The Show
The Adventures of Alvin Sputnik: Deep Sea Explorer is a multi award-winning one-man micro-epic puppet show that melds technology and multimedia into a touching story of enduring love and the end of the world.
The seas have risen, billions have died and those who are left live on farms atop skyscrapers, atop mountains. The scientists have tried everything. Floating islands sank, space probes found nothing, and the giant sponges, visible from the moon, are now rotting icons of failure. Now science and humanity are turning to the oceans themselves. A last ditch effort to save the human race requires journeying down through the mysterious depths of the deep blue sea to find a new place for us to live.
Alvin Sputnik, who has just lost his wife, accepts this perilous mission so that he may to follow her soul down to the underworld so that they can be together again once more.
Created and performed by Tim Watts, who employs an unique blend of mime, puppetry, live and recorded music, and animation to present an exploration of the next and oldest frontier: the deep blue sea.
For more information please contact Tim Watts at tim@weepingspoon.com
History
The show was created as part of the Blue Room Theatre program in Perth, Western Australia. It was made by Tim Watts in collaboration with Arielle Gray. It was created though many experiments and showings to friends and fellow artists in Perth.
It debuted in May 2009 at the Blue Room Theatre where It received rave reviews, performed to sell out crowds, and won awards for “Best Production”, “Best Production Team” and “Members Choice”. Since then, With the assistance of Perth Theatre Company as producers, it has toured all over the world to more sell out crowds, rave reviews and awards. In August 2009 it won an award for Outstanding Solo Show at the New York International Fringe Festival, it won “Best Puppetry” at the 2010 Adelaide Fringe Awards, and “Best Theatre” at the Auckland Fringe in 2011. We have toured to New York City (USA), North Carolina (USA), South Carolina (USA), Auckland (NZ), Delhi (India), Geoje Island (South Korea), Busan (South Korea), Seoul (South Korea), extensive regional and national touring all over Australia including the Sydney Festival 2011, and the Darwin Festival 2010. In the second half of 2011 we will be touring to Edinburgh, Bristol, Oxford, Dublin, Hong Kong, Melbourne, New Zealand, and back home in Perth.
We continue to develop the show on tour. This show thrives and develops from audience feedback. It was created from several showings of experiments with puppets and animation with emphasis on feedback from the audience. If you have any thoughts, I would love to hear them. Just shoot me an email on tim@weepingspoon.com.
Credits
Tim Watts (Creator/Performer/Animator)
Tim Watts is a performer, deviser, director, producer, puppeteer and animator. He is a founding member of “Weeping Spoon Productions”, an international multi-award winning independent theatre company based in Perth, Western Australia. He has performed/devised/directed theatre and participated in workshops all around Australia and the world, including Adelaide, Melbourne, Brisbane, Beijing, Shanghai, Prague, Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, London, California, and New York. Recent credits include, “Deathtrap” (PICA, Perth) “The World Inspite of Itself” (China), “Red Lashes” (UNIMA 2008, Perth), “Greed” (Canada Fringe), “Hope is the saddest” (Brisbane Festival), Duck Duck Goose (The Blue Room, Perth), Oscar (Perth) and Heart of Gold (PICA, Perth).
Arielle Gray (Collaborator)
Arielle graduated in 2005 with a BA in Contemporary Performance, jointly delivered by WAAPA and SOCA at ECU. In 2009 Arielle was accepted into The Black Swan State Theatre Company’s Hotbed program performing in ’Pool [No Water]’ by Mark Ravenhill and ‘The Darkroom’ by Angela Betzien at PICA, for which she was nominated “Best Supporting Actress’ at the Actors Equity Guild Awards. Recent theatre credits include ‘Duck, Duck, Goose!’ (Winner ‘Member’s Choice’ for Best Production at The Blue Room Theatre Awards) and Shakespeare in the park - ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream,’ (Shakespeare WA).
Anthony Watts (Set and Gadget Construction)
Anthony is primarily an Engineer, but he likes building gadgets because it makes him feel like McGyver. He is a wiz kid with the soldering iron and he built the set and all the gadgets instead of doing his real job. He likes flying aeroplanes and surfing. He lives in Perth, Western Australia and is proud of it.
Chris Isaacs (Technical Tour Manager)
Chris has worked in independent and professional theatre for the past three years. He has credits as a writer, Stage Manager, Mechanist and Lighting Designer. Recent credits include: The Web (Black Swan and Hot House, Albury/Wodonga and Perth Seasons 2009), The Goose Chase (Thin Ice 2007), and Red Lashes (2008 UNIMA International Puppet Festival).
Perth Theatre Company are currently producing the Weeping Spoon Production of “The Adventures of Alvin Sputnik: Deep Sea Explorer”
Copyright Tim Watts 2011
