited and breathless children and their parents. What unfolded before all of us was a gentle, sweet, funny, and GORGEOUSLY puppeted story crafted of Yiddish tales.  I was on the edge of my chair with a huge grin on my face throughout the whole  show, as was every child in the room.  It was such a pleasure to see how another artist took these tales in hand and put them together in a way that connected and engaged with his audience so completely.  After the show, a large number of children swarmed to the front of the theatre to touch and hear about how the puppets were made and operated.  

Brad Shur, the resident artist, is a sweet young man, with an open, genuine face that is perfect for someone who operates puppets.  His performance as a visible puppeteer was just as interesting as the puppets he made and operated.  And the puppets he created were incredible.

Once the children were installed in their birthday party splendor out in the lobby,  I was whisked away by Roxie Myrhum, the Artistic Director, who did not seem put out in the slightest by the fact that this interloper from another city had landed at her theatre in the midst of what had to have been one of the busiest days in her season, and was expecting to be coffeed and talked to, in-depth about her theatre's mission and educational, engagement, and outreach programming.  What ensued was over an hour of wonderful kindred-spirit conversation and explanation of how things work for them, interspersed with the occasional whistful comment (on both sides) about wishing there was more support for the kind of programming both of us feel is so important to the way we make our art.  Finally, we headed back to the theatre (which, stuffed with exuberant birthday party participants when we left, was now completely empty and clean--the setting for the day's performance also gone and the stage at neutral,) where I got to have a piece of birthday cake, and then was set up at a desk to work on my computer while they all got back to preparing for the evening's performance.  All of this done with practiced efficiency and a good will sparked by easy comeraderie.  I felt amazed and grateful to be able to be in the midst of all of it.  Next up: BEND...

 Artistic Director Emeritus, 
Paul Vincent Davis

 A guardian and a butterfly 
keep watch over the audience

 

 Stay tuned for more on my visit to Puppet Showplace Theater...

Alison is the recipient of a 2016 Creative Workforce Fellowship. This Fellowship is a program of the Community Partnership for Arts and Culture. Funding for the Fellowship program is made possible by the generous support of Cuyahoga County residents through a public grant from Cuyahoga Arts & Culture.

 

Magic Soup, Indeed...

Puppet Showplace Theatre...before MAGIC SOUP...

MAGIC SOUP was a delightful puppet performance designed, written, and performed by resident artist Brad Shur.  Stylistically, a very different way of telling a story than I am used to--and played to a completely packed, rapt audience.  It was a joy...

Afterwards, coffee break with Artistic Director Roxie Myhrun...refreshing and exciting.  Ideas and methods of development and education were discussed, exchanged, and explored.  More thoughts on this entire experience after I see tonight's Puppets at Night production at the theatre, called BEND, about a young Japanese woman's father's experience in an internment camp.  Filled with anticipation to see how she treats sand as puppetry to tell the story...

So far, this whole thing has been very engaging and informative, and I can only see it getting better as the evening progresses...

More later!

 Alison is the recipient of a 2016 Creative Workforce Fellowship. This Fellowship is a program of the Community Partnership for Arts and Culture. Funding for the Fellowship program is made possible by the generous support of Cuyahoga County residents through a public grant from Cuyahoga Arts & Culture.