Dear Friends,
Once again
Puppets in the Garden
(Karen Viani of Mulberry Cottage and
Talib and Olivia Huff of Tinker's Coin Productions)
will present
"A Morning of Winter Tales"
puppetry for children of all ages.

Saturday, January 29, 2005
10:00 am
7948 Fair Oaks Blvd, Carmichael
(Parking and entrance on Queenston Ct.)

Adults $5/Children $3

For more information:
Karen 916-944-two677
Talib or Olivia 916-484-O606

Mark your calendars now! Luman Coad is bringing a double-feature to the Bay Area: his new show, "Harlequin's Cloak," and one of the favorite performances of the 1999 National Festival --"Up Please!"

****

Coming from Canada!
Coad Canada Puppets

For immediate release:

Event Title: Coad Canada Puppets present
"Harlequin's Cloak" & "Up Please!"

Dates & Times: Saturday, February 12 * 2:00 p.m. & 7:00 p.m.
Sunday, February 13 * 2:00 p.m.

Location: First Presbyterian Church of Palo Alto
one-one-four-zero Cowper Street (at Lincoln)
Palo Alto, CA 94301

Tickets: Available for purchase at the door
Advance reservations: 650-361-1310

Price: $14 adult; $12 child and youth (17 years and under)

Sponsor: First Presbyterian Church of Palo Alto
Contact: Mary Decker
one-one-one-six Ruby Street, Redwood City, CA 94061
65O-361-131O or marydeck earthlink dot net

Add'l Info: All performances are double features. Duration is 1 hour 15 minutes, including intermission.
Appropriate for ages 4 to 104.

"Harlequin's Cloak" - an original hand-puppet Commedia del l'Arte pantomime.
Inspired by the world famous pantomime-dance performances in Copenhagen's Tivoli Gardens, Luman Coad has created his own delightful vision based on the timeless adventures of Harlequin, Columbine, Pantalone, El Capitano, and Pierrot.

"Up Please!" - a humorous tale about eternity and mischief.
Tall golden gates are perched upon a pillowy blanket of white clouds. Just outside them is the top of Jacob's Ladder. A succession of Souls climb the ladder and apply for passage through the gates. After checking a huge book, the Angel on duty admits some and rejects others. Then an Imp appears, and the orderly processing of applicants is disrupted -- with unexpected results.

The American Center of l'Union Internationale de la Marionnette has awarded "Up Please!" the Citation of Excellence in the Art of Puppetry, the highest honor in North American puppetry.

Awards and film credits:
Coad Canada Puppets has been awarded six Citations of Excellence from the American Center of l'Union Internationale de la Marionnette, as well as the The President's Award from The Puppeteers of America -- the highest honors in North American puppetry. Film credits include Being John Malkovich, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Never Ending Story Part III, and the upcoming Desolation Sound.

About the artists:
Coad Canada Puppets was founded in 1966 by Arlyn and Luman Coad. The company has performed throughout North America, as well as Europe, the Middle East, South America, and the Pacific Rim. They have been frequent performers and lecturers at North American and international puppetry festivals and have taught their art at several universities.

Sunday February 27th at Dreamweavers Theatre

General meeting at 6pm.
Herbert Lange's "Little Red Riding Hood" at 6:30 pm.

Location:
Dreamweavers' Theater
Thirteen-Twentyfive Imola Avenue West
Napa, CA 94559-4724

Take HWY 29 to Imola exit. Proceed east one block to the River Park Shopping Center. The theatre is behind the Golden Carrot. (Drive between Vallegas Market and the Golden Carrot, theatre is to your right).
For a map go to http://dreamweaverstheatre.org/directions.html

Dear Friends,
Once again
Puppets in the Garden
(Karen Viani of Mulberry Cottage and
Talib and Olivia Huff of Tinker's Coin Productions)
will present
"A Morning of Winter Tales"
puppetry for children of all ages.

Saturday, January 29, 2005
10:00 am
7948 Fair Oaks Blvd, Carmichael
(Parking and entrance on Queenston Ct.)

