Recent Reviews

EL NORTE, Monterrey, Mexico
Sunday, November 11, 2007

VIDA! MONTERREY FORUM 2007

(photo caption) Children who attended the show given by Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia, Canada, met a number of different animals, like a caterpillar, a chameleon, and an elephant.

Secrets of a Magic Caterpillar Revealed

Canadian company presents a colourful puppet show which amazes children; it returns to the stage today

(photo caption) Company members explained some of the secrets of their art.

“Oooooooh!”
Although the show itself had finished, the children’s amazement continued.
This was because the Canadian troupe, which uses fluorescent puppets to bring the show “The Very Hungry Caterpillar and Other Favourites of Eric Carle” to life, agreed yesterday to interact with the public, astonishing mothers, fathers and children with an explanation of their special effects. The play presented by the Canadian company Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia was staged yesterday in the Theatre Tent of the Fundidora Park, at the 2007 Universal Forum of Cultures in Monterrey.

“How do you make the rain?”, “How does the chameleon put its tongue out?”, “How does the caterpillar eat the fruit?” Questions were posed by the audience after the presentation of three stories in which the protagonists were a small travelling cloud, a likeable chameleon, and a very greedy caterpillar. The children also enjoyed a whole luminous parade of zoo animals including an elephant, a giraffe, a fox, a deer, a bear, a tortoise, a flamingo, a fish and a seal.

“For the effect of the rain in the story about the cloud, the drops are painted with fluorescent paint on a black cloth, which is rolled and hooked up; when it rains in the story the cloth is slowly lowered and unrolled,” said one of the artists of the company.
The demonstration included an explanation of the changing colours of the chameleon, who tries to look like each one of the zoo animals in the story.

The artists, directed by Jim Morrow, explained the mechanical operation of the animal, who captivated the audience with its soft eyes, as well as demonstrating the figures and colours which bring the little animal to life. “There are seven in total,” commented one of the artists.

The secret of how the chameleon puts its tongue out to eat a fly was also revealed to the young spectators. Another effect, the way in which the greedy caterpillar ate each strawberry and orange that it found in its path as it moved along before finally being transformed into a colourful butterfly, was demonstrated. It was explained that each fruit has a pair of “doors” on its sides that open as the little animal goes by. The fluorescent colours of the figures stand out thanks to the techniques used to make the stage dark.

The stories of the company have been translated into 35 languages. With the help of the Mexican theatre actor Marco Ledezma, a resident of Québec, the stories had previously been narrated and recorded in Spanish in order to offer a very high quality production. The show was enjoyed especially by preschoolers and children in the lower elementary grades.

Tickets for the play, which is presented today at noon, cost 30 pesos and are available from Superboletos at 8220-4100 or from the box offices in the Park. The Theatre Tent is behind the entrance to the Cineteca building.

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MILENIO, Monterrey, Mexico
Monday, November 12, 2007

Cultural Expressions

The Puppets Came to Life
A Caterpillar Captured Attention

Phosphorescent light unfolds colours against a black background, creating a marvellous display of shapes and effects and giving a unique dimension to the puppets of Mermaid Theatre. This was neither a movie nor a digital animation, however, but a puppet show that captivated children in attendance at the Puppet Tent of the Forum of Cultures.

The story of a caterpillar transformed into a butterfly left children open-mouthed as they managed to persuade members of the Canadian troupe to explain how the show works, finally revealing the secret of The Very Hungry Caterpillar and Other Favourites of Eric Carle, the title of the show.

The story relates the history of a tiny caterpillar who eats and eats in order to keep on growing and ends by changing into a beautiful butterfly. A whole world emerges from the black light: animals, clouds, a plane, which all come into view and develop the story as it is narrated in Spanish.

This generation of children is clearly very familiar with animation, whether it be digital or on the screen; the story of the caterpillar, the chameleon and the little cloud which was presented this weekend in the Forum aroused much curiosity, especially during two scenes: the rain and the moment at which the chameleon eats a fly.

The show presented by the Canadian troupe is so beautiful that there were occasional cries of amazement from the children; it was as if the images were really alive. The Very Hungry Caterpillar is one of those puppet shows in which it is easy to forget that someone is working behind the scenes and it is possible to make the story one’s own and, above all, to believe in the small imaginary world.

The bad news is that this incredible show was presented last weekend only; however, it is certainly one of the most impressive that has been presented on stage at the Forum.

Ángel Sánchez Borges

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