Theater: Kabuki "Pinocchio"

This makes complete sense to me. So much so I have to wonder why I haven't see someone do it before... 

(Note: apologies for the weird formatting below - I could not get Blogger to behave today!)

Here are some excerpts from a wonderful article in the Boston Globe:

A Kabuki-influenced version of “Pinocchio” may strike some as the sort of theatrical experiment best suited to an avant-garde troupe performing in a dimly lit basement. But Wendy Lement and Steven Bogart... promise all the laughs and tugged heartstrings traditional to the tale of the wooden puppet who wants to become a real boy, along with some new shading. 

“When we went back to the original story, I was startled at how funny it is,” says Lement, Wheelock’s producer and co-artistic director. “It’s both hysterically funny and very dark in places, and both of those are combined in 
Kabuki.” 

Kabuki is a highly stylized form of traditional Japanese drama involving singing, dancing, and elaborate costumes and makeup. With performances through Feb. 22 at Wheelock, this “Pinocchio” is a world premiere version of the story of the mischievous creation of the poor puppeteer Geppetto. 

...But if it was not set in Pinocchio’s native Italy, then where? Soon she and Bogart discovered their mutual experience with Japanese theater.... They saw how masks and transformations were common to Japanese theater and “Pinocchio,” the 1880s novel by Carlo Collodi that spawned countless adaptations, including Disney’s classic animated film. 

“We’re not Kabuki experts, we’re not doing pure, traditional Kabuki,” Bogart says. “We’re Kabuki influenced, Noh influenced, even Butoh theater-influenced, pulling all of these elements in to create the story.” 

So audiences will face a stage backed by sliding screens, not unlike those in a traditional Japanese-style home, that here can be moved to change the scene. Movement and dance and masks will echo Japanese styles. The band on an upper deck of the set will include a skilled player of the shamisen, a traditional three-stringed Japanese instrument. And as for the marine creature in whose belly Pinocchio ends up . . . 

“In the novel, the whale is not a whale, it’s a dogfish. I don’t know how big a dogfish is, but the Disney version turned it into a whale,” Bogart says. “We did some research and found a character, Namazu, in Japanese mythology, which is a giant catfish. It’s so big, it’s controlled by a god, and when the god is not paying attention, Namazu creates earthquakes and tsunamis.” 

You can read the rest of the wonderful write-up of the show and how it was inspired and created HERE. 

I wish I were able to see this! Unfortunately, I will have to settle for some photos and perusing the many costume designs posted on the Wheelock blog for now, but if you get a chance to see it, do let us know!

PINOCCHIO
Based on the book The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Colladi. 

World premiere of an original adaptation by Steven Bogart and Wendy Lement. 

Influenced by Japanese theatrical traditions, Pinocchio’s adventures are told through mystical creatures, live musicians, and gymnastic choreography, making the transformation of an animated puppet into a real live boy, a magical, dynamic, and deeply moving experience. WFT’s Pinocchio will surprise and delight audiences of all ages. 

Playing January 30th to February 22, 2015

Wheelock Family Theatre is located in Boston, MA, USA.

You can follow Wheelock Theatre on their blog HERE and on their Facebook page HERE, and they've included a useful study guide for kids on Collodi and Pinocchio HERE as well.

"Bitter Greens" Wins American Library Association Prize for Best Historical Fiction 2015!

A huge congratulations to our fairy tale friend Kate Forsyth!

(Here's the official award listing from the ALA.)

From Kate's Facebook page a few hours ago:

Charlotte-Rose de la Force

Congratulations again Kate!

The award is well deserved.
*clinks glasses of champagne*
(And we can't wait to read what comes next!)

And the Very Inspiring (Fairy Tale) Blogger Awards Go To...*drumroll*

Six Swans Triptych by Rovina Cai

It's awards season, and Once Upon A Blog just got handed a lovely Very Inspiring Blogger Award by lovely fantasy author, Katherine Harbour. Thank you Katherine!

Katherine Harbour is the author of the spellbinding novel Thorn Jack (a Tam Lin inspired tale) and, as a special bonus for OUABlog, has agreed to treating us to a guest chat in the near future, as we look forward to the paperback release of Thorn Jack and the upcoming sequel Briar Queen, (stay tuned!).

Today's award, however, is a way to spread love and appreciation for bloggers we are inspired by, as well as to give you a sneak peek behind the scenes of the people who write to make the blogosphere a good place to roam. To do this I get to share seven impossible things before breakfast.. wait, no seven things about me that maybe most of you don't know. Then I get to nominate up to fifteen bloggers to send you all to appreciate, who are then invited to do the same - pay it forward, pass the appreciation, and spread the awesome!

