arts
www.metro.us WEEKEND, AUGUST 13-15, 2010
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From Neverland to Kensington PuppeTyranny! resurrects ‘Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens’ for an outdoor puppet production Why you might want to leave the kids home Zac Palladino is surrounded by seemingly endless shelves of ad hoc art supplies in his Kensington workspace, where he’s preparing for PuppeTyranny!’s latest production, “Peter Pan In Kensington Gardens.” “For the most part everything we make is out of recycled materials — cardboard, paper, found things. It’s just whatever’s on hand,” he says. But just a year into their existence, PuppeTyranny! is quite comfortable living on the fringe of the Fringe — partly for philosophical
If you go ‘Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens’ Friday and Saturday, 8 p.m. Emerald Street Urban Farm and Park, 2312 Emerald St. Pay what you can, 267-909-2633 www.puppetuprising.org
reasons, and also due to cash poor necessity. The group decided to forgo the upcoming Philly Fringe Festival in favor of this weekend’s DIY perform-
ances in a Kensington community garden. The idea to adapt J.M. Barrie’s 1906 novella — set in London’s royal park, not North Philly — came when co-founder Leslie Rogers was the assistant puppet designer for the Arden Theatre’s “Peter Pan.” In her research, she came across “Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens” — the oft overlooked precursor to the later “Pan” works. “We have to do this in our Kensington — the Philly Kensington!” she said to Palladino.
While this “Pan” plays with the themes and conventions of children’s theater, PuppeTyranny! isn’t interested in creating easily digested family fun. “It just might be the kind of children’s show that could emotionally disturb a child,” he deadpans. “I mean, Peter is a grotesque naked baby. There’s no violence, cursing or sex, but puppets tend to be kind of grotesque in their own way.” BRUCE WALSH
bruce.walsh@metro.us
Leslie Rogers in “Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens”