IN PURSUIT OF EXCELLENCE,

A FESTIVAL FOLLOW-UP

Review from the 1995 Puppeteer's of America National Puppetry Festival, Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania

Puppetry Journal, Vol. 47, No. 1, Fall 1995

COYOTE SINGS (part of the Animal Folktales of the Americas series)

Magical Moonshine Theatre, Yountville, Ca.

performed by Michael Nelson, Valerie Nelson, Benjamin Nelson

These trickster tales are presented with zest and exuberance. This program is appealing and folksy without ever being cute or crude. The puppets are presented bunraku style with puppeteer's faces visible and totally immersed in the characters they are playing. The physical flattening and the inflating of Coyote are moments of puppetry magic at its very best, and incidentally a clear example that stage violence can be totally non-threatening. Live music and crisp funny dialogue delightfully acted in English and Spanish give the show sparkle and add to its educational value as well.

-STEVE ABRAMS