By the way, Katherine Harbour's intriguing list is HERE. (I am especially looking forward to our chat after reading it!)

So, seven things about me you might not know:

1) I love many, many of the aspects of the Alice In Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass stories and I love the merchandising (from Disney through to indie products), but the original books disturb me
2) Despite a bunch of good reasons to feel otherwise, I still love Disneyland
3) I wish I could read German fluently so I could read the original-text German editions of Household Tales, written by The Brothers Grimm
4) I rewrote The Six Swans for animated film, including storyboarding two sequences of it, long before I ever worked in animation (no has ever seen them, nor ever will!)
5) I was an actor and writer for a Children's Theater Company for about a year, touring schools and libraries
6) I love the rain and am creatively energized by thunderstorms
7) My dearest wish since I was small was to talk to animals (completely influenced by fairy tales). This eventually led me to getting an Advanced Certificate (2 yrs pre-veterinary) in Animal Care with an emphasis on Marsupials!



Inspiring Bloggers on my personal MUST-READ list for Fairy Tale News & Thoughtful FT Discussions:

• Kristin of Tales of Faerie (amazing armchair fairy tale scholar with awesome research skills who writes very readable informative posts, that are also very inspiring)
• Heidi Anne Heiner of SurLaLune site and blog (fairy tale study today wouldn't be the same without her and she remains as relevant and insightful as ever)
• Tahlia Merrill Kirk of Diamonds & Toads & editor of Timeless Tales Magazine (& OUABLog's new partner-to-be! Perhaps obviously, we think she's awesome.)
• Adam Hoffman of Fairy Tale Fandom (a very welcome male voice in the fairy tale blogosphere - regular news and wonderful articles)
• AFTS (Australian Fairy Tale Society) with Reilly McCarron currently leading the charge (very regular fairy tale news with an emphasis on activity in Australia)
• Megan Reichelt of The Dark Forest (she doesn't get to blog much these days  - she's busy performing stories! - but there are many wonderful past posts to delve into, if there isn't anything new. I love her witty writing style!)

Other Inspiring Bloggers I love to visit (in alpha order):

• Christie of Spinning Straw Into Gold (fairy tale blogger with a treasure trove of posts)
• Belinda Calderone of The Monash Fairy Tale Salon (fairy tale scholar who writes in a fresh accessible way, in touch with pop culture)
• Cate Fricke of Something to Read for the Train (writer, thoughts on folklore and fairy tale)
• Midori Snyder of Into the Labyrinth (author/artist of many a lovely myth-based and fairy tale work)
• Maria Tatar's Breezes From Wonderland (Harvard blog on children's literature, folklore and storytelling, fairy tale scholar extraordinaire)
• Terri Windling at Myth & Moor (author, folklore and fairy tale writing legend and advocate)
• Kate Wolford of Enchanted Conversation: Fairy Tale Magazine, teacher and author of Beyond the Glass Slipper. She also has a lovely stable of regular contributors to her blog.
• Kristina Wojtaszek of Twice Upon A Time (author with strong folklore and fairy tale leanings and great sense of humor)

If you have been awarded and wish to continue passing on the inspiration (there is no obligation to do this), here's what you need to do: 

- Link to the person who awarded you (me!) 

- List seven things about yourself your bloggers may not know (yet) 

- Grab the award pic and post it on your blog post for all to see 

- List - and link to - up to fifteen bloggers who inspire you and award them! (And let them know so they can get involved if they want to.)

Cinderella In New York

"End of the Night"

The marketing is beginning to increase exponentially for Disney's next live action remake "Cinderella" but, sadly, there isn't much I've seen that inspires me to see the film.

This new, mixed-media look at Disney's Cinderella, currently making the rounds on Tumblr, is far more interesting to me. For some reason, putting these animated characters into real backgrounds really makes you think about the story, and perhaps more about the many different types of Cinderella stories there are, including those under our noses today (and particularly if you live in New York).

"Mean Girls"

The artist responsible is New York based photographer and musician Harry McNally, for his new series titled Moments Like These. And Cinderella isn't the only familiar "neighbor" you'll discover in a very current New York context.

McNally places our most beloved Disney characters in the most real (and so New York) situations: The evil step-sisters parade around the Upper West Side as if they're fresh out ofGossip Girl; Alice gets lost in the subway instead of Wonderland (because who hasn't?); and Jasmine orders bottle service... at the club. 