Adults $5/Children $3

For more information:
Karen 916-944-two677
Talib or Olivia 916-484-O606

This message comes from fellow SFBAPG member, Herbert Lange:

The rebroadcast is scheduled for tonight at 6 p.m.
Thanks.

Herbert

P.S. I am quite happy that it was so well-received this morning.

Dear Friends,

"AND ALL OF A SUDDEN THE WHITE EGRET SHOOK..."

I am very happy and proud to announce that Stephen Kopel, the host of the
AIS SF Radio POETRY SCENE broadcast program, has asked me to do a reading of
some of my fairytale poems and short stories. The texts have more than just
one modern and existentialist twist and a spark of laughter.

Everybody age 11+ is very welcome to listen, enjoy, comment and share their
thoughts.

AIS stands for Access to Information Services, a reading service committed
to promoting the independence of blind and visually impaired people.

POETRY SCENE, the "fairytale edition", will be rebroadcast (premiered this
morning at 10:30 a.m.) today, Friday, January 14, at 6:00 p.m.
The signal is broadcast throughout the Bay Area and beyond, via the second
audio program (SAP) channel of KTVU Television Channel 2, and they are also
heard streaming live on the internet at

www.lighthouse-sf.org/audio/streaming.htm

In order to hear the live broadcast via your computer, you must have at
least one of the following media applications installed: Windows Media
player, WinAmp, Real Media player, Quicktime, or iTunes.
For more information or questions please contact AIS lighthouse-sf dot org or
call 415.43one.1481.

"...WHERE SLOWLY A HANDFUL OF PETALS WAS NOW FALLING TO THE GROUND
LIKE SNOW" (from "White")

All the best to all of you!

Herbert

P.S. If you would like to share some thoughts, feelings or suggestions, etc.
after the broadcast, please go ahead. Send them to lange.herbert gmx dot net.

A Balinese Shadow Play
to benefit Indonesian Tsunami Victims

Friday January 14, 2005
8pm
Noe Valley Ministry
1201 Sanchez St. SF, CA 94114
415-454-5238

Larry Reed performs an ancient story with live Gamelan music.

Sponsored by
San Francisco Live Arts/The Noe Valley Ministry/and ShadowLight Productions

The performance will be FREE, but donations to the relief effort will be requested.

For those of you unable to attend, please consider making a donation to a relief organization of your choice or to:

WALHI , the Indonesian Friends of the Earth Environmental Group, out of Java, with hundreds of people on the ground in Aceh
http://www.eng.walhi.or.id/
http://www.greengrants.org/pressreleases.php?news_id=29.

IDEP, a sustainable living organization, out of Bali, that has a very good disaster relief program.
http://www.idepfoundation.org/

These two Indonesian relief groups are agile enough to bypass all physical and bureaucratic obstacles. They get into areas where others can't go because they have the creativity to use motorbikes, little boats, and work with local people.

Tax deductible contributions for both organizations may be made by check through:

The Tides Foundation/Rapid Response Fund

http://www.tidesfoundation.org/RR_1204.cfm
Tides Foundation/Rapid Response fund takes no fees. 100% goes to relief/reconstruction. For more information about this fund, please contact-
Tides Foundation Philanthropic Advisor Catalina Ruiz-Healy at 415-56one-6345 or cruizhealy tides dot org.

Next SFBAPG Meeting:

When: Saturday, January 22, 2005 - HOLIDAY PARTY

Where: The San Leandro Community Center - 15301 Wicks Blvd - 51O-577-6O81

Time: 6:00 pm - 10:00 pm

Festivities will include a raffle, gift exchange, and entertainment by The
Fratello Marionettes and Manami Sakamoto, a renowned Otome-Bunraku artist
from Japan. If you would like to be on the entertainment list, please
contact Randal Metz at (510) 351-4522. We ask that any one who wants to be
involved in the gift exchange, please bring a gift with a value of $15.00
for exchange. You will be given a ticket to be part of this great party
event.

This is a pot luck. So we ask members to bring their favorite dish to share
with the party guests.

