The Devil and Mr. Punch

This is NOT your Grandfather's Punch!

A collaboration between UK and US individuals and groups, performances are happening now at the Barbican;  US productions were performed in two locations last year -  Minneapolis in May, and Philadelphia in September; the production evolved as it went along.

Read more about the wonderful people behind the show, including a lovely interview with the director where he talks about the history of Punch.  Also, the Barbican's 'behind the scene' article, "That's the Way to Do it!"

While Punch is normally not performed as a toy theatre production, I have a weakness for the old scroundrel!  I did find at least one play for the small stage for him, by Langdale, however...

Dramatis Personae Catalogue 109

The latest Dramatis Personae catalogue is out!

As always, this amazing quarterly ephemera sale include several vintage juvenile drama-related items of the highest quality.

Several juvenile portraits are being offered, including one by Skelt (1836), two by Fairburn (1835 and 1838), and one by Jameson (1818).

Also in this sale, are some scene sheets, and a German book from 1915 about putting on toy theatre productions.

Please note that Dramatis Personae have a large inventory of items not necessarily in the sale itself.  Take a look at them; I found on a casual look through a few pages, for example, a penny plain portrait by Hodgson, c. 1827...

Poe-Dunk Matchbox Theatre

The mind boggles at the small scale!

Playlab NYC will present Poe-Dunk – A Matchbox Entertainment as a part of the 2012 FRIGID New York Festival.

Kevin performs a matchbox production

Kevin P. Hale, one of the founding members of Playlab NYC, is the creative mind behind these exceedingly small toy theatres.  Kevin has a blog where he explored openly shares his concepts and explorations - it makes pretty interesting reading!

Some characters are performed via matchsticks!

Kevin will be presenting a series of tiny-scaled plays based on the tales of Poe, including one called "The Oval Portrait":

The story was originally published as “Life in Death” and is the shortest of Poe’s stories. It was also the inspiration for Oscar Wilde’s novel The Picture of Dorian Gray. The actual story of the portrait only takes a single paragraph to tell, and everything else leading up it that story seems like filler. It was precisely because it was Poe's shortest work that I thought it would lend itself well to matchbox treatment.

Despite the tiny scale, color and design abound!

Doctor Parnassus Toy Theatre

I recently began watching the incredible film, THE IMAGINARIUM OF DOCTOR PARNASSUS. I did some research on the film, and lo and behold, someone has made a wee toy theatre kit based on the traveling theatred featured in the film!

Puppet Film Project

I encourage you to view the trailer, then support Andrew's film project, PuppetVision: The Movie.

Christmas Creativity

A scene from a recent toy theatre adaption of Dicken's "A Christmas Carol"...

This year, Macy's famous storefront displays are using a Steampunk theme for Christmas, with puppets!

Alice: 3D becomes 2D

I wrote about the Alice Theatre previously, when it was being offered in a 3-D format.

Now, the creator has made it available in good old fashioned 2-D.  You can print and use as a traditional theatre (which is amazing enough), but they also demonstrate how it can be inventively used with other images for photography prints!

Story Behind the Story

I wrote about this before...

The above clip is from a new documentary explaining who the artists were that created the huge, wall mural depicting a very LARGE toy theatre several stories high!  It's the story behind the story...

A Small Christmas

The Thorne Collection is getting dressed up for Christmas!

Here are a few slides showing this miniature collection being decorated for the holidays...

Dollmaker Extraordinaire

The two Alices on their Wonderland toy theatre stage...

Rebeca Cano makes amazing dolls, yes, but she makes much more than dolls.  She makes an entire world for her dolls down to the smallest, most exquisite detail.  It is truly a joy to behold.

"...she came upon a low curtain she
has not noticed before..."

Before she began making dolls, Rebeca had never sewn.  Hard to believe when you see the incredible miniature clothing and other textiles she creates.  She is mostly self-taught, which I greatly admire.  Inspiration can be a powerful motivator.

Right now, she has a sale on, of a toy theatre tableaux featuring her favorite story character, Alice in Wonderland.  It is an ongoing project of hers...

The project is designed to be exhibited in a museum of contemporary art, as yet undefined.  All my dolls have their origins in a tale that I believe; I like to give soul to my dolls, and that is why I started in this world.

