Mr Brown's Pig tells us the tricks behind his fantastic puppet shows
Bristol based puppeteer Chris Brown, has been entertaining children and parents for more than twelve years with his quirky, unique puppet shows and the sea faring antics of Captain Barnacle.
Full of exciting and exotic characters, Mr Brown’s Pig takes a fresh approach to puppetry, pulling in both child and parent fans alike with his stylised sets and surreal characters.
Chopsy Baby decided it was finally time to find out what goes on inside the head of one of Bristol’s most popular childrens’ entertainers.
Where do you get your idea for stories from? They appear to be a blend of classic tales mixed with the style of Roald Dahl’s revolting rhymes?
“Inspiration for stories can come from a variety of places. They can come from children’s books, as I spent a lot of time in kids’ books and the library when my two were younger. However, I still hang around the childrens’ library these days. Sometimes it is just the structure of the story I look for; the beginning, middle and end, especially if it flows well. Often I will make the puppet first and then think what sort of thing that character would do.
“I get a lot of material from boot fairs so often the story evolves from what I have available. That might be why some stories are a bit surreal.
“I also do a fair bit of playing around at home. I will sit with a few characters and literally talk to them. They talk back you know, or is that just in my head?”
Children can be rude and difficult towards children’s entertainers. What’s the worst insult your puppet has given a heckling child?
“Mostly I like a bit of heckling because it gives you a chance to interact but sometimes, if it is too much, it can interfere with peoples enjoyment so I can be pretty assertive if I need to be.
“My favourite put down at the moment is, “I would like to see your point of view but I cant get my head that far up my bottom.”
You include humour for the adults as well as the children. Has there ever been a joke that has gone wrong? How do you know where to draw the line?
“Drawing the line between adult and childrens’ humour is a difficult one. I am always looking for the overlap and like to push the boundaries because that makes good entertainment although it can be a bit risky. I have had complaints about too many poo poo jokes or some of the more scary and gruesome stories.
“I think in general, most people like the fact that I push the boundaries a little bit although I never intend to upset people. But yes, they can go wrong and I just cringe.”
When you have the idea for a new character do you design and create it yourself? Or do you buy puppets you find whose character jumps out at you?
“Mostly I make my own puppets or adapt dolls and cuddly toys into puppets. However, I do like Folkmani puppets and have a growing collection.”
How did you end up as a puppeteer? Did you train? Or discover by accident you had a talent for it?
“I didn’t train unless a sociology degree counts! Before my children were around I used to do surreal comedy at clubs and parties which often involved puppets. I then began by entertaining children who came over to my house and slowly this tradition grew until one day someone asked to pay me to do a party for their child. When I began to realise I could get paid for ‘playing’ I began to develop shows and began to use a puppet booth. I do a lot of trial and error and that always helps. Fifteen years later I now earn my living from being silly and I love it.”
If a parent phones up asking for you to do a party, how would you help them to come up with a show suitable for their child?
“I usually give them the options of what works well for different age groups. The puppet show is fine for younger children and aims to be funny and enchanting. The pirate show has more wee, sick and poo in it and is better for ages five years and up. As I have lots of material, I can adapt my shows to the audience and birthday child as desired.”
Do you know at some of your shows you have a growing fan club of mums lurking in the back seats?
“Often I am doing two shows, one for kids and one for the adults at the same time. I know that if the adults are having a good time then the kids enjoy it even more. Maybe I’ll have to develop an adult show especially for the mums.
“I am doing a lot of story telling and writing at the moment and want to produce material that adults can access and enjoy too. I think this is a much harder market to break into, but that is what is exciting me at the moment. I also want to develop the surreal side of my story telling, as that seems to be what people like about material.”
Mr Brown’s Pig is available for schools, theatres, festivals, events and children’s parties.
He will be performing at the Puppets on the Streets part of Southville Carnival on Sunday 6th September.
For more information, visit: www.puppetsonline.co.uk