natimuk

The Rhyme of the Ancient Merino

Posted by hil

It’s great to see the complete realisation of Dave Jones’s The Rhyme of the Ancient Merino.

At sail on a sea of wheat, the Ancient Merino and his aging theatre troupe struggle to eke out an existence in a hostile environment. When a the threat of modern technology looms they must adapt or fade into obscurity.

The animation is an allegory for the story of ‘the 50 year history of the Arapiles Community Theatre, and the recent influx of new arrivals and the changes that has brought about’ in the small regional town of Natimuk, Victoria. Traditionally a service hub for the surrounding farming country, Natimuk is also the closest town to Mount Arapiles, a mecca for rock climbers, so it is an interesting mix of farming people, climbers and an arts community. In October it will again be the centre for the Nati Frinj.

I love the puppets in this; they’re life size and  made from bits of old farm machinery. And I like the little details like the snails.

Following up on Highly Strung

Posted by hil

A few months ago I posted about the giant aerial puppet, Phoebe Sparkles, made by David Jones and friends for the show Highly Strung, which was performed from silos at the Nati Frinj (Natimuk Fringe Festival). Dave has followed up with this great video of sequences edited together from rehearsals and the performance. The animations really add another dimension, and as he comments, it’s amazing to see the puppeteers in action.

Phoebe Sparkles, a giant aerial puppet at Natimuk

Posted by hil

This is the fabulous Phoebe Sparkles, a giant aerial puppet made for the show Highly Strung, which was performed from the silos at Natimuk over the weekend at the Nati Frinj (Natimuk Fringe Festival). I’ve been enjoying Dave Jones‘s blogging of the build over the last couple of months, so it’s great to see the puppet come to life.  The daytime rehearsal photos give better perspective on her size and the task of  puppeteering her. Phoebe was named by the kids at the local school, and the plan was to project talking animations drawn by the kids onto her face. I wonder if that was possible in the very windy conditions on the night.

The silos have been used for aerial dance and puppetry before.

Dave also makes lovely puppets from wire and other rusty farm-type bits and pieces of metal. These and the amazing bird below are characters in a long term work-in-progress stop motion film of his, The Rhyme of the Ancient Merino.

The Birds (Rhyme of the Ancient Merino Work in Progress) from dave jones on Vimeo.

Puppetry and dancing at altitude

Posted by hil

Nati

(photo credit: David Fletcher)

Radio National’s Bush Telegraph has audio of their April 23rd interview with Jillian Pearce (fast forward to the 36 minute mark). Jillian is a performance artist living in Natimuk, the small town at the foot of rock-climbing mecca, Mt Arapiles, in rural Victoria. Jillian and her performing arts company, Y Space, have for some years been doing exciting work with rock-climbers, dancers, animation and puppetry in ‘unusual and high places’, such as the Natimuk wheat silos, exploring images, stories and relationships with the space and land. Check out their past and present projects, and some of their video.