You can read more about Rebeca here and see more of your dolls here...

Another Toy Theatre Mural!

The Toy Theatre is a mural created by artist Peter Waddell on a wall at 1914 Sunderland Place NW at New Hampshire, a block south of Dupont Circle, in Washington, DC...

Occupy Puppets!

I love how the Occupy movement is inspiring people of all sorts to communicate about building a better society. It's what most people want...

Toy Shop Virtual Tour

Anthropomorphic Taxidermy

I don't know about you, but I think anthropomorphic taxidermy has a great power to convey stories and ideas. I adore them...

Theatre Centenary

Nigel Peevers shared this recently:

The Lyceum Theatre in Crewe was 100 years old this year and for their centenary they had a specially commissioned light show projected on the front of the building...in one of life's weird little coincidences I'd already been telephoned and asked if they could use some images from my toy theatre book in the show.

Toy Theatre Large-Scale Mural

"The Toy Theatre is a mural being created by artist 
Peter Waddell with the assistance of fellow artists..."

An amazing public space arts project is unfolding right now in the Washington, DC area. An artist is painting a large-scale mural on a side of a historical building, in a historical neighborhood.

Slowly appearing on the wall is a huge painting of a giant toy theatre. Beneath the monumental proscenium arch, 40' high, the stage is set with scenery representing the first two great mansions of Dupont Circle. The British Legation on Connecticut Avenue and “Stewarts Castle” on the Circle arose from the area's rough farmland in the 1870s.

To see the progress as it unfolds, visit the gallery page of the artist's website.

A Way of Life

My friend Ann (who I hope to meet in person some day), her talented husband, George...and friends!
[Photo Credit:  Lori M. Nichols - Gloucester County Times]

A lovely article about George and Ann Neff, who kindly built me a toy theatre a few years ago. They are a very talented couple who love the world of puppets!

A Paradox: Giant "Toy Theatre"

I came across an article describing an upcoming public art event featuring a giant "Toy Theatre".Created by a UK designer, it is described as being "...based on a Victorian children’s toy theatre built to life-size proportions...The huge cube-shaped stage has incorporated a vibrant Victorian design, mixed with images of popular cult figures, such as The Stig from BBC’s Top Gear, Kermit the frog and Kylie Minogue."

Little Story Houses

I happened upon these fun little theatres thanks to Benjamin Pollock's Toyshop today. The maker is a very talented young woman who also makes dolls...

Tinselled juvenile drama portrait, “Mr. Wood as Sultan in
Sublime and Beautiful.” London: M. & M. Skelt, [c. 1837]. 

It's Dramatis Personae Catalogue time!

Catalogue #107, to be exact.

DP presents for sale, a handful of times per year, some of the best Ephemera available, including several offerings related to juvenile drama, aka toy theatre.

Traveling Family Puppeteers

Post Fishmarket 2011

The Third International Toy Theatre Festival at Vischmarkt this past month was a great success. Wonderful new memories were made by festival performers and audience members alike.

You can see from the photos how diverse and unique each performer's vision was, from the theatre designs to the lighting to the presentations.

Fellow performers and audience members alike were fascinated and curious about each production and often would tour 'backstage', ask questions, etc.

Once can sense great camaraderie among the festival attendees. It reminds me greatly of my experience of attending and participating in science fiction conventions. Fellowship with others that are like-minded is very therapeutic...

Toy Theatre Contest Starts!

Opening Event for Pollock's toy theatre iPad application competition...

Benjamin Pollock's Toyshop has announced an exciting competition involving toy theatre, using their amazing new iPad application...

The beautiful toy theatres of the Victorian era have been brought to life again through Pollock's gorgeous and innovative application for the iPad. Just like the original toy theatres where you immerse yourself in building your own theatre sets, etc.

