John Lambert

Happy
(THIS PRODUCTION HAS BEEN RETIRED)

Happy introduces us to the engaging title character, a "happy-go-lucky" veteran and pensioner who wanders through episodes of grief in other people's lives. Writer and performer Ronnie Burkett examines the impact of cataclysmic sorrow in human existence and the on-going discussion of whether happiness is the lucky domain of a select few or the result of constant struggle and striving beyond the layers of human despair.

Tandem to the storyline presented by the character of Happy is the "grief vaudeville" of Antoine Marionette, a campy, other-worldly master of ceremonies. Within this glittering silver realm, "the grey area of life", are arch presentations of sadness in song, pantomime and burlesque which mirror and parody the state of the central characters.

Created and Performed by Ronnie Burkett
Music and Sound Design by Cathy Nosaty
Lighting Design by Bill Williams


	Ronnie Burkett Theatre of Marionettes was established in 1986. Canada's foremost artist in puppet theatre, Ronnie has been credited with creating some of the world's most elaborate and provocative puppetry. Ronnie Burkett Theatre of Marionettes has stimulated an unprecedented adult audience for puppet theatre and continuous to perform to great critical and public acclaim on Canada's major stages and as a guest company at international theatre festivals. Ronnie has received numerous awards in the Canadian theatre as a playwright, actor and designer for his work with Theatre of Marionettes. The three, now retired, productions in the "Memory Dress Trilogy" are Tinka's New Dress, Street of Blood and Happy. Street of Blood was retired in June 2002 on a farewell tour in Sweden and the UK. Tinka's New Dress was retired in October 2002 after winning the Age Critics' Award at the 2002 Melbourne International Arts Festival in Australia. Happy was retired on its third tour to the UK in June 2003. The company's subsequent production, 10 Days on Earth, premiered at CanStage in Toronto in April 2006 and toured across Canada as well as to Australia, New Zealand, the UK and Austria. Following more than 175 performances, the production was retired at Montreal's Place des Arts in November 2007. Ronnie Burkett's latest creation, BILLY TWINKLE, Requiem for a Golden Boy premiered at the Citadel Theatre on October 23, 2008 and is currently touring. Ronnie Burkett Theatre of Marionettes is represented worldwide by John Lambert & Assoc. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Ronnie Burkett has been selected as the recipient of the 2009 Elinore & Lou Siminovitch Prize in Theatre Press Release \| Acceptance Speech News Articles *National Post* . *The Globe and Mail* . *The Canadian Press* . *Calgary Herald* ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Billy Twinkle is a middle-aged cruise ship puppeteer who dazzles audiences with his Stars in Miniature marionette niteclub act. His saucy burlesque stripper Rusty titillates the tourists, octogenarian Bunny invokes sidesplitting laughter with the inflatable balloon in his pants, Bumblebear juggles and roller-skates and steals the hearts of every audience, and society dame Biddy Bantam Brewster brings a bit of highbrow hilarity to the high seas with her drunken aria. Billy is the best in the business and on top of the world as he floats along through life. Until he is fired by the cruiseline. Standing at the edge of the ship contemplating a watery demise, Billy is abruptly called back to reality when his dead mentor Sid Diamond appears as a hand puppet. Sid literally will not leave his side, and forces Billy to re-enact his life as a puppet show in order to remember and rekindle the passion Billy once had for puppets, people and the dream of a life that sparkles. For anyone stuck in the middle – mid-career, mid-love, mid-life - caught between our own past and future, this requiem for a golden boy shines a little light on the wonder of youth meeting the wisdom of age with a kick in the pants to finish what we started. The original production of BILLY TWINKLE Requiem for a Golden Boy was commissioned by The Citadel Theatre (Edmonton, Canada) and co-commissioned by Canada's National Arts Centre (Ottawa, Canada), The Vancouver East Cultural Centre (Vancouver, Canada), The Arts Centre (Melbourne, Australia), Sydney Opera House (Sydney, Australia), and barbicanbite09 (London, UK) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ calendar \| technical rider (PDF) \| photo gallery \| reviews \| press kit

