It is no easy feat to keep the attention of a very young audience. But from the opening strum of Jesse Hamilton’s guitar, he and puppeteer Sally Miller had a group of one- to 10-year-olds at the Prince Rupert Public Library enraptured on July 7.
Miller and Hamilton are the creative force behind Pico’s Puppet Palace, which they are currently touring through northwest B.C.
In Rupert, they performed Pico and the Golden Lagoon, one of two Pico adventures with a third under development. Pico is forced to crash land her bright yellow biplane launching friendships with local denizens of the island and embark on an adventure involving a dragon to try to find an alternative fuel (solar power) to get her off the island.
The underlying environmental theme is a lifestyle for Miller and Hamilton, who do all the music, story-writing, puppet-making and set construction themselves.
“We try to make it out of mostly recycled and reclaimed materials,” Miller explained. “So like Pico, for instance, is made out of an old sweater from thrift stores and baby clothes and paper mache and found glass. Like there’s a little bit of glass in the front of the plane and old canning jar on the front.”
The other Pico stories also have environmental themes.
“So Pico under the Coral Sea is about kind of protecting the coral reef and plastics in the ocean,” Miller explained. “And then the new show that we’re doing called Pico and the Dance of the Dodo is about endangered animals.”
They are not heavy-handed about it, though, as the main theme is just fun.
The tour came about through the northwest library network.
“I contacted the Northwest library Federation to say, ‘hey, would you like to have our puppet show for your summer reading program?’ because we had done the Kootenay Library Federation,” Miller explained. “And they said, sure.”
They also managed to time it so they could do the Midsummer Music Festival in Smithers, which was the kick-off to the tour before hitting the libraries in Terrace July 4, Kitimat July 5 and Prince Rupert today.
“They’ve all been different and they’ve all been fun,” Miller said.
Still to come are Stewart July 11, Hazelton July 13, Houston July 14 and Smithers again July 15.
Pico and the Golden Lagoon is also a book created with their illustrator friend John Davis.
Miller originally hailed from Australia, but came to study physical theatre in Vancouver where she met Hamilton.
They started out as a musical duo, which they have been doing for 20 years, and added the puppet show about six or seven years ago.
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thom.barker@blackpress.ca
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