Talking bunnies and ghosts come to life at the Grand Arizona Puppet Theater’s “Little Bunny’s Halloween” show on Wednesday.
“Little Bunny’s Halloween” centers around a more fun, less spooky Halloween, recommended for children in kindergarten through second grade. It is scheduled for shows through October 28.
“Little Bunny’s Halloween” is presented using some of the simplest kinds of puppets, yet the puckish smiles and audible laughter make it clear that the children see more than a person hiding behind a stage with cloth hand puppets and fabric wrapped around a stick. It tells the story of a young bunny who, while obliviously enthusiastic about the more whimsical aspects of Halloween, fears phantoms and bugaboos under his bed.
Lisa Haslbauer, a puppeteer at the theater, said there is something visceral about the art form and a live performance that sparks the imagination of children.
“A lot of people talk about how puppetry is dying because electronics are taking over, and kids are attached to their screens, but it’s an art form that has been going strong for thousands of years. I think it still speaks to people in a different way than something recorded and distant,” Haslbauer said.
Mary Lou Alack, who took her two granddaughters to a showing of “Little Bunny’s Halloween,” said she thinks it is important to expose children to a variety of visual stimuli.
“They use their imagination a lot more and I get to make some puppets with them,” Alack said.
The theater sells kits to make simple puppets, and at shows the audiences are informed on how to construct puppets with household materials.
The show was a hit with children as well.
“It was silly when the little bunny was running around. I liked it when he was trying all his Halloween costumes,” Layla, Alack’s oldest granddaughter, said.
Haslbauer also instructed young viewers in how the rod puppets are made, and how they are used on stage.
“It could be something as simple as a stick with some stuffing and some cloth around them, but you put them on stage and you move them around and give them voices and the kids fill in the rest,” she said. “And if we’re doing our jobs right, the grown-ups participate, too.”
While focused on providing children’s entertainment, the non-profit theater also presents adult-oriented shows featuring guest performers and artists, including Rasputin’s Marionette’s and Sea Beast Puppet Company. These events are called “adult slams.”
The Great Arizona Puppet Theater will soon celebrate its 35th anniversary on November 23 to 24 with showings of “Little Red Riding Hood,” the puppet show the theater first presented to audiences in 1983 when they were still operating as a touring company.
On the evening of Nov. 24 the theater will also host an adult-only benefit with puppet vignettes, a private silent auction, a raffle, beer, wine and appetizers.
Contact the reporter at jicazare@asu.edu.
