Is this Pandemic Goodenough?

When she’s not clowning around as a children’s party entertainer, or cheering up kids as a pediatric clown, Honey Goodenough produces PuppetPandemic, a touring showcase of works developed at the O’Neill National Puppetry Conference.  Since 2009 Puppet Pandemic has raised funds for alumni scholarships at the conference.  Honey has a BA in Theater and Dance with a focus in costume design and technology from the University of Texas, and a Masters in Educational Theater from NYU.  Currently, she is a NYC Teaching Artist, developing literacy based puppetry programs for Shadow Box Theater. 

Handle with Care, Puppet Pandemic NYC 2010, Photo Credit: Richard Termine

Marsian: When did you start performing in Puppet Slams?

HG: My first official puppet slam was in 2008, at CoLab’s Puppet Slam produced by Mary Gragen Rodgers. But, with the help of Matthew Leonard, I debuted my first original piece called BJ Tucker’s Freak Show at the Margo Rose Scholarship Fundraiser, hosted by the CT Guild of puppetry in 2005.

M: Tell us about one of the acts you have developed at puppet slams?

HG: Most of the pieces I currently tour were originally developed at the O’Neill National Puppetry Conference. But the slam piece I like to perform most of all was developed with Marta Mozelle MacRostie, specifically for Jon Levin and Josh Luxenburg’s Puppet Playlist in NYC. Its called Nothing Compares to You, the story of a girl suffering from a heart-break and is seduced by ice cream. [Seen on this link under Cream]

M: What inspired you to start Puppet Pandemic?

HG:  Puppet Pandemic is based on the idea that Puppetry is an infectious art form.  It is also a fundraiser for the O’Neill National Puppetry Conference Alumni Scholarship.  I was inspired to start Puppet Pandemic because I attended the 2009 O’Neill National Puppetry Conference, and that year the shows sold out early.  I was shocked that so many puppeteers were driving 4 hours from NYC to see a show of peers and then couldn’t get seats.  So, I thought, Lets bring the show to NYC!   Once I began contemplating the finances, I thought it might be more beneficial to everyone to use the funds for a scholarship to attend the O’Neill to produce more work.  So basically, the mission is to produce art in order to fund more art!

  

M: Who have you partnered with and where have you toured?

HG: I’m constantly surprised by the support this movement has inspired. With the help of many friends from the PSN, I have partnered with other Slams to tour Puppet Pandemic:

Puppet Pandemic (NYC) - October 2009 & September 2010

PuppetShowplace Slam (Brookline) with Roxie Myrum - January 2010 &November 2011

Puppet Co.Playhouse (Glen Echo, MD) with Eric Brooks – March & October 2010, October 2011

AustinPuppet Incident with Caroline Reck & Connor Hopkins - March 2011

Puppet Pandemic (Philadelphia) with Martina Plag - November 2011

Many other slam producers have been willing to host fundraisers in conjunction with their own Puppet Slams including Beau Brown of The Puckin’ Fuppet Show in Atlanta, Katie McClenahan’s  of Beady Little Eyes in Portland, Mary Gragen Rogers  of CoLAB Puppet Slam in New Jersey, Hannah Miller of Action Puppet Force in Orlando, and Madison Crips of The Wham Bam Puppet Slam in Asheville. 

Carole D'Agostino , Object Theater Time, Puppet Pandemic, Glen Echo, MD, Photo: Bruce

M: That’s quite a list! And in such a short period of time! What cities will Pandemic spread to next?  

HG: I hope to partner with Puppet Slamwich in Baltimore, and I hope to go to Minneapolis, Chicago, and Portland. But, in order to tour I need a contact person in the prospective city who will help me organize our tech, travel, and housing. If anyone is interested in helping me organize a new tour or fundraiser, please contact me at Puppetpandemic@gmail.com

M: What are some of the acts that have traveled with you on the Pandemic circuit?

HG: Carole D'Agostino Object Theater Time, Carole takes objects from the audience and invents and performs a story with them on the spot. It’s very exciting to hear the audience’s reactions to some of Carole’ s re-interpretations of their common everyday objects. Its like everyone shares the same huge a-ha moment.

Alissa Hunnicutt,  Red Dress - Puppet Pandemic, 2010, Photo: Richard Temine.

Alissa Hunnicutt is a conservatory trained singer, and it is always to pleasure to see her blend her love of singing and puppetry together to create a auditory and visually stunning pieces like Uninvited and Red Dress.

In Z Briggs’ Dumb Lovers, Z not only performs this beautiful puppetry piece without the use of puppets, but she also demonstrates the amount focus it takes to create two independent characters through one puppeteer.

