Thursday, May 1, 2014

Local Folklore Kicks-off “Puppeteers of New England” Series!

As we count down the days until our 40th Anniversary, we have invited the region's top puppetry companies to share their work on our stage through June 14.

“The Yankee Peddler” 
by Brad Shur and Chris Monti [ MASSACHUSETTS ]

May 1 & 2 (Thur & Fri) | 10:30 am
May 3 & 4 (Sat & Sun) | 1 pm & 3 pm


BUY TICKETS

Discover local myths and old legends through the use of shadow puppets and live music at Puppet Showplace Theatre. “The Yankee Peddler” features music and anecdotes sure to entertain and please all ages. Meet a singing bear, dancing chicken and a mammoth wheel of cheese! Yes, CHEESE!

Chris Monti sings the tale of a mischievous fox headed to a local town in, "The Fox"
About the Performance:

Have you ever wanted to sing along with a sea shanty? Or dive deep into a fox's den? Then join us for a whirlwind tour of New England's lesser-known folklore! Along the way, you'll help make the world's largest wheel of cheese, sail the ocean with the giant sailor Alfred Bulltop Stormalong, and meet a very fashionable bear. Drawing from three hundred years of stories, songs, and local history, there is sure to be something for everyone from the peddler's cart!

VIDEO CLIP listen to folk song, "Cluck Old Hen" from “The Yankee Peddler: Stories and Songs from Old New England” here:


About the Performers:

Brad Shur is a versatile puppeteer who has created and performed characters made of everything from pixels to papier mache. As the Resident Artist 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. Shur is currently working on a new adaptation of Robin Hood, set to open in January 2014. 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.

Performers Brad Shur (left) and Chris Monti (right) 
Chris Monti is a writer, singer, and musician based in Somerville, MA. He has released three records: Home, Locust Grove, and Swampland Flowers on CMO Records. Chris has opened for and toured with country-blues great Paul Geremia, and has had the pleasure of playing music with the Providence Wholebellies (led by harmonica wizard Chris Turner), with Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars, and with composer Steve Jobe (playing the gigantic Bosch Hurdy-Gurdy). Monti regularly performs for children all over New England in schools, hospitals, and community settings. In addition to guitar, Monti plays harmonica, banjo, mandolin, dobro, piano, lap steel, and kazoo.


Bella Monster loves the music from “The Yankee Peddler!” CDs with Brad and Chris’s music are now available for purchase! Call the Box Office: 617-731-6400 x 101 for more details.

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