Directions:
North bound 880, exit Marina Blvd West after exiting go over the over pass,
get into far left lane.
South bound 880, exit Marina Blvd West, get into far left lane immediately.
Turn left onto Merced, the first stop light. Continue on Merced and bear
right on to Wicks (Merced turns into Wicks). Continue past Manor Blvd. The
community center is on the right side across from the park.

Manami Sakamoto was awarded a grant from the Japanese government to travel
and perform around the U.S. and the SFBAPG party is one of her stops! Even
though Manami does not speak English, she is looking forward to meeting
other puppeteers here.

If anyone can bring a translator to the party, please contact Mary Decker at
650-361-1310 or marydeck earthlink dot net. To find out more about Manami, go to
the English translation of her web site:
http://www.mars.dti.ne.jp/~kimuzi/index-e.html

This story comes from fellow SFBAPG member Susan Woolner:

--------------------
Puppets Have a Hand ln Everything
--------------------

By William Weir
Tribune Newspapers: The Hartford Courant

January 6, 2005

Along a wall at the University of Connecticut's puppetry department building is a collection of remarks students get when they mention their choice of scholarship:

"Well . . . Good luck with that."

"My 3-year-old is having a birthday party. Could you do something?"

It's an ongoing battle for puppeteers -- convincing people that what they do is both a real job and serious art.

But the battle seems to be getting easier lately. For one thing, puppets are everywhere. "Team America" is the first action movie that features marionettes exclusively. And making the rounds in Europe is "Strings," another all-marionette feature that critics have hailed for its Shakespearean overtones.

"It's thrilling because before, you only had Muppets in movies," says Peter Mesner, president of the Puppeteers of America. "And here you have two movies, and they both look really great."

Go to Broadway, and you get even more puppets. There's the Tony Award-winning "Avenue Q," a musical populated by Sesame Street-style puppets. "Die Zauberflote," director Julie Taymor's version of "The Magic Flute," prominently features puppets and recently opened at the Metropolitan Opera to rave reviews.

So when did the phrase "Nothing but puppets!" start sounding like box office magic.

Bart Roccoberton, director of the University of Connecticut's puppetry program, figures it might have something to do with 9/11 and allowing people to enter a whole other world.

"With the world situation being what it is, maybe we need that stroke of imagination to bring us along," he says.

Others figure it's the natural result of a generation that grew up on "Sesame Street" and saw the possibilities of animating the inanimate.

"`Avenue Q' is an adult version of "Sesame Street" -- the setting and the sets are very reminiscent," says Andrew Periale, editor of Puppetry International journal.

There's a double-edge sword to Muppet creator Jim Henson's legacy, though. As much as he did to popularize puppets, "Sesame Street" is one of the main reasons many still consider puppets strictly children's entertainment.

Give puppets all the dramatic scenes and silver-tongued dialogue you want, Mesner says, there's not much you can do about the innate goofiness of puppets.

"They make people laugh even when they're serious," he says. "Sometimes it's just the way they're walking across the stage."

Besides, says Roccoberton, puppeteers tend not to get too caught up in popular perceptions about their craft.

"Anyone who is committed to this is not out to fight a war but to express themselves," he says.
Copyright (c) 2005, Chicag0 Tribune

Back by popular demand!

Little Blue Moon performs at the Wild Swan in Napa

January 15, 7:30 curtain

Encore! Encore! A week from Saturday! Encore!

Sometimes you DO get a second chance! A repeat of the December 11 show. Bring your friends to this magical event! See the on-line poster with all details at http://magicalmoonshine.org/blueinvite.htm or call Lora at 252-2253 to reserve tickets. (Limited seating! The December show sold out.)

