Our television debut! MILO THE MAGNIFICENT on DIE PUPPENSTARS Oct 1, 2022 at 20:15 GMT+2 on RTL streaming on RTL Germany
We are thrilled to finally announce our television debut with Milo the Magnificent on RTL's DIE PUPPENSTARS! We flew to Germany over the summer to film our live segment and met amazing people working at the Bildergarten Studios and some incredibly talented puppeteers. Be sure to tune in and check it out!
photo by Blonnie Brooks of WAGS Media.
POCKET MOXIE: A Happenstance Vaudeville Oct. 27 - Nov 13, 2022 at Baltimore Theatre Project POCKET MOXIE video trailer. Baltimore, Maryland, USA Tickets: HERE
Happenstance Theater brings old Vaudeville back with POCKET MOXIE!, an homage to the style and spirit of the Great Age of Vaudeville with slapstick comedy, tight harmonies, and celestial charades. Five versatile players breathe new life into classic old routines. From a ventriloquist’s dummy to a magic act that goes awry, from novelty songs and a musical saw to waiters juggling meatballs, all acts are accompanied by live music and “foley” sound effects.
photo by Leslie Swan Photography
Preposterous! A Happenstance Circus Friday Nov 18, 2022 at 6pm ET at the Gaithersburg Arts Barn PREPOSTEROUS! video trailer. Gaithersburg, Maryland, USA Tickets: HERE
A SOPHISTICATED, FAMILY-FRIENDLY, POCKET-SIZED THEATRICAL CLOWN CIRCUS!
These charming VINTAGE clowns play circus ANIMALS, sing as a HUMAN CALLIOPE, do the classic circus MIRROR ROUTINE, invent a number of RIDICULOUS "entrées," perform LIVE MUSIC, and execute a very satisfying SLOW MOTION number involving a PIE!
Featuring Mark Jaster, Sabrina Mandell, Gwen Grastorf, Sarah Olmsted Thomas, and Alex Vernon.
PAST 2022 PROJECTS:
The Jim Henson Foundation grant awarded MILO THE MAGNIFICENT Sept 1-30, 2022 Milo the Magnificent video trailer. at The Puppet Co. Playhouse in Glen Echo, Maryland, USA Tickets: HERE
Alex and Olmsted's Jim Henson Foundation Grant awarded Milo the Magnificent is a highly engaging puppet show about an aspiring magician. This wordless comedy, inspired by turn of the century vaudeville entertainers, is as highly physical as it is charming. Using stunningly innovative puppetry, Milo presents a variety of magic tricks which don’t always go as planned. Great for all ages!
Alex U. Griffin photography
The Jim Henson Foundation grant awarded MILO THE MAGNIFICENT Saturday, August 27 at 12pm PT at the Puget Sound Puppetry Festival in Seattle, Washington, USA Tickets: HERE
Alex and Olmsted's Jim Henson Foundation Grant awarded Milo the Magnificent is a highly engaging puppet show about an aspiring magician. This wordless comedy, inspired by turn of the century vaudeville entertainers, is as highly physical as it is charming. Using stunningly innovative puppetry, Milo presents a variety of magic tricks which don’t always go as planned. Great for all ages! Milo the Magnificent video trailer HERE.
Honorable Mention! Marianne's Onion, a short puppet film at the International Fine Arts Film Festival Marianne's Onion is a true story told through shadow puppetry based on an interview with Marianne Ross. Eighty-six year old Marianne hikes through the valley behind her house one day when she is in need of an onion and miraculously finds one in the woods. The film follows her journey from first discovery, to the reactions of her community, to her hilarious and poignant musings on the meaning of unexpectedly receiving a seemingly mundane gift. Screening Online: August 2022 Tickets and more information: HERE Marianne's Onion video trailer HERE.
Jim Henson Foundation grant awarded show! MAROONED! A Space Comedy July 27 - 30, 2022 at the Santa Fe Playhouse Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA Tickets: HERE
We are thrilled to announce that our Jim Henson Foundation grant awarded MAROONED! A Space Comedy will be the opening show in the inaugural SKELETAL SERIES, a new-works festival at the Santa Fe Playhouse, the oldest continuously running theatre west of the Mississippi. MAROONED! is an innovative new puppet show, featuring music from the Voyager Golden Record, that takes place at the outer reaches of space. An astronaut crashes on an uncharted planet. Will she be able to survive strange creatures, anomalous atmosphere, and isolation in order to find her way home? See for yourself… in MAROONED! MAROONED! video trailer HERE.
