articles

See The Old Man and the Monkeys at CPA Through Oct. 5th

Save 25% on Tickets With Macaroni Kid!

September 25, 2014

Did you know you can save on tickets to select shows at Center of Puppetry Arts with a Macaroni Kid Discount? CLICK HERE to save 25% on tickets to "The Old Man and the Monkeys & Other Chinese Tales"!

The Old Man and the Monkeys & Other Chinese Tales are five traditional and not-so-traditional stories of ancient China performed by Dragon Arts Studio. Five traditional and not-so-traditional vignettes are woven together to recount tales of ancient China. Fables of compassion and consideration, along with the greatest ping pong match of all time, are told through beautiful imagery and surprising effects. Honored in 2004 with a National Heritage Fellowship Award (the highest honor our nation gives to folk and traditional artists), Dragon Art Studio delights the senses while giving a special insight into Chinese folklore and culture. Stories include:

•"The Crane and the Tortoise"
•"A Donkey's Best Friend"
•“The Dancer" 
•"Old Man and the Monkeys" 
•"The Super Duper Ping Pong Match" 
Performances:
Sept 24 - Oct 5, 2014 
Mainstage Theater 
Center for Puppetry Arts, 1
404 Spring Street, NW at 18th
Atlanta, GA 30309
Recommended for ages 4 & up 
Showtimes
•Wed-Fri: 10am & 11:30am
•Sat: 12pm & 2pm
•Sun: 1pm & 3pm 
Puppetry Style:
Glove, Rod
Create-A-Puppet Workshop:
Make your own Mischievous Monkey Hand Puppet!

Tickets:
TICKETS ARE $9.25 (MEMBERS) / $16.50 (NONMEMBERS) AND CAN BE PURCHASED ONLINE ATWWW.PUPPET.ORG OR BY CALLING THE TICKET SALES OFFICE AT 404-873-3391.Tickets include museum admission as well as the Create-A-Puppet Workshop, where children can make their own Mischievous Monkey hand puppet. 
BUT!!! Get 25% off with our Macaroni Kid discount!! CLICK HERE to redeem. Simply use promo code “MacaroniKid” when ordering online or calling the Ticket Sales Office at 404-873-3391. Limit 4. Subject to availability. 

Dragon Art Studio is comprised of two renowned artists, Yuqin Wang and Zhengli Xu. Their impressive careers include several decades of international acclaim, as well as the 2004 National Heritage Fellowship Award from the National Endowment for the Arts (the highest U.S. honor for folk and traditional artists). Before coming to America, the husband and wife duo spent more than 30 years as leading puppeteers with the famous China Puppet Art Troupe in Beijing, China’s first national puppetry company. In 1996, Wang and Xu came to the U.S. and founded their own puppet theater, Dragon Art Studio in Portland, Ore. In their first year, Dragon Art Studio was invited to perform at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, and over the past 15 years they have shared the beauty and excitement of Chinese puppetry with audiences throughout the U.S.

In a recent interview with Macaroni Kid, Wang and Xu replied (as translated by their daughter Brenda) to the following questions:

1. Why is puppetry such an important part of your lives?
The traditional art doesn’t belong to only one country. It is the treasure of the whole world. We want not only Chinese people to know this traditional art but people all around the world, to let more people know about the Chinese culture, the history and the puppet art.

2. What is Chinese Puppetry and how is it different than what American audiences think of puppetry?
Chinese puppetry has more than one thousand years of history. It started decades ago as cultural ritual, and later became a form of entertainment to the royal family and common public. Through many centuries, the Chinese have developed puppetry into a high art form. Chinese puppetry has developed tremendously over the years. It combines artistic expression with detailed hand craft, traditional Chinese Opera movements and music, beautifully-engineered mechanical puppet parts and western technology to tell the story.
 
3. The puppets in The Old Man & The Monkeys are beautiful and very life-like. How long does it take to make puppets like these and what kind of materials do you use?
We are specialize in rod puppets, which will be the main puppet form for the show. The traditional Chinese rod puppet is about thirty to forty-two inches in length, with a solid torso and arms. The puppet is supported by a large, central wood rod, and the hands of the figure are operated by two small steel rods. The head and body are normally made of paper mache because of the light weight. Different charactersrequires different moves (such as dancing moves, blinking eyes, hands that can squeeze, etc.) so structures and controls are made differently too. The most difficult puppet to make in this show, we think, is the crane, especially it's wings that have to be able to open to fly. It took about a month to design and build. 
 
4. How do you perform a story without words and make it interesting to an audience of all ages?
The lead puppeteers Yuqin Wang and Zhengli Xu cannot speak English well. With over 50 years of experience performing with puppets, they are able to communicate with people from all over the world through their puppets. In the hands of a skilled puppeteer, the rod puppet is capable of expressive and elegant movements. In order to create a realistic sense of vitality, the puppet is seldom held perfectly vertical but is shifted slightly forward and then backward to give a sense of lifelike movement. Our puppeteers stand and work behind a five-to-six foot curtain, which creates the illusion of a stage at its top edge.
 
5. How were you able to bring ancient Chinese tales to an American audience not familiar with them?
The children love the humor in the stories, and the way it is presented.  It teaches the audience insight into Chinese folklore and culture.  Our puppet performance is a perfect springboard for teaching about Chinese culture and exploring connections between ancient and modern quest stories.
 
6. Which of the ancient tales is your personal favorite and why?
Each one is different from all others and has something special about it. It's hard to tell which one is our favorite because we like them all. But we want to know which one is your favorite. So come to see us!