Survey
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
INTERVIEW WITH GREG RUHE: From Puppet Pizzazz Extracted from Scene 2010-11 December Issue 2 INTERVIEW WITH GREG RUHE From Puppet Pizzazz How old were you when you got hooked on puppets for the first time? My passion for puppets began when I was a toddler. The Ed Sullivan variety show, famous for launching the Beetles rock group in America, aired on television after my bedtime. However, whenever the Italian mouse puppet, Topo Gigio, was on an episode, my parents allowed me to get out of bed to watch the magical and memorable puppet performance. I remember thinking, that little puppet mouse was the most adorable creature on the planet and I wanted desperately to be his friend. When I was little, there was no pre-school or group playtime for me. My best friends were the puppet characters on another famous American television show, “Mr. Rodger’s Neighborhood” Traveling to the land of make believe where all the puppets ruled was my favorite part of the show. I grew up with those puppet friends. I am certain those characters have greatly influenced not only my personality but also my career. The show aired throughout most of my life. Even when I was in junior high school, and I was sick and had to miss a day of school, I would secretly watch “Mr. Rodger’s Neighborhood” and that always made me feel better. When I was approximately 5 years old my Grandmother took me on my first “big boy” bus trip into downtown Pittsburgh. I remember going to the fancy Kauffman’s department store to shop for my birthday present. Grandma told me, I could have whatever I wanted as long as it was under $5. I wanted a puppet! I selected a small donkey hand puppet that resembled the Mr. Roger’s puppet character of a Donkey named Hodie. I named my puppet Donkey Hodie and immediately started to perform. I loved the repeat episodes of “Mr. Rodger’s Neighborhood” the best, because I could act out Donkey Hodie’s parts along with the television character’s lines and action. I still have that donkey puppet. It sits on my desk as a talisman to keep my puppetry energy flowing. What shape did your studies take in puppetry while you were at West Virginia University? Attending a university was instrumental in my development as a puppeteer. When it came time for college the only thing I wanted to study was theatre. I was determined that I would become one of the few lucky rich and famous actors. My father was a practical man, who worked most of his life in a steel mill. He declared that he would pay for anything but a “theatre” education. Luckily, I was accepted to West Virginia University on a full talent scholarship. Dad softened up after that and has since always encouraged me to follow my dreams. Puppetry education was offered at WVU, and is still taught under the guidance of the remarkable Joann Siegrist. Joann cast me in my first university production as a puppeteer. I played the roles of Baby Bird and Sammy the Grass Snake in the play Little Red Riding Hood. It was thrilling to be a freshman and part of a big show, but I was most interested in being an actor, not a puppeteer. However, the confidence I gained from this first puppet performance most likely lead to my being cast in many college productions as an actor. During my second semester at WVU I played the part of Puck, in A Mid-Summer Nights Dream. Thirty years later, I still have nightmares that I cannot remember all those lines!!! Acting never came easy for me. I wanted desperately to be on stage but I would at times become emotionally unglued, filled with performance anxiety. While acting in those college productions I often wished for the security of having a puppet character in front of me as I did in that first show. Immediately after graduating I moved to Houston, Texas to perform as an actor at the Alley Theatre. I worked for nearly slave-wages, but I had the opportunity to be in several main stage shows earning equity points in a large union house. I worked with incredibly talented actors, who at the time seemed ancient to me. Some of them were in their 50s, 60s, and possible older. They were still living like gypsies, always searching for their next job. Their instability, in spite of their talent, terrified me. I decided then that only way to guarantee work in the theatre was to create your own. Where and when did the events entertainment side of your business come from? And… How was The Children’s Theatre of Houston significant in your journey? After my contract was finished with the Alley I teamed up with one of the other young company members and we began our own touring company, called The Children’s Theatre of Houston. We wrote our plays, and performed in them. We made the costumes, sets and puppets. Suddenly I was not just acting. I was using everything I studied in college and creating award winning theatre. Our little company was voted number one in arts and education by the Cultural Arts Council of Houston, for two consecutive years. It was wonderful to have our artistic achievements recognized but this did not help pay the rent so I began to supplement my income by working as a waiter for an upscale catering company. Suddenly I was thrust into a world of charity balls. I loved being a part of the dramatic elements these gala events had. I was on the wait staff to work the opening of a new arts centre in Houston. As part of the celebration, a performance art group was brought in from New York City to provide strolling entertainment at the inauguration dinner. Most of the acts consisted of actors mixing with the guests while wearing elaborate costumes. Some puppetry elements were included. One act was a man and woman in safari attire with a giant snake coiled around the couple. All three characters were somehow all manipulated by one actor. I was transfixed. I found myself forgetting about my waiter duties