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OCTOBER 2003 - OULU, FINLAND In October of 2003, Drama of Works was invited to the Barents Region International Puppetry Festival. We were one of two American companies, sharing the honor with Eric Bass's Sandglass Theatre. We performed FOUR shows: curiouser and curiouser, Doctor Faustus, On the Backs of Fishes and the big hit: The Sid & Nancy Punch & Judy Show. We also made some amazing new friends! We're forever grateful Akseli Klonk (Jann, Tommi, Tuomus, Sirpa, Kiimo and Nikolai) and Alina!!! DOW travelers: John Ardolino, Amy Carrigan, Wendy Graham, Jason Howard, Spencer Lafrenz and Gretchen Van Lente (and Mary too) |
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MAY 2004 - ISTANBUL, TURKEY In May of 2004 DOW traveled to the Istanbul International Puppetry Festival. According to their site, we were the first American company to be invited in years - if ever! We performed WARRIOR to two great crowds and got a cool award to take home! Thanks to Fabienne and Cengiz for being great hosts, to Larry Reed of Shadowlight Productions for being our American comrade, Alberto for teaching us about finger exercises, Guillome for a great tech and Carlos...he knows why... DOW travelers: John Ardolino, Amy Carrigan, Wendy Graham, Spencer Lafrenz and Gretchen Van Lente |
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JUNE 2004 - PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC Later that year the crew travelled to Prague for the 8th World Festival of Puppet Art. We performed WARRIOR and it was a special time cause Crystal got to come along and see her play done internationally. DOW even got an award! The jury gave the play a special honor for ORIGINAL ADAPTATION. The piece was also nominated for BEST ORIGINAL PERFORMANCE and BEST ACTOR (for Amy). What an honor! And again we add new friends to our list of puppet peers: Ronny, Ahmad, and of course the girls of Kivotos Mithon (Bessie, Maria, Stella and Spiridoula)! DOW travelers: John Ardolino, Amy Carrigan, Spencer Lafrenz, Crystal Skillman and Fred & Gretchen Van Lente |
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JULY - AUGUST 2004 - UBUD, BALI And even later that year I was honored to be selected for the very competitive APPEX (Asian Pacific Performance Exchange) Fellowship offered through UCLA. In Ubud, Bali I learned from and taught my peers hailing from Indonesia, the Phillipines, Malaysia, India and fellow Americans. I lived in Bali for six weeks. Lasting friendships with the hosts Cudamani, Indian puppeteer Anurupa Roy and New York composer Vivian Fung (Sleepy Hollow) were formed. It was a once-in-a lifetime opportunity. DOW travelers: Gretchen Van Lente |
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JUNE 2005 - PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC June of 2005 we made a return visit to Prague for the 9th World Festival of Puppet Art. We performed WARHOL and this time took home the prize for BEST ORIGINAL PERFORMANCE. We also played almost every night (with opening act the Sid & Nancy Punch & Judy Show) at the Prague Fringe Festival, exposing our art to a whole new international audience. We saw some old friends like Ronny Albrecht. And also made some new ones from Sweden, Iran and - Florida - !!! A highlight was that Gretchen's friend Anurupa Roy (whom she met in Bali) also performed here in Prague - a reunion! DOW travelers: John Ardolino, Amy Carrigan, Serra Hirsch, Gretchen Van Lente and James Walton |
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JUNE 2006 - TORONTO, CANADA June of 2006 we were invited by some good friends to participate in the Cooking Fire Theater Festival in Toronto, Canada. We met the fabulous folks at Stranger Theatre at the Black Sheep Puppet Festival in Pittsburgh, PA. This beautiful outdoor festival featured puppets, clowning, a country western musical and our performance, an updated version of On the Backs of Fishes (WARRIOR) DOW travelers: Jennifer Bruno, Amy Carrigan, Talaura Harms, Matt Jackson, Nancy Nagrant and Gretchen Van Lente |
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MAY 2007 - SUBOTICA, SERBIA May of 2007 we were invited to the International Festival of Children's Theatre in Subotica, Serbia. We brought the piece Sleepy Hollow and although they assured us having supertitles in English was a good idea, there were many confused Serbian schoolchildren in attendance. Ah well, we saw some great puppetry and clowning and met some amazing people on this trip! We flew in and out of Budapest and also took a stop in Belgrade. Thanks mostly to Olivera Mudrinic, our English-speaking savior! Gosh, I miss the baths... DOW travelers: Amy Carrigan, Gretchen Van Lente and Meghan Williams |
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APRIL 2008 - PERTH, AUSTRALIA In 2008 I was honored to represent UNIMA-USA as an international councillor at the UNIMA Congress in Perth, Australia. I saw a bunch of the friends DOW has made over the years: Janne, Ronny, Alberto, Ahmed and some whom I met over the internet. Many old and new puppetry friendships were strengthened. And a few international invitations were made, as well as learning from almost 20 shows and some workshops. A stop in Sydney made this a very memorable trip! DOW travelers: Gretchen Van Lente |
