Everybody.
has introduced 14 years of a summer puppetry caravan for Appalachia. We're from Berea College, which
is in Berea, Kentucky. And in those 14 years, 64 more, different puppeteers have worked in developing
the puppets, the stages, and various aspects of our program. We don't buy anything. We do it all ourselves.
So what you see here today is a sort of total of that at this point. Of course, we have 13 shows stored in Berea.
what we work with all the summer. We're very happy to be here, to be invited by the library.
And of course, you know that's your sponsor, Stone Hills Area Libraries organized the whole event. And
we have been traveling in Indiana all week, doing two shows a day in at least five different counties.
So we've covered lots of ground. This is our last day here. We're going to Bedford tonight, and that's
going to be our last performance. So let's start the show.
The entire performance lasts about an hour, slightly longer, or slightly less. We start out with some
special kinds of puppets, and we all wear black robes for this. So I've got to get in costume.
This style of puppetry we're working in first is called Bunraku. Now, Bunraku is a Japanese word. In
the Japanese Bunraku theater, the puppeteers wear black robes and are fully visible to the audience.
The puppets are life-size and usually represent both figures from Japanese culture. Now, the Bunraku
theater is a theater which is over 2,000 years old.
So before there were human actors, there were puppet actors. Now instead of doing Japanese folk figures,
we do folk figures from Kentucky. Ruben and Matilda Bledsoe. A week ago, actually two weeks ago, we
were driving through the town of Bledsoe, Kentucky. We knew it was somewhere on the map and we went
to the post office
I've got some pictures there. So we know where Ruben Matilda Hale from. Well, they're understood to
be about 70 years old, have spent most of their life in rural Kentucky. And maybe like the people who
spent their lives in rural parts of America anywhere, Ohio, Indiana, or Tennessee, or whatever, they've
been doing a lot of thinking and a lot of living, and they have a lot of ideas. So we had a Kentucky
playwright put these ideas into nine episodes.
which are called back porch talks. These back porch talks reflect on such things as old and young, a
cure for hiccups, farming and coal mining, and such things as that. The puppeteer in the front is operating
the head and the mouth, and his feet are attached to the puppet's feet by means of bell throat. If he
moves his foot, the puppet's foot then moves too. The second puppeteer is operating the hands and providing
those gestures.
Already? All right, then I'd like to present Ruben and Matilda Bledsoe in a five-minute episode, screaming
about being a lump of coal. Okay, that would help if you were quiet over there.
Well, when I can't I'll just stay a spell with you. What I got in the oven won't be done for a bit.
You know, sometimes I wish I was a lump of coal being taken all over the world.
if I had put my foot down and made you go farming instead of mining. Oh, I don't guess I went to farm
until you put your foot down. I did it because my granddaddy said, if I helped him farm, he'd give me
the land in his will. And he did. You know I put my foot down more than a little, so you all better
not put your foot down. What I can understand is why you're ever going to be a miner and earn the first place.
Well, when we started farming, we were hard up for money. Miners weren't making good pay for those days.
Maybe we didn't have much money, but we always had. Yeah, we had a whole bunch of kids to go to. Not
the whole can of things to get to, you wonder. Oh, nothing else really from our kids. Yeah, but look
at the pay the miners got. He could buy his fiddle.
Maybe even a little house and some land. My brothers were my brothers and they had a lot of head time.
But maybe I can remember they worked from this time to that because they did six and a half jobs with
gold and not paid 85 cents. Yeah, but then coffee was only 25 cents a pound, a loaf of bread crossed
the nickel,
And you could buy a pound of bacon for less than a quarter. Yeah, maybe so, but that ain't nothing good
by much else for their families. Well, with them unions moving in, mine has got better time. Oh, I don't
know about that. But I do know those must be the risks that I have to face today. And sir, if you want
money and hair, work for the meeting. Well, they've got them these days. Well, I hope so, but they do.
Bless hall.
Well, that was a good way to use up our surplus corn.
We grew the best white corn in the county. And Moonchild was a bread and a lot more cash than corn.
Oh, I got to say this. I didn't want to be a mander's wife and worry about you being buried alive. And
I didn't want to be a moonchild's wife and worry about you being shot 12 holes by a wrecking ball. Still,
Six Matilda, why did a playboy pick up the skill that no reverend knew its crew power?
