Puppet Fun For Kids At The NFLT In Tichborne

Jul 25, 2013

Kids love puppets and theatre and it was with that in mind that volunteers from the community, many of whom are veterans of the North Frontenac Little Theatre (NFLT), developed a summer puppet theatre workshop for kids of all ages. The program, called the North Frontenac Little Theatre Puppetry Program, was developed as a pilot project by Derek Redmond, Michel Alarcon and Kathy King with the assistance of Rob Moore, Roseanna Redmond and Pam Giroux, and the organizers hope to see it continue into the future.

The participants, which included nine local children of all ages, spent three days at the little white church in Tichborne, which is the home of the North Frontenac Little Theatre, creating puppets, designing sets and writing a puppet play that they will be performing on July 27.

The theme of the workshop centers around Tichborne's local train history and on the first day, which was July 13, local historian Lois Webster informed the participants about the history of the former train station in Tichborne and other buildings there. Following that visit the volunteers assisted the kids in making the puppets, which will be the main characters in the puppet show.

On the second workshop day, July 20, I visited the church and found the young participants busy finishing their puppets, designing the set, which includes one very cool and colourful cardboard train, and also writing the script of the play, which is a railroad story centered around summer cottagers taking the train to their cottages in Tichborne. The colourful puppets include one train engineer, a conductor, a passenger, a hobo, a dog, and a cow. According to Michel Alarcon, one of the program’s developers, the aim of the program was to engage children more in theatre arts. “Puppetry is a very magical thing that kids (and adults) can really relate to and this is another creative way that kids can take part in the theatre arts.” Alarcon said that he and his team are also hoping to offer a program in puppetry at the NFLT for adults as well.

Judging by the joyful buzz in the quaint little church on the day that I visited, it looks as though the program is definitely meeting its goals. “The kids are having a great time and we are hoping that this program becomes an ongoing one offered through the NFLT, with future workshops to take place in the spring and summer next year,” Alarcon said. The program has also come to the attention of members of council at the Township of Central Frontenac and organizers are hoping to be able to secure some funding to help develop ongoing puppetry theatre programs both for adults and children at the NFLT.

For those who love puppets and theatre, a one time performance of the play will take place at the NFLT's home in Tichborne on Saturday July 27 at 1:30PM.