"The photographs were not taken with the intention of adding characters to them," he tells Refinery29. "The idea for that came one night while I was obsessively reviewing my photo archive. The scenes depicted in the photographs can be suggestive, some more than others. A situation is already there, ready to be imagined. Adding the character element makes the situation more of a 'moment.'" (source)

I've seen a lot of variations looking at Disney in modern context but this series does a great job of telling the story in a very fresh way (though I think the flippant commentary on the images, care of the reporter in the linked source, detracts). The angles and sizes are so well done it doesn't take much of a stretch of one's imagination to turn these animated figures into possibly-very-real people.

"Transformation"

My other favorite is the confused Alice in the subway, trying to choose which tunnel to take... You can see her and more characters-in-context HERE and buy (pricey) prints HERE.

Tim Burton's Long Lost Disney Project: "Hansel & Gretel" (1982)

This "long lost" film resurfaced on YouTube last year while I was in recovery and I found my note to myself to post the news on OUABlog when I returned, just today. (The images included are some of Burton's concept art for the project.)

A little background:
The film was conceptualized and created by Tim Burton whilst in Disney's employ. It aired one time only on Halloween night in 1983 on the The Disney Channel, due to the Disney Executives horrified reactions when they saw it on air, and I think, in this instance, they were right. It doesn't really fall within the Disney branding, and I wouldn't have been pleased to find a little one watching this either! (Did no one check the show before it aired? Yikes.)

The film was included in the MoMA exhibit that featured Burton's earlier and lesser known works and history a few years ago but hasn't been available to see anywhere before or since (except in Paris for a similar exhibition).

The movie is usually classified stop motion, though it uses real (amateur) actors, all of whom are Japanese*. (Note: it's also Tim Burton's first time working with live actors, which may be apparent in the quality of performance, though his direction is often very imaginative.) In yet another interesting choice, (especially for the time period) the same male actor plays both the Stepmother and the Witch. Seen throughout are designs now considered "Burtonesque", many of which might be considered precursors to other film designs seen in Frankenweenie and The Nightmare Before Christmas. There's interesting use of birds in this one too (duck and swan in particular), and that little toy duck looks remarkably like one Jack Skellington has Halloween town make as one of the presents.

From Wikipedia:

Filmed for $116,000 on 16mm, this live-action short film featured a cast of amateur Japanese actors, kung fu fights (despite kung fu being Chinese) and Japanese toys, as Burton was obsessed with Japanese culture at the time of production. The film's design style and color schemes paid homage to the Godzilla movies and is said to be heavy on special effects, making use of front projection, forced perspective and even some stop-motion animation.

Here you go. Enjoy! (Or, be creeped out):

CAST--------- 

Hansel - Andy Lee 

Gretel - Alison Hong 

Stepmother / Wicked Witch - Michael Yama  

Father - Jim Ishida 

Dan Dan the Gingerbread Man (voice) - David Koenigsburg 

Features early work by Stephen Chiodo of the Chiodo Bros. Studio as well as the late Joe Ranft of Disney and Pixar. 

Music by John Costa of Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood fame!(source)

Can I just say: I'm just not going to ask what the Father did to the Stepmother, and I will stick with my regular Gingerbread Men, thank you very much!

* Has anyone else noticed the Asian (specifically Japanese) fascination with Hansel and Gretel? I wonder what it is about the tale, exactly?

Discussing the "Pan" Teaser Trailer: Are Our Children's Stories Adaptations Getting Too Grown Up?

This trailer has been out for a while. I just never got the chance to post it (or discuss it). There haven't been any new ones yet that I've seen, despite the release date closing in. I have to wonder if they're not rethinking a few things...

Before I discuss, here's the trailer:

I'm not sure how I feel about this adaptation, and I'm not talking about the casting, (cough-Rooney Mara as Tiger Lily??-cough).

In my mind neither Pan nor Tink are exactly sweet (they're actually a little frightening in some ways) but the rest of Neverland and the surrounding story by Barry are more "light-childhood magic" than using dark, looming adolescent themes. I think that's an important aspect of the Peter Pan story, particularly as it deals with the joys of childhood (which might be nice to see an example of, since that's barely acknowledged anymore in any child shown in the media that's over five years old, though true childhood extends far longer) and why you might not want to grow up.

In case you're not aware, this is a prequel to Barry's classic, how Peter became Pan, so you'd think it would be focused on the POV of a child, but this trailer isn't telling me that at all.

I think this is perhaps my main problem with making all adaptations "dark". Mostly, they're not truly adult versions but instead they teeter on that YA/New Adult precipice where everything is uncertain and generally not quite as straightforwardly free and joyful as children's storytelling and tales, yet these versions also aren't layered enough to properly explore the raised issues.

