Workbench Tours

A group of local Chicago puppet artists were asked to share photos of their puppetry workbenches. The guidelines were simple, “Show us a real glimpse into your puppet workbench. What type of materials do often work with and what’s at arm’s reach? No need to tidy up; give it to us raw!”

Mike Oleon - Co-Artistic Director of Rough House Theater

“I've been working on tensegrity puppets in an attempt to make puppets that move more dynamically than traditional building methods. I like working with a variety of materials, typically string, wire, wood, leather, and thrifted fabric, paint, cardboard, and lately 3D-printed connections. My little toolbox follows me everywhere and has everything I need for snipping, cutting, drilling, punching holes and threading string. Plus gaffe tape. I cheat with so much gaffe tape.” - Mike Oleon

Tom Lee - Chicago Puppet Studio and Puppet Lab Co-Director

Tom often works with wood when designing puppets. Faces peer from every corner of his private studio. Tons of woodworking blades and measuring tools are scattered throughout every surface and wall - ready for any stage of creation. Since Tom often travels to perform and deliver puppets, he has luggage in his studio waiting to be packed. “There is a lot of chaos in my life and work right now. My workspace pretty clearly reflects that.” - Tom Lee

Myra Su - Nasty, Brutish & Short Co-Curator

Puppetry Form: Paper Puppets Combined with Tech

Myra’s main materials consist of paper, cardboard, and everyday materials.

In this photo, we can see Myra’s cozy work table, with inspirational puppets and artwork at eyesight. Markers, cutting tools, and adhesives are seen on and around her peg board. Since Myra combines technology to her puppet-building, the desktop computer is one of her puppet tools.

Caitlin McLeod - Nasty, Brutish & Short Co-Curator

Caitlin is a puppet, costume, and scenic designer, which means every inch of her studio is utilized for creation and creativity. Most important is the ability of the space to quickly transform to the project’s need, a folding work table and rolling supply carts come in very handy. Along the back wall, she has a giant mood board filled with inspiration and original art, as well as shelves containing various tools and supplies. Recently she’s been working on costumes for bunraku-style puppets, and designs for some large-scale multimedia puppets on reed forms.

Find the cat in this photo.

Chio Cabrera-Coz - Puppetry Artist

“I've been doing a lot of paper mache, so I cover pull-out tables with brown paper to protect them. My workspace includes cutting mats, masking tape, utility blades, and as much cardboard as I can find. (Thanks friends for giving me the good stuff) After sculpting with cardboard, I move on to paper mache. This photo shows a project halfway complete. I always have a bucket of paper mache ready, along with gloves and scraps of paper. It's messy work. I don't sweep or organize the space until I'm finished building.” - Chio C.

Get ready to make your own puppets! Gather basic tools around you and put together your own building bench. Want to share what your space looks like?

Send pics to Puppet Tea! chio@roughhousetheater.com

---

Recap: May Puppets-in-Progress (PiPs)

What is PiPs?

PIPs is an informal gathering for testing out new puppet and object-based performances. Bring whatever you’re working on and get encouragement and feedback from other puppet-folks!

May PiPs Recap

Information complied by Kevin Michael Wesson and Samuel Lewis

We met at Comfort Station in Logan Square on a beautiful summer day to talk shop. Everyone had fun tidbits of puppetry happenings all over the city that they wanted to share.

Scroll all the way down to see all the performance opportunities, events, and photos captured during the fun. Next PiPs is scheduled for July 27th. More details to come!

Random things mentioned! Look through these links to see what’s inspiring today’s local puppetry artists.
McMaster-Carr
The Distance of the Moon by Italo Calvino
Caine's Arcade
Paul Zaloom

Opportunities mentioned
(Currently seeking submissions)

Stop Motion Plant Salon
(Always seeking submissions, Dm on ig!)

Rabbitfoot Cabaret
(Always open to guest artist proposals, Dm on ig!)

Agitator Artist in Residency
(Currently seeking submissions!)

