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PART OF HANDMADE WORLDS: A FESTIVAL OF PUPPET THEATRE
(For more information about all the festival activities, go to www.handmadeworlds.org)
Tom Bonham will demonstrate quick puppet making processes from common and inexpensive materials such as:
hair ties
"one size fits all" glove
tube socks
posterboard
styrofoam balls
feather dusters
bandanas
"silk" scarves
wooden dowels
plastic bottles
plastic tableware
chenille sticks
and similar, easy and inexpensive materials.
In total, Tom Bonham will demonstrate making seven simple puppets. Teachers will be provided demonstration materials in a couple projects so they can "play along."
While the puppets are quick and easy, they are adaptable to many uses, and not without professional merit. The "Singing in the Shower" puppet made using a demonstrated technique from a glove, hair tie, and bath poof was used to get past two producer auditions and beat out about three quarters of million other acts for a spot on "America's Got Talent."
Emphasis in the workshop will be in puppet creation. However, some discussion will be directed on "how to use puppets" in a teaching artist type, learning situation.
(Maximum 25 participants)
Bio: Tom Bonham has been involved in puppetry all of his life. He was born in the creative environs of Robinson, Illinois. Birthplace of the Heath candy bar and novelist James Jones. Tom's first public performances were in 1957 when his 6th grade teacher had monthly parties where students were encouraged to entertain.
Tom Bonham graduated from Saint Louis University with a degree in English Education and Missouri lifetime certification for speech, drama, English grades 7-12.
He was lead puppeteer for Sid and Marty Krofft at their puppet theater for the first two seasons at Six Flags Over Mid-America (Saint Louis). Additionally Tom also worked backstage in the dinner theaters in Saint Louis with such stars as Donald O'Connor and Martha Ray. At Mill Run Children's Theater he created many specialty costumes and puppets like a large smoke emitting dragon, giant hairy spiders, and a herd of elephant heads. One of his recent productions, "The Carnival of the Animals" is constructed from plastic bottles, plastic tableware, brushes, and various dollar store items in a highly imaginative way.
Tom Bonham is known for imaginative uses of puppetry from his yarn boa that changes shapes into many different creatures, to the highly imaginative puppets in his production "Imagination" and the puppets created from Christmas décor in his production "Underneath the Christmas Tree."
As one teacher said after seeing one of his productions, "I will never look at a toilet brush the same."
HANDMADE WORLDS: A Festival of Puppet Theatre is produced by Open Eye Figure Theatre in collaboration with the Great Plains Region of The Puppeteers of America and In the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre.
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LocationIn the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre's Workshop (View)
1516 E. Lake St. on the third floor
Minneapolis, MN 55407
United States
Categories
| Kid Friendly: No |
| Dog Friendly: No |
| Non-Smoking: Yes! |
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