There's no doubt our culture is youth-skewed, but with a specific YA focus still being dominant in both TV series and novels, children aren't getting much of a chance to be "real and as naive as they should be children" either. Children's entertainment these days seems largely to talk down to children, or is so filled with "educational value" so that there isn't that escape into the imagination that children need and crave, where they can explore and learn on their own. Instead, ironically in this case of a Peter Pan interpretation, they're encouraged to "grow up".

As a parent whose son is just the right age to introduce to wonderful worlds of live action fantasy and imagination with a little (but not too much) danger, I'm finding a lot of modern movies just aren't up to the task and I'm having to hunt down DVD transfers of much older classics. What's missing in children's movies at the moment is straight forward (fairy) tales that allow the child/person to enjoy and take them at face value but also have enough layering (yet not too much explanation and detail to make it so specific) that allows a stretching of the imagination and new understandings of themes when the child is ready to go there.

One thing is certain: this version of Peter Pan isn't going to address that issue at all. It's going for that elusive pre-teen male demographic that's so hard to attract. But I'm not certain it's hitting the mark there either. Just look at the posters. Not a single smile or overall joyful palette of color. Where is the humor, the sense of fun, the role play? The magic here is "serious" and Neverland does't really look like somewhere a kid would want to stay...

Thoughts?

Note: Pan is set to open in theaters on July 24th.

Enchanted Forest for Sale

The Enchanted Forest attraction in British Columbia is officially looking for a new caretaker.

From The Huffington Post:

That magical place in southeastern B.C. known as The Enchanted Forest is up for sale. 

The 38 acres of fairy tales come to life — the Three Little Pigs' houses, a castle with a dungeon (and prisoners!), and the shoe where the old woman lived with so many children she didn't know what to do — has been listed for $2.7 million. 

The "turnkey business," as it's advertised, has grown through the years to include B.C.'s tallest treehouse as well as the SkyTrek Adventure Park, which boasts zip lines, climbing walls, and bridges suspended in the wilderness. 

...It attracts 85,000 visitors each year.

Can you imagine owning - and caring for - this place?

I really hope they find a buyer who loves it and wants to continue the magic for generations to come.

(Anyone have $3M spare I can, ahem, "borrow"?)

Live Action "Cinderella" Funko Pop Vinyls Coming Your Way

A bit of merchandising that caught my eye...

People go nuts over these pop culture Pop Vinyl figurines and they quickly go "out of print" and become pricey collectibles. I will admit I have a select few of my own...

This is one of those that I have my eye on, set to be released in March as a tie-in for the upcoming Disney/Branagh live action Cinderella remake.

Cinderella will be featured, of course, and I imagine Cate Blanchett, I mean, the Stepmother will get one eventually too, but this little Gus Gus in Cindy's shoe could be useful for any retelling of Perrault's Cinderella, right? ;)

More details HERE.

"Disenchanted" Goes Off-Broadway

A brief announcement from Broadway.com:

Who needs princes or glass slippers anyway? After a successful limited engagement off-Broadway over the holidays, fairy tale musical lampoon Disenchanted! will return to New York for an open-ended run. The comedy will begin performances on March 16 at Westside Theatre Upstairs. The cast and opening night will be announced shortly. 

Featuring a book, music and lyrics by Dennis T. Giacino and directed by Fiely A. Matias, the tuner features your typical “princess posse” in a show that’s anything-but-typical. Snow White, Cinderella, Belle and more toss off the tiaras and get real in a not-for-kids musical where fairy tales will never be the same.  

And here's a couple of excerpts from a comprehensive overview to give you an idea of what this is about, in case you haven't heard of it before:

In the Disney movie, Pocahontas is hot. She has flowing, silky hair that reaches her waist, which is as big around as her forearm. She has large breasts and wears a short, tight dress. When she meets John Smith she falls instantly in love. In real life Pocahontas was a hero. She bravely saved people's lives and died very young. She was not especially attractive. When she met John Smith, she was 10 years old. 

In a song in the middle of "Disenchanted," Pocahontas sings about that disparity. Why, she asks, was such a life story not good enough? Why did Disney have to turn the valiant child into a curvaceous adult? 

It's on of the most substantial and poignant moments in "Disenchanted," with a beautiful performance by Lulu Picart as the "real" Pocahontas. The rest of "Disenchanted" is a lot sillier than that song, but the entire show is smart, very funny and even subversive. 

...The idea behind the show is that a bunch of iconic female characters from fairy tales, folklore and history are unhappy with the way they're been portrayed in pop culture. They're tired of being depicted as helpless Barbies in distress who are just waiting for their prince to come.