And we came up in the woods and spring water was in a right fire. Well, if the revenue of winter found
you still, you'd probably have caught human ascending through jars of Joe's food. Now, I remember thinking
about that. What I was going to do was spill the jars with movie eyes, and then paint them all to look
like they had buttermilk in them. Wasn't near today.
Well, it's bad enough just thinking of him. The big guy had come over. He used to help himself to a
jar of buttermilk. Well, they used to say that he got in that boat to one of those painted jars and
took them inside.
I reckon he didn't want to surprise the cow that gave him the cream that made his buttermilk out of
a bit of bread. He told that to me that he ever speaks for us, the children. Now, the children, I did
what you want. I did become a miner, and I'm never with a loon gunner. A good thing, too, for I packed
up a list. And as somebody says, care has no theory like a little straw.
going away on that train is coming in for some baked handwraps for the beautiful backstage. With our
awkward travel around the world and
And now four, we've met Reuben and Matilda. We're ready for our next act. And we need two people who
are willing to fight. Up here, okay, you two guys, come on. Step up here, here. Now they're very trusting.
Now here, you can step up here. Come here. That's all right, barefoot is our answer. Good, excellent.
All right, what's your name? Jim. Jim and? Kyle. Do you know each other? So you've never fought before
together, so.
Really? Okay. What we want to do is, okay, Jim and Kyle, right? We're going to cheer for them, so we're
going to draw a line right down the middle. We want everybody on this side to cheer for Jim. Kyle. Kyle.
Cheer for Kyle. Okay, and the cheer is to clap your hands together and shout, bravo, bravo. So it's
just the people on this side. All right, let's try it for Kyle.
No clapping, but just the sound like a wild animal roaring. So let's give them a sample. When I count
to three, roar like a wild animal, like a real wild animal. Ready? One, two, three. Roar. Okay. Let's
give it back now. Roar. Let's hear it. One, two, three. Roar. Okay. Now, that's a good one. Okay. We're
going to have lots of noise like that. That will help you all to be encouraged, just like in a
baseball game, football game, or something like that, where the audience cheers. And what would you
like to fight with? Any ideas? He has no ideas. What about you, Kyle? No ideas. Well, that's great,
because I love to choose. And I'm going to choose puppets, because this is a puppet show. So let's bring
out the puppet that Kyle will use, please. Now, Dan Chapman, one of our puppeteers, has brought out
an Italian Flutertini.
And this style of puppet has a rod to the head, and a string to the sword, and one to the shield. And
all the other movements are made by moving the stick around. So Dan is your coach. He'll help you. And
he's your cheerleader. All right, let's bring out the puppet for the gentleman, please. OK, and Gina
Graham has brought out the puppet for the wild animal sound. It's also an Italian guarentini. And you
make that move by twisting the rods. And Gina is your coach. She'll help you.
And she's your cheerleader, and I'm the sportscaster. I'm going to tell you a story. Once upon a time,
a knight and a dragon were in Bloomington, Indiana. And if they were not, they were in line hurrying
on the stage. They bumped into each other, and they both fell down. The knight jumped up first, and
he began to stab the dragon. Bravo!
things with puppets, and different parts of the world. We didn't announce it. Poppy Tree is a puppet
that is based on a French or Italian counterpart from about 300 years ago. Of course, remember the tildes
are based on the Japanese style and the Italian bordertini you've just seen. Our next is based on an
English country dance figure from medieval times, perhaps the year 1200.
And though we added some surprises to it, it does follow the basic original idea. I don't want to tell
you too much because I want you to get all the surprise too. Are you ready, Professor? Yes, I am. All
right then, I'd like to welcome Ms. Hannah Greenberg and Professor Langhorne Hutney. Let's welcome them.
traditional English script, but the original Punch and Judy is over 500 years old. It began in Italy,
and the main character's name was Punchinello. Punchinello had a very good friend named Scaramouche,
and Scaramouche still appears in our show. You can tell because he has an Italian accent. He'll say
it for us later. Punch then traveled on through France and Germany, and finally to England.
where if you were in England today and you went to a park or perhaps to a marketplace or to the seashore,
there's a good chance that you could see a Punch and Judy show. Because in London alone, there are 40
different punchmen who make a full-time living doing Punch and Judy shows. But we're very happy to present
this for you today. And after that, we have two more acts for you, so don't go away.
