If you haven’t seen one of String and Shadow’s al fresco puppet shows, you’re missing out. There’s time, though, to remedy that: Or So It Would Seam: A Giant Puppet Voyage Into the Hidden Universe runs through July 21 in Olympia and then tours the Northwest till Sept. 1.
If the idea of a puppet show doesn’t excite you, trust your friends at Oly Arts: You really do want to make time for this confection, packed with visual puns and silly walks. The giant puppets in Seam include literal giants, about twice as tall as an average human, an ever-growing black hole and a city that transforms itself.
String and Shadow founders Emily McHugh and Donald Palardy III and company don’t just perform the shows; they design and make all of the puppets, masks and sets and write the completely original scripts.
No worries about the heat, either. The shows are happening in the delightfully shady Decatur Woods Park, which is equipped with restrooms and ample parking and has playground equipment just behind the sloped ground that forms a natural theater.
The story, set in other dimensions both strange and familiar, involves dark matter, an intergalactic train and a space sheep. Major characters include Captain Z, a Spaceway Assistance driver whose captain’s logs provide much of the narrative for the action, played by Emily McHugh, and Chief Imperial Emperor the Great, a ridiculous figure played by Elizabeth Lord. “I love playing the unhinged emperor bent on destroying the unknown,” Lord said.
Also playing denizens of multiple dimensions are Luz Gaxiola, Jordan Richards, Aurora Sonenshine, Ellora Indrik Stone, Razz Yoshioka, Velva Kelly and Kelsey Magnuson.
The band — Harrison Hannon, Eva Leach and Stella R.S. — plays a soundtrack that includes folk tunes from various cultures, a John Philip Sousa funeral dirge and what Palardy playfully calls “a restrained, judicious use of synthesizer.” A TV news theme announces the arrival of reporters with screens around their faces.
Audience participation is a big part of the show. Everyone is invited to react to what’s happening — laughing, crying, gasping and even emulating the humming of the cosmos — and there are lots of surprises from the audience, too.
This seems to be a breakthrough year for the company, which mounted its first summer show in 2020, just before live entertainment was banned. Many in the audience are new to String and Shadow, which is in residence at Olympia Family Theater and has large numbers of grownup fans who cherish the company’s fanciful combination of fact and whimsy.
The cast of 13 is the largest the company has ever had, and the tour will be its biggest yet. “In total, we are performing the show almost 40 times,” McHugh said. “Last year was like 32 in total.” Another milestone: The company received a $30,000 Inspire Olympia grant, which helped fund the show and let the company upgrade the sound system used for both in-town shows and on tour. “We are super excited about the grant,” McHugh said.
Photos by Jo Arlow.
WHAT
String and Shadow Puppet Theater’s Or So It Would Seam
WHEN
6:30 p.m. July 12-14, and 19-21, with matinees at 2:30 p.m. July 14 and 21
WHERE
Decatur Woods Park, 1015 Decatur St. SW, Olympia
TICKETS
$20-$35 donation suggested in cash or by PayPal or Venmo. No one will be turned away for lack of funds.
LEARN MORE
https://www.stringandshadow.com