Heart of the Beast Theatre Announces Family-friendly Puppet Show, The Impact Theory of Mass Extinction, June 16-26
Saturday, May 21, 2022 at 2:01PM
“Dinosaurs unfurl in their rhythmic wildness. These dinosaurs vogue and groove and take up space in their world, in harmony, with each other.”
The Impact Theory of Mass Extinction tells the story of two black, queer teens who discover dinosaur bones in their South Minneapolis neighborhood. The teens get sucked into a prehistoric portal where they are taken in by a nurturing “queendom” of dinosaurs. In this new world, our protagonists learn the ways of the dinosaurs as they prepare for their impending extinction.
Puppeteer Steve Ackerman has transformed the historic Avalon Theater into a lush, prehistoric landscape. Live music and sound effects will animate the teens’ Jurassic journey.
Photo: Uche Iroegbu
Impact Theory is born from the skills of local artists: shadow, table top, and large-scale puppet builders; mask makers; musicians; puppeteers; filmmakers; and actors. The creative brilliance of this team breathes life into this Minneapolis Dinosaur adventure premiering at the Avalon Theater this June.
Impact Theory is the brainchild of playwright, Junauda Petrus-Nasah and puppeteer, Steve Ackerman. They wanted to craft a piece based on Petrus-Nasah’s experience as a queer Black girl growing up in 1980s South Minneapolis. She was inspired by what is now the Greenway, but were once train tracks peppered with graffiti and debris. The site, she recalls, resembled a magic portal to another world.
Puppetry’s unique ability to embody the fantastic make it the perfect art form to tell this story. Petrus-Nasah has always felt a deep connection to puppetry and In the Heart of the Beast, explaining:
“Puppetry has chosen me so many times in life. As a person of Trinidadian and Cruzan descent where there is a carnival and sort of parade history and legacy, Heart of the Beast and MayDay was proximity to that…I never could have imagined that I would be writing things one day that would be in this theater that I would be passing by all the time as a teenager.”
Exploring the relationship between humans and puppets gives us “a hopeful and exciting way to exhume and discover new ways of being,” says Director Harry Waters, Jr.
Impact Theory will be Heart of the Beast’s first puppet and mask production since 2018.
Petrus-Nasah hopes that Impact Theory will give kids of color and Indigenous youth the chance to see themselves reflected in puppetry. She aims to inspire children in the neighborhood to explore the medium, “Puppetry is one of those art forms that is so immersive, magnetizing, and magical. I want young people to see that puppetry is a tool and a possibility for the future as an art form and as a form of healing.”
Performance Schedule:
Thursday, June 16 7:30p (Opening Night)
Friday, June 17 - 7:30p
Saturday, June 18 - 7:30p
Sunday, June 19 - 2:00p Free!*
Sunday, June 19 - 7:30p
Thursday, June 23 - 7:30p Free!*
Friday, June 24 - 7:30p
Saturday, June 25 - 7:30p
Sunday, June 26 - 2:00p Free! Access*
Sunday, June 26 - 7:30p
*The performance on Sunday, June 26 at 2pm will have ASL interpretation and audio description available. Heart of the Beast Theatre will offer a sensory touch tour on this date at 1 pm. There will be free ear plugs and fidgets for audience members as well. Additional accessibility infor. Please note - the three free performances (June 19 at 2pm, June 23 at 7:30pm, and June 26 at 2pm) are intended for children and families in the Phillips and Powderhorn neighborhoods. All other performances are pay-as-able. All audience members must wear face masks. Tickets and information.