POCKET MOXIE: A Happenstance Vaudeville Sun, Jul 24, 2022 @ 2 PM at the Camden Opera House Camden, MAINE, USA Tickets: HERE
Happenstance Theater brings old Vaudeville back with POCKET MOXIE!, an homage to the style and spirit of the Great Age of Vaudeville with slapstick comedy, tight harmonies, and celestial charades. Five versatile players breathe new life into classic old routines. From a ventriloquist’s dummy to a magic act that goes awry, from novelty songs and a musical saw to waiters juggling meatballs, all acts are accompanied by live music and “foley” sound effects. POCKET MOXIE video trailer HERE.
POCKET MOXIE: A Happenstance Vaudeville Sat, Jul 23, 2022 @ 7:30 PM at the Celebration Barn Theater Paris, MAINE, USA Tickets: HERE
Happenstance Theater brings old Vaudeville back with POCKET MOXIE!, an homage to the style and spirit of the Great Age of Vaudeville with slapstick comedy, tight harmonies, and celestial charades. Five versatile players breathe new life into classic old routines. From a ventriloquist’s dummy to a magic act that goes awry, from novelty songs and a musical saw to waiters juggling meatballs, all acts are accompanied by live music and “foley” sound effects. POCKET MOXIE video trailer HERE.
Blonnie Brooks of WAGS Media
POCKET MOXIE: A Happenstance Vaudeville with Happenstance Theater Sunday, July 10th at 3pm at the Howland Cultural Center in Beacon, New York Tickets & Info: HERE
Happenstance Theater brings old Vaudeville back with POCKET MOXIE!, an homage to the style and spirit of the Great Age of Vaudeville with slapstick comedy, tight harmonies, and celestial charades. Five versatile players breathe new life into classic old routines. From a ventriloquist’s dummy to a magic act that goes awry, from novelty songs and a musical saw to waiters juggling meatballs, all acts are accompanied by live music and “foley” sound effects. POCKET MOXIE video trailer HERE.
Mukul Ranjan Photography
POCKET MOXIE: A Happenstance Vaudeville with Happenstance Theater Saturday, July 9th at 11am & 7:30pm at the Waterfront Museum in Brooklyn, New York Tickets & Info: HERE
Happenstance Theater brings old Vaudeville back with POCKET MOXIE!, an homage to the style and spirit of the Great Age of Vaudeville with slapstick comedy, tight harmonies, and celestial charades. Five versatile players breathe new life into classic old routines. From a ventriloquist’s dummy to a magic act that goes awry, from novelty songs and a musical saw to waiters juggling meatballs, all acts are accompanied by live music and “foley” sound effects. POCKET MOXIE video trailer HERE.
BROUHAHA with Happenstance Theater Friday, July 8th at 7:30pm at the Waterfront Museum in Brooklyn, New York Tickets & Info: HERE
BrouHaHa is a comedic, existential escapade inspired by images of refugees fleeing on foot, Edwardian workers, cinematic treasures like Fellini's La Strada and Bergman's The Seventh Seal, and the dark comedy of Samuel Beckett. In this devised, clown-esque piece, Happenstance Theater's troupe of eccentrics walks the precipice at the end of the world. Their play lights up the darkness like a firecracker. BROUHAHA video trailer HERE.
Maya Jackson Photography
Shadow Puppetry Workshop with Alex! for the Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival
Session 2: May 9-15, 2022 Shadow Puppetry 2 (Level 2) with Alex Vernon
Shadow Puppetry 2 (Level 2) focuses on the introduction of different mechanism for shadow puppets beyond the basic jointed puppet. The realization of ideas in shadow puppet form stem from concepts and design.
Jim Henson Foundation grant premiere at Baltimore Theatre Project! Alex and Olmsted's Jim Henson Foundation grant awarded MAROONED! A Space Comedy is an innovative new puppet show, featuring music from the Voyager Golden Record, that takes place at the outer reaches of space. An astronaut crashes on an uncharted planet. Will she be able to survive strange creatures, anomalous atmosphere, and isolation in order to find her way home? See for yourself… in MAROONED!