Read more here: http://www.bradenton.com/2014/02/16/4993751/review-disenchanted-is-huge-fun.html#storylink=cpy

You can read the rest of the review, along with more pros as well as it's cons as a show still in the making, HERE. 

This is scheduled for an "open-ended run" off-Broadway, which says a lot about how successful it was. I'm curious to see how big a press covering it will get in 2016 when it is scheduled to start touring nationally. International shows are currently in development too so that will be interesting to keep tabs on as well.

Emma Watson Is Disney's New (Feminist) Belle

You've heard the news: it's been EVERYWHERE (Heidi of SurLaLune was so right - even though I was offline for the better part of three days I still heard about this!) but I thought I should clarify those things that confused me when I heard (so, perhaps other people too) as well as why this is a "to be watched" development.

Emma Watson has been expected to be a Beast's Beauty (of one film or another) for at least four years, since Guillermo del Toro chose her for the lead in his live action adaptation. When things on that production dragged out and schedules got shuffled, the film stalled, with del Toro eventually steeping down from Director and just remaining on as Producer only. I'm guessing this is when Emma Watson started being open to other options to play Beauty (she was fairly vocal about her enthusiasm for the story and the part).

And now it's official. Emma Watson will officially be a Disney princess. (And is no longer attached to the del Toro project - of which there appears to be little-to-no news, unfortunately, other than the lovely note that del Toro gave his blessing for Disney to hire Watson away from his project.)

Which is REALLY interesting because... she's recently been in the headlines for HeForShe, real feminism = real equality campaign, as an ambassador for UN Women.

Why is this interesting? Because, in true equality style, Emma Watson strongly expressed her concerns for men as well as women, which means, you can be sure she's going to be critiquing the script from a true feminist standpoint (ie. equality for all) both how Belle is portrayed and developed, as well as the Beast.

I think this is partly why it's been such big news. Ms. Watson became a social media darling with her outspoken yet diplomatic equality speech, all while looking like the fashion icon she's become. Now she's everybody's favorite feminist and, in many ways, the new American & UK (and the world's!) "sweetheart".

But what will this mean for a Disney live action version of Belle?

Will there be overt changes to the story and character developments, or will it mainly be in the form of shifted nuances? We shall see, but for a story that sits, for most viewers on either one side of the spectrum (empowered female taking charge of her life and learning) or the other ("disguised Stockholm syndrome"), rather than somewhere in between, it's a tough and brave call to take up this role and not compromise yourself. (You know critics as well as both "feminazis" and anti-feminists will be going over this with fine tooth comb!)

I know I will be watching the development of this one because, while I understand how it is the favorite tale of many fellow fairy tale friends, I will admit that I am not completely comfortable reading the story* - any version of it frankly.

The TV show Once Upon A Time ("parented" by Disney) hasn't helped at all with the Disney interpretation either. It has Disney's version of Belle paired with Rumpelstiltskin as her Beast (an fairly fresh twist as a concept) and although, again, I understand the popularity of the couple by the "Rumbelle" fandom, for most of the show, Belle (to me) appears stupid for putting up with what she does and for not seeing the constant negative patterns. Putting a sword in Belle's hand from time to time, or showing her dark bondage-y side* doesn't balance this out. It just makes her seem even more stupid! (I was so very relieved when Belle finally forced Rumpel over the town line, never to return, though it hurt her so - one of the best performances of this "Frozen" season - though we know he will return, because this is OUAT after all...)


Other than that we know... it WILL be a musical! (Singing lessons, dancing... see her Facebook announcement above for the exact wording hints.)

And what of the Beast?

There is no news yet on how the Beast will be portrayed/handled and perhaps that's also due to the part still being written. There are many ways the handling of the Beast could go, though (CG/human hybrid tech, CGI with voice actor, prosthetics plus, animal/hybrid-animal with voice actor, human-behaving badly... the possibilities are only limited to your imagination really), as far as the story goes, we can expect it not to deviate too much from the original Disney classic. At least, not in quite the way Maleficent did from Sleeping Beauty (those two films shouldn't really be considered versions of each other at all - more like distant relations!)

Perks of Being A Wallflower author, Stephen Chbosky is officially on to take up the challenge of the script.

And we will (all) be watching...

In the meantime, it's time to bring this image out of the archives again:

* And this is from someone who views Snow White as being quite empowered in her own historical, seven year old way!
** Yes, Bondage Belle: did you miss that twist in the previous season? That actually seemed to start dealing with more of the issues than the regular sweet Belle ever has, though they backed off from facing anything head on, before Belle turned into sweetness-and-light again.