A young photographer is drawn into a mysterious African world only to find herself at the mercy of evil poachers. But things are not always what they seem in the savage jungle. Soon she finds a powerful woman within (and a powerful Ape Man without), in this encore performance of "Tango for Tarzan" by Little Blue Moon Theatre, with music played live by accordionist Steve Ventrello. Don't miss the brilliant Astor Piazolla tango with Tarzan, Jane and a Rhinoceros sultrily gliding across the stage! Creaking riggings, firing cannons and dancing hula girls (and boys) tell the musical tale of adventure and mutiny on the high seas in the tale of high drama in the South Seas -- Little Blue Moon Theatre's "Mutiny on the Bounty!" Thrill to the brutal mutiny and heroic voyage of survival with Captain Bligh and his loyal crew. Follow the mutineers as they maroon themselves and their island women on an uncharted isle. Wonder just how will this spellbinding tale will end!

In "The Picnic," an ancient Turkish tale of Karaghoz unfolds. Karaghoz finds himself unwittingly witness to the abandoned romping of two attractive washer women and struggles hard to preserve their chastity, even while his own desire grows to uncanny proportions. This colored shadow play had the audience in stitches at its premier in December.

A street puppeteer in Paris loses her puppets and all of her clothes in a freak accident that changes her life, bringing her fame, fortune, and love in "Natalie" (with live Parisian accordion stylings by Steve Ventrello.)

Add to this
*Sex on the Beach (a complimentary, refreshing beverage) or Just on the Beach (refreshing without the spirits),
*A unique aphrodisiac cookie tasting (cookies not available anywhere else -- developed just for this event) and
*A visit to the lovely and magical Wild Swan Aphrodisiac Factory in Napa, with theatre, music, poetry, and more.

A delightful, unforgettable evening, guaranteed. Bring your friends and introduce them to Wild Swan and Little Blue Moon Theatre (not to mention our favorite accordionist, Steve Ventrello.) Audiences of 18 to 80 years have praised the past events.

Full Press Release with PHOTOS available for download at

http://www.axtelevision.com/press/AxTelevision_PR1.doc (Word document)

(text only follows)....
For Immediate Release Contact: Steve Axtell 805 642-4013
Media kits and review copies of the DVD available on request.

AxTelevision

New puppet video is an adventurous romp for kids filled with wacky fun and creativity.

“I wanna make a movie!” kids exclaim. This new video shows them how to make it happen.

Since you can’t unplug the TV and isolate your kids from the electronic universe, you might as well try to use TV to help kids become creative free spirits, learn good values, promote good decision-making and develop great character.

In AxTelevision, Steve Axtell and his dream team of movie-making professionals take kids through the creation of a fully featured short puppet movie. What you see is a fast paced behind-the-scenes look inside the studio at all the steps needed to make a first class puppet movie.


Kids want to have fun and they like watching other kids have fun. So Steve takes a crew of kids and involves them and films them in the making of a show. Using video and all the tools of the trade he challenges the kids to be creative and use their imagination to apply, develop and hone their skills.


The camera is then used in a variety of ways to work through the entire process from beginning to end. Video footage is acquired and then enhanced with editing, addition of digital special effects, verbal narrative, musical instruments and songs – all the things that are needed to create a full blown hour of entertainment.


Steve, a father of four, exudes his love for children. It’s contagious. You’ll find it enthralling and wondrous. He weaves educational narrative with humor, jokes, and pranks, using fun to keep expanding the entertainment and visual explanations.

All the kids join in the creation of the movie and in the antics, too. Sequences are pulled off with astounding execution and contain a goldmine of educational material.

The commentary and visuals are highly educational and informative pure high tech fun that makes you smile, laugh and say “wow….” in amazement.


The video, available from www.axtelevision.com, provides a refreshing new way for kids to learn and have fun. Amazing characters are created from the team ideas and efforts from the kids. Vivid color schemes are added and incorporated into intense action-packed graphics and visuals.

Kids learn by taking clay and forming it into the shape of a funny bird head, building a body, installing mechanical eyes, and bring him to life.

This cool looking character – Norman the Bird, becomes the hero in the story as he rescues his friend Sheldon the Turtle from being made into turtle soup by the evil Vulture – Claw.

Steve Axtell is the highly likable somewhat zany leader, who provides humorous cameo appearances and pertinent insights as the action goes from one film making step to another.

