Dead as a Dodo
by Wakka Wakka
An award-winning underworld odyssey filled with music, light and mysteries.
A heartwarming tale of friendship and loyalty (with a dose of dark humour thrown in for good measure), this Obie-award-winning puppet musical delights with its inventive wit and artistry. Oslo- and New York-based company Wakka Wakka have crafted a live performance to relish where nothing less than survival is at stake.
In the depths of the underworld, a skeleton boy and a skeleton Dodo are on a journey to find bones to replace their weakening frames. They are running out of time, recognizing that a form of extinction awaits in a universe ruled by an irresponsible monarch and his greedy daughter who amass bones for their own pleasure. When the Dodo unexpectedly begins to grow feathers, the duo defies all expectations and begins to believe that anything is possible.
With moments that recall Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas and Disney’s The Skeleton Dance, Dead as a Dodo weaves its magic to create an interactive stage universe where the living and the dead become one.
Video: Dead as a Dodo, by Wakka Wakka.
'Beautifully imagined… extraordinary' – THE NEW YORKER
“From a formal perspective, it is among the most ceaselessly inventive theatre pieces I have seen in the past year…. It immerses the audience in a fantastical universe – at one point, plunging underneath the fiery river Styx – thanks to outlandishly inventive puppetry, projections, lighting, and audio …” – NEW YORK TIMES
Dead as a Dodo. Foto: Baruch Performing Arts Centre Dead as a Dodo. Foto: David Zadig Dead as a Dodo. Foto: David Zadig Dead as a Dodo. Foto: David Zadig Dead as a Dodo. Foto: Erato Tzavara Dead as a Dodo. Foto: Richard Termine Dead as a Dodo. Foto: Erato Tzavara Dead as a Dodo. Foto: Richard Termine Dead as a Dodo. Foto: Richard Termine Dead as a Dodo. Foto: Erato Tzavara Dead as a Dodo. Foto: David Zadig Dead as a Dodo. Foto: Baruch Performing Arts Centre
Language
Performed in English
Practical info
The audience area is completely darkened during the performance.
Recommended age
From 8 years
Contributors
Gwendolyn Warnock & Kirjan Waage with the ensemble script
Gwendolyn Warnock and Kirjan Waage direction, executive producers
Thor Gunnar Thorvaldsson music and sound design
Erato Tzavara projection design
Daphne Agosin lighting design
Gillian Hanemeyer associate lighting design
Kirjan Waage figure design/puppet maker
Gwendolyn Warnock, Kirjan Waage set and costume design
Gabrielle Brechner producer
Thomas Gustafson associate producer
Lei-Lei Bavoil, Dorothy James additional puppet construction
Alexandra Bråss, Frida Vige Helle, Dorothy James, Andy Manjuck, Hanna Magrete Muir, Jack Markussen, Sigurd Rosenberg, Peter Russo, Marie Skogvang-Stork, Anna Soland, Gwendolyn Warnock prop and additional puppet making
Rosalie Arends, Cornelia Waage, Hailie Perlman additional prop making, painting and sewing
Lei-Lei Bavoil, Alexandra Bråss, Hanna Margrete Muir, Sigurd Rosenberg, Peter Russo, Marie Skogvang Stork, Anna Soland, Gwendolyn Warnock cast
