I grew up in a very theatrical family so having an imagination isn’t something new to me. Whether it was playing with toy soldiers in my bedroom or playing around in the woods with my brothers my imagination just ran wild. So whenever I would watch “The Muppets” or “Fragle Rock” I believed that what I was seeing was real. As I got older I began to realize that the puppets weren’t really doing the talking but it was a person. That’s where the magic really started to happen with me. Going back and watching episodes of “The Muppets” I still got lost and forgot that the puppets were not real. I think that’s one of the special things about puppetry. You can take a simple object like a sock and make it into an incredibly interesting personality or character. I really like how puppetry doesn’t just have one audience but can be related to anyone of any age race gender or religion.
I remember watching Sesame Street when I was a little codger and I believed that Big Bird was real and that Oscar the Grouch actually lived in my garbage can. That’s one of the memories as a kid that I won’t forget that involved puppets. Even in my teenage days when ventriloquists like Jeff Dunham started to be shown on comedy central and his puppets had so much character and personality they seemed real. The things that he would say using the puppets was incredible to me because if he would have said them himself he probably would have gotten into trouble but I think that people get so entranced with his puppets that they forget that the puppets aren’t real.
A show that I have been really interested in seeing is “Avenue Q”. From what I have been told the show is based on “Sesame Street” and the characters have similarities to “Sesame Street” characters but aren’t trying to appeal to kids. It’s a puppet show for adults with valuable lessons that that characters sing about like the internet is for porn or how it sucks to be me or even everyone is a little bit racist today. My parents and older brother have seen the show and listen to the sound track occasionally and the songs are just hilarious and from what I have been told the puppeteers are outstanding.
Puppetry is a really interesting part of the theatre world. I find it interesting that there aren’t more shows involving puppets around like lamb chops play around or The Muppets. Even performers like the puppeteer from the movie we watched seem to be scarce. Maybe it’s because I don’t get to travel to big cities where the puppets are a normal thing. I would hate to see puppets become extinct.
I, like you, am no stranger to imagination. Growing up I was constantly making up scenes for my friends and I to act out at recess or coming up with various scenarios to have my Barbies act out. I would dress my Barbies up a certain way and essentially make them come to life, giving them each a distinct personality and voice. It kind of saddens me now, looking back and realizing how much of that part of me I’ve lost in the process of growing up. I’ve gone from a kid who blocked out the world while putting that glittery dress on “Princess Jasmine” to the typical college student whose days consist of sleeping, studying, and partying. Nowadays, when my niece asks me to play Barbies with her, I sometimes find it hard to put my cell phone away and sit down long enough to play pretend. I guess growing up does that to the best of us, but maybe puppetry is the secret here. Puppetry seems to evoke imagination in all of its audience, and a little more imagination is something that all of us could use. Being a theatre minor, I would say I’m still pretty imaginative in comparison to others but in no way do I have that fascinating imagination that my five year old self once had. Maybe puppetry can bring back the kid in us all. That’s definitely an idea I could live with.
ReplyDeleteP.S. This is sad, but I have not seen any of the shows you mentioned in your blog. I guess I will have to check them out!
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