Puppets to Take Over Killingworth Old Town Hall (Video)

PuppetSpeak!, a full-day theatrical experience of mask, mime, film and interactive puppetry performances, will be held at the Killingworth Old Town Hall on Saturday, April 30, from 10:30 a.m. until 5 p.m. PuppetSpeak is presented by the .

"PuppetSpeak is a must see because this special day is an 'experience' not just a performance," said Barbara Nair, Artistic Director at the Arts Center of Killingworth.

"Most of us buy our tickets to a show or a film, sit down and passively watch, but at PuppetSpeak the audience is invited into the process.  The combination of two performances which include mask, mime and puppetry with the opportunity to engage hands on in these art forms is unique.  The audience becomes the performer... the mask... and the puppets they create."   

Mask maker and actor Larry Hunt will lead a Mask and Mime Workshop with dancer/choreographer Adelka Polak. The pair has worked together for three years.

"Mask work is a little known entity here in the U.S., but it is a very powerful medium and a direct cousin to puppetry, which we also work with," Hunt said.

Hunt finds visitors to their performances are surprised in a very positive way.

"First, in seeing a medium they are not used to, the newness is refreshing. Secondly, the themes we engage them with often get audiences involved in ways traditional theatre does not.

"Adelka and I do primarily non-verbal work and often in vignette form so we can do as many as a dozen 'short stories' in a one hour performance," he explained.

"We use comedy, drama, tragedy and sometimes the absurd or touch upon the esoteric. Visual metaphors are in place in the non-verbal and, since humans are a visual species in that we remember visual stimulation much more readily than aural, the chances of remembering what one sees in our shows is quite high."

The themes are related to the expressions and relationships of the masks, movement and music. At times the audience decides what the piece is reflecting in a personal manner.  

"Therein lies a powerful moment when the audience is involved directly in the performance," Hunt adds. "Often we hear different interpretations of our work which is only reaffirming to us. Once we perform, our initial intention is out the window and open for re-evaluation from the audience which makes the performances exciting for us.

"The PuppetSpeak idea of Barbara Nair is quite an impressive project. Trying to garner an audience beyond their expectations; to show original works in a copycat society; and to actually introduce an audience to little known 'ancient' artforms with contemporary themes, are some of the responsibilities of the arts in general and I certainly appreciate Barbara's work in such a challenging endeavor."

Puppeteer Robin McCahill will perform The Snow Queen.

"Why puppets?" asks McCahill. Puppets can do things people cannot, "like fly, leap long distances, swim in the air and often be creatures that don't even exist except in imaginations that are brought to life. They can be realistic, stylized and abstract. Puppets and mask performers can vary greatly in size from minute to humongous," she says.

"[The puppeteer] can create an entire show including the entire cast and perform all the characters.

"A puppeteer is a multi-talented and multi-tasking person who often writes, directs, builds puppets, masks and props, and does sound lighting and music for the show. All puppeteers and mask performers do not work alone, but often wear several 'hats' so to speak," said McCahill.

McCahill incorporates many styles of puppets into her performances to amuse and educate her audience. She also teaches puppetry workshops and enjoys helping people stretch their imaginations by presenting examples of possibilities.

"I incorporate marionettes, hand and rod, bun-raku style, glove, shadow, toy theatre and mechanized characters," she said.

McCahill met Nair last year at PuppetSpeak when Rolande Duprey, a friend of McCahill's, was presenting her show Ecological Logic.

PuppetSpeak, she points out, "is linked closely to the National Day of Puppetry with the intention of bringing the art of puppetry to a wider audience including children and adults."

This year Hunt and Polak will perform a show for the adult audience.

"They are skilled and talented performers using mask, mime, dance and puppets to tell stories, often without words. They often work with the intention of breaking language and cultural barriers by performing with movement as the medium for relaying the messages."

For more information and tickets call (860) 663-5593 or purchase online at www.artscenterkillingworth.org.