	(THIS PRODUCTION HAS BEEN RETIRED) Darrel is a simply simple middle-aged man who lives with his mother. When she dies in her sleep, Darrel does not realise she is gone, and so, for ten days, he lives alone. Tandem to Darrel’s day to day routine are the adventures of his favorite children’s book characters, Honeydog and Little Burp. Their search for a home leads the dog and duck duo to an understanding of family, while Darrel’s ease in the world illustrates just how his mother has paved the path for him to be without her. Episodes from the past, like faded colour snapshots from a family album, illustrate this mother’s love for her son in all its honesty and fierce, unwavering will. Simple, tender, funny and unapologetic, 10 Days On Earth asks: If you were alone, but didn’t know it, would you feel lonely? 10 Days on Earth is a co-production with BITE (London, UK); CanStage (Toronto, Canada); queerupnorth (Manchester, UK); and Wiener Festwochen (Vienna, Austria). ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ calendar \| technical rider (PDF) \| photo gallery \| reviews \| visit the studio

	(THIS PRODUCTION HAS BEEN RETIRED) Bawdy and wry, Ronnie Burkett's latest work plumbs the depths of the human experience in a play that is tender, erotic and frequently very funny. Set in Vienna, Provenance explores beauty: our obsession with it, our fantasies about it, our addiction to it and our ownership of it. On a simple level it is the story of a young woman who falls in love with a painting and sets out to unravel its provenance. What she finds is so much more than she had ever imagined. Ageing cabaret stars, a rollerblading monkey and a line-up of characters from Canada to Vienna come to life in the hands of this masterful creator and performer. Created Performed by Ronnie Burkett Music and Sound Design by Cathy Nosaty Lighting Design by Bill Williams Provenance is a co-production with BITE (London, UK); CanStage (Toronto, Canada); Melbourne International Arts Festival (Melbourne, Australia); queerupnorth (Manchester, UK); and Wiener Festwochen (Vienna, Austria). ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ calendar \| photo gallery \| reviews
	Happy (THIS PRODUCTION HAS BEEN RETIRED) Happy introduces us to the engaging title character, a "happy-go-lucky" veteran and pensioner who wanders through episodes of grief in other people's lives. Writer and performer Ronnie Burkett examines the impact of cataclysmic sorrow in human existence and the on-going discussion of whether happiness is the lucky domain of a select few or the result of constant struggle and striving beyond the layers of human despair. Tandem to the storyline presented by the character of Happy is the "grief vaudeville" of Antoine Marionette, a campy, other-worldly master of ceremonies. Within this glittering silver realm, "the grey area of life", are arch presentations of sadness in song, pantomime and burlesque which mirror and parody the state of the central characters. Created and Performed by Ronnie Burkett Music and Sound Design by Cathy Nosaty Lighting Design by Bill Williams ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ calendar \| photo gallery \| reviews

	(THIS PRODUCTION HAS BEEN RETIRED) Tinka's New Dress is a fable for adults based upon the underground puppet shows of Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia. Two childhood friends become puppeteers, each performing with the same beloved folk characters "Franz and Schnitzel'. Fipsi, ambitious and naïve, aligns herself with the ruling government, The Common Good. Carl, headstrong and outspoken, is forced underground as his satirical shows parody the censorship and oppression of The Common Good. More a commentary on the present than a glimpse into the past, Tinka's New Dress examines propaganda versus truth, compliance versus censorship, and the collective society versus the individual. Tinka's New Dress features a cast of 36 breath-taking marionettes, a stunning working carousel for the setting, and a haunting score by composer Cathy Nosaty. Adding to the immediacy of this allegorical tale, the two "Franz and Schnitzel" portions of the play are improvised at each performance. Tinka's New Dress is relevant and truly live theatre. Created and Performed by Ronnie Burkett Music and Sound Design by Cathy Nosaty Choreography by Denise Clarke ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ calendar \| photo gallery \| reviews
	(THIS PRODUCTION HAS BEEN RETIRED) When Mrs. Edna Rural pricks her finger and bleeds onto her sewing, she sees the face of Christ in a quilt square, and the Shroud of Turnip Corners changes her sleepy prairie town forever. As the media and the faithful converge, they are joined by a has-been Hollywood vampire seeking rejuvenation, and a karaoke-singing gay terrorist intent on revenge. And just as the blood bath begins, the man in the quilt appears in the flesh to the odd trio, revealing that the bonds of blood are thicker and stranger than their individual thirsts led them to believe. Created and Performed by Ronnie Burkett Soundscape composed by Cathy Nosaty Light Design by Bill Williams ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ calendar \| photo gallery \| reviews