Official Selection! Marianne's Onion, a short puppet film at the Maryland Film Festival in Baltimore, Maryland as part of the UNORTHODOCS SHORTS program: This innovative collection of shorts showcases non-fiction work that is on the cusp of multiple genres. Beyond mere documentary, these works astutely blend aspects of narrative, animation, comedy and the avant-garde into markedly non-traditional frameworks. Thu, Apr 28 at 8:45 PM at the SNF Parkway Theatre 3 Sat, Apr 30 at 11:15 AM at the SNF Parkway Theatre 2 Tickets and more information: HERE Marianne's Onion video trailer HERE.
Happenstance Theater's POCKET MOXIE: A Happenstance Vaudeville April 10, 2022 at 2pm Garrett College Auditorium in Garrett County, MD Tickets: $15 HERE POCKET MOXIE video trailer HERE.
The Jim Henson Foundation grant awarded Milo the Magnificent at the Michelle Smith Performing Arts Library Collaboration Through Puppetry in the 21st Century University of Maryland, College Park Friday, April 8, 2022 at 10am, 12pm, & 3pm Tickets:FREE. First come, first served. More info here.
Alex and Olmsted's Jim Henson Foundation Grant awarded Milo the Magnificent is a highly engaging puppet show about an aspiring magician. This wordless comedy, inspired by turn of the century vaudeville entertainers, is as highly physical as it is charming. Using stunningly innovative puppetry, Milo presents a variety of magic tricks which don’t always go as planned. Great for all ages! Milo the Magnificent video trailer HERE.
Pocket Moxie with Happenstance Theater at Baltimore Theatre Project March 24 - April 3, 2022 Tickets:HERE
A theatrical collage inspired by the Great Age of Vaudeville, infused with the joys and struggles of its performers' lives. In homage to the style and spirit of this immensely popular theatre from the late 19th Century, Happenstance Theater brings old Vaudeville back.
The Jim Henson Foundation grant awarded Milo the Magnificent at Port Discovery in Baltimore, Maryland Saturday, March 19 at 11am Tickets: FREE with price of museum admission.
Alex and Olmsted's Jim Henson Foundation Grant awarded Milo the Magnificent is a highly engaging puppet show about an aspiring magician. This wordless comedy, inspired by turn of the century vaudeville entertainers, is as highly physical as it is charming. Using stunningly innovative puppetry, Milo presents a variety of magic tricks which don’t always go as planned. Great for all ages! Milo the Magnificent video trailer HERE.
The Jim Henson Foundation grant awarded Milo the Magnificent Saturday, March 12, 2022 at 7pm at Mayo Street Arts in Portland, Maine Tickets: HERE
Alex and Olmsted's Jim Henson Foundation Grant awarded Milo the Magnificent is a highly engaging puppet show about an aspiring magician. This wordless comedy, inspired by turn of the century vaudeville entertainers, is as highly physical as it is charming. Using stunningly innovative puppetry, Milo presents a variety of magic tricks which don’t always go as planned. Great for all ages! Milo the Magnificent video trailer HERE.
BAROCOCO dives into the late Baroque and flaunts 18th century finery, wigs, panniers, gestural styling, elaborate ornamentation, and the excesses of Rococo in this unique physical comedy. A charming and charismatic six-person ensemble exposes an indulgent aristocratic lifestyle precariously perched on the edge of its extinction. Happenstance Theater invites you to experience the charade — from parlor games to pantomime, from the exquisite to the revolting — in this delightful comedy of manners.
Featuring Gwen Grastorf, Mark Jaster, Sabrina Mandell, Sarah Olmsted Thomas, Alex Vernon and musician Caleb Jaster. BAROCOCO video trailer HERE.
Official Selection! MARIANNE'S ONION Montréal International Animation Film Festival - ANIMAZE Dec 17, 2021 - Jan 16, 2022
Happenstance has launched an interactive website called THE JUXTAPOSE TENEMENT. This virtual shadow-box tenement building, inspired by the works of Joseph Cornell, features portals through which visitors glean poetic glimpses of characters, environments, and fantasias. Juxtaposer Tenement video trailer HERE.
