PENDING APPROVAL
UCONN PUPPET ARTS MFA PROPOSAL
OVERVIEW
CORE CONCEPT
Variety puppet show exploring the question of how we can ethically pursue our desires within the context of the patriarchy.
CONTEXT
STRUCTURE
This piece will be made up of a collection of short stories. This format will allow me to explore the concept through multiple angles. It is also thematically important to me that, in a piece about the gendered pursuit of desire, I don’t create a linear story structure that parallels the male orgasm. I’d rather my piece parallel the female orgasm and contain multiple climaxes.
MY ROLE
Writer, director, puppet builder, set builder, lighting designer, (potentially) sound designer, performer, and producer.
PRODUCTION
STAGE DESIGN
The stage will contain two puppet booths. One booth will be hand-puppet-style, the other will be kamishibai-style. There are two booths both because I am using a variety of puppets, some which will be easier to operate from above and some which will be easier to operate from below, and also because this may help with reducing dead space - something can be set up in one booth while the other booth is finishing a story. There will also be table that I will use for the IUD piece.
COSTUMES
The costume design is also dependent on me figuring out the world. I know that there will be two performers and that the costumes will have to be easy to move in and adaptable to different scenes. At the moment I'm looking towards queer/drag culture - performers commenting on gender through wearable art - as inspiration. I'm also interested in adding practical elements to the costumes like lights and hoops to hang set pieces from.
SOUND
Ideally, I would like a musician/foley artist who could work with us and provide live sound. If I can't find a musician/foley artist, I can also create the sound cues myself and find a stage manager who can board op for me.
Sound Sample
LIGHTING
I plan on purchasing small lights that will be focused on each puppet booth, then setting up a simple system that will allow performers to bring lights up and down with an onstage fader or power strip. Moments that leave the puppet booths will be lit by handhelds, headlamps, etc.
PROJECTION
For large venues I would like to add a camera set in front of each booth and two projection screens. I believe that this would make the puppets easier to see in larger venues and would also add to the visual dynamism of the piece.
PERSONNEL
3 person show: Me, second puppeteer, and musician or stage manager
INDIVIDUAL PIECES
SOME SLIGHT PRESSURE
PLOT SYNOPSIS
Satirical piece about the pain of having an
R3AL EYES SEE PAST UR PASTURLIES
PLOT SYNOPSIS
Satirical piece, using unpasteurized milk as a
metaphor for the unsafe practices #tradwives
advise us to consume.
PUNCH AND JUDY
PLOT SYNOPSIS
Punch takes to the sea to kill the albino crocodile that ate his leg. Judy and the baby are his crew and he’s bossing them about, smacking Judy around. Judy decides she’s fed up with being treated this way, and summons Mephistopheles. She makes a deal with the devil to get rid of Punch once and for all. Crocodile eats Punch and in the scuffle, also eats Judy’s leg. Judy decides to take her revenge on the crocodile, takes over the ship and is bossing the baby about, smacking it around. They find the crocodile and in the ensuing fight, Judy also gets eaten. Punch and Judy keep fighting within Crocodile’s belly as baby sails off into the sunset.
MORE INFO INSPIRATIONAL IMAGES
FAIRYTALE
PLOT SYNOPSIS
Once upon a time there was a queen who was very worried about her subjects. This queen had a nervous habit of pulling out her hair and eating it. One day she pulled out a strand of hair and found a crying baby head attached to the end. The baby started making demands of the queen and she felt compelled to obey even though she knew the demands would hurt the kingdom. This went on until her daughter, the princess, figured out that they could lift the curse if the queen slowly ate the baby. The princess snuck a bit of baby into the queen's breakfast and suddenly the queen felt it was possible to say no to the creature’s demands. And so, for the rest of her days, the queen had a bit of baby with her breakfast. And they lived happily ever after.
MORE INFO FULL PLOT DESCRIPTION SKETCH & INSPIRATION IMAGES
SHRILL O METER
PLOT SYNOPSIS
Woman at a business meeting laying out what she believes would be the best course of action for the next quarter. Strange person enters while she’s talking and sets up a Shrill o Meter. Woman says “Excuse me, hi, can I help you?” The strange person replies “oh don’t mind me” So the woman keeps going with her presentation but every time she tries to speak the Shrill o Meter goes up, the strange person’s eyes get wide, and they start moaning. Eventually the woman gets so frustrated with this person interrupting her presentation that she tells them off which breaks the Shrill o Meter and makes the strange person’s head explode. The woman is fired and arrested for manslaughter.