Events/Classes!
Worm Teeth
Happening: 5/23 & 5/28-30, 7:30pm
Various locations
Pay what you can all dates except $15 on 5/28 (with concert to follow)
For tickets DM Fletcher Pierson (except 5/28 click here)

Mothering the Movement
by Free Street Theater
Happening: 5/23 @7pm (last show)
Location: Pulaski park
Pay what you can

Chicago Puppet Lab Showcase
Happening: 5/30-6/2, various times
Location: Segundo Ruiz Belvis Cultural Center 
$20

"The Sugar Hole" Puppet ice cream pop-up 
Happening: This weekend till end of summer, Sat-Sun 3-8pm
Location: Color Club

Build a Puppet Picture Book, Your Very Own Crankie! Crankie class taught by local legend Myra Su through Rough House
Happening: 6/15, 12-3PM
Location: Hyde Park Arts Center
$75-$200, sliding scale enrollment, scholarships available!

Stop Motion Plant Salon
Happening: Monthly (next salon 6/24)
Location: Various locations across Chicago (Next salon outdoor beach location TBD)
Always Free
Follow Stop Motion Plant on IG for updates
or join their email list.

Puppet Demolition Derby
by Rabbitfoot Puppetry
Happening: 7/20 (a part of a monthly puppet cabaret series)
Location: Agitator Gallery
Pay what you can
First come first served tickets, for TBA details follow Rabbitfoot Puppetry on IG

Chicago Intl. Puppet Theater Fest Summer 2024 Workshops
Various workshops/intensives on shadow, toy theatre, & hand/glove puppetry
Happening: various times June-August
Location: online
$250-300, scholarships available!

---

Next PiPs is on July 21st! More details to follow!

Unveiling the Surreal: A Peek into Fidget Theater with Jacky Kelsey and August Boyne

Jacky Kelsey and August Boyne of Fidget Theater are probably the most surreal and intense Chicago puppetry artists today. I had the privilege to interview this duo for Puppet Tea, Rough House’s new community digest (sign up for Rough House’s newsletter at the bottom of our website). Read along and donate to support highlighting local puppetry artists!

Jacky and August met at a Rough House event, the Nasty, Brutish & Short puppet cabaret. After the performance, they both were in line to chat with Mike Oleon, Artistic Director of Rough House, and ended up talking with each other. They both were looking for artistic collaborators and bonded over the performances they had seen that evening. They started creating their first piece “Fidget” through the 2023 Puppet Lab Cohort. Fidget is about two giant hands that battle, concede, and explore a tactile plush stage of rings and balls. I immediately pegged their work as campy, a little bit kitschy, and intensely captivating. Their latest endeavors, "Trash Sisyphus," epitomize their unique approach to storytelling through puppetry.

Curious about the genesis of "Trash Sisyphus," I probed August for insights, he said “If you were to look in somebody’s trash - not that I suggest you do- you’d find out a lot about a person. Are we defined by what we keep or what we discard?” Trash Sisyphus puppets include a face-puppet and a consuming trash bag puppet that hijacks the performance. When I first saw it at Nasty, Brutish & Short, the environmental message was clear: the earth’s trash is consuming us and will literally suffocate us back. The personification of trash is funny, menacing, and unsettling. 

Their artistry blends the real and surreal seamlessly. I had to ask - what does that mean? To unravel the absurdity embedded in their creations, one must delve into the pages of a book. Both Jacky and August lit up when discussing the surreal natural elements of Gabriel Garcia Marquez's "100 Years of Solitude," finding inspiration and camaraderie within its fantastical realm. As Jacky aptly puts it, "every fantastical element has its purpose."

What sets their work apart is its "wordlessness" feature, a testament to their ability to communicate volumes with minimal dialogue. Augmented by August's musical prowess, their scenes resonate with ironic sitcom vibes, adding an approachable aesthetic dimension to their storytelling. 

Visibly, the puppetry stands out in bold monochromatic colors. Jacky, the lead fabricator said they were drawn to bright colors, “it invites people in with rich textures that folks want to touch or eat…and that leads to more odd experiences.”

After we finished our ice cream, we puppeteered around the cafe and played. Make sure to follow these two artists on Instagram. IG @linesbyjacky @august_sierra

If you want to keep the puppetry buzz alive, please consider donating $5/month. Your donation allows Rough House to keep connecting and supporting awesome Chicago puppet artists.

