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stage painter puppet character master actress In addition to her many other fun jobs, Killian also works as mascots or interactive characters for parties and other special events. “I had the opportunity to take some non-traditional acting classes,” Killian said. “And I realized that I really loved playing roaming characters and interacting with the audience.” From the Kansas City Mavericks mascot, Cheese, and “Paw Patrol” characters to Wonder Woman and Professor McGonagall, Killian has performed as a variety of interactive characters for many diverse events. She enjoys performing without the limitation of the fourth wall. “I would rather do something where I can roam around in character than be on a proscenium stage,” Killian said. This character work can be very difficult because nothing is scripted. All of Killian’s actions have to be spontaneous and authentic to the character. “Sometimes I embarrass myself while performing,” Killian said. “But that’s part of my job. I love that I can just go out there and be a goofball.”
When thinking of a job in performance, most don’t immediately think of puppetry, and neither did Killian. “[Puppetry] is a more recent career development,” she said. “I came to it a few years ago. I was scene painting for Stone Lion Theater, and they found out I had done mascots, so they told me I could also do backpack puppets.” Backpack puppets are large contraptions that are worn above the body and are attached to the performer via a backpack. The backpack has straps that attach the arms and legs of the puppet to the performers’ arms and legs. Puppetry requires a lot of training and complex stage directions. Not only does Killian have to memorize how the puppet is supposed to move and speak, but what she needs to do to make the puppets portray those actions, which is about as complicated as one would imagine. “A lot of it is experimenting. I ask myself, can I make this puppet wave?” Killian said. “How does this puppet look when they’re hungry? You do a lot of learning and experimenting to put on a puppet show and develop your character”
Killian’s longest standing, and most loved, career is scenic painting. A scenic painter’s job is to take a design from a small scale or reference image and make it life sized. The job involves a lot of creativity when it comes to designing painting techniques or assembling certain pieces to create a uniform set that matches the designer’s vision. “I started scenic painting in college,” she said. “I went to college to get a degree in performance but I was required to take some tech classes. After taking a couple, I realized that working with my hands was what I wanted to be doing.” Killian has painted and designed many sets throughout her career for productions at Sion, the Kansas City Lyric Opera, Blue Lion Theater and many more. “Some [designers] are very specific and tell you the exact details, and others show you an image and just say ‘I want it to look something like this,’” Killian said. “You work with a lot of different designers and collaborate to bring someone else’s vision to life.”
PHOTO SUBMISSION | Maggie Killian
February 2023 | 25