Description
Competition Closing Date: 31st August (midnight GMT)
Join in the celebrations and be in the chance to win a fabulous new iPad and exclusive Pollock's Store Lock-In. Follow these simple steps and get creative:

1. Download the Pollock's Toy Theatre app from iTunes to your iPad
2. Record your play on your iPad. Don't forget to save it!
3. Decorate your iPad
4. Video yourself, your decorated iPad and your play.
5. Upload the video to youTube and send us a link via the competition facebook page

Terms & Conditions:
Submissions after 31st August will not be counted. The prize is a pair of tickets for the winner and 10 friends to a private hire of the Pollock’s store in Covent Garden, London with refreshments and storytelling entertainment, on a date to be agreed between the winner and the prize provider before 1st October 2011, within a 6pm- 8.30pm Time Slot. These dates/ times are subject to change. The winner acknowledges that in the event that Pollock’s have to change the dates/ times, the promoter does not accept responsibility in these circumstances and no alternative prize will be provided. Prize winners under 18 years of age must be accompanied by an adult at all times at their Pollock’s event.

My apologies for not posting immediately, since this actually started a few days ago, but I only became aware of it today.  Get your thinking caps on and your iPads out!  August 31st is the deadline.  Good luck, and I hope some of you reading this will share what you come up with...

Cantastoria Festival Starts June 19th

I am passing on an announcement I received today, in hopes that it will let others know about a wonderful event beginning this weekend.  I doubt  you'll find many productions like this anywhere else!

Pre-cinematic technology takes over HERE for a week of contemporary cantastoria cooked up by puppeteers, artists, and craftspeople from across the country. A millenium-old art form is rejuvenated and re-imagined, as performers animate paintings and banners alongside texts, puppets, jokes, songs and stories.

Each unique program features several original shorts on a given theme such as: Boom or Bust, Phobia & Fetish, or Sink or Swim. On June 22nd and 23rd, Great Small Works will perform a brand-new cantastoria, Three Graces, in which three mythical graces — Harmony, Strategy and Splendor — float down to earth for an Op-Art romp inspired by Grace Kelly, Grace Paley, Grace Jones and Grace Lee Boggs.

The Greatest Smallest Band will kick off the afternoon with a parade, followed by simultaneous shows throughout the park. Bring a picnic and the whole family and celebrate Father’s Day and the third longest day of the year with Great Small Works, Bread and Puppet Theater, The Dolly Wagglers, Jonny Clockworks & the Cosmic Bicycle Theatre, Clare Dolan, Sara Peattie, Sam Wilson, Daniel Lang-Levitsky, Theater Oobleck, Redwing Blackbird Theater and the Lubberland National Dance Company, all in full view of the New York Harbor and Lower Manhattan. Free of charge!

AND Great Small Works will present the opening event for Banners and Cranks on Sunday, June 19th, from 4 to 7:30 PM at Pier One in Brooklyn Bridge Park (rain location: the Tobacco Warehouse) in DUMBO on the Brooklyn waterfront.

Illustrations Inspire Toy Theatre

Kate Greenaway book illustrations inspired this delightful toy theatre...

I ran across a mixed-media artist's blog today that featured a lovely toy theatre she threw together, her inspiration coming from the illustrations of Kate Greenaway.  There's something about that artist that I find very appealing.  It is more a composite of the story the characters were taken from rather than a re-telling of that tale, but I like what she came up with.

Precious Object: Toy Theatre

The toy theatre sat in the front room of her house for years when she was married and was played with a lot by every child that came round for tea. Once a letter was posted through the letterbox addressed to “Wooden O’Theatre”.  - From Treasure:  The World's Most Precious Objects

Twenty-three years ago, a woman began making a toy theatre for her son.

           It was during a happy phase 
           when he loved to sit next to her...

It never quite got finished, but it also was never forgotten...

Cantastoria Festival!

Although definitely not toy theatre, an upcoming cantastoria festival is too good to pass up passing on!

From the organization's site behind it, here's the skinny:

Pre-cinematic technology takes over  for a week of contemporary cantastoria, cooked up by puppeteers, artists and craftspeople from across the country. A millennium-old art form is rejuvenated and re-imagined, as performers animate paintings and banners alongside texts, puppets, jokes, songs and stories. 

Each unique program features several original shorts on a given theme, and the festival kicks off with a FREE opening celebration, presented by Great Small Works at Pier 1 in Brooklyn Bridge Park.

Vischmarkt Spotlight: Rough Magic Theatre, UK

Who is that 'nice woman'...?

