Date: Tue, 16 Dec 2008 08:53:52 -0500
To: puptcrit-AT-puptcrit.org
Subject: Re: [Puptcrit] Philipe Genty


What I loved about Genty's work was that it showed  that puppetry
could be yet something different again.  The idea of pure movement
suggested so many possibilities.  Others who opened up the
possibilities for myself were:

          Bruce D. Schwartz, who showed that you could work in the
open unconcealed sitting right there with the puppet ala
bunraku-style.

          Leland Faulkner, who created theatrical shows using magic,
origami and hand shadows showing the possibilities of mixed artforms (
one of his mentor was Jay Marshall) Lee is pretty unknown amongst
puppeteers but is outstanding.

          Richard Bradshaw, who first introduce me to the idea that a
show could be a series of gags and visual jokes.  I love that man!

          David Simpich, who diplays the possibilities of the voice.
And demonstrated that  balancing family and work is important.

          Julie Taymor, who displayed the variations of combining a
human actor and puppet in one figure and what a puppeteer can achieve
with millions of dollars at their disposal if you have some genius to
throw in the mix.

          Jay O'Callahan, a storyteller extraordinaire, who showed me
that a great storyteller needs nothing more than his voice to carry
you away, suggesting to me that as a solo puppeteer, the way to
reconsider my approach would be a "storytelling with puppets"

          Wayland Flowers, who demonstrated that it is all about focus
and you could sit there onstage with your puppet without being a
ventriloquist and no one would notice your lips moving.  In his case
"Madame" was SO charismatic, you couldn't take your eyes off of her.
He was one who was "born to be" a puppeteer.  Such an enormous talent.

          Eric Bass, whose early work "Autumn Portraits" had a buddist
monk piece in it that showed me that a puppet show could be esoteric
and mystical for an adult audience.

Just to mention a few.  Who showed you that you could approach
puppetry in your own unique way or gave you the rosseta stone to
approach your work in a different way?


















On Sat, Dec 13, 2008 at 1:01 PM, Steven Barr <lapuppet-AT-gmail.com> wrote:
> how great it is to hear about Philippe Genty on this PupCrit.First of all,
> his famous car was a Citroen- 2 cheveau, not a Renault. That is the little
> French car, smaller than the old VWs, that had a 2 horsepower engine and got
> fantastic gas mileage, and was very very inexpensive. His car was bought by
> the Citroen Museum in Paris and can still be seen-- the citroen with the
> most mileage on it, which had been around the world. Quite a story. larger
> than life.
> What everyone needs to learn from Philippe is how he introduced MOVEMENT
> into his Puppetry. His early shows were interesting, and creative, but when
> he began living with a Dancer- Mary Underwood-- his work evolved from inside
> his Puppet Box to outside the BOX. Movement became his montra, and he hired
> (hires) people who were committed dancers and Lecoq-trained mimes to become
> Puppeteers. He took the work ethic of movement artists into his Puppet world
> and now he enjoys well-earned renown and wealth. He did predate
> Mummenshantz-- another LeCoq group-- who learned to employ Puppetic images
> in their world of Movement. Although it took a successful Mummenshantz to
> allow him to transform his world. All good stuff.
>    While in Paris, I was lucky to live near his studio/home, and drink lots
> of wine with him over the years I was there.
> cheers,
> Steven Ritz-Barr
>
> www.lapuppet.com
> www.classicsinminiature.com
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