I was feeling a fresh surge of energy this one particular year, and approached our children's pastor with the idea of starting a puppet team. After very careful planning and umpteen number of trips to the store, our masterpiece PVC pipe stage was up and running, and the kids and I were ready to begin our new adventure.
The puppets needed some practice before making their debut, so, every Sunday afternoon we met faithfully and rehearsed hand choreography to create an upbeat performance to a variety of songs. We chose songs from the 70s and 80s that were recorded with different lyrics giving traditional music a twist with a crazy and unexpected new message!
No skit is ever complete without props, so each song presentation included the addition of several props to correspond with the theme of the song. These items were either hand made or purchased from a neighborhood novelty shop. For one of the Caribbean calypso songs, I even made tropical outfits for the puppets, bought maracas, and decorated the backdrop complete with swaying branches, the sun, waves, and tropical flowers.The stage was designed with three tiers to allow a large number of puppeteers to have enough room behind the curtains. It was amazing what we could fit in that space. Many times the show would have a grand finale and we would throw balloons out to the crowd, or blow bubbles, or wave streamers in excitement to wow the audience!
The kids also wrote many of our skits that reinforced important lessons in life or admirable character qualities they felt were worthy of sharing. Their puppets would engage in some pretty lengthy dialogue in these skits that duplicated real hard life issues! Those determined little puppets act out those dramatic scenarios..... some funny, some serious, some challenging and some just plain old silly!
But we didn't stop there! We continually added so much more to our presentations! Sometimes the puppets had to be put on hold while the kids came out from behind the curtains and did skits of their own.
Mime was a favorite. Skits were selected or improvised to include all the kids, and in looking back, they absolutely loved doing mime! The body movements were carefully acted out in a sequence that sent an unmistakable message to the viewers. Facial expressions powerfully enhanced the drama, and clearly emphasized the exchange between the characters. You know the old saying...."actions speak louder than words!"......well, that's exactly what mime is!
We also choreographed simple dance steps under a black light. The room had to be pitch black, and the kids wore all black clothing. The only things moving through the black space was their hands in white gloves. This was very impacting and left powerful images in the minds of the viewers. Again, motions were created to fit the theme or message highlighted in the song. (This photograph below is not from our group; it is only a visual representation of the effects of a black light room)
On one occasion, we dressed Shawn up as a rock star, and made his guitar out of neon poster board. With some good old fashioned music rockin'-n-rollin' in the background, and an outfit screaming "look at me", he dazzled the audience with his artistic performance. The lighting from the black light created an ambiance suitable for stirring up some real fun frenzy, totally capturing the attention of the on lookers.
Another idea we had was to use just the white gloves as the only visible subject in action. The black light was positioned inside the stage curtain and out of view, so the kids raised their hands up just high enough so all that was seen was their white gloves. Creating motions for this effect was probably the most fun, and little dancing hands and fingers performed wildly in sync to the beat of a song. Some songs more than others will suggest vivid possibilities for putting lyrics into action, and with a little patience and imagination, a perfectly choreographed hand dance can emerge up from behind the curtains and put a whole new spin on old favorites. Hand dancing and fingers with a flair, how fun is that! (Years later I took the gloves and black light to a women's crisis shelter and watched fully matured adults go crazy with excitement! The fun is contagious!)
We also incorporated sign language into our dance. Songs offer endless imagery possibilities, so much of our signing was not taken directly from ASL, but our own imaginations instead. We created motions for line dancing, rain falling, a river flowing, the sun bursting from behind a cloud, or best friends forever (which was really a "group hug", but in a row instead of a huddle). Each song prompted ideas that were implemented and expressed through all sorts of movements.
In summary, life behind the curtain was just as exhilarating as life in front of the curtain. There is NEVER a limit to creativity. Just tap into a child's mind to enlarge your own. The ideas are endless. Over the years we stayed together, we traveled to camps, nursing homes, churches, parks, the Salvation Army, local neighborhoods, book stores and anywhere and everywhere we could think of to bring refreshment and joy to a group of people needing a uplift in life. The stories of people's lives we touched can't be counted.
The opportunities to reach people, connect with them, love them, and share with them are endless. Try a puppet sometime....and I promise you will get so carried away!!!!
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