Collette Knowles is a puppeteer.  Soon, she will be performing a production of her original adaption of "Hansel and Gretel" at the upcoming toy theatre festival in the Netherlands.

A Man & His Dolls

My friend Vanesa shared this trailer with me recently. As she says, "This looks like an extraordinary film about dolls and a man's relationship with them..."

A Nazi scrutinizes Captain Hogancamp...

After viewing the trailer, viewing still shots taken by Mark (the man behind all this), and reading about the story behind the film, I couldn't agree more. An amazing use of the imagination and creativity for self-healing.

Puppetry International Issue #29: TOY THEATRE!

Several weeks ago, I was asked if I would be interested in submitting an article for the next issue of Puppetry International, which was going to focus an entire issue on toy theatre. I happily agreed, and submitted a book review about Mo Heard's new book, Leo's Heroes.

Well, the issue has just been published, and I got a copy in the mail today.  I am tickled pink with the result.

The entire issue highlights the wonderful world of toy theatre, including of course some of its history, but just as importantly, the current renaissance of the form in many wonderful ways.

Nashville in Miniature

See more miniatures here...

I recently was on holiday to visit my daughter and her family, as well as my son. all of whom live in the Nashville, Tennessee area.

While there, I was able to take in an amazing exhibition at Cheekwood Botanical Gardens entitled Trains in G.

The exhibit is a miniature town consisting of various landscapes, plants, infrastructure (bridges, roadways, railroads, etc.), and buildings.  All the buildings and infrastructure are made from natural material - plants, trees, rock, etc.  The buildings are all re-creations of actual homes and businesses, either historical or modern, that either existed or did exist once, in the Nashville area.

As a novice toy theatre enthusiast, it was a marvelous outing on a beautiful day.  I must say, I greatly admire the artist behind it; the exhibit was designed and constructed by Paul Busse, of Applied Imagination, using something he calls Botanical Architecture...

The Nashville Parthenon - a re-creation itself - is recreated here in miniature...

Toy Theatre Festival 'Trailer'

The biannual toy theatre festival in the Netherlands is coming up soon. Check out this trailer showing highlights and performers from other recent festivals there to give you an idea of what you can see if you attend (which is highly recommended by the way...!)

Muppet Toy Theatre

Maple floor boards, fully functional footlights, & hand-crafted baroque panels

Lance Cardinal is a genius in my book.

Take a look at his Muppet Theatre project. Take a good look. It's utterly amazing, the detail and quality of his work. I am blown away...

Behind the scenes...

In a different post, you can see the design process itself...Fascinating!

Lance, you have a rare and special gift.  Thank you for sharing this project with us!

Third Int'l Toy Theatre Festival at Vischmarket

A festival performance, in-process...

This June, the bi-annual toy theatre festival in the Netherlands will be happening.

The Third International Toy Theatre Festival at Vischmarkt (Fishmarket) in Harderwijk, Netherlands will be June 1-3, 2011. You can check out the festival's website for more information (continually 'under construction' with updates...)

A wonderful pictorial overview of the last festival can be found at this site.

Posts about past festivals on this blog can be found here.

A performance over, the 'man behind the curtain' reveals himself...

Dramatis Personae Catalogue #106

Grand Combat in the Secret Mine No.2
(Hodgson & Co., 1822)

As always, it is a joy to announce that the latest catalogue has come out from Dramatis Personae!

You will find all sorts of fascinating ephemera for sale, including some delightful toy theatre-related items.

I highly encourage anyone interested in vintage toy theatre to check them out...

Spotlight: Paper Cinema

They combine many elements, including toy theatre.  As Mike M. (my tipster) told me, "I love seeing the cut-outs freed from the stage..."

Troy in Troytown

From their website 'About' tab:

The Paper Cinema is an illustrated song, a shadow, a smoke, a mirror, a puppet show, a cinema show, side show, magic show, a show and tale, a show off. It exists in the meeting of live music and moving drawings.

What happens at the accidental meeting of inkblots, photocopies, cardboard, angle-poise lamps, the occasional table, video technology, a laptop and a banana box?

