From: "Alan Cook" <alangregorycook-AT-msn.com>
To: puptcrit-AT-lists.driftline.org
Date: Wed, 05 Apr 2006 01:47:48 GMT
Subject: [Puptcrit] Moscow Puppet Theatre WAS in Los Angeles April 3 2006


At the Pacific Design Center in West Hollywood, a full house enjoyed a performance of Sergei Obraztsov's "UNUSUAL CONCERT". A much smaller crowd of five local puppetry folk were part of the crowd.

If you had been there, you would have heard the famous emcee SPEAK ENGLISH (the 2 previous times I saw the show, it was all in Russian, but you always knew when he said something funny when Russian speakers laughed). 

The show holds up well (from 1960s). A crew of nine puppeteers animated semi-trained animal acts, spoofs of classical pianists, cellists, sopranos, tango and gypsy numbers. As Tony Sarg pointed out in the 1930s, puppet dogs can easily win over the audience as they did here. A Mexican sombreroed trio performed before cacti. a male singer used his eyebrows sparingly and effectively, the lady with xylophone and concertina ran poodles and a chicken through their paces wth the slightest hint of enui, bolstered with her knowledge that she got through her act many times before.

 The guys who moved the concert grand on and off and on were a guaranteed running gag (even the piano lid got ino the act. paralleling US 1940s nightclub marionette acts--some gags are universal!).

Two lions alternately did tricks and fought with each other until their tall, slim trainer gave them both the evil eye treatment (then they cowered and behaved.)

A French canteuse with long and black hair, one visible eye and puckered lip shared her pain in matters of heart, a can-can chorus and top hatted Frenchmen added more touches of French sophistication.

Two young males in straw hats tap-danced all over the stage and took turns bouncing a balloon into the air.

Like any proper revue, there was much variety.

After numerous bows, all nine puppeteers repeated the tango in front of the stage. In a vaiation of 3-person Bunraku puppet animation, the two tango dancers required equally complicated puppeteer movement underneath the puppets. Of course, such a demo is of special interest to local puppeteers, so they can confirm (or not) if they figured out how the Russians did the moves.

I wish you all had another chance to see them before their trip home. But it was a one-night stand.

ALAN COOK

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