Email chio@roughhousetheater.com to share puppetry-related events, news, or to send any recommendations on who we should interview next.

Join the fun!

• August’s band, Big Step is playing at Not Not on June 8th. Jordan (also a musician featured in Fidget Theater) runs the project!

• Musical Composition classes led by August will begin in May at Agitator Gallery. Email asboyne90@gmail.com for more details.

• Jacky will perform a solo piece at Puppetqueers. Details TBD. Follow @puppetqueers for more info.

Get better feedback on your art

Artist: Mike Oleon Photographer: Joe Mazza

The Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival just wrapped, and I was overjoyed to see all the new work from new artists that was presented, particularly at our puppet cabaret, “Nasty, Brutish & Short.”

I love the energy that new work brings, but more than that, I love seeing work that shows curiosity, experimentation and growth. Practically all art benefits from a bit of informed transformation, whether it resonates more deeply with audiences and striking closer whatever measure of success an artist hopes to evoke.

Getting quality feedback plays a crucial role in this journey, providing insights and perspectives that can lead to growth and refinement. But how do you find the right people to offer feedback, especially when experts are not within reach? And once you have it, how do you process and implement it effectively? This post aims to guide puppet artists and creators alike through the emotional and logistical challenges of seeking, receiving, and using feedback.

Finding Feedback Sources:

1. Experts are everywhere: Sometimes you’ll get your work in front of a sage-like wizard with years under their belt, but there’s plenty of secret experts all around us. Everyone is an expert in their own experience! Anyone who engages with your work can offer useful insights. Friends, family, local community members, are all excellent sources of experience. Even so called “expert artists” rely on the feedback of audiences to know how their work is landing.

2. Join Artistic Communities: Participate in the next Puppets in Progress, gather a group of friends to see shows with, and become friends with artists interested in puppetry.

Asking the Right Questions:

1. Be Specific: Generic questions elicit generic responses. A:"What do you think?" B: “It was great!” A:“K, Good talk!” Focus on aspects that you were specifically working on such as the quality of puppet movement, or clarity of storytelling.

2. When in doubt, go for ‘Open-Ended Yet Focused’: Questions like "What part of the performance is working?" “What took you out of it?” “What did you want more of?” can elicit detailed and useful responses.

Receiving Feedback Gracefully:

1. Stay Open and Non-Defensive: Remember, feedback is not a personal attack but an opportunity for growth. Listen actively without jumping to defend your work. This one takes practice, but really pays off.

2. Process Emotionally: It’s natural to feel vulnerable. Feedback can be excruciating! Allow yourself time to process the feedback emotionally before revisiting it analytically.

3. It’s not all gold, but most of it is useful: Not everyone is great at giving feedback, but listen anyway, be present while happening, and you can sort through it later.

Clarifying and Implementing Feedback:

1. Follow-Up Questions: If feedback is vague, don’t hesitate to ask for clarification. For instance, "Could you elaborate on what you meant by 'lacking emotion' in the puppet's performance?"

2. Actionable Steps: Break down the feedback into actionable items. If someone suggests improving the puppet's movements, revisit those items and drill them with a friend.

3. Iterate, Iterate: Good works typically takes longer than our expectations. That’s OK! Implement feedback in stages and reassess. Sometimes, changes might not work as expected, and it’s okay to revert or re-adjust.

To sum it up: Feedback is often skipped, but it’s all around if you’ve got the courage to ask, and it can be really useful if you ask the right questions. As a puppet artist (or any sort of artist), embracing the process of seeking, receiving, and applying feedback not only enhances your skills but also deepens your connection with your audience and the creative community. Keep creating, keep sharing, and most importantly, keep evolving. See you at the puppet utopia.

