8 posts worth of posting.

So the few of you that check in on me every now and again are probably sick of seeing the same bit about the silly rhinos. Sorry about that. And then again, who am I writing for, you or me? Probably more me, otherwise I wouldn't do it. But hey, at least when I get the bug in me to write, I give you a week's worth of reading.

On the puppetry front I went to PuppetFest Midwest and made the most amazing puppet I've ever made. Keep in mind that I have had a child. The child did not have yellow eyes and I did not use The Ultimate non-toxic contact cement to make him. I took Nick Barone's workshop. Yay for that whole shin-dig! Very patient and willing to put up with attention-loving kids like me. I'll post photos soon. I haven't quite finished his arms. I'm afraid I was too eager to slap them on and sewed one to the body a bit early (before I finished the 2nd one--bad call). So I've realized the fallacy in this and now I'm kind-of sad to take the other arm off, fearing that I'll leave a big-ole frasty mark on his side. I'm very impatient. I need to get over that.

The workshop was only half of the loveliness that was Puppetfest Midwest. I also got to know quite a few amazing puppeteers. Can I be thrilled that this is what I do? I make friggin puppets and I work at a friggin puppet theater. I meet and get to talk with heroes of puppetry. I do shows for grown-ups and I'm basically doing what I wanted to do when I was 5. Nobody grows up and does what they wanted to do when they were 5. If you challenge me then you are a liar. You didn't want to grow up and be a grown-up. When you were 5 you wanted to be a Snork and you know it.

So while at the festival I had forgotten that I signed up for something called Bits & Pieces. Its a late night show that's basically an open-mic night. I had brought a handful of finger puppets (only because they were in my sewing bag) & I grabbed a pig & a hamburger before I left--very last minute, too--just in case I wanted to sign up once I got there. I saw my name on the list when I arrived & freaked out a little. I hadn't prepared a darn thing. Nick was in charge of the evening performances & wouldn't take my name off of the list. Thankfully I had wonderful people in my life (Thank you Drew Allison) who made sure I had 3 glasses of wine in about 30 minutes before I went on. I don't drink terribly often. Drew was, by the way, the first person to actually get me drunk. Enabler. So because I had prepared nothing, I knew I'd be improvising.

A word on improvisational theater. (Yes, I spelled theater with an ER, not RE--eat it.) Doing a show with multiple people is one thing. The fewer people you have in your show, the more "on" you need to be. A two-person show is intimidating to me. It can be for a lot of people. In fact, I'd say it is for a lot of people. You just have to be flat out on top of your game. I had no other experienced improvisers upon whom I could force to perform with me. I have never before done a one-person improv show. I had no one to bounce ideas off of but my forced-split-personality self.

I also have never done a solo puppet show. Also an intimidating thing for me. I'm sure most puppeteers are completely comfortable with such an idea. But if my ship is sinking, I want someone to hug on the way down.

So I mustered up my gut (aka Drunkie McDrunkicide) and went on with just me, two hand puppets and a fist-full of finger puppets. The suggestion was singing sausage. I do longform, by the way, so it was one continual scene and nothing jokey-gamey-gimmicky. I honestly think I did a very good job with it! I had many, many compliments post-show. People laughed about when I thought they should, and I had fun (which is the ultimate importance). I'm sure it was a mixture of "hey I think she's funny" and "hey look at Drunkie." But even that bit of a mixture is okay with me. Causes me to really want to kick some Bits & Pieces tuchus if I'm able to go next year.

I came back to a busy Crafty Burrito week & even more puppetry. Last weekend I participated in the 48-hour Film Challenge, sponsored by IFP & the Phoenix Film Festival. We were 2 hours late turning in our film due to some technical problems. Ah well. we had a lot of fun making it. We used paper puppets. Something I'd never done before & thought it would be easier than it was, and then it ended up being easier than I'd been making it after lots of failed attempts at both moving eyes & mouths from flat paper. I didn't have too many materials or tools available to me and we made more than 20 puppets for the 3 minute film. I mean, that alone we should be proud of. We'll screen it on Thursday for a $10 a ticket. That's right, it's a STEAL!

