For Bob Baker Marionette Theater, 'Choo Choo Revue' is more than a show. It's a statement

A new Bob Baker Marionette Theater production was preparing to debut after 45 years, with uncertainty about whether a signature puppet would work. A pelican puppet required last-minute maintenance, and its oversized beak concealed a frog. Coordinating the pelican-frog duo to perform in unison required mechanical artistry and precise puppeteer choreography. In the minutes before showtime, the director stayed calm by relying on an adage that puppets break. The production, “Choo Choo Revue,” arrived as the theater planned to purchase its York Boulevard venue for $5 million and as early performances sold out at Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. The show also aimed to spotlight current artists, fabricators, and collaborators while honoring the founder’s legacy through elements like a vintage record collection.

"A pelican, with an oversized bucket-like beak, was in need of last-minute maintenance. This gangly bird, designed to hop, skip, soar and sing to Clarence Henry's mid-'50s rhythm and blues hit “Ain't Got No Home,” was supposed to surprise the audience, as its elongated bill is actually hiding a frog. Getting the pelican-frog duo to perform in unison was a feat of mechanical artistry for the team, not to mention the choreography needed by the puppeteer."

"In the minutes before showtime, director Alex Evans was trying to stay calm. In such moments, he would say later, he only need remind himself of an old adage in the puppet arts. “Puppets,” he says, “break all the time.” With that, he was ready to embrace the unknown. “I always say I love the chaos of live theater,” Evans says. “We got to believe in this thing.”"

"“Choo Choo Revue,” the latest in a long line of song-and-dance productions, is arriving at a momentous time for the Bob Baker Marionette Theater. Just last month the troupe announced its intent to purchase its venue on Highland Park's York Boulevard for $5 million, doing so as it was gearing up for performances at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. The latter went viral, a fact Evans attributes to many of the first week shows of “Choo Choo Revue” selling out."

"In many ways, “Choo Choo Revue” is a statement piece. Evans, who also serves as co-executive director with Mary Fagot, wants to place the spotlight on the theater's current crop of artists, fabricators and collaborators. While the show pays tribute in many ways to the theater's legendary namesake founder, perhaps most notably in its use of his vintage record collection, it's time, Evans says, for the Bob Baker Marionette Theater's"

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