Puppet U

Thanks Guys!

2008-08-22T19:18:00.000-07:00

This year, I had several amazing interns to assist me with the set-up and tear down of my shows. It made it much easier (and less painful) to perform!

Thanks Crystal! You rock!

Merci Stacey! It was a pleasure having you aboard!

Gracias Gabriel! You were a life-saver (and just as sweet!)

Also shout outs to Qarly and Jason (I didn't snag photos of those guys--it was early in the run, and my mind was focused on the shows! Still, they were awesome).

I can't imagine my summer without ya!

- ATG

Redwood City Main Library

2008-08-13T16:44:00.000-07:00

A pic of the set up from Redwood City! Always a great show!

Love the room set up! The Redwood City staff did an amazing job of getting the room ready for the show. It makes getting ready a snap!

Totoro Forest Project

2008-08-12T00:42:00.000-07:00

The Totoro Forest Project is a fantastic fundraising Art Exhibition/Auction that is being organized for the Non-Profit "Totoro No Furusato National Fund", a fund established by Hayao Miyazaki. The Exhibition/Auction will feature over 200 original art pieces from artists in the fields of animation, comics, illustration, and fine art.

The Totoro Forest Fund was started in 1990 as a way to preserve the Sayama Forrest. This gorgeous area is just outside of Tokyo and is said to have been the inspiration for "My Neighbor Totoro". The Totoro Forest Project is a fundraiser to benefit the foundation.

Tickets are on sale NOW! So hurry up and grab them! Come out to see some wonderful art AND support a great cause!

Event Details:

When: September 6th

Where: Pixar Animation Studios

Ticket Cost:
Forest Friend - 100$ regular admission + book.
Forest Sponsor - 200$ includes admission + book + signed limited edition print
Forest Champion - $300 includes middle VIP live auction seating + book + signed limited edition print + gift certificate to Blowfish Sushi
Forest Hero - $500 includes front VIP live auction seating + book + an original drawing by one of the artists

You can buy tickets and learn more about the project (plus view the pieces up for auction) at the Totoro Forest Project website Check out the one from my husband, Jeff Pidgeon, if you get the chance!

Greetings from Comic-Con!

2008-07-29T17:50:00.001-07:00

A snap from the Fraggle Rock panel at Comic-Con on Sunday. It was awesome seeing Red Fraggle Live (with the lovely and talented Karen Prell performing)! There's a vid snippet for you too, on YouTube! A bit of the "Friendship Song" is here. Enjoy!

S. San Francisco July 18th

2008-07-21T18:01:00.000-07:00

Here's the show all set up for "Bugsy Brown: Private Fly" at the South San Francisco Municipal Building. It was their Summer Reading Program Finale and there were loads of folks who turned out for the performance! Once the show was over, the Librarians and volunteers served cake and juice to the attendees (I got a piece of Chocolate cake with chocolate frosting - YUM!). Now that's a good time! A puppet show and cake! What could be better?

I'm off to San Diego this week to enjoy Comic-Con! If any of you folks happen to be there, stop by the Red Window booth (#4800) and visit us! We'll be selling Jeff Pidgeon's Happy Beaver toy alongside the amazing talents of Bill Pressing and Scott Morse

RED FRAGGLE at Comic-Con!

2008-07-20T12:51:00.000-07:00

Holy Smokes gang! It is OFFICIAL! Red Fraggle herself will be at Comic-Con on Sunday, July 27th! I am so frickin'excited about this! I'll BE at Comic-Con and plan on sitting front and center to watch RED FRAGGLE dance her cares away right in front of me!

Apparently, she's going to be there (along with the always amazing puppeteer, Karen Prell) to stump for the Fraggle Rock DVD's. YAY! Click on the link above to get the info on the 'con schedule, the location of the Fraggle Rock event, and of course, a ticket (if you don't already have them).

See you at the 'Con!

NW Santa Rosa

2008-07-18T00:53:00.000-07:00

Just finished my sweep of the Sonoma County Libraries! Whew! Lots of shows in a week! They were all wonderful and PACKED! Thanks Sonoma County!

The pic above is a snap of the sign left for us at the NW Santa Rosa Library. The staff there kindly arranged for yummy snacks (cookies, fruit, water) and gave us a little quiet time in their break-room. NW Santa Rosa, you are very gracious hosts!

I've got more puppet pics to post...keep your eyes peeped for them sometime this weekend!

