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<br /> Still Blissfully Resisting: Bread and Puppet Theater's The Circus of the Possibilitarians at the
<br /> Carrboro ArtsCenter
<br /> By Kate Dobbs Ariail
<br /> ULN`T' Ii`FORMATION
<br /> March 1,2013-Carrboro, NC:
<br /> Carrboro--(Fri., Mar. 1, 2013)
<br /> ArtsCenter: The Circus of the
<br /> "Bread and Puppet Theater is based on bread baking and the not-for-sale distribution of bread at moments created by Possibilitarians
<br /> art,and these moments are created in opposition to capitalist culture and habit.Therefore the puppet show is not only a Performed by Bread&Puppet
<br /> puppet show, but an eating-bread-together event,"writes Peter Schumann,founder of the fiercely independent,anti- Theater
<br /> materialistic troupe, now marking its 50th year of cheap art and political theater. Bread and Puppet is the progenitor of Day of Show:Adults:$14,
<br /> groups like Paperhand Puppet Intervention,well-known in the Triangle area for their grand-scale puppets and their Students/Seniors/Friends of
<br /> social messages. ArtsCenter$12;In Advance:Adults:
<br /> $12,Students/Seniors/Friends of
<br /> This completely admirable,scruffy,and sweet company of players, based out of the company's Vermont farm, rolled into ArtsCenter$10--ArtsCenter,
<br /> Carrboro in their flower-painted bus,to appear at the ArtsCenter—also scruffy and sweet—March 1 with their show (919)929-2787,ext.201,
<br /> Circus of the Possibilitarians. Being the good guys,they all wear white; being few in number,they all play,sing,and do htta://www.artscenterlive.org/--
<br /> physical stunts.There were no really big puppets,as in their outdoor pageants and street plays, but there were some 8:00 PM
<br /> clever smaller ones in several of the brief skits that made up the 50-minute performance.There were also songs, music,
<br /> banner waving,and some pretty swell stilt dancing. It was,as it was supposed to be,low art,with nothing slick or overly-refined about it. Its beauty lies in its
<br /> heartfelt simplicity, a state of being maintained for five decades by dogged fidelity to founding principles and the continual intake of fresh youth.
<br /> For, as you may imagine,these touring troupers,who could declare their radical positions with fresh and smiling faces(no irony,no cynicism),were not the same
<br /> avant-garde artists who were part of the downtown New York Living Theater and anti-war movements of the 1960s. I'm not sure any of the six was even as
<br /> much as 25. It was extremely heartening.
<br /> It was not,however,particularly edifying, politically;probably the skits would have more gusto for younger viewers.They hit all the expected notes:war, in
<br /> general and in particular; Big O!l;student loans;the equality of all living things.The opening skit on that topic was one of the most intriguing,as it explained how
<br /> a man was like a carrot.The pieces that made gentle fun,or simply entertained,were generally more satisfying. One multi-talented company member,a robust
<br /> young woman with a glowing face,appeared in a blonde wig as Hillary Clinton. She blew a few riffs on her saxophone,grinned,and said,"I play better than my
<br /> husband,"before prancing off to the next thing.She also did a graceful dance while waving two large banners on long poles that was pretty much the antithesis
<br /> of Hillary; in another piece she played a toy piano.
<br /> The skit that gave the show its name was most appreciated by the youngest people in the room.Holding tattered cardboard signs,two yes and two no,four
<br /> players engage in a prolonged shouting match of their opposing positions.Suddenly,a puppet head pops out, high in the backdrop."It's God!"the shouters say.
<br /> God wags his head and says,"Maybe."All the little children crowed with delight and the actors capered about, repeating the epiphanous word and clapping each
<br /> other on the back.Too bad Bread and Puppet can't take this to the aisles of Congress.
<br /> They carried us out with spirited renditions(drums,sax,tuba,flute)of"When the Saints Go Marching In"and"Down by the Riverside."No matter what your
<br /> religion or lack thereof,who doesn't want to be on the side of right?Lay down your sword and shield.Study war no more.
<br /> Then all processed to the lobby,to admire cheap art(mostly brightly-colored woodcut prints and banners with hopeful words)and take fresh bread from the hands
<br /> of the artists who baked it.This is, if anything,even more radical than it was 50 years ago.
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