Best to see The Paper Cinema with your own eyes…



From a review:

"...Huddled in the dimly lit room we watched a screen in front of us while to one side the company themselves sat, arrayed around a tiny black box and a video camera. As they delicately moved dozens and dozens of paper cutouts back and forth in front of the camera on the screen in front of us a world was conjured; a world of pirates and plague, of mysterious figures and rowdy bars, of magical journeys and impossible twists of fate. To the gentle and perfectly pitched sound of a single live guitar these sinisterly beautiful illustrations danced across the screen. The whole experience was just completely lovely."

Toy Theatre Influence: 2D Animation II

Another animation film project that incorporates elements of toy theatre, is in production.

Molly is an incredible artist. I've been following her for years, and own some of her art. This is exciting to see her art come to life!

Toy Theatre as Therapy

The 2nd World Congress of Art Therapy will be held in Hungary this coming August. I recently learned that toy theatre is one of the forms that will be discussed in the context of therapeutic application. While using puppetry as therapy is not a new concept, I was fascinated to read how toy theatre in particular is being explored to use in just that way...

NOTE:  I initially took offense at the writer saying that "Nearly everyone who has dabbled in the Juvenile Drama agrees that the performances of the plays were usually a failure. It was the preparation that provided so many hours of delight."  But then I thought about it, especially after I read his later observations.  I think he has a strong point - while I don't think performances per se are 'failures', the process of creating is as important, if not moreso, than the finished product (at least for me...)  Whatever your opinion, I encourage you to give this unusual paper a read and see what the writer has to say...

New Shop Celebrates Storytelling

Liminal Space opened this week...

A new shop has opened in the London area that celebrates storytelling in many ways, including the form of toy theatre!

They describe themselves as "...a pop-up shop celebrating storytelling through the making and animating of hand-crafted objects."

You can see more here...

"...the grim ending to Baba Yaga is performed, as we watch a wicked,
money-hungry  stepmother and her two obnoxious daughters being
turned to ash by the flames from a skull's eyes."

Optical Toys: Cyclotrope

The Cyclotrope from tim Wheatley on Vimeo.

A delightful re-purposing of bicycle parts!

The creator, Tim Wheatley, had this to say...

The cyclotrope is a cycle of 18 images that is spun at a certan speed so that the frame rate of the camera filming it gives the illusion of animation.

Toy Theatre Influence: 2D Animation

Toy Theatre & Beyond

The Fifth Annual Toy Theatre After Dark Festival starts today in Minneapolis, Minnesota.  Programming is staggered with several options for the festival-goer...

Intimate, inventive, and wonderfully odd, toy theater has enjoyed a resurgence in recent years, especially in the Twin Cities. From shows-in-a-suitcase, paper marionettes, and wearable theater to shadow plays, weird object animation, and table-top cantastorias (sung stories), a new wave of theater miniaturists is captivating audiences with fresh approaches to an old art form. The award-winning Open Eye Figure Theatre began showcasing the burgeoning local scene in 2007, and now partners with the Walker to expand into a two-week festival and present a program that includes short new pieces from local and national artists. Two distinctly different programs offer a stunning spectrum of miniature puppetry work. Featuring the far flung and home grown puppeteers Justin Spooner, Kurt Hunter, Z Puppets, Robin Schwartzman, Kristi Tiernes, David Commander, Amber Davis, Dolly Wagglers, Michael Montenegro, Michael Sommers, and Billy Mullaney. Curated by Susan Haas with Michael Sommers and Philip Bither.

May Festival Recognizes Bicentennial

The poster's striking image is a brilliant focus on the foundation of toy theatre:  PAPER!

7th INTERNATIONAL PAPER THEATRE MEETINGS
25 – 29 May 2011
Pays d’Epernay – Terres de Champagne
Bicentenary of Paper Theatre Just 200 years ago, in the window of a small publisher’s book shop in London, appeared the sheets which made it possible to construct a real theatre at home for the first time; miniature but real…
All Europe published these theatres until they gradually disappeared at the beginning half of the twentieth century before reappearing in the 1980s by artists who brought them a future in other scales.
The Paper Theatre International Meetings which takes place in Pays d’Epernay – Terres de Champagne is devoted to this technique.
Exhibition
Paper Theatre from the Origins to the Present Day