A completely biased insider's guide to the 2024 Chicago International Puppet Festival

Holy Smokes! we’re less than 2 weeks away from the 2024 Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival, marking its sixth(!) year. This festival is an art lover’s dream, overflowing with more inspiration than most human hearts can handle. We’re gonna try and make it to everything we possibly can, but here’s our list of can’t-misses:

Wakka Wakka: The Immortal Jellyfish Girl

Kicking off with Wakka Wakka, is without a doubt one of our favorite companies in the US puppetry scene- they’re presenting a new trilogy of work, but the immortal Jellyfish Girl looks right up our haunted scifi alley. Wakka Wakka excels at tackling big big themes, with intimacy and humor that features squishy, dynamic puppets, that somehow steers completely clear of the muppet aesthetic.

Tarish “Jeghetto” Pipkins: The Hip Hopera of 5P1N0K10

Next, we spotlight Tarish “Jehgetto” Pipkins, the hip-hop puppetry virtuoso. Hands down one of our favorite puppet designers of all time. The show looks to be a blend of stunning design, Afro-futurism, hip-hop and is performed an intergenerational family of puppeteers. We can’t wait. Suitable for ages 10 and up, it's a family-friendly show we enthusiastically recommend.

Belova ~ Iacobelli Theatre Company: Chayka

OMG this is a chance to see the work one of our career HEROS. The name “Natacha Belova” has been evoked so many times in so many of our productions and rehearsals. Their work is a fusion of body puppetry and human performance, and their influence on our own work has been profound.

Nasty, Brutish, and Short: A Puppet Cabaret

*Weekend 1 at Links Hall ***Weekend 2 at the Logan Center

Don't miss the 'Nasty, Brutish, and Short' puppet cabaret that we produce, hosted at two different venues on the north and south sides. This event promises a diverse lineup featuring local, international, and emerging puppetry artists. It is hands down the best way to experience the most styles of puppetry in a single hour!

Alex and Olmsted: MAROONED! A Space Comedy

Finally, 'Marooned,' a space comedy by Alex and Olmstead, is an all-ages performance known for its humor, skilled puppet manipulation, and ingenious design. It's definitely not one to miss.

Volkenburg Puppetry Symposium

For those interested in the behind-the-scenes magic of puppetry, the Vulcan Burden Puppetry Symposium is a must-attend. It offers insights into puppetry mechanics, perfect for the curious mind. Don’t mistake it’s free admission price as “free to skip.” This is a chance for some one-on-one time with some seriously beautiful minds.

Figurentheater Wilde & Vogel: Spleen

'Spleen' remains a mystery to us, yet its intriguing visuals alone make it a promising addition to the festival lineup. This is one performance we're eager to explore.

Chicago's Finest Puppet Creations

This is a great chance to catch some of Chicago’s finest, including Manual Cinema's 'Leonardo,' Theater Y, and Michael Montenegro's 'Little Carl,' along with Dan Kerr-Hobert and Matthew Gawryk's adaptation of 'Invisible Cities.' Each a showcase of the brilliant work that’s being produced in this city of ours.

Final Thoughts

Pro-tip: If a show is sold out, try showing up anyway - you might get lucky. People always bail, and most of these venues can squeeze in a few standing audience members, so buy your tickets for the ones you’re sure you want to be comfortable for, and just show up if you waited a little too long to order your seats.

See you at the puppet show!

What’s Next for Rough House?

A couple of Alberts circa 2005. source: intentiondesigns.ca

We have a big year ahead of us. New shows. New opportunities. And look, a new blog! Puppetry is such a multi-faceted art form that it’s often a challenge to show all the elements that go into making it happen. So, we’re starting a blog to help illuminate some of the context surrounding all of the crazy work we do. Here’s what we got:

Invitation to a Beheading

January at the Chicago International Puppet Fest

From left to right: Noah Appelbaum, Michael Brown and Claire Saxe. Photo by Evan Barr

Last year, we were supposed to perform this at the festival, but we had to postpone. Adapted from the novel by Vladimir Nabokov, Rough House teams up with our dear collaborator, Michael Brown, to find the delight in existential dread. With more twists and turns than a dungeon stairwell, this stage play is full of puppetry, masks, ridiculous rules for behavior, and characters who don’t definitely have our protagonist’s best interests at heart.

Get tickets

Nasty Brutish & Short: A Puppet Cabaret

Pictured: The Paper Whisperers. Photo Credit Evan Barr.