He takes the kids through the whole process: from idea development, to story boarding, to research, making molds of the characters, and to learning how the puppets move, what the puppeteers do, how and where the stage is actually located, how the scenes are shot using cameras, how sounds are created and added in, how to make lightning and other special effects, how to record the vocals, learn how animals really move, how to get the sounds of the forest, and finally put the whole thing together.

There are moments of pure camp humor, such as when Steve shares scoops of peanut butter with his dog. Have you ever seen a dog licking peanut butter off the roof of his mouth? It’s hilarious!

There’s also a rock and roll music recording session –


Song lyrics by the bird and turtle:

Come outta that shell..
I don’t feel well
Come outta that shell…
I don’t feel well
It’s a beautiful day..
I think I’ll stay
Come out and play…
I’ll stay all day

There’s pure fun, fantasy, drama, and action as the highly dedicated crew of kids and supporting adults create and film sequence after sequence. The video is a satisfying, solid learning experience that helps kids learn, “How do they do that? Where do all these things come from?”

And then …Voila! It’s time for the show! It’s time for the premiere performance of the final movie “Come Outta That Shell!”


The video is a wonderful showcase for the individual and coordinated talents of designer and puppeteer Steve Axtell, composer Greg Jackson, writer Stephen Stiles, sculptor Tony Bulone, set designer John Thow, airbrush artist Sandy Kramer, puppet builder Jose Cruz, and mechanical wizard Mike Gazzaway.

The team also builds puppets for the parent company, Axtell Expressions, who sells professional puppets to entertainers all over the world.

AxTelevision has a very high stickiness factor that comes from the video’s incredible charm, humor, dazzling special effects and wit. The video also includes an extra bonus of 13 minutes of deleted scenes, humorous outtakes, and trivia acquired and shot during the creation of the film. Parents should not underestimate the educational value of this 41-minute fun-filled video – it’s a show that both kids and adults will enjoy.

Winner of the Videographer Award of Excellence and the
GMG Award for Best Animation.

AxTelevision: Come Outta That Shell is available in VHS and DVD.

More information is available from http://www.axtelevision.com Caution: This site's use of Javascript may crash your browswer.)

What people are saying about “AxTelevision”


“Smart, engaging entertainment designed to mobilize a child's curiosity and creativity."
Michael Medved, “Eye on Entertainment”, Radio Talk Show Host

“AxTelevision's COME OUTTA THAT SHELL is one of the finest children's shows I've seen -- filled with laughs, a tug at the heart strings, and a lot of wisdom.”
Fred Holmes, the Director of PBS's "Barney" and "Wishbone"

“LOADS OF FUN, I wish there had been such a show when I was a kid”
Kelly Asbury, Director SHREK2; SPIRIT, Stallion of the Cimarron

"Wow! What a lot of bang for your buck. Steve Axtell and his merry band of puppet people deliver a wonderful blend of education, zaniness and warmth. Can't wait to see more!"
David N. Weiss Co-writer: RUGRATS Movies, JIMMY NEUTRON, SHREK2

QUOTES FROM KIDS:

Can we watch AxTelevision?
How do they do that?
This is fun!
I want to do voices for puppets like that.
I really like these puppets.
I love it, it's silly.
I like how the guitar gets into the music for the movie.
I want to make movies someday.
Can we watch it again?

QUOTES FROM PARENTS:

My kids want to show it to everyone that comes over to the house
This is one of my kid’s favorite videos.
It’s really fun, we ALL love it.

Media kits and review copies available on request.

Digital images are available on request.

Creators Steve Axtell and Greg Jackson are available for interviews.

Contact Steve Axtell (805) 642-4O13

Full Press Release with photos available at
http://www.axtelevision.com/press/AxTelevision_PR1.doc [Word document]

Steve Axtell / Axtell Expressions, Inc.
***************************************
Caution: The superfluous use of Javascript on these sites may crash your browser.
See our new show "AxTelevision" on DVD! http://www.axtelevision.com
Amazing Puppet Characters for over 20 years. http://www.axtell.com
International Performer's Directory (Free Listing) http://www.axtell.com/ipd.html
The original content of this email or attachments is © 2004 Axtell Expressions, Inc.