Famous Puppet Death Scenes

Peter Balkwill is one of the founding co-artistic directors of the Old Trout Puppet Workshop. He holds an MFA in Acting from the University of Washington in Seattle (2000), as well as a BFA in Theatre from University of Victoria (1997). He has served as the head of movement at the University of Victoria (2001/2002) and has led workshops extensively in Canada and the U.S. Peter has worked nine summers and four full seasons at the Rocky Mountain YMCA, Outdoor Centre, instructing groups through environmental education.

Mitch is very excited to be on a new tour with The Old Trouts. A Calgary based Man of the Theatre and a graduate of Mount Royal College, he has been working with the Old Trouts since 2006 where he has played all across Canada, the United States, and France in Famous Puppet Death Scenes; Also, for the company, Mitch worked on the short film The Miserable End of Don Alonso and the music video for Feist’s Honey Honey.  Other favorite credits include:  Directing: Wedgie, Intervention (THEATREboom), Assistant Directing: Sailor Boy (Czapno Ensemble), Stage Managing: Heaven’s to Murgatroid (One Yellow Rabbit), Mesa (Ghost River Theatre), Trick Riders (Sheri D Wilson). Trance Canada, Ivanka’s Perfect Christmas (Lunchbox Theatre).

Pityu Kenderes is one of the founding co-artistic directors of the Old Trout Puppet Workshop. Pityu is a sculptor and painter and puppeteer, in live theater and for film. He has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the Nova Scotia College of Arts and Design, and a Graduate degree in Fine Arts from the University of Calgary.

Judd Palmer is one of the founding co-artistic directors of the Old Trout Puppet Workshop, and so thinking up puppet shows is his main bag, God help him.  In recent years his focus has been on the Old Trout Film Division, directing the award-winning Old Trout/NFB Christmas special From Naughty to Nice.  Judd is also a writer and illustrator – three of his books have been shortlisted for the Governor-General’s Award for Children’s Literature – and long ago he was the singer and slide banjo player in the Agnostic Mountain Gospel Choir.  He lives with the woman of his dreams and their son Max, who is planning on turning one in January and will grow up to be a great conqueror.  Except the good kind of conqueror.  A conqueror for goodness.

Tim is a performer, director and dramaturge. He holds a Diploma in Theatre Performance, a BFA in Theatre (directing) and an MA in Theatre History (Samuel Beckett and avant-garde). Apart from the Old Trouts, in a lengthy, shuffling career he has worked in a number of different capacities with a number of different companies, including Loose Moose Theatre, Theatre Junction, Theatre SKAM, and the The Belfry Theatre. He has also taught and lectured at the University of Victoria. As a graduate student he co-founded Eclectic Circus Productions (Victoria), a not-for-profit which created productions of alternative classics and new work. Favourite productions include Faust (ECP), Midsummer Night’s Dream (Whistle Pig Players) and (of course) Famous Puppet Death Scenes.

Sarah is an emerging artist whose work dances around performance, installation, sculpture and multimedia. Allured by the oddities of life, as a general rule, she follows the signs and cues of the universe and ends up in the most marvellous magical places, with great company. She is a graduate of the Alberta College of Art + Design, travelling and exhibiting everywhere from Dawson City to New York City.

Jen Gareau is happy to still be making ridiculously small clothing for Old Trout puppets. Her first show with the Trouts was The Tooth Fairy, and Jen has designed for and costumed puppets for every Old Trout show since.

Cimmeron is alumna of the National Theatre School of Canada and an award-winning theatre designer.  Selected designs include: for The Old Trout Puppet Workshop, Famous Puppet Death Scenes, The Erotic Anguish of Don Juan, Ignorance, for One Yellow Rabbit Performance Theatre,  Dream Machine,  Featherland, A History of Wild Theatre, for Ghost River Theatre,  Sailor Boy, The Alan Parkinson’s project, Confessions of a Paper Boy, for Ground Zero Theatre Closer, Reasons to be Pretty, Urinetown, the Musical, Writer’s Block and The Full Monty, for Vertigo Theatre, Travels with My Aunt,  Snake in the Grass, The Mystery of Irma Vep, Shear Madness.

Mike is a sound designer originally from Vancouver and now based out of Hamilton, Ontario.  He has created sound designs for many of Canada’s most respected indie and mainstream theatre companies, such as: Theatre Columbus, Electric Company, Theatre SKAM, Theatre Calgary, The Old Trout Puppet Workshop, Touchstone Theatre, Theatre Replacement, Carousel Players, The Arts Club, The Vancouver Playhouse and more.