I have a puppet slam coming up next weekend. For anyone in the area who wishes to go, its $8 if you call & pay in advance & $10 at the door.It should prove to be an okay slam. Its called the Sweaty Butt Puppet Slam. Being in Phoenix, I can attest to the sweaty buttification. I've not finished writing our piece yet. bad, isn't it? I suppose I'm just not married to the idea, so its hard to get behind it. I feel like maybe the premise has been over-done & will cause the show to be predictable, which automatically makes things boring--for me. And with all of the creative juices flowing out of me so much in such a short amount of time (festival followed by 48 hour challenge), it's just difficult to make myself write something that I can't get fully behind. I feel some sort of creative stifleifity going on and I'm not a fan. Boo.

I'm hoping that getting back into Etsy a bit can cure that. I haven't made anything new (excepting a head of lettuce at the festival which someone wanted to buy before I cut the final thread--that was a nice feeling.) But I have been listing some things I'd already made. I actually sold 4 things just this week, so that's really exciting. One being Gloria, my zombie. One of those things that I question whether or not I'm making puppets the "right way" and rethinking how much my labor is worth when I employ only a certain set of skills. (I actually went back and changed that sentence from using the 2nd person (You question, you're making, your labor, etc) and decided to own those gross feelings as my own.) Anyway, just being in a general funk. Everyone goes there, and it's not a bad place to be in..it's just a place. So anyway, I'm hopefully coming out of that funk. I'm hoping once swim lessons are over in the child-boy's life, that I can get back to making things hard. I can't see it not happening.

(The photo is of a puppet I made for an awesome kid named Elliott who designed the puppet all by his lonesome.)

PuppetFest Midwest Tomorrow!

I leave tomorrow bright and early for PuppetFest Midwest in Trenton, Missouri! I was awarded a scholarship & I plan to use it to the fullest! This festival sneaked up on me. ("Sneaked up" doesn't sound correct..but really it is.) I think I was so excited about the release of the video this week (Yesterday it was a feature story on yahoo! YAY!) that I completely forgot about packing. So today is all about getting my ducks in a row before I leave!

Things I doubt you care about: Swim lessons with the boy-child are going well. If I were a newspaper I'd say something about them going swimmingly. Which causes me to ask why newspapers are still using puns after at least 100 years of readers groaning at them in agony.

He also got into the school we were hoping for! He'll actually be in the kindergarten classroom this year. They stay there until they're about age 7 because it's a hippie-school. How hippie you ask? The 3rd graders are in charge of taking care of the farm animals. They encourage the kids to jump off of the swings, catch frogs, and climb trees. (As long as the tree doesn't bear fruit.) They keep the same teacher from the 1st-8th grade. They spend a lot of time outside while they learn. They all learn to play instruments & paint. They make stilts, learn how to felt, and put on plays. What's even cooler? Puppetry is huge at this school! HUZZAH! (That's a dork's way of saying amen.)

This is where I preach:
Encouraging children to move while they learn and using music to teach math, and art to teach science, and dance to teach language causes children to learn effectively. It's well-rounded and it makes learning far more fun than sitting at a desk. Stupid desks.

Preaching done. Look at a picture of rhinos to flush your brain.

This is it!

So....this is what I worked on that was all super-secret. Released mere moments ago (I was the 12th view!) and YAY!

For those of you who don't know, it's a Canadian band called the Barenaked Ladies and they're not bare or naked...or ladies. But they do sing some pretty rad music & they released a children's album called Snacktime. I got to go to Chicago in a fancy airplane and ride in a fancy car to a fancy apartment in Boy's Town. Then I got to ride a fancy train and a fancy bus to help finish the puppets up, then I got to sit under a fancy table & play with puppets for 19 fancy hours! FANCY! (Thank you Moxie, for bringing that word back to the forefront of my life)

One of the most wonderful experiences! I loved every minute! I got to work with some amazing puppeteers, as well! WOW. Noah Ginex is the man responsible for most everything you see on screen. From construction and animation to editing. He had a good set of folks around him that helped him work on a fairly tight budget (when it comes to puppets) and an even tighter schedule to make it work.