Four Festival Performances

No matter how many times we put on a cabaret, it remains an infinite source of delight, joy and good vibes. Last year we had performers doing their first puppet show on the same stage and night as a MacArthur genius who came from a multi-generational puppet family. Rough, fresh enthusiasm combined with virtuosity? That’s one of our favorite flavor combos.

The last couple of years of the cabaret have been curated by Myra Su and Caitlin McLeod who have been doing a remarkable job of knitting the cabaret community together and weathering this flipping pandemic. In addition to the FOUR festival editions of the cabaret, we’ll be putting on 2 more seasonal cabarets in Spring and in Fall.

Get tickets

A Year for Big Experiments

This year, we’ve got presentations of 2 of our Artistic Director’s passion projects. Making a puppet show can take years, and getting those shows on their feet in full-length form is a big feat. Plus, we’ll be taking a deep dive into a project that might make a quantum leap in puppet technology. And even if it doesn’t, we’re gonna learn a lot.

We Missed the Train and Had to Wait

Summer 2023. Created by and featuring Co-Artistic Director Claire Saxe.

We Missed the Train is a loose and playful adaptation of Anton Chekhov’s 1904 play The Cherry Orchard, rendered in a palette of movement and objects. Drawing from clown, mime, found object puppetry, and texts from a variety of sources, the piece digs into themes of property, commerce, the land we occupy and our relationship to it.

You won’t wanna miss the part where Claire auctions off the entire physical and metaphysical properties of a declining family’s estate.

Claire Saxe at Physical Fest’s Scratch Night. She made that whole set and it fits in that box on the right.

Melodies from the Void: A Puppet Seance

Spring-Fall 2023. Created by and featuring Co-Artistic Director, Mike Oleon

‘Melodies from the Void: A Puppet Seance’ is an evening-length solo-performed collection of short ‘seances’ for spirits to inhabit a collection of fantastical puppets and objects designed, built, and brought to life by Mike Oleon. Blurring the line between performance and ritual, the invisible is made visible as dreams, the dead, and wordless tunes each find a corporeal home, if only for an instant.

This show will be workshopped throughout 2023 in homes around Chicago and the US.

Photo by Evan Barr

Puppet R&D: The Albert Project

left: Albert in 2005 right: elastic degradation from 17 years of tension

Does the future of Puppetry live inside this model? We’re gonna find out! In 2018, Mathematician, Artist and Designer Tom Flemons (intensiondesigns.ca) passed away, leaving behind countless works of “tensegrity” models including the humanoid he named Albert.

As fate would have it, two of the original Alberts have made their way to the Rough House Studio, and we’re gonna build ‘em back stronger than ever. First by reconstructing the original, followed by implementing improvements that Flemons suggested.

Tensegrity is a methodology that allows for highly stable structures (in our case, PUPPETS) to distribute energy or movement across a web of tension. What could this mean for puppetry? Tensegrity could help make puppets with extremely lifelike movements that require fewer hands from puppeteers to come to life. Why, that could be the biggest breakthrough in puppetry since foam rubber!

There is going to be a LOT to learn from this process, and we’ll be documenting in detail what we’re able to uncover this Winter and Spring.

Puppets in Progress

Winter- Fall 2023

We’ll be heatin’ up soup, then firing up the grill and playing with undercooked puppets while chattin’ with people.

PIPs is an informal gathering for testing out new puppet and object-based performances. Bring whatever you’re working on and get encouragement and feedback from other Chicago puppet-folks!

Are you new to puppetry and want a low stakes way to test the waters? Are you an old hand with a new project? Are you a dancer, comics artist, performance poet, teacher, lifeguard, engineer just curious about what puppetry looks like today? Everyone is welcome! Bring a project, no matter how rough, or just come for the conversation.

House of the Exquisite Corpse III

‘Mama’ by Felix Mayes. Puppet by Grace Needlman. Photo by Yvette Dostatni

Fall 2023

It’s happening! If you do something three years in a row… does it become a tradition? We’re still decompressing from the last one, but we’ll have plenty more news later on.