2005.01.20.
Here are three Puppetmonger news items:
A major exhibit of 30 years of our design and construction work.
The Brick Brothers Circus performs at Tarragon Spring Arts Fair.
Final registration for the spring School of Puppetry courses and a discount offer!

SO FAR SO GOOD: 30 Years of Puppetmonger

The 23^rd annual Milk International Children’s Festival of the arts sponsored by Dairy farmers of Canada, will pay tribute to the 30^th Anniversary of Puppetmongers Theatre. The festival has invited brother and sister team David and Ann Powell to exhibit puppets, sets and props of their extensive history, in York Quay Centre, 235 Queens Quay West, Toronto, during the festival, running from May 23 – 30, 2004

The exhibit, free with site admission, will be open throughout the day and will include displays of all Puppetmongers’ shows including the beautiful but seldom seen Ballad of Tamlin, as well as some pre-‘monger puppets such as the blue parade chair, and pieces made but never seen in shows. Ann and David will be present on site as much as possible all week to display, demonstrate and discuss their work.

A small but special part of the exhibit is dedicated to The Brick Brothers Circus, one of the first "object theatre" pieces ever, in which everyday objects are used as puppet characters. Puppetmongers Theatre was among the first companies to explore the idea and introduce audiences to this theatrical innovation. The actual Brick Brothers themselves will not be present, as they will be performing that week in Toronto Schools

For tickets and information, call Harbourfront Centre at 416-973-4000 or visit

www.harbourfrontcentre.com/milk

You can catch free a performance of The Brick Brothers Circus

in a reprise of their appearance at the first Tarragon Theatre Spring Arts Fair at the

20^th annual Tarragon Theatre Spring Arts Fair, Saturday May 29 and Sunday May 30

Puppetmongers shows are at 3:30 p.m. daily

Tarragon Theatre is located at 30 Bridgman Avenue, (East of Bathurst, North of Dupont).

This is an amazing free event!

Toronto School of Puppetry Spring Courses

Weekdays: June 7 to 25, 9:30 to 4 p.m. daily

There are still places available in all courses. As the dates are fast approaching we are offering a 10% discount on fees received before May 31 to everyone on our email list.

Week 1 (June 7 to 11) is devoted to the construction of tabletop puppets. Tabletop puppetry is the new form inspired by the Japanese Bunraku puppet theatre, and has revolutionized the use of puppets in theatre. Using three-dimensional, sculptural figures, the manipulators work in full view of the audience, which allows the entire stage area to come into play. This is the main style of puppetry that Puppetmongers have used to such great effect in their works.

Week 2 (June 14 to 18) is an exhilarating investigation into what puppets are all about: their history, materials and mechanics, manipulation, staging, visual play development, and an exploration of their huge potential as a multi-media art form. A myriad of guest artist instructors will lead you through the entire creative process toward creating new puppet theatre.

Week 3 (June 21 to 25) will be the creation a new short puppet theatre piece. Participants will work on scenes from the classic Magical Monkey King with director Michael Kelly, of Shakespeare in Action, along with other guest instructors and the Puppetmongers. This will involve the participants in the construction of figures, development of characters and story, staging and a short performance for an invited audience at week’s end. (NOTE: Week 2 is a prerequisite for Week 3.)

Fees (Including materials): $450 for one week, $800 for two weeks, $1,100 for all three weeks.

To Register:

Contact the School of Puppetry at school@puppetmongers.com or call 416-691-0806 to confirm that there is space available in the course and to arrange payment.

A cheque is required to hold your place in the class. Enrollment is on a first-come, first-served basis. Class size is limited to just 10 students per course for Week 1 and 2, and only 6 students in Week 3.

For more information please visit www.puppetmongers.com

If you do not wish to receive Puppetmonger news releases, please email me at info@puppetmongers.com

The Milk International Children’s Festival of the Arts is sponsored by Dairy Farmers of Canada and generously supported by Natrel Inc., the Government of Canada, the City of Toronto, the Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council, the Toronto Arts Council, CIBC, LEGO®, Good Humor Breyers, evian and the Westin Harbour Castle.