Too Close to the Sun

By ALISON MAZZONI

Michael Bush is surrounded by fish, birds, beggars and one very large pair of hands. He constructed all of the creatures for his puppet version of “Icarus,” the mythological story about a boy who flew too close to the sun on wings of wax.
In fact, Bush is responsible for all 52 of the performance puppets currently occupying the puppetry lab at the University of Connecticut. His creations will appear in “Icarus,” presented from March 27 to April 15 for eight performances at the Studio Theatre in the Dramatic Arts building on campus.
In pursuit of their Master of Fine Arts degrees, Bush alongside friend and partner Stefano Brancato, planned the entire performance from start to finish.
Brancato had already decided on putting on a production of “Icarus.”
“It made sense that we would team up,” said Bush.
In the production, Brancato is the director while Bush designs and creates all of the puppets.
Bush and Brancato began writing the first of seven scripts this past July, a process that took nearly a month to complete. The cast, which is comprised of 13 actors and puppeteers, was hand-picked. According to Bush, it is an ensemble cast, where all members will assume various roles in the performance
“There isn’t just one star of the show, said Bush. “It keeps the audience off kilter. They don’t know what’s going to happen next.”
Actors and puppeteers will be assuming the roles of beggars, fish, birds, water and much more. Most of the intricate creations are rod puppets, although shadow puppets will be incorporated into the show as well.
The first step for Bush, who began designing the puppets in September, was to create a design book. The in-depth book is a tool for Bush to communicate his ideas about the show through visuals, measurements, sketches and descriptions.
“You pull things from everywhere,” said Bush who mentions getting ideas for puppets from Google, magazines and other productions.
Bush used various materials to create each puppet just right. By using products such as ethafoam, he was able to weld pieces of foam together to create the desired figure, such as the large intricate design head of a man. He also constructed a large hand from reed, a lightweight material so that performing with it would be easy.
By using his design book as a guide, Bush created human puppets covered in blue barnacles and wire birds with straw-like feathers. Although some are unfinished, each puppet has a vibrant design waiting to be created. Many of the puppets are unique in the way that Bush isn’t shy about showcasing their mechanics; many of his creations allow the audience to see how they function.
According to Bush, much of creating the puppets is trial and error, which often makes staying on schedule difficult.
“You have to learn how to problem solve really fast,” said Bush. “It’s all a learning process.”
The production, which can “cost quite a bit,” according to Bush, is partially funded by the Connecticut Repertory Theatre. However, although Bush was given $1,000 by the CRT, he said he paid for a lot of it out of pocket, which would ensure his ownership of the puppets.
Bush will not be featured in the performance, because that would have been much too time consuming on top of puppet designing. Instead, he looks forward to taking the role of an audience member, and hopes viewers can appreciate the less formal style of storytelling through puppetry.
“With this show, one of the things is that it’s an event on stage; something that is existing right now,” said Bush. “I just want them to see a different way of story telling."