M: How much money have you raised for scholarships?

HG:  In 2010 we raised $2,500 or the equivalent of 7 scholarships. In 2011 we raised $5,500 or the equivalent of 9 scholarships. If you want to donate to the 2012 scholarships, you can donate online through Flock Theatre.

Honey Goodenough - Making of Handle with Care, O'Neill 2009, Photo Credit: Honey Goodenough

M: What is your goal with fundraising for scholarships?

HG: My goal is to inspire other alumni of the O’Neill to consider ways they can give back to their community. It can be challenging for artists to find time and the funds to follow their passion and produce their art, while working a day job. I’d like to remove as many financial hurdles as possible.

There is no clear path as to how to become a puppeteer and learn about the art of puppetry, but the O’Neill National Puppetry Conference has been an important part of my artistic process and the crux of my puppetry community. It is my goal to raise as much as possible each year. I haven’t made any official announcements about the scholarship funds this year, but I hope we can award at least 7 scholarships.  That would mean we would have awarded 23 scholarships in just 3 years. That’s one more scholarship that there have been years of the conference!

M: How do you see what happens at the O'Neill Puppetry Conference being relevant to Puppet Pandemic and the Puppet Slam Network? 

HG: The O’Neill Puppetry Conference has a component that is called “participant pieces” for works 3 minutes or less. It’s a great place to work with other creatively powered professionals. If you need a singer, a director, a writer, or a musician, you and just ask for it and someone will help you. It’s an artists dream!

M: Where do you see Puppet Pandemic in the next few years?

HG: Currently, Puppet Pandemic is in search of a new home in NYC. I would love for La Mama ETC to invite us to perform in their theater.  Pandemic is an ensemble of very dynamic puppetry pieces, produced by young artists.  I think the concept of Puppet Pandemic is something Ellen Stewart would be proud to support.

M: What do you think of the current crop of slam names? Puppet Pandemic sounds infectious like a disease. Austin Puppet Incident sounds like they have a problem with the police. Puppet Meltdown has nuclear disaster connotations. Puppet Rampage - Do they have anger issues? My favorite name this year,  King Friday’s Dungeon less apocalyptic and more kinky - sounds like Mr. Rogers + S&M. 

HG: I love it! I chose Puppet Pandemic because I wanted a name that had the word puppetry in it, but didn’t sound like it was for children. I think these names have a similar vibe. The names promise an intense puppetry experience.

Alissa Hunnicutt with Honey Goodenough & Kate Katz - Puppet Art Attacks, Photo courtesy of Honey Goodenough

M: Any advice to future slam organizers or slam organizers who are just starting?

HG: Above all, be good to your performers. There can be a lot of stress related to producing an event, but if you want people to continue to work with you it must be worthwhile for the performers. We have to support this art form, from the ground up! So work hard, be kind, and have fun!

M: Anything else you’d like to tell the readers of our blog?

HG: I would like to thank the Puppet Slam Network for supporting this movement. It’s not only helping support our artists on a micro level, but also making it possible to connect with other artists and producers who believe in the same principals. I think of puppet slams as more than just one show, but a rather a collection of shows that the audience gets to see in one sitting. I think the format really appeals to today’s audience. And it can give wings to young artists who are learning how to create full-length works.

I am always trying to think of innovative ways to fund raise, and looking for donations for our raffles and silent auctions. If anyone has any suggestions, please contact me at: Puppetpandemic@gmail.com

Cathy Shaw in Conversation

Thinking of starting a  Puppet Slam in your area but want to know more? Looking for tips on running a puppet cabaret smoothly? Join the conversation between Jane Catherine (Cathy) Shaw and Conrad Bishop. Enter the mind of slam organizers as Conrad, who has a slam north of San Francisco in the works interviews Cathy, curator of the now biennial Voice4Vision Festival, which hosts the wildly successful Puppet Art Attacks Slam and HellzaPoppinPuppets in New York City.

Puppet Art Attacks Slam & HellzaPoppinPuppets
Puppet Junction's Dali with Sophia Remolde Šime Viduka and Serra Hirsch, 2009

   

Conrad Bishop: How many events per year do you have?

Cathy Shaw: The Voice 4 Vision Puppet Festival is now a biennial event and we historically hosted one Puppet Slam as part of the Festival, and that was the “Closing Celebratory Slam” – “The Puppet Art Attacks Slam."

This year we added a second event called HellzaPoppinPuppets (Slam) that experimented by inviting artists who may be working in other genres, but who are now doing things with puppetry (like clowns or nightclub singers, etc.) to see how what they are doing could inform us.

CB: How "curated" are you?  Is it totally open-mike, or selected?