Two hundred years of history, the first portraits until the most contemporary proposals
An exhibition in 200 m²
18 May – 25 June at the Multimedia library of Epernay
Coproduction: Papierthéâtre, Pays d’Epernay, Epernay Municipality, the Puppetry International Festival of Charleville-Mézières, with the support of the Ministry of Culture, Champagne Ardenne Regional Council and Marne Departmental Council.
(The exhibition will be in Charleville-Mézières in September 2011)

SHOWS
16 companies
9 countries
20 towns

Companies:
Svalegangens Dukketeater – Denmark
Paperplays – England
Puppet Working Group – England
Anima – France
Théâtre de l’Arc-en-Terre – France
Atelier de la Boule Bleue – France
En Verre et contre Tout – France
Volpinex – France
Barbara Steinitz & Björn Kollin – Germany
Burgtheater – Germany
Darvag – Iran
Papelito – Italy
Facto Teatro – Mexico
Teatro de Formas Animadas de Vila do Conde – Portugal
Scope Toy Theatre – The United States

Towns:
Avize, Bouzy, Congy, Dormans, Epernay, Fleury la Rivière, Germaine, La Caure, Le Breuil, Mareuil le Port, Oeuilly, Orbais l’Abbaye, Pierry, Tauxières Mutry, Tours sur Marne, Troissy, Vandières, Vertus, Villeneuve-Renneville-Chevigny, Villevenard

Information:
Paperthéàtre
Papier.theatre@wanadoo.fr
Reservation:
MJC d’Ay
contact@mjc-ay.com
0033 (0)3 26 55 18 44

Website: www.ritp.fr

Toy Theatre for iPad Official Launch

The joy on the children's faces as they see their toy theatre creation come alive put a big smile on my face!

I love seeing today's tech-savvy kids gets turned on to old tech interpreted by new tech. A great idea, and hats off to Pollock's Toy Shop for introducing it...

Toy Theatre at the Library

Decameron no 2 a photo by John Elmslie on Flickr.

Mariella Bertelli is a storyteller and librarian with an extensive background in puppetry and theatre. She has recently worked on a retelling of the 16th century Italian classic Orlando Furioso and on her own stories inspired by material in the Toronto Archives.

Decameron no 5 a photo by John Elmslie on Flickr.

I contacted Mariella to ask about her involvement in toy theatre.  She shared that "...toy theatres are my passion after discovering them while working at the Osborne collection of Early Children's books...With my friend (and fellow librarian) Mary Anne Cree we have developed and performed (to private audiences) two shows -real adult content- adapting two stories from Boccacio's Decameron, and have had lots of fun doing them."


The source material sounds very challenging to adapt, but from the still shots I found of her doing one of the productions, shared here, it looks like it was an amazing occasion, complete with live music according to the notes!

Madness in Miniature

The House Theatre presents Madness in Miniature.

Performer, designer and puppeteer Meredith Miller stars in this elegantly macabre evening, which recreates the early 20th-century practice of parlor entertainment featuring toy theater and adult puppetry. Accompanied by live jazz and ragtime on grand piano, Miller evokes an Edward Gorey-esque vibe that tells a story of love and loss.


Meredith Miller’s hour-long escape into the depths of the Chopin Theatre’s opulent lounge recaptures the intimate feeling of the time when people performed toy-theater and puppetry for each other as live entertainment in their parlors. The mood is evocative of the artwork of Edward Gorey—elegant, macabre, understated, and hovering somewhere between Victorian and Art Deco. And by pairing a line-up of intimate, lush puppetry performances with virtuosic jazz and ragtime played live on a grand piano, we have the feeling of having slipped back in time and found ourselves in a mysterious, timeless, parlor populated by dark humor macabre notions of love and loss.

Meredith Miller is a Chicago-based designer and performer of original object-based theatrical works. Her recent work includes The Abduction, originally created for "The World is Flat! A Weekend of Toy Theater" at Chicago's Links Hall, where she shared the bill with Great Small Works. Following this performance, Meredith was invited to appear in Open Eye Theater's annual Toy Theater After Dark festival in Minneapolis, and Great Small Works' 9th Annual Toy Theater Festival in New York.

Sources: goldstar.com and thehousetheatre.com