Address | Minneapolis, Minnesota United States |
---|---|
Type | Regional theater |
Opened | 1973 |
Website | |
hobt |
In the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre (also known as Heart of the Beast or HOBT) is an American puppet company and nonprofit organization based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. [1] The theatre serves audiences through puppetry performance and education. The company has written and performed scores of full-length puppet plays, performed throughout the United States, Canada, Korea, and Haiti and toured the Mississippi River from end to end. The theatre historically sponsored the annual May Day Parade and Ceremony that was seen by as many as 50,000 people each year. [2] [3]
HOBT began in 1973 as Powderhorn Puppet Theatre, named for Powderhorn Park in Minneapolis. [4] In 1975, the theatre organized their first May Day procession and event. [5] : 50–51 [6] About 50-60 people and a few puppets marched, raised a maypole in the park, and had some speeches. In the next years, the event grew and evolved into a way to celebrate community builders. [5] : 51
In 1979, the theatre changed its name [7] based on a suggestion by poet and theatre member Steven Lisner. [5] : 45 In 1987, they moved into the rented Avalon Theatre, a former cinema originally built in 1909 as the Royal Theatre. [8] HOBT then purchased the Avalon Theatre in 1990 for the building and staging of productions.
In 1999, the Weisman Art Museum at the University of Minnesota exhibited Theatre of Wonder: Twenty-five Years In the Heart of the Beast, celebrating the works and productions by the theatre. [5] : 1
In 2017, the theatre received $275,000 from the will of Sarah Bowman, a performer and longtime supporter of the theatre. The funds were used in upgrading the theatre building. [9] In 2018, the organization was awarded a grant by The Jerome Foundation. [10] This ongoing effort also supports renovation of East Lake Street properties impacted by civil unrest during the George Floyd protests in Minneapolis–Saint Paul. [11]
In April 2023, HOBT launched a free puppet & mask lending library, which includes free programming, such as puppet story time and make and take crafts. [12] [13]
Over the years, productions have used various styles of puppet and mask performances, including bunraku and larger-than-life puppets. [5] : 11–12 These include: [5] : 102–131 [14]
The annual parade hosted by In the Heart of the Beast Theatre drew large crowds and showcased large puppets and floats and entertainment by performers. [20] Each year's parade/festival had a theme, ranging from Spring and environmental topics to social topics like peace and racial justice. [21] The event also featured a festival in Powderhorn Park and a Tree of Life Ceremony involving more than 300 performers. [2]
In 2019, HOBT announced the 2019 May Day would be the last May Day they would organize, and that they would be taking time off from producing May Day to reimagine ways this celebration could be more decentralized, inclusive, accessible, and sustainable. [22]
In March 2019, a short documentary entitled "Children of Spring" premiered. The documentary focuses on the children involved in the May Day parade and festival. [23] [24] The film premiere helped raise $15,000 for May Day. [25] In February 2023, the Board of HOBT decided to release May Day Celebrations to the community. Following that announcement, future May Day events or actions were independently produced by community groups, and not part of official HOBT programming. [26]
Powderhorn Park is a neighborhood within the larger Powderhorn community of Minneapolis. The neighborhood is located approximately three miles south of downtown and is bordered by East Lake Street to the north, Cedar Avenue to the east, East 38th Street to the south, and Chicago Avenue to the west. Its namesake is the city's Powderhorn Park facility in the northwestern part of the neighborhood around Powderhorn Lake.
HOTB can stand for:
Theodore Raymond Knight is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Dr. George O'Malley on the ABC medical drama television series Grey's Anatomy, which earned him a nomination for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series in 2007.
Ralph Minor Lee was an American puppeteer and theatre artist. His work was centered on the design and use of masks in theatre and performance. The majority of his productions took place outside of traditional performance venues, included parades, pageants, celebrations, and outdoor theatrical performances. Masks and large puppets were central to his productions, which aimed to make artistic experiences accessible to all members of the community. He staged his productions in familiar, public locations, charging no admission fee whenever possible and creating vivid images that could immediately resonate with the audience.
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Spiral Q Puppet Theater is a puppet troupe founded in 1995 by Matthew "Mattyboy" Hart in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. After traveling the country, Hart was inspired by the street performance work of the Radical Faeries and the Bread and Puppet Theater in Glover, Vermont. On his return to Philadelphia, Hart founded Spiral Q as a way to use his new interest in puppetry, street theatre and pageantry to promote social and political change.
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Annie Katsura Rollins is an American artist, scenic designer, and puppeteer. She specializes in traditional Chinese shadow puppetry.
Jacob Lukas Anderson, better known by his stage name Prof, is an American rapper, singer, and producer based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He released his first full-length album, Project Gampo, in 2007 and has since released six additional albums and three EPs. In 2012, City Pages named Prof on their list of Minnesota's 20 best rappers. He was formerly signed to Rhymesayers Entertainment.
Laurie Dorothea Carlos was an American actress and avant-garde performance artist, playwright and theater director. She was also known for her work mentoring emerging artists in the theater.
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Martha Boesing is an American theater director and playwright. She was the founding artistic director of the Minneapolis experimental feminist theater collective At the Foot of the Mountain.
The Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board (MPRB) is an independent park district that owns, maintains, and programs activities in public parks in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. It has 500 full-time and 1,300 part-time employees and an $111 million operating and capital budget.
Junauda Juanita Petrus-Nasah is an American author, filmmaker, performance artist, and "pleasure activist". Her debut novel, The Stars and the Blackness Between Them, was a winner of a Coretta Scott King Honor Award.
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We love MayDay. We are so touched by how many people chose to come and watch our film 'Children of Spring' last night, and even more by all the heartfelt feedback wereceived after the screening. A big shout out to The Changeups for the music; and Liz Howls and Steve Ackerman for the wonderful whimsical Puppet Shows that closed the evening off. We are so glad that our film was able to help raise $15,000 for MayDay Parade and Festival last night.