Presented by Dirty Work Comedy and Bunk Puppets
Reviewed Saturday 21st February 2012 (preview performance)
Canadian shadow puppeteer Jeff Achtem turns rubbish and household objects into feats of imagination.
After the award-winning success of Sticks, Stones, Broken Bones, he returns to the Adelaide Fringe with the world premier of an exploration of outer space. Through shadow puppetry, audience participation and one of the most impressive uses of a smoke machine ever seen, he tells the tale of two brothers, Sam and Junior, who accidentally launch themselves into space.
Achtem uses both his hands and feet simultaneously to produce the clever imagery, most times in sight of the audience so they can marvel at his ingenuity. Balloons become spiders, spoons become control levers, bubbles become planets and tinsel becomes stars. The set looks like a junk yard but everything has its use.
The presentation is slapdash, as the title suggests but it is perhaps a combination of deliberate mayhem and some first night mishaps. It's all part of the fun however as Achtem bumbles his way around the stage, mumbling and muttering and talking gibberish when he's not prompting the lighting and sound cues. He uses both forward and back projections to create the impressive shadow puppetry and there's no denying his incredible talent in that arena.
The awkward set doesn’t always work to his advantage, even within the context of the staging; some of the scene setups take far too long, and it's only Achtem's ability to mutter amusingly that saves those moments.
Previews are often a bit rough for new shows, and his deliberate blundering will no doubt get fine tuned as the season commences bring even more laughs than it already does.
Great fun.
Reviewed by Rod Lewis, Performing Arts Critic, Glam Adelaide.
Adelaide Fringe – Slapdash Galaxy
Bunk Puppets website
Venue: The Palace, Garden of Unearthly Delights, Rundle Park/Kadlitpinna, cnr East Tce & Rundle Rd, Adelaide
Season: 22 February – 18 March
Duration: 50 mins
Tickets: $15.00 – $24.00
Bookings: Fringetix 1300-FRINGE (1300-374643), Fringe outlets or online
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