Interludes

VIEWPOINTS – Puppetry and Madness: Jessica Scott’s SHIP OF FOOLS and Kevin Augustine’s THE GOD PROJEKT use phantasmagorical imagery to evoke internal discord

• By drediman
• October 17, 2016
• No Comments

Puppetry, as with the visual arts in general, has the uncanny ability to draw visceral, many times unexplainable, reactions from its viewers. As such, the art form is an ideal vehicle to articulate intangible concepts and emotions such as madness and insanity. Recently, New York theatergoers were privy to not one, but two works that use puppetry to depict the downward spiral into mental instability and internal discord.

Jessica Scott’s “Ship of Fools” at HERE

Currently running at HERE as part of its Dream Music Puppetry Program is Ship of Fools (RECOMMENDED), Jessica Scott’s phantasmagorical joyride into the unsettled female psyche. Although the show feels at once excessive and unfocused – even with a running time of only an hour – the sheer audacity and immersive-ness of Ms. Scott’s work warrants a recommendation from this critic. In Ship of Fools, the audience is presented with a diorama-like parade of visions, artfully accompanied by live music from a quartet of musicians, depicting women’s perceived roles in society throughout history. The piece culminates in a cascading, hallucinatory furor that forcefully points the way to the future for women’s rights. Suffice to say, I look forward to Ms. Scott’s next creation.

Kevin Augustine’s “The God Projekt” at La Mama

Recently closed but also worth a mention was Kevin Augustine’s The God Projekt (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED) at La Mama. The show, courtesy of Lone Wolf Tribe Production, envisions God as a befuddled, self-absorbed older gentleman falling prey to dementia, heartbreak, and loneliness. Throughout the evening, he half-heartedly attempts to recreate his greatest creation – mankind – almost as if to convince (or remind?) himself more than the audience of his powers. In the process, he leaves writhing, partially-formed organs and beings in his wake, which are portrayed disturbingly by the show’s exquisite puppetry. Mr. Augustine, who wrote, directed, and is the mastermind behind the deliciously demented puppets in the piece, also plays God (in an eerily convincing geriatric mask) to asinine perfection.

SHIP OF FOOLS
Off-Broadway, Puppet Theater/Performance Art
Dream Music Puppetry Program at HERE
1 hour (without an intermission)
Through October 22

THE GOD PROJEKT
Off-Broadway, Puppet Theater/Performance Art
Lone Wolf Tribe Production at La Mama
2 hours (with one intermission)
Closed