I could go on for ages. I won't.

This wasn't it....But it's Exciting!!!

The big thing I was awaiting wasn't this, but this is one thing I was awaiting! My finger puppet kits have arrived at the Maker Shed! (Craft: & Make: Magazine's online store)

They said that the kit is by Stacey Rebecca...implying that either I have no last name or that Rebecca is my last name. I think people have a problem with my name. Poor Stacy Wolf. I'm not sure if I should ask them to fix it. I'm just kind-of excited that I have a product ID number. Although the free-art non-consumer in me is saddened by that...although the desire to pay mortgages and eat food and send my child to school is again excited about it. Hooray consumerism!

So go buy my hard work from someone else! And then they'll buy my hard work from ME! Hooray for the man!

Very Little Time

The story of having "no time" continues, however if you look at my facebook profile, it seems as though I've found a lot of time for scramble. (a game like boggle) Anyway, it feels like I don't have much time. I possibly procrastinate slightly when I do. However it being midnight-thirty, I'll accept that this is time I can properly waste.

I did get to do a workshop in Gilbert for teens. They had 12 sign up, but only 6 girls came. They were a quiet, but fun group. Wow, some of them got really creative. I love seeing that! Teenagers don't get to play very often. Puppetry is entirely a way to get them to act like idiots--I mean, children.

I've been anxiously awaiting the release of that super-secret project. There has been an announcement on a certain website saying that it would be released at the end of the week. Until then, I play Scramble.

On Friday I had a show that started at 10:30pm (insane), but prior to that, I attended the Cancer Fandango, an event that raised money to help a local improviser pay for his cancer-bills. Lovely insurance doesn't pay for medication, so at 29, Alexander has to worry about debt, cancer, chemotherapy, seizures, boredom, and everything else that goes along with having cancer. Well boo that I say! If you'd like to donate to help an awesome guy out, give him money. Give him all of...or at least some of your money. If a dollar is all you give, then that's one less dollar he has to worry about. Seriously. Or youse can use your computer for the folding at home dealio. (yes, grammar is my strong suit.) You can download that via the linkiedoodle under "give him money."

The next day at the same venue we screened our *cough* award-winning film, Big Benevolent Wolf. First with sound, second with live commentary from the directors. We ACTUALLY had people that enjoyed their evening. I hope it's because a couple that spins plates came on after us. No naked magician last night, but one can only ask for so much.

That's all for now. When the magical future secret project gets released, I'll pee my pants and then announce it here. Our guess is within the next few days.

I leave you with a photo that is near and dear to my heart. You can guess where he was.

Caution: Spoilers

This is Larry Bignose. The Larry on the left was created by a 9-year-old boy who shall remain nameless for awesome's sake. The Larry on the right was adapted to puppet by me. I have had the extremely good pleasure of adapting four more of his designs into finger puppets. Keeping in mind that I'm plunking these guys down into under 3" of felt, it's not exactly easy. Larry's biggest challenges were in making his hands and his hat. I made the hat separately, and now I think I should have made it bigger...at least the brim. To get the full-on excitement of the hat, you'd have to look at the side view. Nothing will ever be perfect, right? If you know the recipient of this puppet...SHHHH.

We got home last night to find nothing stolen. I'm only mildly disappointed, although I know many of you are very busy with the end of the school-year and all. The only thing missing was our mail, but we knew about that so it doesn't count. A good friend stopped by to get our mail for us while we were out of town & we went by his place on our way home to pick it up. We only had him get our mail after hearing that another friend got a scholarship to PuppetFest Midwest in Trenton, MO* this summer. I also applied for a scholarship, so I was really anxious to find out. I called Bill to see if the letter was there and if so, in what type of envelope, and whether or not it was thick, etc. I had him open it over the phone and read it to me. I got the scholarship! Hooray!

