Tempest: Before and After

    I have very self-consciously not posted anything on this blog for some time. Partly because, as I stated in my last entry, I didn't want to give anything away to the audience before they had the opportunity to see the show. Another element in this decision was knowing how involved a process this build would be. In short, you can either talk about swimming the English Channel, or start swimming. You can not do both at the same time. Now that the dust has settled, and the final curtain has come down, I can discuss a little of my process and display some of the results here.

    It should be noted I can only speak to MY end of the creative process of The Tempest, because that is the only part I was wholly involved in, and thus,fully understand. Nobody should ever make the mistake of believing that I accomplished anything on my own. Theatre is by it's very nature, a collaborative process. This show was the work of many hands. I am deeply grateful to everyone who participated in The Tempest. It would have been a very different entity  if even one of the 30+ people involved were not a part of it. I intend to give full credit to certain key players in a later post. For now please accept my deepest gratitude and know that you made this show both nothing like I expected and everything I could have hoped for.

Last November I posted a few of my early process shots. I thought I would begin by showing you what these puppets look like now that they are complete. If you want to see the drastic changes these have undergone you can check out my original blog here

First here is one of the two seagulls that were in the show. They have come quite a long way from the bald foam. If you look carefully, you can see that two of the rods have been repaired. I wish that I had managed to take better pictures during the show and rehearsals. one of the most enduring images of this production for me was this seagull silhouetted against the purple lit Cyc curtain.

Next here is the head of our heron. Because of his "eyebrows" and the funny walk the puppeteers found for him during rehearsal, he has been christened "Groucho". Notice that he has different eyes from the original process shot.  Also. the puppeteer who operated him found the original controls cumbersome. I needed to shorten them for her ease of manipulation and comfort

 Finally, Trinculo. Aside from one stage, Trinculo was the "guinea pig". He defined the look and feel for the rest of the human characters for me, I only wish I could take credit for the beautiful costumes of these puppets, but they are the work of Kristen Palazzoli. I will discuss them in great length later. The hair turned out nothing like I planned, but in retrospect, couldn't have logically been any different.

More later. Thanks to all!

Save The Arts! An Open Letter to The Upper Darby School Board

The school district I attended is planning to cut it's arts and physical education programs in a shortsighted attempt to save money. I think that this is an absolutely devastating and foolish decision. Everything that can be done to prevent this should be attempted,  Please do your part and sign the petition Here. I wrote the letter below to express just how important this issue is. I regret that I cannot be more personally involved due to the fact I no longer live there. Please feel free to forward this to anyone you feel needs to see it. I know I plan to.

Dear Upper Darby School Board:

    You have recently announced plans to cut funding for the arts in your schools, effectively eliminating them. While this may provide you with short term financial benefits, I believe that the consequences of this action are greater than you could anticipate I am writing to encourage you to reconsider. I work as a professional puppeteer who tours throughout elementary schools all over the country. I therefore get to witness the impact the arts have on the lives of children. Unfortunately for your purposes, these effects are not easily quantifiable. How do you measure laughter or inspiration? Unlike most other subjects, the nebulous benefits of arts education are notoriously difficult to gauge. Fortunately, as both a professional artist and alumnus of you school system I am into the unique position to provide you with some statistical information.

    According to The Pennsylvania Youth Suicide Prevention Initiative's website (PAYSPI), an average of 1300 young Pennsylvanians take their own lives. I can state with absolute authority that in the period between 1986-1993 that, because of active participation In Upper Darby's arts programs, at least one less young person cut their own life short.

    Some well meaning adult told me during my senior year that someday I would look back on my high school career as the best time of my life. They were not at all amused when I responded by jokingly requesting to be shot. This was typical of my attitude towards school, which I also recall comparing to a minimum security prison. I was an introverted and socially awkward student, combating clinical depression and the added social stigma of having been classified as “Learning Disabled”. I was relentlessly bullied by my peers for being “weird” and “different”. The overall result was that I was one of those students that are the bane of a teacher's existence: a reasonably bright student who refused to apply himself. I was miserably unhappy and contemplated suicide often. I even made a few attempts at it.

    When I tell you that participation in several excellent arts programs, including Summerstage, Marching band, and various visual art classes, saved my life, I am by no means exaggerating or employing hyperbole. Learning that I had some aptitude for drawing and theater gave me a focus and sense of purpose that I couldn't find in any of my other courses. Through these programs, I found that I was no longer alone. I met new friends who showed me that would never fit in with the mainstream, I was funny, talented, and likable. I learned to cherish my “weirdness” as a manifestation of my creativity. I clung to the arts like a life raft. I auditioned for every production I could and began to spend lunch and study hall periods in the art department whenever the understanding faculty would let me. I found something to live for. Through persistence and hard work I developed my abilities to the point where I was accepted to a good art school. Today I am a living example of a very different statistic: I am one of the 5% of art school graduates who work in their chosen field.

     I hope that when it comes time for you to make your final decision, You will consider my story. Arts programs can actually save lives. I realize that my experience is not typical, but consider this: while they may be in the minority, there are others out there like myself who need the arts programs on a fundamental level. Their lives are worth saving. Mine certainly was.

John A. Ryan

Puppeteer and Sculptor
Upper Darby High School Class of 1993