My journey down Avenue Q: Could Puppetry Be My Purpose? - Part One

When I was a kid, I always knew what I wanted to do when I grew up. I was determined to be an artist. Art was all I was ever good at. I spent my childhood drawing, playing the piano, putting on silly voices and playing with puppets. And if I didn't have a puppet in my hand, I would operate my napkin or the tablecloth as a puppet. 

There were three goals I wanted to pursue - 

1. Be a cartoonist and/or animator.

I drew a lot of comic strips growing up. I knew I wanted to make at least one animated film. I've made a few, mostly during college. While I've never been able to make a living out of drawing, I still managed to earn a little bit of money here and there for the occasional drawing gig I'd get. And my animated films have screened at art shows and film festivals. Nothing big has come of my drawing. But I've had a go.

2. Write and perform music.

Since classical piano training from the age of three, I have played keyboard in a number of bands of many different genres. While I've never been able to make a living out of music, I still managed to tour the country, release an album with one of the bands, get a lot of good album reviews in overseas magazines, and made a lot of fans in the underground music scene. Nothing big has come of my musical endeavours. But I've had a go.

 

3. Work as a puppeteer, preferably with Jim Henson's Team (The Muppets, Sesame Street, Fraggle Rock, etc) if possible.

This goal hasn't been as easy to crack into, but as someone who has been obsessed with The Muppets my whole life, I keep coming back to it. With my own puppets at home, I'd practice along with the Sesame Street and Muppet Show puppets on TV. Being able to sync a puppet's mouth with my own or someone else's voice was a skill I picked up when I was very young, as well as being able to move a puppet in time to music. It's a skill that I always thought was pretty straight forward. I didn't realise it was considered by many to be such a challenging thing. To me, maths is difficult. Sport is difficult. Understanding politics and money is difficult. Most normal, everyday social interactions are difficult for me. Puppetry seems to be one of the most natural skills I have. But why has it been so hard to break into?

Performing lunch time puppet shows with the school library puppets proved to be quite popular, until the librarian confiscated the puppets. There was to be no more puppet shows in school. The library staff later took the tape recorder away too upon discovery of my interest in recording funny radio sketches in silly voices. 

My first proper puppet show at my youngest brother Dale's birthday party was properly scripted and featured songs. I combined my tape recording and puppetry skills for it. But unfortunately, the kids at the party were out of control and proceeded to pull the puppets off my hands, and come around into the back door of the refrigerator box puppet theatre I made, completely ruining all my hard work and preparation for the show. But this didn't deter me.

Since school, I applied for a puppeteer role in a children's television programme that was in early stages of development. I was cast. But the shows' creators pulled the plug on the project before we really got to do anything. 

My brother Dale and I created a TV show featuring my puppetry. We pitched it to the local community TV station. They liked the idea, but weren't willing to produce it without sponsorship. Sadly, no companies were willing to sponsor the show. So it never happened. 

In the mid-2000s, I heard about a Broadway musical called "Avenue Q" which had won a heap of awards. From the images I'd seen, this looked just like Sesame Street. It featured a cast of cute Muppet-style puppets (designed by Rick Lyon, who had worked with Jim Henson), alongside a human cast. But it was for adults. It's the story of a young college graduate entering adulthood and learning about real life issues such as finding your purpose in life, unemployment, racism, finding love, sexual identity, and learning to deal with the fact that you can't always achieve your goals without a lot of struggles and rejection. 

I finally saw the show when it came to Australia in 2009, first in Sydney, and then in Brisbane a year later. The story, the songs and the puppets were all brilliant. The show was funny, edgy, moving, inspiring, and thought provoking. I loved it, and really related to a lot of what the characters were going through.

KATE MONSTER
Morning, Brian!

BRIAN
Hi, Kate Monster.

KATE MONSTER
How's life?

BRIAN
Disappointing!

KATE MONSTER
What's the matter?

BRIAN
The catering company
laid me off.

KATE MONSTER
Oh, I'm sorry!

BRIAN
Me too! I mean, look at me!
I'm ten years out of college, and I
always thought -

KATE MONSTER
What?

BRIAN
No, it sounds stupid.

KATE MONSTER
Aww, come on!

BRIAN
When I was little
I thought I would be...

KATE MONSTER
What?

BRIAN
A big comedian
on late night TV
But now I'm thirty-two
And as you can see
I'm not

KATE MONSTER
Nope!

BRIAN
Oh Well,
It sucks to be me.

KATE MONSTER
Nooo.

BRIAN
It sucks to be me.

KATE MONSTER
No!

BRIAN
It sucks to be broke
and unemployed
and turning thirty-three.
It sucks to be me.

More than ever today, these lyrics affect me. I too am ten years out of college. I too am thirty-two going on thirty-three. I too have not been able to make a comfortable living out of the things I'm good at and interested in.

In 2011, a fascinating and inspiring documentary called, "Being Elmo: A Puppeteer's Journey" was screened as part of the Brisbane International Film Festival. It told the story of Muppet performer Kevin Clash, and his journey from rags to riches. From building his own puppets and putting on his own puppet shows as a kid, to meeting with Jim Henson and becoming one of the most important figures in puppetry today.

Shortly after that, the first new theatrically released Muppets film in twelve years (The Muppets) began screening. And I saw it three times, including two preview screenings.

During this time, I learned that Avenue Q was coming back to Brisbane - a local production! Which meant that I had an opportunity to audition! I'm not an actor or a singer. But I did know that the original cast of Avenue Q (in 2003) were puppeteers primarily, and have since been replaced over the years with seasoned musical theatre actors who had never touched a puppet until they were cast in the show. So I promised myself I would take the plunge and go for it. I figured I'd regret it forever if I didn't at least try. This would be another chance at puppetry. A rare chance to perform with professional Muppet-style puppets. 

I bought a couple of inexpensive (but fairly professional looking) monster puppets off eBay, so I could get practising again, and be able to show them at the audition what I could do. I made some alterations to the puppets, trimming the fur around their mouths, and making tongues for them out of stiffened felt. I thought they needed a bit of my own personal touch to them.

Leading up to the audition, I took the puppets out on the road to see people's reactions. They attracted several kids and their parents when I took them to the drive-in to see The Muppets. People were taking pictures of their kids with them and asking questions. I was reminded again that this could be my purpose. The puppets have even received fan art!

My wife Jen and I have since been discussing the possibility of starting a puppet show business. My boss had cut out a page from a parenting magazine showing all the clown and magician acts available for kids birthday parties. She pointed out that there are no puppet acts. She had recently paid a magician $300 for an hour at her daughter's fifth birthday party. She highly recommended that I look into it. These party entertainers make a good living, charging at least $200 per hour, and performing at several parties a week. Maybe this could be my purpose.

With all of these Muppet movies, public interest in my puppets, the idea that I could finally make some money doing something I enjoy, and an upcoming Avenue Q audition that I'd applied for, puppetry was really looking like my next big attempt at becoming a professional artist or performer.

In part two, I'll talk about the Avenue Q audition itself, and the events that are yet to unfold as a result. Will I be cast in the show? Will I receive any feedback on my strengths and weaknesses? Will I get the opportunity to perform with professional puppets on a production of a major Broadway musical?

 

Part Two - http://geekazoidopinion.blogspot.com.au/2012/02/my-journey-down-avenue-q-could-puppetry_27.html