For those of you who don't know, puppet festivals (unlike a lot of improv festivals) cost several hundreds of dollars just to attend. There's no taking just one workshop or going to just one show. It's either all or nothing. So with transportation, I think it bumped this festival up over $1,000 for me...which is completely not-doable. They scholarship pays for the festival, room and board for the week and the workshops. I have to cover transportation, but I can do that!

I only get one real week out of the year to learn from other people and this is it. This festival is unlike a lot of others, in that it offers a full week of classes with only one instructor (most festivals offer that as an option, but not as the only option). And then there are shows in the evenings, and dinners together. You stay in dorm rooms with other puppeteers and it's pretty okay to geek out over something like an arm-rod or a ladder stitch. For my some of my other crafting friends, consider it like going to the bead store with someone who knows what a crimping thingie-doodle is, or to a knitting store where they have bamboo fiber to spin. The nice thing is that all craftsmen are brought together under the love of a dremel. (yes..all)

I still can't believe Maker Faire was only a month ago and that the music video was only 2 and a half weeks ago? wow. A lot has happened recently. Thankfully it's not going to slow down! I have a workshop that I'll give at a Library toward the end of June, and lots of puppets I'm making for people who want puppets. And not to mention that I get to go on vacation next weekend for 8 days at the beach starting next weekend. And thrown in there is Disneyland! Yay!

*Trenton claims to be the world's largest producer of Vienna sausages. World..You have NO idea! None! I will gain 47 pounds in sausages. 45% of those pounds will be sodium. Oh sweet baby hot dogs that come in a can, you will be in my belly. Soon.

Boo for dead batteries

I'm in California again, but this time on vacation. Hooray! Yesterday we headed into Oakland to visit Children's Fairyland, a small theme-park built in 1950 (pre-Disneyland). They house the oldest continuously running puppet theater in the country. It's full of adorably dated rides and sets and wonderfully updated rides and sets. This was the place that I saw my very first puppet show in either 81 or 82. This was also the place the left me terrified of twisty slides for the rest of my life. My shoe got caught in the tower. The dreaded tower of doom. This dreaded tower of doom is the tower to which they send the kids under 4 years of age because they're too little to go down the big-kid dragon slide of not-getting-your-shoe-stuck.

So at one point we had to take the wee one to the wee-wee room & I saw that the side door was open to the puppet theater...a Yoda poster hung on the wall inside (adorable since Frank Oz used to work there). I saw a man eating a hot-pocket (ohhh delicious hot pockets...how I miss your cheese-goo) & I decided to muster my woman-balls and ask if he was the resident puppeteer. Indeed it was puppeteer, Randal Metz. He invited me in and we talked about puppetry and building and marionettes and shows and well..puppetry for a good hour until it was time for him to start the show. We geeked out so hard that Todd & the boy-child had to leave to do less geeky things.

Their audio is all prerecorded, so he invited me to watch the show from backstage if I wanted to. I wanted to. I brought my mom back (she adores puppets) & we watched Pinocchio. It was an interesting thing to watch. His partner for the show had only done the show with him 3 times, so she was fairly fresh. But the idea of having prerecorded dialog and music meant that he could give her instructions during the show without missing a beat. He also carried on a fairly uninterrupted conversation with us during the show without missing things. It's so ingrained.

I've stolen some video from etsy seller, headexplodie, for you. Go buy stuff from her out of guilt for having watched stolen video.


Then we got to play with the puppets. That was good fun! Lewis Mahlmann made the puppets years and years ago (I don't want to be specific because I don't remember exactly, but Randal did tell me) and some of the costumes (in the show) were made by Frances Oznowicz. It was really an awesome theater to visit. And the park is pretty lovely as well. It's getting refurbished and there is fresh paint everywhere! (Even on the boy's shirt...whoopsiedoodle)

We head back into town tomorrow morning, so if you plan on stealing something from my house, now is the time.