TIME CHANGE! Mountain View 7/19

2008-07-15T18:33:00.000-07:00

My show on July 19th (Saturday) was changed to 11:30am. Since we're all on tour, it's tough to update the main site--this blog, however, is strictly up to me to update (which, I've been neglecting for the tour too!).

So, mark your calendars if you were planning on going to the Mountain View show and please, note the time shift!

See you all at the shows!

Space Bugs - Zeta

2008-06-30T12:20:00.000-07:00

Sean is touring with Space Bugs Zeta. I took this pic of Bobby Drone while Sean was rehearsing the show. I gotta' tell ya, I love these Space Bugs shows! They stand alone but, really, you should see them both! It has a sweeping epic feel to it! A puppet show epic! Who knew?!

I'm off to Sacramento tomorrow, so it's unlikely I'll get to posting. I'll try tho! See you at the shows!

Puppet Pile - Space Bugs Alpha

2008-06-26T15:23:00.000-07:00

The pile of puppets on the floor between rehearsals. This one is a close up. I think I've got one from further back!

Robo-Locusts

2008-06-20T10:43:00.000-07:00

A pic of the Robo-Locusts in Space Bugs Alpha. These puppets are so cool! They look like they're made from metal. They move great too!

Space Bugs Alpha is on tour now!

Space Bugs - Alpha

2008-06-19T18:02:00.000-07:00

Patrick is touring with Space Bugs Alpha and I got the chance to see the rehearsals for this show. It's a really great one! Here's a pic of StarFly with the mini-locust.

Summer 2008 Rehearsals!

2008-06-17T23:27:00.000-07:00

So, here we are again! Rehearsing puppet shows galore! This is a shot of the Space Bugs set up. Both Space Bugs shows have similar stages but, wow! The puppets for each are so amazing! In addition to rehearsing two Space Bugs shows, we're also touring "The Magical Misadventures of Walnut the Wizard" and "Bugsy Brown, Private Fly". That's a lot of stuff to get done in a week!

Recovering

2008-03-08T01:53:00.001-08:00

I'm still recovering from knee surgery. I'll be up and about starting next week. My time at the computer will be limited...it hurts to sit in chairs with my legs bent and my laptop died a long time ago.

Sorry for the spotty posts...gotta get the knee working ASAP!

PuppeTales pt. 2

2008-02-21T13:59:00.000-08:00

Need some tips on operating a puppet?
* Practice before your debut! Bring the puppet home and sit in front of a mirror with a book in your hand. Practice holding the book and showing it to the puppet. Practice turning pages and using the puppet to keep them steady. Practicing in advance will give you confidence in front of your audience!

* To keep the character looking real, make sure your mascot looks down at the book he’s reading. Actually move the characters head to follow along the sentences and down the page. When you turn the page, Have the character watch the page move. This does actually help to give it life and make it more “real”!

If using a puppet to read the books sounds complicated (it’s NOT! Really!), you can still incorporate a mascot into your programs! Once you pick a puppet, you can hold a naming raffle and offer the children a chance to enter names for the character! If you hold regular drawings for reading prizes, you can have the mascot pick the names and read them out (he or she can also congratulate the winners!). Your mascot can offer book suggestions that change weekly! Children can make reading suggestions to your mascot! The possibilities are limited only by a lack of imagination!

Have fun and your audience will as well!

Read the entire article and more by downloading it!

PuppeTales article (Feb. 2008) Part 1

2008-02-13T14:21:00.000-08:00

Here's Part ONE of my PuppeTales article for Mr. Anderson's Company! Download the entire newsletter here!

Creating a Storytime Mascot!

In many libraries, and classrooms, it is traditional to sit the children down on the floor and read them a story. This is a wonderful time to introduce whimsy and play to children and one of the ways to do that is to create and use a storytime mascot!

There are many ways to use a puppet as your mascot! You can pick a single puppet to read stories to the children for storytime, or you can rotate a “team” of mascots to read stories that “fit” them (I.e. a bug for bug books, a dog for stories about dogs, etc.). Generally, I use only animals for storytelling. It reminds me of Aesop’s Fables, in that the individual hearing the story can see bits of themselves portrayed by the animals and identifies with them.

