Boy In A Barrel
A
swan with magic powers, a vengeful bumblebee, a golden hero, and a lady
pirate share the puppet stage in Boy in a Barrel, a rollicking fairy tale
for all ages, at the Curtain
Theater, UMass Fine Arts Center, May 10-May 16 2004.
Freely adapted from Alexander Pushkin’s fairy
tale, The Tale of Tsar Saltan, the story tells of love, betrayal,
and good-natured revenge when the King marries one of two sisters before
going off to war. The Queen’s evil sister switches letters and leads
the King to believe that the Queen and their baby son have died. In fact,
the jealous sister has cast a spell that turns her sister into a swan
and spirited the baby boy, destined to be the Kingdom’s hero, into
a barrel that is dumped into the sea. Swan and boy end up on an island
where they hilariously turn the tables on the evil sister, who has determined
to marry the King herself.
It featured table-top, rod, and shadow puppets in colorful Russian costumes
and was accompanied by rousing balalaika music and mock Russian sea chanties.
Cast
(in order of appearance)
Pirates: Steve
Pierce
Babrikha: Amy Davis
Sonya: Marta MacCrostie
King: Galen Caplis
Boy: Jennifer Tebo
Shadow Casters: Erica Billings and Ensemble
Text loosely adapted from Alexander Pushkin’s The
Tale of Tsar Saltan
by Timothy Matos and Miguel Romero
Pirate’s Songs Lyrics by David Costello
Music score by Jeannie-Marie Brown and R.T.
Brown
Costumes Designed by June Gaeke
Lighting Designed by Lara Dubin
Puppet Sculpture/Design by Marta MacCrostie
Shadow Puppet Construction by Christopher
Groden
Scenic Carpentry by Amy Davis
Scenic Painting by Mariana Fernandez
Stage Manager Jennie Meade
Production Devised and Directed by Miguel
Romero
