The New Brunswick Arts Board is an arm’s length arts funding agency with a legislated mandate to facilitate and promote the creation of art as well as administering funding programs for professional artists in the province.
Mélanie Léger, guest blogger
Hello!
I’m pleased to participate as a guest blogger on this artsnb platform!
I would like to talk about a new initiative that might interest New Brunswick artists: Atlantic Canada Puppetry Association! The aim is to bring together artisans of puppets and create a place of exchange and sharing. It is a new division of UNIMA-Canada and UNIMA-international, linking us to a network of puppeteers in our country and the world. In addition to networking, we can learn about the activities related to puppet and be aware of courses, festivals, etc.
The Association, whose headquarters is at the Mermaid Theatre in Nova-Scotia is governed by a Board of Directors from the four Atlantic provinces. Mermaid Theatre has been producing puppet theater for 40 years. Their many performances have been a success and they tour around the world regularly. This company is very open to young artists and practitioners, and also offers an annual training course to learn the art of puppetry each spring. Le Théâtre Alacenne, of which I am co-director with Anika Lirette, created an important link with the company from an artist residency at the Mermaid Theatre, for the creation of our show Ally et la forêt (coming in the summer of 2015!)
The puppet is an ancient art, rich in tradition and constantly renewing itself. It possesses its own language and extraordinary power to tell stories. It is a demanding art! I was able to realize it personally during the internship at the Mermaid Theatre where we were introduced to different techniques! During that time, I also made my first puppet from recycled objects. I came away from that internship humbly, and conscious of the road I had to go to reach that magic skill of the puppeteer.
The Atlantic Canada Puppetry Association (ACPA) is bilingual and wants to connect experienced people like the Mermaid Theatre and the newly initiated (like me!). Those who wish to become members (at the cost of $ 15) and receive their newsletters can do so from the following website: http://mermaidtheatre.ca/acpa/
The Association was founded in September 2014 and is also open to proposals and ideas! Further information is available from the UNIMA-Canada website: http://www.unimacanada.com/
