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No Strings Attached Puppetry Festival

Presented by Salt Lake City Public Library at Salt Lake City Library - Main Branch

March 7-March 8, 2009

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A variety of puppetry styles are represented at the 8th Annual No Strings Attached Puppetry Festival, from the Bunraku puppets of the headliner troupe, Tears of Joy Theatre, to marionettes, hand and rod puppets, and shadow puppets. There will be selections from a brand new musical, Hands Up!, co-produced by Wasatch Theatre Company and the Starry-Eyed Puppets. In addition to your favorite local performers from previous years (Paradise Puppetworks, Whizgiggle Puppets, Utah Puppet Players, and Puppetmania), the festival welcomes newcomers Freddie Spencer (The String Man), the Utah Marionette Theatre, and the return of Maxed Out Puppetry. Cosponsored by the Imagination Celebration of Salt Lake City. Saturday, March 7 9:30am Puppet Manipulations and Found Object Workshop with Tears of Joy Theatre Learn five points of puppet manipulation: breath, spine, brain, focus, and movement. You'll bring objects to life and learn the building blocks and techniques for excellent puppetry. For teens and adults. Registration required; call 322-8106. Utah Puppet Players will be performing both The Country Fair and The Boy Who Cried Wolf . In The Country Fair, Mr. Bear, the Moo-Moo Cousins, Buford Beaver, Gwendolyn Grasshopper, and the rest of the gang put on a rollicking, old-fashioned fair in Forest Country. And in Aesop's fable, The Boy Who Cried Wolf, the shepherd boy passes the long day by telling lies about seeing a wolf amidst the sheep. 10:30am The puppetry festival is thrilled to have the talents of Freddie Spencer, longtime professional puppeteer of stage, screen, and television, now transplanted from California to Park City! Freddie's stellar variety act includes hand and rod puppets and marionettes. 11:45am An interactive marionette and audience participation reader's theater conceived and written by Artistic Director Nat Reed. Following the performance, audience members are welcome to offer suggestions and critique this work-in-progress. This will be an opportunity for you to see what it takes to create puppet theater from the page to the stage. For ages 8 and up. 1:00pm In Little One Inch, A Tale from Japan, a tiny boy sets off to save Japan from a great ogre. His parents give him a rice bowl and chopstick to use as a boat and oar. On his adventure, he befriends a kappa, rides a koi, and becomes the playmate of a princess before defeating the ogre in a hilarious battle. Performed with Bunraku style puppets. 2:30pm Join Maxed Out Puppetry in a lively assortment of skits and songs sure to tickle the funny bones of all ages. Maxed Out uses a variety of hand and rod puppets and live music. 3:00pm Children's Puppet Making Workshop with Helen Taylor is proud to present an opportunity to make a pop-eyed dragon puppet with a moveable mouth using egg cartons, colored paper, and other materials. For children ages 7 and up. Musical Selections from Hands Up! Playwright George Plautz and composer Matt Heider will be 'on hand' to discuss the process of adapting this new musical comedy produced by Wasatch Theatre Company and the Starry-Eyed Puppets. It's Monty Python meets Faust in this irreverent look at showbiz eccentrics, based on the book, The Good, the Bat, and the Ugly by Paul Magrs. This program is intended for teens and adults; language and subject matter make this program unsuitable for young children. 3:30pm Join the library's own Whizgiggle Puppets as they present a collection of amusing animal antics including such side-splitters as The Frog Prince, Continued, Psssst!, and everyone's favorite colossal canine, Dogzilla. Each story showcases a zoologically zany combination of hand and shadow puppetry. Bring the whole family for a rip-roaring, furry fun time! 4:30pm Paradise Puppetworks presents the Luck o' the Irish. After 300 years of keepin' the gold, Paddy McFee has chosen this time to fade over. What is he thinkin'? Who will be the new keeper? And, what about the Fairy's Ball? Join the Main Library for this delightful tale of leprechauns and magic. Sunday, March 8 1:15pm Tears of Joy Theatre: Little One Inch, A Tale from Japan See Saturday, 1:00pm for description. 3:15pm Puppetmania!: The Great Book Chase A bookworm leads a group of three young puppets through three very different storybooks. A variety of rod and hand puppets enliven these tales as they go from dragon-slaying to Cinderella, to an exciting pirate adventure! The show includes original music and the help of six young audience members. 4:00pm Puppet Making and Performance Workshop with Tears of Joy Theatre Participants will learn a story, make a puppet, and perform a puppet show at the end of the session. Parents are encouraged to return for the last twenty minutes to watch the performance. For children ages 6-12. Registration required, call 322-8106.