Ronnie Burkett Theatre of Marionettes
Wonderful Joe
“Paint gold in the part of me that is broken. Let my faultline shine, these golden precious scars are fine, divine, and mine.”
Joe and his dog Mister lose their home, and facing separation, head into the world for one last grand adventure together. The world seems broken, but Joe sees magic in the mundane, beauty amidst brutality, and life in the lost and lonely. He and Mister encounter Mother Nature, Santa Claus, Jesus and the Tooth Fairy, witness a troupe of homeless players in a cardboard theatre, and show a disenfranchised teen how to jump over the moon in a playground rocket ship. A seemingly simple tale of a simple man, Wonderful Joe is a love letter to imagination, hope, and the art of filling broken hearts with gold.
Ronnie Burkett brings this story to life with his signature style of beautiful puppetry and solo performance, with a glorious score and soundscape by John Alcorn.
16+
Marionette, Costume & Set Design by Ronnie Burkett
Music by John Alcorn
Production Manager/Artistic Associate: Terri Gillis
Associate Producer: John Lambert
Production Credits
Created and Performed by Ronnie Burkett
Music composition and lyrics by John Alcorn
Production Manager/Artistic Associate – Terri Gillis
Stage Manager/Technical Director – Crystal Salverda
Associate Producer – John Lambert
WONDERFUL JOE was Co-commissioned by Stanford Live (Stanford CA, USA), UCLA’s Center for the Art of Performance or CAP UCLA (Los Angeles CA, USA) and TO Live (Toronto ON, Canada), with developmental support from Theatre Network (Edmonton AB, Canada) in association with Ronnie Burkett Theatre of Marionettes.
Ronnie Burkett received development support for Wonderful Joe from the Canada Council for the Arts Explore and Create Program.
Ronnie Burkett Theatre of Marionettes is exclusively represented by
John Lambert & Assoc., Montreal, Canada (www.johnlambert.ca)
Marionette and costume design - Ronnie Burkett
Costumes - Kim Crossley
Puppet Studio - Alexander Mantia, Aidan Sparks, Angela Talbot, Dina Meschkuleit, with Martin Herbert, Andy Hayward, Shanna Miller, Justin Mezzapelli and Brigitte Sampogna
Shoes – Camellia Koo
Marionette Controls – Greg Ballora (after Luman Coad)
Marionette Stringing – Marcus Jamin
Majordomo – Robbie Buttinski
Scenic Construction by Shop Dogs, Montreal
Scenic painting – Daniel Barkley
Model and drafting – Aidan Sparks
Music production, arrangements, vocals, keyboards, and digital programming –
John Alcorn
Featured vocals – Coco Love Alcorn
Mixing and mastering – Jeff Wolpert, Desert Fish Studios