and I followed around the performers instead of attending the guests. This was my inspiration to create Puppet Pizzazz. Soon I began to create my own characters with party entertainment in mind. My specialty became full body puppet characters of outrageous party guests that crashed events and engaged the guests in comedic conversation. The unique feature of my puppets was that the performer’s legs were actually the legs of the puppets, making it possible for my characters to stroll, sit, or “get down on the dance floor”. In spite of it being required to take costume construction in college, my technique of sewing was more hot glue rather than needle and thread. This worked well enough over the first few years but as time went by and the events I was entertaining at became more sophisticated, so my puppet construction and puppet wardrobe needed to follow suit. I eventually hired Marsha MacDonald, a friend experienced in fine couture and costuming, to make dresses for my puppets. As time went by and I could afford more help, Marsha took over most of my party puppet construction. She has a talent for construction, and particularly enjoyed refining my ideas. This afforded me the time to concentrate on building my business and developing my performances. Puppet Pizzazz now has a branch of operation based in Paris, directed by the French puppeteer, Charles Rabhi. Together, we have been taking our unique entertainment around the world, performing for princes and presidents. Charles recently awed Prince Albert of Monaco at a small private birthday party in the south of France. I once almost caused former president George Bush senior a heart attack, when I gave him a hug while dressed in my giant 8 foot tall mother rabbit character. As I approached the president he had a genuine look of horror in his eyes. Perhaps he thought I was a terrorist, or maybe he was not a fan of the play “Harvey”… I love the duality of my career. During the day I often play the role of the wholesome puppeteer, touring schools with my educational puppetry productions as well as conducting puppet making and manipulation workshops. I love sharing my puppet expertise with children and educators, but am very happy that “puppets are not just for children” and at night I can be “the life of the party” playing the part of a wild and naughty Carmen Miranda, or Eduardo, the latin lover with a chiseled six pack. How did the work for the Very Special Arts project come about? It was 1996 and I had been practicing a career as a puppeteer for many years but still was very much the struggling artist, still needing to supplement my income by being the catering waiter. Out of the blue, my puppetry professor, Joann, offered me the chance of a life time. On a day when I was feeling particularly insecure about my career, Scene | 2010-11 December Issue 2 | 7 Joann called me up and asked if I would like to spend my summer working in Asia, touring China, India, and Thailand. I was hired by the organization called Very Special Arts to conduct workshops for special needs educators, instructing them in how to incorporate puppetry into their everyday curriculum. The experience was extremely fulfilling and gave me the confidence to come back to Houston and give up being a waiter and become a full time puppeteer. Can you give examples of puppets being used to raise money at events, such as raffles, auctions and product promotion? Performance at special events demands that our puppet characters be the “life of the party”. We walk around an event and make the guests laugh. Our humor is never put down jokes. If we make fun of anyone, it is our own character or the other puppet we are teamed up with. We want the guests to feel great about themselves. “Darling, you look fabulous!!!! For a moment I was confused and I thought I was looking in a mirror. That dress looks better on you than it ever looked on me… I am going to let you keep it!” “Excuse me Mister, please tell me that you are single and available and that pretty woman with you is your sister!” Often our puppets are engaged to perform practical duties at an event such as the difficult feat of encouraging the guests to move from a cocktail hour to sit down and dine. Or we are hired to encourage the guests to buy raffle tickets or bid at a silent auction. We are also proficient at getting attention and promoting products at trade shows or conferences. Sometimes our job is all about getting guests out on the dance floor. What might seem obnoxious for a real person to do can seem funny when a puppet performs the same action. As a performer I totally lose my inhibitions behind my puppet character. I believe that the party guests also lose their inhibitions because they are dealing with a puppet. They forget that there is a real person just behind our puppets, and are able to engage in a fantasy world and play again like a child. Can you give us a glimpse into the type of shows you perform? “A Puppet Pizzazz Extravaganza” is the big educational and fun variety show which I have been performing an evolving version since my early days of puppeteering. In this 45-minute high energy performance I share my unique world of puppet magic while demonstrating an array of intriguing puppetry styles. I typically start small, demonstrating something cute and cuddly or terribly funny and I build up to the grand finale of bringing to life a giant puppet character. Some puppets dance others tell jokes or act out stories. I always feature a character made entirely out of recycled materials. If the venue allows for shadow puppetry that is a favorite component of the show. It’s not over until the giant space alien lands or the eight foot cow does a square dance! This performance is appropriate for all ages. I love to look out at my audience, at the top of the show, and see teachers who quickly put their papers or computer down and enthusiastically