Puppetry of the Penis is Ten Years Old!
September 26, 2008
Puppetry of the Penis is ten years old and Whatsonstage North East welcomed the chance to talk to the originators of 
the show, Simon Morley (pictured in the dark cape) and David Friend (pictured in the red cape)who started the ball rolling, so to speak, a decade ago.
For those people unfamiliar with the show, the best way of explaining it is to imagine origami being performed on male genitalia, making various shapes, objects and landmarks, including The Eiffel Tower and Windsurfer! A video camera projects the details so no one misses a thing. Audiences around the world, both male and female have been left helpless with laughter at the antics of the on stage performers.
The guys are both native Australians and had separate “puppetry” acts before joining forces. Simon was actually first introduced to the skill by his brother, who was playing the kissing bandit in Neighbours , so could not join him in the act, but has gone on to launch www.puppetryprivateparties.com, which will possibly come to the UK in the not too distant future..
Although Simon admits to being more than a little surprised when his brother first demonstrated the skill by performing the Hamburger, whilst his mother was in the house preparing lunch! His other two brothers were not interested in the act but have been known to demonstrate their capabilities and understanding of the art to friends.
David on the other hand found his skill while in the bath, and beer played a large part in his performing at university parties at the age of 18. In fact both Simon and David admit that in the early stages of their careers beer was a great help to steady the nerves and give them that extra courage.
I told the guys that I was curious as to what their parents had thought of their sons standing naked night after night entertaining an audience. To which Simon admitted that his Mother has still not seen the show, but the rest of his family have. Although nowadays his Mother does ask for tickets for her friends and swaps DVDs of the show for free haircuts and golf lessons and he feels deep down she is very proud, in her own way. But he admits, initially there were lots of tears when he broke the news about his performances and she still wishes it was someone else’s son up there performing night after night.
David on the other hand took his parents to a restaurant that he could never have afforded before the act to break the news and while his Mum has seen the show (although she prefers musicals), she still wants him to get a proper job.
This led me to wonder, as the guys were performing separately in the early days, how they came to form a double act? They told me it happened as both guys were entertaining at parties and pubs as a solo act, but when they heard they were not the only performer on the circuit they had to meet.
David recalls a friend rang him to tell him about Simons act but it was really a few years later in Melbourne, when Simon was releasing his calendar that they guys got together. This happened after both had lost each other’s contact details but David saw an advert for Simon performing at the Melbourne Comedy Festival and made contact once again. At this time they had not seen each other perform, but as they combined their skills they invent the “skateboard” as a celebration.
The act became so successful that the guys toured the world, won numerous awards and actually had up to eight shows running across the world at the same time.
They have been involved with all the fifty actors who have brought the show to life and told me when they are auditioning new performers, they look for a total lack of shame, natural charm and a great personality. Over the years the cast have ranged from computer programmers to concreters, with Simon or David being there to train the performers.
What is next for the Puppetry of the Penis I asked, to which David joked about Puppetry 3D, but knowing these two guys it may not stay a joke for too long.
As for us, we look forward to meeting the current cast of Puppetry of the Penis who are performing in Newcastle at the Journal Tyne Theatre this Sunday and reviewing the show.
Comments
One Response to “Puppetry of the Penis is Ten Years Old!”
Got something to say?
-
Recent Posts
Advertisement
Other Regional Sites
Very nice site! cheap cialis http://aieypxo.com/toxrss/4.html