Halloween show & November news

I'm posting my November newsletter a few days early to make sure you know about Red Yarn Puppet Band's Halloween Spectacular at Mississippi Pizza, 5-6pm on Wednesday. See the flyer below; here's the Facebook event to share with your friends. We'll be pulling out all the stops; expect spooky stories, haunted American folksongs, the Big Bad Wolf, a giant skeleton, and more. Please know that this show could be scary for younger kids--I'm recommending it for fearless 4-year-olds and up. Younger ones are welcome with the understanding that some content might be frightening. Hope to see you and your family there!

Weekly Shows

-Tuesday Mornings at Cafe au Play

10:30-11am, $3/person suggested donation

-2nd & 4th Wednesdays at Woodlawn Swap'n'Play/Village Ballroom

10-10:45am, $5/family suggested donation

-Friday Mornings at Warehouse Cafe

10-10:45am, $5/family suggested donation **no show Friday, Nov. 23

-Friday Afternoons at Milagros Boutique

3:30-4:15pm, $3/person suggested donation 

Other Shows

From November to April, I'll be performing on the first Monday of each month at the World Forestry Center's Mommy and Me Mondays. Come out at 10am on November 5th for my first show there. I'm debuting my Social Skills Stories for Preschoolers, mixed with good ol' animal folk songs and stories. 

Elementary School Residencies

If you have a school-age child, please consider me for an arts residency at his/her elementary school. I offer a program called "Folk Song Puppet Show" through Young Audiences. I'll visit your child's class 3-5 times and help them adapt a classic American folksong into a musical puppet show. Each child builds his/her own elaborate sock puppet. For more information, visit my artist page on the Young Audiences website, or read a description on my website. 

And of course, keep me in mind for your child's next Birthday Party! You can always show your support by "Liking" Red Yarn on Facebook and spreading the word to friends. I hope to see you soon!

Best,

Andy "Red Yarn" Furgeson

Red Yarn celebrates National Food Day 2012!

Tomorrow, October 24, is National Food Day 2012! To celebrate, all of my shows this week will be food-themed with messages about healthy eating. Thanks to the Portland Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics for contacting me and inspiring me to get involved!

Tuesday, October 23, 10:30am at Cafe au Play

Wednesday, October 24, 10:00am at Woodlawn Swap'n'Play

Friday, October 26, 10:00am at Warehouse Cafe

Friday, October 26, 3:30pm at Milagros Boutique

October Shows & News

Whew! Things are busy here at Red Yarn Productions! September was an action-packed month, my busiest yet with 23 distinct performances. New performance and teaching opportunities are opening up all the time, and on Saturday I went to Salem to showcase my offerings for librarians from all over the state (see video here). Below you'll find a list of my upcoming shows this month, and info about an afterschool enrichment class I'm offering at MLC.

Weekly Shows

-Tuesday Mornings at Cafe au Play

10:30-11am, $3 suggested donation *no show on Oct. 9

-2nd & 4th Wednesdays at Woodlawn Swap'n'Play/Village Ballroom

10-10:45am, $5 suggested donation

-Friday Mornings at Warehouse Cafe

10-10:45am, $5 suggested donation **starts Friday, Oct. 12

-Friday Afternoons at Milagros Boutique

3:30-4:15pm, $3 suggested donation *Olive & Dingo sub for me this week, Oct. 5

*Please note, I'm out of town Friday, Oct. 5 through Tuesday, Oct. 9

Library Shows

You have two more chance to see my new library program, Bob Rabbit on Mr. Man's Farm! 

-Thursday, Oct. 4 at Midland Library, 4:00-4:45pm

-Saturday, Oct. 20 at Gresham Library, 2:00-2:45pm

Halloween Show at Mississippi Pizza!

Mark your calendars: Red Yarn Puppet Band will perform a special Halloween show on Wednesday, October 31 from 5-6pm at Mississippi Pizza! We'll be pulling out all the stops... expect family-friendly ghost stories, haunted American folksongs, a giant skeleton, and critters in costumes! We'll be done in time to squeeze in some trick-or-treating, so bring the family, eat some pizza, and start your Halloween off right! More details to come. 

Afterschool Enrichment Class

Red Yarn Productions is offering an afterschool enrichment class called Musical Puppets for K-2nd graders at KCLC (the afterschool program at MLC, NW 20th & Glisan). Thursdays, 3:15-4:15, October 11-December 6. Only $60 for 8 one-hour classes. For more information see KCLC's Club Guide and Registration Form. 

Musical Puppets: Join teaching artist Andy Furgeson of Red Yarn Productions for this exciting 8 week enrichment class. Students will adapt an American folk tale into a musical puppet show, weaving in classic folk songs and original music. After choosing a story, participants will build sets and elaborate sock puppets of the characters. Then they'll adapt dialogue, develop silly voices and practice puppet manipulation. Andy will teach the group several folk songs and lead them in a songwriting exercise. Finally the group will perform their new show for families and friends at the Club Showcase!

I've updated this website with all of my show and class offerings; check out the Musical Puppet Show and Education Programs pages. Keep me in mind for birthday parties and residencies or events at your child's school. And as always, you can show your support by "Liking" Red Yarn on Facebook and spreading the word to friends! Hope to see you soon!

Best,

Andy "Red Yarn" Furgeson

Fall shows!