All right, let's call Mr. Punch and see if he's at home. Let's just say, are you at home, Mr. Punch?
I'll count three, and I want you all to laugh. And you've got to make a lot of noise, otherwise he won't
be here. Ready? One, two, three.
Oh good, I said, do you know where that little master is?
I'll be right back. Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha. There is Mr. Punch. Oh, hey, check this out, folks. It looks
like macrame to me. Mr. Punch, there's a news. No news is good news. Mr. Punch, would you try this oversized,
please? Well, what do you want me to do? Stick your head in here, please. Stick my head where?
In here. Oh, in here? No, Mr. Punch, in here. Uh, in here? Mr. Punch, will you please cooperate? I don't
know how to do this. I've never been hanged before. Uh, kids, I need one of you to help me. Okay,
come on. Come on up. Whenever you're going to punch, you have to do this. You have to put the noose
around my neck. That's it, put it around my head, please. I think I'll do it.
I think I understand this, Jack. Then someone comes over here, right? And then they start to pull on
us. Go, like this, right, Jack? Mr. Putz. Mr. Putz.
So you need to pay attention, buddy. Come on. You might need to help him get in line. Okay. Put your
hands here and still facing in line. Hook up. Get in line in front of you. Hook up. Everybody,
hook up. Put your hands on the waist of the person ahead of you.
I want you to start pulling that way, okay? And don't break the chamber. Ready? One, two, three,
and pull. Come on. Come on. Very good, very good. Okay. All right, now come on back this way. And Gina
Graham is going to bring out a sack full of soft sculpture puppets. And you'll take one puppet out of
the sack and hold it up so everyone in the audience can see. And I want either you or they
Shout out the name of the animal, okay? Right here, we'll start right here. And you and your brother
are gonna be together. Okay, now you pick it out. And then tell us what kind of animal it is. If you
tell first, that's okay too. Okay, that's it, there it is. What is it? A lion! Okay, sit down right here.
Are you here, Dottie? Let's welcome our big friend Miss Dottie March.
I know an old lady who swallowed a fly. I know an old lady who swallowed a fly.
And no one obeyed who swallowed a bird. She calls her to swallow a bird. She swallowed the bird to catch
the spider that wiggled and jiggled and jiggled.
I know an old lady who swallowed a cat. Imagine that to swallow a cat. She swallowed the cat to catch
the bird. She swallowed the bird to catch the spider.
But I don't know why she swallowed the fly. Perhaps she'll die. I know an old lady who swallowed a dog.
What a big mom to swallow a dog.
to catch the bird, to swallow the bird, to catch the spider, that wriggled into the land. She swallowed
the spider to catch the fly, but I don't know why she swallowed the fly, for that's your line. I know
no lady who swallowed a fly.
She swallowed the dog to catch the cat. She swallowed the cat to catch the bird. She swallowed the bird
to catch the spider. That little little bird. Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow!
Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow!
Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow!
Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow!
Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow!
Be careful.
To catch the bird, she swallowed the bird, to catch the spider. She swallowed the spider to catch the
fly. But I don't know why she swallowed the fly. Perhaps she'll die. I know an old lady who swallowed a horse.
I think we'll be able to do it. Ready? Okay, start pulling.
They're hand-printed sunscreen posters. We send them out each year for publicity. You've probably seen
this one around. This is this year's poster. Here's a poster that features Punch and Judy.
red. Here's the 1981 poster. It features Mr. Punch and the alligator, Toby. Here we go, this features
Mary Ann. This is 1977.
This is our 10th anniversary poster. It has a lot of nice, fine details on it. It's a really nice poster.
Well, this is the 77, and then pictures of Mary Ness. This is one of my favorites. The castle and the
archery stage. Kind of a romantic setting down.
And this is 1980. Okay, the large posters are $5, and we have some small posters that are like our new
posters, and those are $3. Okay, we have one more fabulous actor for you. She's a fabulous dancer, and
she's from Yugoslavia. She's very exotic. You're going to think she's very beautiful. Maya, are you
ready back there? She's ready.
My name is Kaya Savich Blascovich. She's very beautiful. Without any further ado, I'd like to introduce
you to Kaya Savich Blascovich and her dancing partner, Cornelia.