Those are the 80 or more puppets used for the tour
Disney may own the Muppets and the technical name but the Henson family got to retain the other, more daring properties (The Dark Crystal, Labyrinth) and this adult-based entertainment troop we saw a couple weeks ago. It wasn’t for children because they’re allowed to use profanity. Somara is the biggest fan I know so I could’ve sleeping on the couch for a month if I didn’t alert her.
How was it? Overall I liked it and I laughed. My big peeve was most of the show being improvisational with the audience shouting out suggestions. Maybe if they had a series of choices for us to vote on, fine. Improv is fantastic at demonstrating the puppeteers’ acting skills while they successfully manipulate the puppet. The problem is the audience’s crappy, blurted-out ideas. There’s a reason why I paid to see these people and how they earned their careers. Crowdsourcing doesn’t always work, especially with comedy.
Enough editorializing, it was a great time.
Besides the improv bits, there were rehearsed, “fixed” pieces they did. Jane and Jim Henson’s “I’ve Grown Accustomed to Your Face,” Frank Oz’s “Java,” and my personal favorite, “Windy.” The troop also showed how the Henson company has implemented high-tech into their act with a computer-generated/manipulated character (more in a moment) and video looping during a tap-dancing skit. The computer puppet was only visible on the big screens since it was super-imposed over a person’s head.
Our third-row seats made matters pretty interesting. We saw what they were doing on the stage while simultaneously watching the big screens showing the end result. I was amazed by how little they flicked their wrists compared to the movement’s cameras see.
Should this come back through Austin, I would attend again. These puppeteers are professionals, they often converted sow’s ears into decent purses. Next time, I hope they have a shirt in my size.
Here I am with three cast members in the lobby.