POP UP PALLADIUM Launches To Support Puppeteers Across The Arts Industry

The Pop Up Palladium has announced a brand new line-up their third show on Sunday 4th October at 7:30 pm. Tickets are now on sale via this link.

Included in the third show are Chris Somerville - Harlequin Theatre, Cardiff Animation Festival, Hijinx Theatre - Meet Fred, Talk To The Hand Puppets - Mongrels and Craig Leo - The Lonely Sailor Weather Report. Further acts for future shows are yet to be announced.

Running on Zoom, The Pop-Up Palladium will whisk audiences away from the doom and gloom on a magical mystery tour of nostalgic laughter and a trip into the otherworldly. Hosted by Welsh puppeteer Emily Morus-Jones, each show will consist of an eclectic selection of different types of puppetry showcasing individual performances, followed by exclusive interviews. Enjoy the hilarity and beauty of puppetry from the comfort of your own home while getting an in-depth look behind the scenes into the full spectrum of puppetry in Theatre, TV and film.

The Pop-up Palladium host and puppeteer Emily Morus-Jones said: "My hope is that this event will go some way to keeping struggling performers afloat, give them a bit of hope and inspiration for the future, and help audiences to discover what a wonderful, broad church the world of puppetry really is."

With theatres having been left out in the cold by lockdown easing, and TV productions being slower to start up, It has been an extremely difficult time for puppeteers who usually work in close proximity. The Pop-Up Palladium was conceived as a way to help the industry across the whole spectrum of puppetry showcase their work and learn about the different approaches to this rich and varied art form. Funds raised will be split between the puppeteers performing, utilising the online platform to support artists through these challenging times while Theatres and TV productions are just getting back on their feet.

The Pop-Up Palladium has been funded by The Arts Council Wales in addition to being sponsored by The Curious School Of Puppetry and Talk To The Hand Puppets.

LINE UP ANNOUNCED AS FOLLOWS:

Sunday October 4th, 7:30 pm start

HOST - Emily Morus-Jones

A Welsh Puppeteer and Puppet Maker for film, TV, and live events. Emily trained as a TV puppeteer on the Sesame Workshop and BBC production The Furchester Hotel in addition to completing training at The Curious School Of Puppetry. Emily has performed with puppets on shows for ITV and CBBC, short films, and commercials in addition to working with high profile clients in the music industry that include Ed SHeeran, Calvin Harris & Dua Lipa, The Brit Awards, Rag'nBone Man and Jam Baxter. Additionally, she has built puppets for The Handspring Puppet Company, KneeHigh Theatre, Nick Barnes Puppets, John Lewis and the band Iron Maiden.

CHRIS SOMERVILLE - THE HARLEQUIN THEATRE

Chris Somerville has been fascinating children and delighting adults with puppets for over 60 years. He directs The Harlequin Puppet Theatre in North Wales. The Harlequin was the first permanent puppet theatre ever to be built in Britain, and remains the only theatre designed and built especially for puppet playing. Built in 1958, when it was awarded the Civic Trust ward, it remains unique.

CARDIFF ANIMATION FESTIVAL

Celebrating the best animation from around the world. Cardiff Animation Festival (CAF) brings people together to celebrate the best animation from all over the world for adults, families and filmmakers. Through events including a biennial international festival, monthly Cardiff Animation Nights, and a new programme of online events, CAF showcases animation for everyone with a broad selection of animated short films, features, masterclasses, workshops, filmmaker Q+As, retrospectives, an education program, exhibitions, behind-the-scenes screenings, industry events, panels, networking events and parties. CAF is a non-profit community organisation run by a team of animation lovers and creators living in Cardiff. The Cardiff Animation Festival team have been running animation events in Wales since 2014.

HIJINX THEATRE - MEET FRED

Hijinx is an award-winning, inclusive theatre company based in Cardiff. All our productions include learning disabled performers alongside performers without learning disability. To support our work, we have a network of Academies around Wales that train learning disabled performers in a variety of skills. We provide this training because it is virtually impossible for an actor with learning disability to access more traditional drama schools or universities. When ready, students from our Academies join us on our professional productions. This ensures that our work is always of the highest quality, with all artists starting a process on an equal footing. Meet Fred features three of our performers with learning disability, all of whom were heavily involved in the devising of the production.

TALK TO THE HAND PUPPETS - MONGRELS

Talk to the Hand Productions was founded in 2005 by puppeteers Andy Heath and Iestyn Evans. Since then, we've built and brought hundreds of beloved puppet characters vividly to life on screen. From building compelling creatures to dazzling practical effects, our combined 40 years of industry experience and unparalleled eye for detail allows us to bring a standard of creative excellence to every stage of production: from workshop, to studio...right through to the edit suite. We have designed, made, performed and directed characters for the BBC, Disney, The Jim Henson Company, Working Title, Hat Trick, Sky Arts, Ragdoll, Kids TV, Lego and Endemol, but are best known for making the puppets and overseeing all the puppetry for BBC3's Mongrels, for which we won a Royal Television Society Award in 2012. In addition, we are trusted puppet consultants for numerous creative agencies and production companies, including AMV BBDO, Wieden and Kennedy, BBH, Mullen and Lowe, Passion Pictures, Grey, Tricycle, Academy Films and Red Bee. Our work includes national and international campaigns for Three Mobile, Travelodge, Walkers, Activia and BT.

Craig Leo - THE LONELY SAILOR WEATHER REPORT

Craig Leo is a South African theatre designer, puppeteer and performing artist. Leaving university to begin working in theatre, he trained in circus arts, performing with The Zip Zap Circus, leading to a role in the Sun City Circus Extravaganza, Baletsatsi. Collaborating with colleagues, he formed the acrobatic theatre company 'Myth', touring both Austria and Germany. Craig Is currently the resident director for The Handspring Puppet Company and will be directing the puppetry for a collaboration with Good Chance Theatre on a new piece called The Walk which will cross Europe in 2021.

To post a comment, you must register and login.