When “Children of Eden” opens Thursday at Footlighters, puppets will be co-starring.

 

And, says Aretta Baumgartner, in charge of puppetry for the show, “Our version of the show doesn’t just include “puppets” for this practical sense, it celebrates a deeper exploration of the concept of “puppet” as man/woman learns to manipulate the world around him/her.”

Baumgartner notes, “In a practical sense, there are puppets in “Children of Eden” because the script calls for animals on the Earth and on the Ark to be represented onstage. 

“Different production teams have used various types of puppets and masks to create the animals since it was first staged in 1991, which has put this show on a list of “shows that often use puppets.” 

“There’s nothing wrong with that but it HAS limited artistic teams’ and audiences’ views as to what the POSSIBILITIES are in creating these animals — calling to mind a concrete snapshot of the “animals” in ‘Children of Eden’ “ (children in headbands with ears attached, for example). 

“Our interpretation integrates the show into the puppets, to be honest—not the other way around.  There’s a bigger picture that we all agreed on and worked for/with from Day One, and that’s the idea that the BECOMING is as important as the BEING (my personal mantra as a performer, director, teacher and human being). 

Freely based on the story of Genesis, “Children of Eden” musically examines the age-old conflict between parents and children.  Adam, Eve, Noah and the Father who created them deal with the headstrong, cataclysmic actions of their respective children.  The show ultimately delivers a bittersweet but inspiring message: that "the hardest part of love... is letting go," says director Jay Woffington. Musical director is Julie Woffington.

 

“Our production celebrates transformation and change,” says Baumgartner. “We watch the storytelling ensemble create the world of the play, we watch the actors turn into different characters, and we watch the “aha!” moments as the set, its décor, and the actors’ bodies literally BECOME “puppets. 

“You’ll not see puppets in a predictable sense (as in not defined by hand, glove, string, mouth)—our definition includes anything that the actors endow--using body mind and spirit—to live onstage along with them.  It’s a tough thing to do, as we ask a lot of our audience as well as our actors—we expect our audience to not just watch the show, but become engaed in it.”

 

Baumgartner says the biggest challenge “was and is creating a common vocabulary.  We spent many hours in many early rehearsals talking about transfer of energy to objects to endow them with life, about group mind in order to create true ensemble movement, about allowing the space between actors to live and about embracing the unique attributes of the space we’re creating in, those sorts of things. 

“It’s hard work, and work that requires 100% commitment and trust, so reminders now and again about it being OKAY to play and do things differently were offered up, too, to keep the work moving forward. “

 

The show continues through Sunday May 18 at The Footlighters’ Stained Glass Theater, Eighth & York Streets in Newport, Kentucky. For information and reservations call 513-474-8711 or purchase online at www.footlighters.org. 

Baumgartner’s next project is creating an original work, “fricative,” with Performance Gallery for the 2008 Cincinnati Fringe Festival.