How can you use these puppets to read stories? Simple! Pick a puppet with a moving mouth and a full body! You can sit the puppet in your lap and use one hand to hold/operate the puppet and the other to hold the book. Now, here’s fun tip on using full bodied puppets: pick on that had good “arms” on it and those puppet arms can help you balance the book on your lap and act as page holders! For this “season” of storytime, many people are trying to use bugs to keep with the theme “Catch the Reading Bug”. Ithink this is a wonderful idea and have spotted a great little character that fits the mascot needs! Gund has a great full body character line called “Kooky Kreatures” that features an ant (I’ll admit to having one myself...full disclosure!)! Is the bug thing too much for you? Well, my FIRST storytime love was a sitting dog created by Folkmanis. He was sitting up to “beg” and had the sweetest face! His hands were perfect for holding a book! I don’t know if they still make this little guy but, if not, I’m sure there are alternatives! (Turns out, they DO! Check him out here

Just got back!

2008-02-11T14:58:00.000-08:00

I was at Walt Disney World for a special event and am FINALLY getting caught up! I saw the Finding Nemo: The Musical at Animal Kingdom and LOVED it! Hopefully, I can get Sean to post some pics of it (his camera liked the low lights better than mine!).

I'll also be posting this month's PuppeTales article for your enjoyment!

Northern California Tour Now Booking!!

2008-01-23T12:00:00.000-08:00

Bugsy Brown: Private Fly is available for booking in Northern California only! To book this show, please contact the Northern California branch at 510-684-2637 or email anita@swazzle.com!

Audience Participation!

2008-01-15T16:13:00.000-08:00

Below you'll find the article I wrote for Stephanie Stokes of Mr. Anderson's Company. She's put together a newsletter called, Puppet Tales and asked if I'd write something for it. I thought I'd share it here in case it proved helpful! It's about using Finger puppets (such as the one above) during storytelling, to include audience participation.

Greetings all!

Prior to starting with Swazzle, I had my own one-woman puppet show based on "Red-Riding Hood". Performing a one-person show can be very challenging and one of the ways I headed off "challenging" audiences was by incorporating audience participation. In my "Red-Riding Hood" show, the audience "became" the trees in the woods that Red was lost in. Whenever she would look around and say "Where am I?" the audience would put their hands in the air and reply "In the Woods!" to which Red inevitably said "Oh! Right!" and would continue on her merry way.

Later, when Swazzle formed, our first Summer Library Show was "Prairie Dog Pete and the Magic Buffalo" in that show we asked the audience to repeat the magic words Pete had to use to call forth the animals in the show. Giving the audience something to do was a wonderful idea! Instead of being passive viewers, they became active participants--a part of the show, if you will! The children would listen very carefully, eagerly waiting for the moment when their assistance was required. It can be magic! Now, most of you guys are not going to be putting on an entire show! You're going to be telling stories and (hopefully) using puppets to make things more lively and fun. How can you use puppets to create active audiences for Story Time? Easy! You can use Finger Puppets! They are small and you can store many of them in a small space! How do you use them? Well, does you story include birds flying by? Or Fish Swimming? Butterflies fluttering? There are little finger puppets for all of these things. You can have each audience member use the same one or combine several for different actions!

There is one very important thing to remember whenever you introduce audience participation into your storytelling! And that one thing is? Communication. You must clearly communicate to your audience exactly what you want from them, otherwise, chaos ensues. Take the time to set up audience rules. Over my many years of performing, I've come up with a pre-show spiel (and I must admit to cribbing from the other Swazzle performers!). The rules are as follows:

*Stay in your seats (behind the line, on the carpet, in a circle...etc.)
*Stay nice and quiet so that everyone can hear (I usually have them practice this!)

Once you've got them quiet and attentive, it's time to introduce the action! Ask them if they know how a bird flies, what noise a bee makes, ask for a show of hands. Once you get the desired response, show them the puppet. Show them exactly what you want them to with the puppet and ask them if they think they can do this simple action. Of course they'll say "Yes!". Then, explain what you want them to do during the story, if applicable, give them a "Cue" to follow (whenever you hear "Blah" flutter the butterfly like so) and then remind them that when the story is over they must bring the little puppets back to the basket (or box) for the next story. Pass out your puppets and enjoy! You've just turned a group of listeners into performers!

Folkmanis Puppet Spot!

2008-01-11T17:03:00.000-08:00

Lee Armstrong of Images in Motion told me about a little 30 second spot they did for Folkmanis! You can see it HERE! I ADORE Folkmanis puppets! I spent many, many hours playing with, and demonstrating Folkmanis puppets at my first job in SF at Puppets on the Pier.

