World Premiere performance of "Robin Hood!"

NEW YEAR, NEW SHOWS! Series at Puppet Showplace
Puppet Showplace is proud to present two puppetry productions by Boston-based artists in their world premiere performances this January and February 2014! VIEW CALENDAR

"Robin Hood" by Brad Shur, Artist in Residence

PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE:
Fri, Jan 17 at 7pm 
(Opening night performance, with reception to follow)

Sat & Sun, Jan 11-19 at 1pm & 3pm
Mon, Jan 20 at 10:30am & 1pm
(Martin Luther King Jr. Weekend!)

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Join us at Puppet Showplace for our second annual series showcasing new work for youth and family audiences. Past productions have gone on to tour across the Northeast to venues such as La Mama ETC’s puppet festival in New York City, Boston’s Outside the Box Festival, and Maine’s Mostly Puppets Festival. Each year the artists receive production support through the theatre’s Incubator program.

First in the line-up of new shows by Boston-based artists is the classic tale of "Robin Hood" created and performed by Brad Shur, Puppet Showplace Artist in Residence. Get ready for a rollicking adventure through Sherwood Forest with your favorite hero who's watching out for the little guy.  This imaginative re-telling gives thematic story elements an updated twist told against the classic backdrop of late 18th century England. The performance features an original score by composer, Paul Watkins.

Robin Hood, hand-made glove puppet by Brad Shur

About the show: Get ready to occupy Sherwood in this rollicking retelling of the classic Robin Hood tale. When the new Sheriff of Nottingham starts uprooting villagers' homes as part of a grand castle expansion scheme, the starry-eyed Robin sees an opportunity to save the day and fulfill his dream of becoming a hero. Of course, he'll need a little help from his friends. Join Maid Marion, Little John, and some unexpected puppet characters for this exciting forest adventure.

From the studio: characters from "Robin Hood," The Sheriff of Nottingham, Robin and Maid Marion 

About the performer: Brad Shur is a versatile puppeteer who has created and performed characters made of everything from pixels to papier mache. As the Artist in Residence at Puppet Showplace Theatre he performs regularly and teaches puppetry classes to students of all ages, Pre-K to adult. As protégé of master puppeteer Paul Vincent Davis, Shur trained extensively in glove puppetry and currently performs two of Davis’ classic shows at venues across New England. Shur’s original works include "The Carrot Salesman," "Dr. Doohickey and the Monster Machine," "The Yankee Peddler: Stories and Songs from Old New England" and "The Magic Soup and Other Stories," recently featured at the Puppeteers of America National Festival 2013.

Brad Shur, Artist in Residence with Maid Marion puppet right from the mold!

Prior to becoming the Artist in Residence at Puppet Showplace, Shur toured the country as a performer with Big Nazo (Rhode Island), Wood & Strings Theatre (Tennessee) and The PuppeTree (Vermont). As a builder Shur has designed and fabricated puppets for American Idol, Dollywood, Avenue Q, and the U.S.S. Constitution Museum. Shur is a graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design.

Meet the production team! Brad Shur was joined by a team of incredibly talented artists to put the world premiere production of "Robin Hood" on its feet.  This includes stage director, Roxanna Myhrum and composer Paul Watkins.

Roxanna Myhurm, Stage Director with deer character from "Robin Hood" by Brad Shur

Stage Director: Roxanna Myhrum is the Artistic Director of Puppet Showplace Theatre in Brookline, MA. In Boston, she has recently been puppetry director at the Huntington Theatre Company (Ryan Landry's M), Company One (She Kills Monsters), the Lyric Stage Company of Boston (IRNE award, Avenue Q), Underground Railway Theatre (Roots of Liberty), and Gloucester Stage Company (Carnival). Myhrum is a graduate of Harvard University and a former resident company member of the Eugene O’Neill National Puppetry Conference.

Paul Watkins, Composer

Composer: Paul Watkins is a composer and trombonist from San Jose, CA. He holds Bachelor of Arts degrees in music and psychology from the University of California, Davis, and is currently pursuing a Master of Music degree at the Longy School of Music in Cambridge, MA. His music has been performed by Fifth House Ensemble, Freya String Quartet, Meridian Arts Ensemble, flutist Erinn Frechette, pianist Adam Marks, mezzo-soprano Jen Beattie, and the UC Davis Summer Symphony, among others.

At UC Davis, he was the recipient of the President’s Undergraduate Fellowship, the Outstanding Senior Award, and the Olga Brose Valente Memorial Prize for excellence in Music Composition (twice). His primary composition teachers include Kurt Rohde, Ross Bauer, Laurie San Martin, John Morrison, and Paul Brust. In his music, he has taken interest in exploring dense counterpoint, non-linear structures, visual and theatrical elements, improvisation, and forced audience participation.