I'm happy to announce a busy schedule of Red Yarn shows this Fall! I'll be performing several times each week, with regular gigs at Cafe au Play, Milagros and Woodlawn Swap'n'Play, plus a new library program and some special events. Here's a list of upcoming shows:

Tuesday mornings at Cafe au Play, 10:30-11:00am

$3 suggested donation, started this morning

Second & fourth Wednesdays at Woodlawn Swap'n'Play/Village Ballroom, 10-10:45am

$5 suggested donation, Sept. 12, 26, Oct. 10, 24...

Friday afternoons at Milagros Boutique, 3:30-4:15pm

$3 suggested donation, starting September 7

Red Yarn Puppet Band at the Slabtown Community Festival on Saturday, September 15

We'll be kicking things off with a set from 12:00-12:45pm, and there's more kid-friendly music and activities throughout the day.

"Bob Rabbit on Mr. Man's Farm"--Red Yarn's new library program!

Bob Rabbit must sneak onto Mr. Man’s farm each night to scrounge his vegetable dinner. But he has company--a sly fox, looking for another kind of dinner! Can Bob use his wits to escape the farmer’s traps and protect the friendly fowl from predators? This engaging show features classic folk songs and teaches children about the food chain and life on a farm.

-September 22 at Woodstock Library, 2:30pm & 4:00pm (two shows)

-October 4 at Midland Library, 4:00pm

-October 20 at Gresham Library, 2:00pm

Hope to see you soon!

Deep Woods project

Hey folks! I thought you might like to see parts of the project grant I submitted to the Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) last week. Here's the summary and closing statement (much is cut out in between). I won't hear back about funding until December, but I'm recording an animal folk song album regardless. Till then, keep your fingers crossed! --Andy

Project Summary:
Under the name Red Yarn, I collect American folksongs about animals to perform for children. I build puppets and create original interactive shows inspired by the songs’ characters. I envision a place called the Deep Woods where these characters coexist. This imaginary world reflects the history and natural landscape of the USA—diverse, strange and wild. I hope to share my vision of the Deep Woods in three ways. In Fall 2012 I will self-produce an album of animal folksong adaptations, with arrangements and artwork that expand the Deep Woods universe. From January to June 2013, in collaboration with filmmaker Nina Isaacson and local puppeteers, I will produce short puppet films set to the songs. The films, streaming for free online, will entertain young audiences while exploring mature social, ecological and political themes. Finally I will host three public, participatory events at Multnomah County Libraries in August 2013, with live music, puppetry, film screenings, crafts and crowd-sourced art installations.

Closing Statement:
I began my journey into the Deep Woods four years ago. Drawn to American folk songs’ strange narratives, twisted humor, and preoccupation with death, I dug into old anthologies, children’s books, vinyl records, and library databases. The animal characters and tales I found took hold of me, clawing their way into my music, puppetry, and teaching career. I discovered in the Deep Woods potent symbols of racial and class tension, weird American fantasies, the wilderness lurking beneath our civilized surface. But the Deep Woods is threatened from many sides—literally, through the destruction of natural habitats, and in the imagination, as the chaos of pop culture devours our memory of a shared folk heritage. I see this project as an opportunity to culminate a long chapter of my creative and professional life, and to help save the Deep Woods. More than just preserving these old songs, I wish to animate them—bring them to life—and engage the community in doing the same. While folksingers have always updated older material, I want to rekindle and share the vibrant creative energy I’ve found in folksongs. Working with Nina and a talented team of puppeteers on our music video “Tails”, we tapped into that energy. I want to go deeper and reach more people, inspiring them to take creative ownership of our collective history. Portland strikes me as the perfect place to undertake this project. Here, at the edge of the real woods, we romance the folk, the frontier lifestyle. And we are looked to as a national model of how to build the future with reverence for the past. With RACC’s help, I hope my Deep Woods project will become a model of modern creative folklore.

The Tall Oak Tree!

Introducing, the Tall Oak Tree! With Shiloh Squirrel, Frank Robin, and Roger Mockingbird. For more photos visit www.facebook.com/redyarn.

Red Yarn Summer Shows!

Red Yarn and the critters are back from a successful east coast/southern tour, and we're ready for an active Portland summer! We have many shows coming up, including a new library program and some Red Yarn Puppet Band shows in August. Click on the links for more info on these shows, or go to the Red Yarn Facebook page. 

Wednesday, July 18, 2:30 & 4:00pm 
"Everybody's Rockin' in the Tall Oak Tree" at Woodstock Library

Saturday, July 21, 11:00am
Red Yarn at the Tabor Market at Cafe au Play

Saturday, July 21, 2:00 & 3:00pm
Red Yarn at Sand in the City in Pioneer Courthouse Square

Friday, July 27, 3:00pm
Red Yarn at Kenton Farmers Market

Saturday, August 11, 11:50am
Red Yarn Puppet Band at the Alberta Street Fair

Thursday, August 23, 5:15pm
Red Yarn at Buckman Farmers Market

Wednesday, August 29, 12:00pm
Red Yarn Puppet Band at PCPA Noontime Showcase

Also, it's not too late to sign your child up for my Puppet-Making Workshop at Cafe au Play on Sunday, July 22 at 2pm. Email me at redyarnproductions@gmail.com if you'd like to register. 

Oh, and one more thing: did you see Red Yarn Puppet Band's first professional music video? Check it out on YouTube!