Progress Update

Well, the work continues, as we attempt to repair all of the puppets for “The Snow Queen” AND “Pictures at an Exhibition”.

The work is slow going, as we are trying to work the repair stuff in with our already busy schedule. A lot of work has been done on Rodney the reindeer puppet…repaired internal framing, ribs and mounting points. We are currently working on replacing  the ear springs and repairing the fur.

Gerda’s hair has been re-worked. All of the blond crepe hair has been removed and her original hair has been cleaned, untangled and redone.

Kai has had his hoops raised, his torso rebuilt and his “glowing eye” wiring repaired.

We will post photos soon. The work goes on…all the time remembering that our own original production “The Adventures of Super Nutrition Man” goes out in two short months!

Now the Real Work Begins…

Sunday was a great day for us, as we were able to take posession of the puppets from “The Snow Queen” and “Pictures at an Exhibition”. We met with the president of the board of directors of the former “Das Puppenspiel Puppet Theater, Inc.” and loaded everything (well…almost everything) into a van and brought it back to Cleveland. I say almost everything because, after getting everything back home, we did an inventory and found that several “key” pieces were missing. After a phone call to John, we found that just about everything has been found and we will get the missing pieces within the next few weeks.

Now for the bad news…

All of the puppets from “Pictures at an Exhibition” are in pretty good condition. Some worn costumes, cracks and chipped paint…nothing that we can’t take care of quite easily. “The Snow Queen”…now that’s another story! These puppets look like they haven’t been cared for in years. Everything is filthy! Some of the puppets had been stuffed into bags, while others were openly exposed. Torn costumes everywhere…and so much damage! My favorite puppet, “Rodney the Reindeer” looks like he was in a concentration camp for years…his internal framework had been broken. Someone decided that instead of repairing him, they would cover the “sink hole” in his back by putting a saddle on him! All of his internal working has been “rigged” with wire and duct tape. This puppet usually mounts to a large spring, which allows for movement when he is run across the stage. Another spring, mounted inside the neck, allows for realistic head movement. Some genius decided to replace the springs with EMT “T” joints, which only restrict movement and make the entire puppet very unstable. Who are these so-called ”puppeteers” that were allowed to destroy these works of art? I would love to sit down with them and explain to them just how much damage that they actually did! Some of the puppets costumes had been changed…horrible, ugly, ill-fitting costumes that do not look at all like the originals. Someone actually added legs and feet to a puppet that does not need them…making the whole puppet out of proportion and unbalanced. These puppets were created by masters, who put so much time, love and care into each and every piece. They have been turned into what I consider a pile of junk! I mean, Gerda, the hero and star of the show, has had her brown, braided hair replaced by both brown AND blonde hair that has been glued to her head…yes, I said blonde! Everything looks like it has been done by a bunch of 6-year-old kids and NOT by a group of professional artists. From what I have been told, this is the condition of the puppets as they were touring this past season. WTF? I wouldn’t pay fifty cents to see these puppets perform. Nor would I want to see them manipulated to the pre-recorded tracks that I was given along with the puppets. I don’t know the people who voiced this thing. I don’t know who did the re-write or reproduced John Kirk’s original music. I don’t know who directed this recording session. All I know is that, if the recording and the condition of the puppets is any indication of the product that Das Puppenspiel was putting out…it is no wonder that they are out of business. Don’t get me wrong…I love Das Puppenspiel and the body of work. I have nothing but the greatest respect for the creators. People like Jenny Kuhlman, Pam Moran, Steve Swank, Kevin Kuhlman and Myriam Mayshark created some amazing art, both in the puppets, the staging, the stories…everything! I just have a problem with where the company ended up and the reasons behind it. Oh…and to whoever killed these beautiful puppets I say “Shame on you! How dare you pretend to be an artist, a performer, a puppeteer…all of which you are NOT!!” Not to worry…all will turn out fine as Jenny and I WILL return each and every one of these little works of art to their original splendor!

A Slight Setback

Rodney the Reindeer from "The Snow Queen"

Well, we have had a slight setback in the “Great Lakes National Puppet Theater” project. Some of the expected funding did not come through, throwing our schedule off by a few weeks. We are now hoping to have the Das Puppenspiel puppets in our possession by the end of November. Then, after several months of cleaning, repair, rewrites and rebuilds, we hope to have both shows, “The Snow Queen” and “Pictures at an Exhibition” ready to tour and perform by this time next year. Our first production, “The Adventures of Super Nutrition Man” will be going out in March of 2011.

A New Adventure On Familiar Ground

Greetings All!

It certainly has been a long time since I have written anything here. The summer months have come and gone, as has the renaissance festival season. It was a season for much change and many new experiences. Experiences…that is the subject of this writing…Experiences and Change!

Chapter 1: The Reason for the Season

After many years of performing as one-half of “Porter & Stout”, I decided to leave the group. There were many reasons for the decision…some personal and some professional. The fact is, I had not been happy with the group for several seasons. The level of success that we had experienced was mediocre at best. We had produced five CD recordings, all of which had sold, but only in small amounts. One CD, “Treasures”, managed to get a favorable review in “Renaissance” Magazine. But, even a positive review was not enough to increase sales or work. The fact is, we were working way too hard for way too little money on the renaissance festival circuit. The weather during the 2008 and 2009 seasons led to low attendance, poor CD sales and very small hat…not really enough to live on. After doing the math, we were spending OVER 50 % of our earnings, just in expenses for fuel, tolls and hotels. NOT GOOD BUSINESS! So, it was time for a change…

Chapter 2: “Shattered Shakespeare” and “The Plunder Doggs”

Looking for a more creative outlet   and for something that would put more money in my pocket, I put together “Shattered Shakespeare”, a two-man, comedy Shakespeare show. I figured that I had enough training as a clown and my improv skills are good enough that I could put together a show that would be very funny, very entertaining and very popular with the festival crowds. Starting with the obvious choice of “Romeo & Juliet”, “Shattered Shakespeare” was born. Though still not where I need it to be, as far as pacing, comedic timing and entertainment value, I believe that it will be a good production and that it can bring much higher daily fees, bigger hat and huge merchandising sales.

