Call for Festival Performances

ANNOUNCING GREAT SMALL WORKS’

TENTH INTERNATIONAL TOY THEATER FESTIVAL!

A CALL FOR PERFORMANCE PROPOSALS

Throwing reason to the winds (and wind is something mighty familiar to us these days), Great Small Works is embarking on its Tenth International Toy Theater Festival and Temporary Toy Theater Museum, which will take place June 14th through 23^rd 2013, at St. Ann's Warehouse in its new temporary space at 29 Jay Street in Brooklyn’s DUMBO neighborhood.  The warehouse will offer new opportunities and challenges for exploring design and programming ideas, and we are grateful to St. Ann’s for the return invitation.

As in previous years, we strive to juxtapose performances which embrace paper theater’s classical, historic style with contemporary experimentations with the form.  We want to include young artists searching for their creative voices as well as seasoned puppeteers.  We seek diversity of all kinds—stylistic, cultural, technical, and thematic. 

We are writing now to request your proposals.  There are a limited number of performance slots available, but we want to involve as many people as possible; our goal, as always, is to create a diverse, inclusive and colossal event!  In the festival context, 20-minute pieces are ideal.  Each show will be presented twice, and will be part of a program with other shows.  Although the format is small, we encourage big ideas!

For this festival, we will not be able to construct multiple theaters for simultaneous performances, but will have a main stage with multiple shows in each program.  This means that we will be especially inclined to accept pieces which are relatively easy to take on and off the stage.  We are also hoping to build a couple of small venues, for no more than 25 people, where individual shows can be presented in a truly intimate way.  And, we hope that very small and very short pieces can be presented in and around the exhibit as we’ve done in the past, so do let us know if you have a 5-minute-or-less mini-show you’d like to perform.

Although fundraising efforts are ongoing, as of now we have no money for artist fees.  We will certainly let you know if and when the financial picture improves.  As a minimum, we commit to pay travel expenses and provide housing for those of you who are not in New York City.

Have you done Toy Theater before?  Have you been doing Toy Theater for the past 50 years?  Are you an actor, cartoonist, visual artist, animator, photographer, musician?  Have you always wanted to play with paper?  Have you just arrived in New York City and seek ways to express your deepest passions?  Do you live in Albuquerque and need a change of scenery?

Please send us the following information:

            What is your show?

            What does it look like? (images/video appreciated, on DVD/CDs or online links)

            Have you performed it before?  Where and when?

How long is it?  How many performers are involved? 

Is it suitable for family audiences? 

Maximum audience possible?

            Any special technical requirements? 

            Date limitations?  Economic limitations?

Please send information by February 15th to either

:

Snail mail:            Great Small Works

                            c/o Trudi Cohen

                            100 Jackson Street

                            Cambridge, MA 02140

E-mail:                 toytheater@gmail.com

Include a SASE if you send any materials you’d like returned.  If you're not sure how to respond, we’re glad to answer questions, offer encouragement and enthusiasm and resource materials, or invite you for tea.  Please feel free to distribute this as widely as you like.  We look forward to hearing from you!

from Trudi Cohen, Lake Simons, Erin Orr (programming committee) for Great Small Works

TOY THEATER:  THE GRANDEST OF TALES WITH THE SIMPLEST OF MEANS

Toy Theater (also called Paper Theater) was the rage in parlors across Europe and the Americas in the 19^th century, a popular means of staging dramatic spectacles at home.  But just as revolutions in print technology had brought Toy Theater into 19^th-century homes, 20^th-century advances in electronic media and mass culture led to the virtual extinction of this inexpensive family entertainment.The small box used to stage sumptuous dances, battles and stories in the parlor was replaced by an all-too-familiar box in the modern living room.  Fantastic in scope, easily affordable and open to any imaginable content, Toy Theater begs to be rescued from obscurity and re-invented in a wide variety of contemporary styles.  Join Great Small Works in this exciting revival!

GREAT SMALL WORKS

Is an award-winning collective of theater artists who draw on folk, avant-garde and popular theater traditions to address contemporary issues. Its members are: John Bell, Trudi Cohen, Stephen Kaplin, Jenny Romaine, Roberto Rossi and Mark Sussman. The company has produced nine Toy Theater festivals in NYC since 1993. 

Look us up at www.greatsmallworks.org

EXTRA—we will be having a Museum opening celebration on Sunday, June 15^th, which will include, for the second time ever, the Greatest Smallest Parade with miniature floats and a giant brass band.  We encourage you and everyone you know to make little sculptures that can be pushed or pulled down the sidewalks of DUMBO!  You can contact us about the parade at toytheater@gmail.com.