enjoy the performance. Honestly, when I was a child I was bored with most of the puppet shows. I was so curious about what was going on back stage 8 | Scene | 2010-11 December Issue 2 and how the illusions were created. So this performance basically turns things inside out. I allow my audience to see how everything is made and manipulated, and after giving away all my puppetry secrets I encourage my audience to go home, make their own puppet and perform. An ideal situation is to perform the Puppet Pizzazz Extravaganza along with puppeteer, Charles Rabhi, the director of our Paris based branch when we are brought together as guest artists. Charles travels with half of the show’s puppets from the best of our Parisian puppet collection and I transport half of the show from our Houston base. This is what we did recently when we performed shows in a 500-seat amphitheatre at the Khartoum International and Community School. The money raised by ticket sales was being donated to the schools charity community outreach programme. We wanted to make the show extra spectacular. What did the guest artist residency in Khartoum consist of? We were fortunate to be invited twice in 2009 and 2010 to the Khartoum International and Community School know as KICS. Our KICS Residency included the following components: • Performed assembly shows introducing the unique world of puppetry to students from pre-school through year 12 IBDP students. • Visited classrooms and conducted a variety of hands on puppetry workshops. • Taught a week long after school puppetry class. The students made giant shadow puppet creations that were used in a class project. • Facilitated a teacher workshop dedicated to the subject of recycling. Over 100 educators from the greater Khartoum area made and performed with puppets created from plastic bags and other found objects. • Performed and conducted workshops at the Jaref Home for Boys and the Cheshire House, a care facility for children with disabilities. • Helped raise money for sponsored charities by providing featured entertainment at the KICSPA (Parent organization) Annual Street Fair, a fundraiser open to the community and visited by 2000 patrons. • We “astonished” guests with larger-than-life puppet creations at private parties hosted by diplomats and the KICS school director. What personal and professional goals do you have for the foreseeable future? And… How do you see Puppet Pizzazz continuing and developing in the future? I am certainly leaving myself open to any possibilities. There is always the hope I will be offered my own Las Vegas review, or a leading puppet role in a new smash Broadway show, or perhaps a reality television show based on my party puppets, (or win the lottery!) Seriously, I am always searching for other guest artist positions around the world. Puppets and travel are my favorite things in life so to combine the two makes for a very satisfying career in the dramatic arts. PUPPET PIZZAZZ’S REPERTOIRE OF WORKSHOPS Taken from: http://www.puppetpizzazz.com/puppet_pizza zz_educational_programs.html Teacher Workshops Capture your student’s attention with the power of Puppetry. These creative and instructional hands on sessions explore how you can easily add the excitement of puppetry into any lesson plan. Sessions will be created to fit your special interest or the curriculum you intend to teach. Shadow Puppetry Perfect for all ages. Explore the ancient world of shadow puppetry. Make a stage from a cardboard box, or sheet and pull the old overhead projector out of the school storage closet. Consider this fast, easy, fun and affordable way to create endless puppetry possibilities. Recycling and Puppet Making Turn trash into treasure and help save the Planet Earth while making puppets. Learn to create an array of fascinating characters without spending a lot of money on supplies. These workshops for young or old are designed to match your interests and availability of items needing recycling. Penguin Pizzazz Geared for early child hood education. Imagine giant loveable, huggable and friendly Professor Penguin entering the classroom and sharing knowledge about the life and habitat of real penguins. Plenty of fun and excitement will abound from this memorable interactive creative dramatic experience. Table Top Puppetry Learn to make and perform with simple rod puppets, using puppets from the Puppet Pizzazz collection. Or we can teach you how to create your own puppets and plays. Mask Making and Performance Create your own unique masks and learn how to use them in your own dramatic production. Great for older students and the artistically inclined. Charles Rabhi joins Greg Ruhe at Puppet Pizzazz, directing Les Marionnetees En Folies in Paris. Charles will join ISTA staff at the forthcoming Middle School Festival in Geneva, focusing on puppetry. Charles Rabhi’s theatrical skills were honed at the Theatre studio 516 at la Salle Pleyel in Paris where he studied under the direction of the renowned Madame Teresa. After many satisfying years of acting in both comedies and dramas Charles jumped the pond to apprentice at Puppet Pizzazz where he performed at hundreds of events across the United States and eventually became co-director of the company. While in Houston, Charles orchestrated Puppet Pizzazz’s work at the Children’s Museum of Houston, Texas Children’s Hospital, MD Anderson Cancer Research Center, and River School for special needs students. After working in Houston for seven years, Charles opened Puppet Pizzazz’s European group “Les Marionnettes en Folies” based in Paris. Charles enjoys traveling across the globe sharing puppet performances and educational puppetry experiences. In 2009 Charles was thrilled to be a guest artist at the Khartoum International and Community School in Sudan. Charles’s favorite performance to date was entertaining Prince Albert at a party in Monaco.