Shakespeare + stuffed animals = As You Puppet, perhaps the cutest iambic pentameter ever performed, now at the Studio of the Lorraine Kimsa Theatre for Young People, Toronto
This Fringe Kids and Best of Fringe 2010 hit joins the LKTYP’s seasonal lineup and brings some serious cuteness to the Bard’s classic comedy As you Like It, and wouldn’t you know, it makes it that much more fun for audience members of all ages.
Watching the performance I was reminded of putting on shows for my little cousins when they were little, using their stuffed animals. This show is additionally inspiring for kids who could then go home and explore puppetry on their own with their toys.
Mike Peterson, using his own style of puppetry, which he calls “table-top,” and Jane McClelland, are Hank’s Toybox Theatre, and they share all the roles and use dozens of variously sized and styled stuffed toys to act out the motions in plain sight. I thought this was a very effective performance style; when the puppets’ faces cannot move, the puppeteers’ can. Continue reading Review: As You Puppet (Hank’s Toybox Theatre)
