Trouble Puppet Show: Insanely Fabulous!

[photo (c) Kimberley Mead 2010]

Y'all,

I just got back from A Most Unsettling and Possibly Haunted Evening in the Parlour of the Brothers Grimm, a co-production of Trouble Puppet Theater Company and the Hidden Room. I know, I know, that's a mouthful. I'm going to give you a bare bones translation here but in short here's the skinny: If you miss it, you're... well I don't want to call you an idiot. But I really really really think you should go.

Trouble Puppet is the brainchild of Connor Hopkins, who fashions the most amazing puppets from all sorts of things. I refuse to tell you what he used for this show because I want the whole thing to be a total surprise. The Hidden Room is Beth Burns' company-- you might recall my review of her The Taming of the Shrew (Original Practices) awhile back, one of my top three performances this year.

For this production, Robert Matney-- if you've seen much Shakespeare in Austin, you already know what a talent he is-- plays Wilheim Grimm, your host for the evening. Robert is one of Austin's finest actors-- a master thespian. And the whole thing is staged in a hidden room downtown, part of a space that used to be some sort of brotherhood lodge. You need a secret password to get in. Then you get led into a waiting room. And then the house opens and... again, I refuse to tell you except to say you will be blown away. All the players are waiting for you, and they remain in character from the moment the doors open. Even the musicians (yep, live music) are gussied up.

[photo (c) Kimberley Mead 2010]

Before the main event Matney-as-Wilheim leads the audience in some pant-wettingly hilarious parlor games. I was an observer for the first two, but got so excited I begged to play in the third game. There's fortune telling, a belly dance by Djahari Clark. And then...

And then...

Then the storytelling begins. Wilheim unsettles in and tells a number of the Grimm Brothers' fairie tales which, in case you don't know, are actually quite grim indeed. No happy endings here, folks. But they are -- pardon the pun-- executed so brilliantly by Hopkins and his puppeteers that you'll be laughing while you're gasping.

Logistically, let me tell you why seeing this show on Saturday night-- the LAST night of the show-- is an excellent choice. I know, I know, you have Halloween parties to attend, parking downtown is going to be tight, blah blah blah. Well guess what? You can bike, bus, carpool, ride on the back of a zombie-- I don't give a shit how you get there. You CAN get there. The show only lasts about an hour so if you hit the 8 pm show, you'll be out in plenty of time to get to those parties. And if you hit the 10 pm show you'll ALSO be out in plenty of time to get to the parties. So no excuses, people. This is not one of those "oh, we'll catch it some other time" events. This is one-night-only-left-to-go. So go. GO GO GO!

Warning from the Director and Ticket Info:

This evening promises to be highly disquieting, and is certainly not recommended for patrons under the age of 13, or those with delicate sensibilities. Ladies should consider a mild loosening of the corset to avoid hyperventilation. Reservations & Password: hiddenroomtheatre@yahoo.com Tickets & Information: AusTIX at 512-474-TIXS (8497) or at www.nowplayingaustin.com/Austix