Check the spot out, it's super cute! Thanks again Lee! (Shout out to one of my Guild pals, Wendy Morton, who's now at Folkmanis)!

NOTE: The 15 second spot played on video billboards in Time Square!

SFBAPG - Holiday/New Year party!

2008-01-08T16:34:00.000-08:00

This year the SFBAPG is doing something a little different at their Holiday/New Year party! This year they are asking Guild Members and attendees to bring a puppet to give to Peace Through Puppets. You can find out more info on what the Guild is looking for here.

These events are open to folks who are not currently members but, are interested in the Guild and the stuff they do! So, if you are in the Bay Area, drop by and check 'em out!

December shows!

2008-01-08T01:44:00.000-08:00

So, I just wrapped up a Holiday Tour with our new puppeteer, Jonathan Kidder. And I must say, we had a blast! This was the first time we've done "Polly Polar Bear and the Prince of the Sea" exclusively in the Bay Area. We do have one last show, on January 12th in Merced but, after that, I'm wrapped 'til summer.

As for summer, we're still hammering out the dates and show for the Bay Area. Hopefully, we'll have more info on that very soon!

In the meantime, I thought I'd share a few anecdotes from the tour:

* During our shows, it always seems that the kids in the crowd fail to realize that we, the puppeteers backstage, can hear them talk as we perform. Usually, we'll get a few "Wow(s)" or "Did you see that(s)". During one of our performances, Jonathan and I nearly cracked up as we both overheard a young audience member exclaim, during the opening minutes of the show, "Is it over?" and then, after he was assured by his parent that we had just started, we heard him sigh "I didn't know it would last this long". Hilarious!

* Many times, after shows, we encounter youngsters who are afraid of the puppets in the program. They hang back or hide their faces. Usually, after a show, If I don't have to rush to another performance, I'll offer to show the little one the puppet up close and explain how it works--to take some of the fear away. This is on top of our 'behind the scenes' demo.

During this tour, I met a sweet little girl who I chatted with prior to starting the performance. She was sitting very far to the side and I asked her if she was able to see the stage at all. Her Mom told me that this was her first puppet show, and that she was very nervous. I was instantly enchanted! So, I knelt down and introduced myself. I explained that the puppets in the show she was about to see were just like the little toy she was holding in her hands (she had a little white bear with her). And that the only difference between them was that I made my bear move with my hands. I asked her if she thought I was scary (luckily, she said "no"!), since it was just me back there with my hands moving the 'toys' around. I also assured her that the puppets stayed in the stage and couldn't come out at all! She seemed relieved. Right before I started the intro, I told her that, if she stuck it out, I'd be happy to show her any puppet in the show up close and answer any questions she might have about how we do what we do.

We finish the show and she runs up to me and says "I wasn't scared!" I congratulate her on her bravery and she looked up at me with her winsome smile and said "can I still see one of the puppets?". How could I refuse? She got to hold a mouse and I got a great story!

Bunnytown!

2007-12-18T13:56:00.000-08:00

The makers of Jack's Big Music Show have created a NEW show for the Disney Channel: Bunnytown! The website is darling! You can make your very own bunny. Dress him or her in cute outfits, decorate your own bunny house, and play games! You win carrots during the game play and can use the carrots in the Bunny Store to swank up your Bunny or your Bunny's pad. Pretty cool!

The show itself is great! The puppets are, as to be expected, adorable! Little rod puppet bunnies! Lots of great colors and design, good music too! (I'm sensing a theme with these guys :-)I've been having problems TiVo'ing the show, because for some reason, whenever it's listed as recording Bunnytown, my TiVo records the entire Playhouse Disney block and ends JUST as Bunnytown is BEGINNING! Ack! I keep trying tho! The parts I do catch are worth the effort! Tune in and check it out yourself. And be sure to build a bunny on the website!

Get a Mac Ad!

2007-12-14T13:38:00.001-08:00

Here's a Holiday Treat for ya! Apple recently released a "Get a Mac" ad just in time for the Holidays. It's a stop motion ad you can watch here.
The super cute guys were designed by Shane Prigmore. The spot was directed by Drew Lightfoot and produced by LAIKA/House.

Thanks to Jeff Pidgeon for the screen grab!

Vinyl Toy Network THIS Sunday!

2007-12-01T01:59:00.000-08:00

Jeff and I will be at the Vinyl Toy Network this Sunday (Dec. 2nd) hawkin'
the Beaver Toy.

It'll be lots of fun! Hope we can see you there!