MORE INFO INSPIRATIONAL IMAGES
JELLYFISH & SHARK
PLOT SYNOPSIS
We’re underwater. Legs kick into view – someone gently treading water. Then a jellyfish floats into view. We watch the jellyfish float closer, almost hit the legs and miss, almost hit the legs and miss, almost hit the legs and then a shark swims through and tears the legs off, leaving nothing but blood in their wake.
SUPER HERO
PLOT SYNOPSIS
Nonbinary tween gets superpowers from a radioactive tampon. They’re nervous to use their powers because they might save someone but they also might hurt someone. People die as a result of their inaction.
MORE INFO INSPIRATIONAL IMAGES
CAN I BE FRANK?
PLOT SYNOPSIS
Support group for hot dog buns that are tired of sausages being shoved in them without their consent.
SHRIMPIES!!
PLOT SYNOPSIS
Shrimp family has a lovely domestic scene. Suddenly a large high heel stomps into view. A woman’s voice can be heard complaining about eating horrible sushi over a phone. The shoes come toward the shrimp. One shrimp throws its body in front of the other, to protect it. The shrimp is smashed under the shoe. The woman says “oh my god gross! There’s something on my shoe!” & then cries until the person on the other end of the call agrees to buy her new shoes. She leaves. The shrimp mourn their fallen loved one.
WOMAN TRIES TO HAVE ORGASM
PLOT SYNOPSIS
Woman pursues orgasm in the style of an R-rated high school comedy.
in between scenes
APOLOGETIC HOST
Man who didn’t think he’d be hosting this show tonight. Really doesn’t think it’s the right fit considering the feminist themes. Is very apologetic about the space he’s taking up but also very knowledgeable about feminism and the themes represented in the show.
COLLAGE CREATURE
A piece of each show is left behind and at the end they’re formed into a strange collage puppet. A metaphor for how we have to take on our history and our trauma and keep moving forward.
OYSTERS
I'm referencing Moby Dick in my Punch and Judy adaptation. My favorite quote from Moby Dick is
"Methinks that in looking at things spiritual, we are too much like oysters observing the sun through the water, and thinking that thick water the thinnest of air."
While Melville is clearly talking about religion, I feel like this quote can be applied to any number of phenomenon that quietly cloud the air we breath, including the patriarchy. I would like to establish this idea and then create a chorus of obtuse oysters (foot operated puppets) who comment on the pieces.
BACKGROUND
WORK EXPERIENCE
See CV
HOW IS THE WORK INNOVATIVE/EXPERMIMENTAL
In its form it breaks the convention of a singular, linear narrative. In its content, it is attempting to stage feminist stories that haven't been told (as far as I'm aware) and break beyond the confines of the patriarchal thought structure. In its puppetry, I'm trying things I haven't seen before - so far, using a gyno apron as a shadow screen and having audience members drink from my burlap breasts.
WHY AM i PASSIONATE
(cw: sexual assault)
When I was in undergrad I was sexually assaulted by multiple men. Upon reflection, I have realized that a lack of self-care may have contributed to the circumstances that led to these violations. My own desires weren’t as tangible or important to me as the desires of those around me. I know that I didn't want to be intimate with these men, I told them I didn't want to be intimate with them, but at the end of the day I felt so compelled to please that I smiled and nodded myself into situations I couldn't get out of.
That's not to say that I think it's my fault I was assaulted, it's not, but I think that this is a part of rape culture that isn't widely discussed. People witness women allowing themselves to be used and blame women's lack of self-respect. What they don't talk about is how we've taught women that the best thing they can be is useful. Once I noticed this pattern, I started discussing it with other women and discovered that this story isn't just mine. I realized that this pattern repeats itself across generations and circumstance. I decided it was a story worth telling, but I wasn't sure how. I've been trying to figure out how to explore this concept for about 5 years. Now that I've found the right format, I am passionate about telling this story the best that I can. Hopefully, this dialogue will contribute to a chorus of feminist voices that will one day be strong enough to drown out the patriarchy.