“The Plunder Doggs” is my way of remaining a musician, which I shall always be, in the world of renaissance festivals. Let’s face it…music acts just do not get the respect that they deserve. No festival owner or entertainment director is going to pay more that a couple hundred dollars per day for a music act…no matter how good you are! We are expected to play at front gate, morning music, parade, pub sing, finale…oh, did I forget to mention that we also perform our own four shows per day? When all is said and done…it just doesn’t balance out…we are performing anywhere from 9 to 13 shows per day, but only getting paid for four…what the heck is that all about? So much for all of the lessons, practice, repairs, strings, pain, sweat, blood, ect…you get the picture. So, amid this sea of despair, Jenny and I formed “The Plunder Doggs”. It is still fun to play the sea shanties, sailing songs and some of the Irish stuff…especially now, when I don’t have to feel angry all of the time AND I can understand all of the lyrics! (BONUS!)

I am especially proud of Jenny…going from someone who wanted so badly to be a performer, to being a really strong performer. She is an extremely hard worker and does not give up! She has become my rock and I know that I can not only trust her completely, but I can depend on her, both on-stage and off!

Chapter 3: Little Eyes Staring at Me

So, about two months ago I heard a rumor. Something that I had feared for quite some time. I received word that my old company, Das Puppenspiel Puppet theatre was closing. It seems that after 35 years, the company was in too much debt and the operating money was gone. The board of directors, which I am told went from 11 members, down to 3 (is it any wonder that there was no money, with nobody around to do any kind of fund-raising or grant writing?) had no choice but to close down. I am told that they moved everything that might bring in some money,

The Plunder Doggs perform at Great Lakes medieval Faire 2010

Shattered Shakespeare performing at Fishers Renaisance Faire

Puppets from “The Snow Queen”

into a storage box and everything else (small puppets, sets, curtains, props, special effects, trunks and cases, etc.) was left behind. (Which means…is now in a landfill somewhere! Damn Shame!) So, in my ultimate wisdom, I come up with this idea…”if I can get enough money together, I can buy the puppets and keep at least a couple of the shows alive!” So…here we are…October 14, 2010…2:56 p.m. and I have now found financial backing so that Jenny and I can purchase the puppets from “The Snow Queen” (the set, props, effects and everything else was left behind. *see landfill comment) AND the complete “Pictures at an Exhibition”, Das Puppenspiel’s award-winning show. Although, I learned this past week that some of the curtains for “Pictures” may be missing. So begins a labor of love…cleaning, repairing and restoring these little works of art that have been delighting audiences for well over twenty years! Each puppet will be evaluated to see what need to be done in the restoration process. The costumes mill be cleaned, repaired or replaced and the puppets head, hands and feet will be cleaned, cracks repaired and repainted as needed. While we are at it, the entire set will be replaced for “The Snow Queen”, as well as the props and effects. With the advances in technology, I will be able to achieve BETTER effects at a much lower cost. We will also be rewriting the script and writing new, original music for the show. “Pictures” will remain untouched, as far as rewrites. I want to keep this piece in as close to original form as possible.

Chapter 4: The Birth of a New Company

So, to accommodate all of the new shows, along with our own original work, Jenny and I have created “Great Lakes National Puppet Theater“, as an offshoot of Vincent Magic Productions. Future projects will include a new website for the company, lots of grant writing, auditioning, casting and rehearsing new puppeteers and, most importantly, keeping the spirit and vision of Das Puppenspiel alive and well.

I invite all of you to take this journey with us.

Recording Complete

Just finished recording sessions for the new promo CD. “Droolin’ Jack” & The Rum Runners is our newest project…a four-person, comedy/pirate music group. The new promo will be sent out to try to get bookings at the various renaissance, medieval and pirate festivals around the country. Recording went well, as we recorded three songs of the sea; “The Mermaid”, which is sort of a festival favorite, “Away Rio” which is a traditional sailing song and “South Australia“, a call and response work song. All three sound good and we are using four-part harmonies, along with guitars, drums and assorted percussion. The group will make it’s debut later this year!

Three Years Gone!

I just wanted to mention that today is the three year anniversary of “The Gathering”, our independent organization, dedicated to the art of magic. I started the group, along with my friend Mark, as an alternative organization for magicians. Both Mark and myself were frustrated with the local magic clubs and the lack of “participation” by the members. I believe that the problem was not with the members, but rather the leaders and their lack of organization and leadership skills. So, we decided to “hand-pick” the members of our club. We now have been going for three years and our membership includes full-time, professional performers, part-time performers, hobbyists and even inventors! We are hoping that the club will continue for many years to come!

Website Overhaul

There have been alot of changes to the Vincent Magic Productions website in the past few days. The site is currently undergoing a facelift. In the past, we had several different webmasters, all doing their own thing. As a result, some of the code on the site just doesn’t jive and the pages look different in different web browsers. All of that is being corrected. I never realized just how much work goes into running a website, until I took over the daily operations and maintenance on the site. Time is the key word…alot of time to check links, updating the performance schedule, everything just takes alot of time.

So, look for updates and changes and more good things to come.

Here is a photo of Jenny and I, performing at the Pittsburgh Renaissance Festival, back in September, 2009. Is there a better way to spend a rainy morning?