Madcap Puppets sweeten education with entertainment
Who's afraid of the Big, Bad Wolf? Not the squealing, delighted children who get to see their favorite fairy tales realized by the life-sized puppets of Madcap Productions Puppet Theatre!
Since 1981, the Cincinnati-based Madcap Productions Puppet Theatre has sweetened education with entertainment staging shows on astronomer Galileo, Aesop's Fables, and Italian explorer Marco Polo and the Silk Road, as well as quirky takes on traditional fairytales.
Each year, Madcap Puppets prepare a half-dozen productions and take them on the road, where they are enjoyed by half a million people across the nation. You can view and book this season's touring shows here.
Every touring show also has accompanying study guides for teachers and parents. You can book special Madcap shows for daycare and preschool programs, too.
For 15 years Madcap Productions Puppet Theatre and the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra have joined forces to present a Christmas production that combines classical music and family-friendly high jinks. The puppets have brought Igor Stravinsky's "The Firebird" to life and joined the Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra for a fresh retelling of Don Quixote in an opera expressly written for puppets: Master Peter’s Puppet Show by Manual DeFalla. Madcap Puppets performed the opera at the Moore Musical Arts Center in Bowling Green, Ohio, and with Lincoln's Symphony Orchestra in Lincoln, Neb., as well.
In 2008, Madcap Productions Puppet Theatre even partnered with Xavier University to create a new residency that focuses on children's theater — a first for the region.
Mapcap Puppets also puts on workshops year-round at their studio or at your location. These are perfect for schools, libraries, Scout troups or after-school programs. The workshop maximum is 25. For more information for arranging for a workshop at the Madcap studio, contact Lyndsay at l.carey@madcappuppets.com or call (513) 921–5965, ext. 16. For more information on workshops off-site, contact Mel at m.hatch@madcappuppets.com or call (513) 921–5965, ext. 21.
Madcap Puppets performs at venues across the country including shows at J.B. Speed Art Museum in Louisville, Ky., and the Willard Library in Battle Creek, Mich. They also performed with the Lebanon Symphony Orchestra in Lebanon, Ohio, in 2009. In 1992, Madcap Puppets toured Ukraine with a production of Little Red Riding Hood that was performed entirely in Russian!
Posted by Ivonne Rovira
