The Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival presents an excellent opportunity to sample a vast range of artistry from around the world. Not just for kids.
Ishmael Falke performs in"Invisible Lands" by the Livsmedlet Theatre during the Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival at the Chopin Theatre on Jan. 22, 2023."Invisible Lands" transforms the performers’ bodies into the physical terrain on which refugees — represented by miniature figurines — travel after leaving home.
On a skeletal set modeled after the ribs of a ship — or those of a whale — seven actors and puppeteers perform with puppets that include crew members who smoke and sing in their hammocks, an oversized Ahab marionette who rages against his elusive enemy, and the grand finale: the giant white whale himself. A trio of onstage musicians provides accompaniment that ranges from rousing sea shanties and otherworldly whale sounds to the frenzied cacophony of the hunts.
With the aid of a large pop-up book, hand puppets and a voice-over by Nagara, Nixon-Silberg explores the role of art in grassroots resistance to an oppressive dictatorship. The performance I attended was at a pop-up space tucked into a corner of Navy Pier next to Ben & Jerry’s, where Nixon-Silberg had to compete with the hubbub of foot traffic and a noisy HVAC system.
Next up in my three-show Saturday, I headed to the Chopin Theatre for a double bill of productions from Finland and France, respectively: “Invisible Lands” and “Anywhere.” Starring Livsmedlet Theater’s Ishmael Falke and Sandrina Lindgren ,transforms the performers’ bodies into the physical terrain on which refugees — represented by miniature figurines — travel after leaving home. A shoulder coated in sand becomes a desert, upraised knees a mountain range and a belly, painted blue, the ocean.
Here, Oedipus is a marionette made of ice — a fragile figure small enough for his loyal daughter, Antigone , to carry in her arms. As they creep across a stage slick with ice and rain, Oedipus gradually melts while Antigone desperately tries to hold on to him. Unlike its ephemeral protagonist, this melancholy production will live on after its Chicago premiere; the festival plans to bring “Anywhere” on a national tour with its U.S.-based ensemble.
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