CS:  Initially when I curated [Puppet Art Attacks] alone, I sent out an open call, but I did make it clear that this event was seeking "short works of genius."  I think a place for artists to learn their chops is good, but for the Puppet Art Attacks Slam, I wanted the event to be one that challenged artists to make their best short form work-and to bring the many puppetry forms to the attention of audiences.

I hoped that performing in the Slam would feel like a great compliment to the investment they had made in their work, so all of the work needed to be of high caliber to set the bar high!  It isn't that I wanted the atmosphere to be competitive, but that the artists should feel self competitive-to stretch as far as they can.

This year Honey Goodenough [curator of Puppet Pandemic] joined me as a co-curator and I believe she was more actively seeking certain artists to bring their work to the slam.

CB: Are there time limits on pieces?

CS: I say that pieces have to be between 3 and 7 minutes.  It is short form. Get to the point. Don't belabor it. Don't be precious. Make your statement in a limited amount of time!

Puppet Art Attacks Slam & HellzaPoppinPuppets
Wonderspark Puppets, 2011

CB: What type of performing venue do you use?

CS: We are in a black box theater with slightly raked seating. The theater is wider than it is deep. All of the equipment and soft goods are old or non-existent. We rent pretty much everything-from lighting instruments, to boards, to cables.

  

CB: What is the admission price? 

CS: We charge $12.00 a ticket.

CB:  How much tech (sound, lights, video) is available?

CS:  Because the Slam is one event in the V4V Festival, all of the equipment I rent to run the main stage shows is available for the slam.  Though we can't do special focus for the acts, we plan in advance a few specials that are likely to be needed, and then other light cues from the main stage shows usually end up being useful to the slam acts. I hire a Festival Lighting designer, Stage Manager, Sound Engineer, and board Ops. They come in and work the last minute rehearsal and have 2 or 3 hours to devise light and sound cues and record them.

CB: What is the average size of the audience?

CS: The Puppet Art Attacks Slam is always standing room only. This year the first HellzaPoppinPuppets had a pretty small house.

CB:  Are there any other elements to the evening? (Refreshments?  Spaghetti dinner?  Other types of performance?)

CS:  Mainly I' have been doing the Festival as my way of paying it forward for support I have had over the years, so my emphasis has been on getting information about the artists out on our web page, Facebook page, in the programs and as the host during the event, I would try to really make sure the audience knew who the artists were and what they were up to (It's a hard hard life to get support and audience....)

This year for kicks I tried serving popcorn and having a bar in the audience.  Though once the show started, no one would get up to get anything....

Puppet Art Attacks Slam & HellzaPoppinPuppets

Carla Rhodes, 2011

CB:  What are some problems you have encountered?

CS: The messiest parts are the changeovers. You need someone who will run and organize the changeovers. I like it when all of the participating artists are part of making the event work - it really establishes a community fast.  They should each have a part to do in the changeovers.
Then you need someone to carefully go through the pieces with each artist, setting cues in a cue-to-cue fashion, building light and sound cues only - NO RUN THROUGHS! We are able to do 10 or 12 acts in 2 hours and all the cues are executed near perfect in the show. I do that, facilitating communications between the designers and the Stage Manager and the Board Ops and keeping things moving forward.

The artists may not be used to writing out a script (or they might say there isn't any dialogue, or that their piece is easy, just lights up lights down) - but still they have to write out a narrative in advance that the stage manager can use to record her cues (if he/she will be calling the show.) Otherwise the Board Ops need something that they can refer to during the show to jog their memory for the cues. All of the pieces might be easy separately, but put together it is an hour or more show with a lot going on. So, the artists must write a script that the crew can use to record what they need to record to run the cues as efficiently as possible. Even knowing if they will be onstage behind the host frozen to start, or if they will enter in darkness after the host has introduced them - all of this must be written in a script - its all part of how their piece resonates--so they should take care of every single detail and write it in a script they can give people who will execute cues for their piece.  They should get it to you in advance. Digital is best because the Stage Manager can format it just the way they like to write in cues.

P.S. Don't use iPods for sound cues! If anything, get a MAC with Qlab on it - all sound cues can be loaded into the computer as MP4 and it runs easily.

CB: Any other questions we should be asking?

CS: Its important to me that artists earn something for their work. Its important that it be part of what we know bout ourselves as artists, and that we begin to make it a part of what audiences know too. We contribute something important to culture and society. We earn our living doing it. Puppet Art Attacks receives a Puppet Slam Network grant and a good portion of it pays the artists for participating. We also give them a percentage of the door (the theater takes its cut first). This is real important to me, so I share that with you.