When the Pictures Came is an extraordinary cross-cultural collaboration between Tasmania’s Terrapin Puppet Theatre and the Children’s Art Theatre of China Welfare Institute, in association with the Lakeside Arts Centre UK and Reckless Moments. The show comes to Ten Days on the Island in Hobart following its triumphant premiere season in Shanghai in early 2010.
Finegan Kruckemeyer’s absurd and comic story is about four hapless characters that have to learn to work together to overcome a formidable opponent. This fearsome foursome find themselves flung into an obscure battle with an omnipotent machine. Slapstick, puppets, and innovative digital techniques make this more-than-ridiculous cartoon-style story one for the whole family. Under Frank Newman’s direction, the animations of the award-winning film maker Zeng Yigang blend with black-light puppetry and live performance to create a remarkable piece of theatre.
Four characters – an opera singer, a strongman, a tai chi artist, and a kid - are striving to make themselves better. One day a box arrives at their apartment block, and in the box is a machine. The neighbours discover that the machine can give them amazing capabilities, and that it can help them to exceed their wildest dreams. But soon they learn that they have over-reached and in their greed have asked the machine for too much. Suddenly, the characters find themselves flung into a battle of wills, and they learn that they have to work together to defeat the machine.
When the Pictures Came has been created by Chinese and Australian artists with development phases in both countries. Proving a cross-cultural partnership is a team consisting of Director, Writer, Designer and three performers from Australia; Costume Designer, Animator, Construction Artists and three performers from China; and an English Composer. The show uses digital puppetry techniques that Terrapin has developed which uses projected images in a black light theatre context. The crossover with animated images and black light theatre is stylistically new and testing the boundaries in the form of puppetry.
When the Pictures Came was developed with financial assistance from the COME OUT Festival and The WD Booth Charitable Trust and is supported by the Australian Government through the Australia International Cultural Council, an initiative of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
Come share the magic at the Playhouse Theatre (106 Bathurst Street, Hobart.) Three shows only on Friday 1 April at 1pm and 6pm, Saturday 2 April at 2pm and 6pm, Sunday 3 April at 11am and 2pm. Tickets are adults $25, concession $20, child U16 $15 and family (4 tix) $68. For more information about the festival, head to their website.