The Dolly Wagglers

What we do-Recent adventures and past work:

2010-10-21T18:05:00.000-07:00

Halloween Parade with Brooklyn Free School, NYC, Oct. 2011

This ferocious eight-person (40 foot) dragon was built from donated materials in a weeklong workshop at the Brooklyn Free School. It was made for a Halloween street parade and was accompanied by a bucket drum corps, a cheerleading squad and a team of hula-hoopers. The following are pictures of the workshop:

Recent performances include: A cantastoria and a cranky show performed at Banners and Cranks in Chelsea, NYC

The Woodchopper Opera, pictured here, is a hand-written fairy tale about appropriate technology. It is appropriate for all ages and was made several years ago, for the Boxcutter Cabaret. We continue to show it in many places including NYC pictured below.

Pageants and Large scale puppets are also part of our repertoire. Pictured here is a vulture that Lindsay Built for the Barebones Halloween Show

Recent events also include: The Sardine Circus, a surrealist miniature circus complete with real sardine performers.

Live Art 2011 on Madeline Island:
"Why have a home planet when you can have a tube in space?"

Adam and Space man (Phil Parhamovich) in front of the base of the rocketship

Workshop participants making the many cardboard flames that were necessary for blast-off.

The Flying Donkey Cabaret, Feb.-Mar. 2011

2010-05-14T10:04:00.000-07:00

The Flying Donkey Cabaret was a two week puppet-waggling rampage that was built and debuted in Portland, ME and made its way to New Orleans, LA. We teamed up with Federica Collina and Jason Hicks. Here are pictures from the show:

The King of Fun demands entertainment

Lindsay plays a very convincing "owl" oracle in "Bavarian Folktale"

One of the many ways to "Fly a Donkey" performed by Federica and Jason

Adam performs "Uh Oh" a cantastoria based on a poem by Antler, a Milwaukee poet.

Other Shows from Portland, ME... Below is the talking gravy puppet from our November 2010 "Gravy Taste" event and a photo from the Over a Cardboard Sea show at the State Theater.

Crankies and Cantastorias

2010-02-01T10:55:00.000-08:00

We have been honored to participate in several Cantastoria and Cranky gatherings hosted by our esteemed friends Claire Dolan and Dave Buchen. Here is the the poster from Banners and Cranks, NYC and Bi-Vitititiri, Puerto Rico, both posters made by Dave Buchen:

Claire Dolan performing "Historia de una Rata" in Puerto Rico as part of the Bi-Vitititiri show.

Here are pictures of Cantastorias and Crankies that we have made and performed:

Above is pictured the "Where Are We Going" Cantastoria from the Old Reliable Horsedrawn Spectacular and a cranky from the Boxcutter Cabaret being performed in Philadelphia. Below is a picture of Lindsay performing her robot cantastoria as the Professor D. Wabbit.

This is Adam presenting "Old Timey Resistance Manifesto" at the Packer-Schopf Gallery in Chicago

Remembering "The Brand New Same Old Bologna Show"

2009-12-22T15:39:00.000-08:00

"It's better than Avatar" -Prof. John Bell (Ballard Institute of Puppetry) Jan. 2010

A wild spasm of hooey, hogwash and nonsense hosted by the great bologna, featuring the music of olden days played by a six piece gorilla brass band. Brought to you by the Old Reliable Amusement Company--Featuring members of Over A Cardboard Sea, Modern Times Theater and The Dolly Wagglers. On Tour for TWO WEEKS ONLY!

If you were unable to make it to one of our blisteringly entertaining live shows, here is what you missed:

Half a dozen hand made gorilla suits

Singing fruit solo during the "Tiger Rag" at the Main Street Museum in White River Junction, VT

Adam, Lindsay, Jimmy and Timmy play a fiddle rag in New London, CT

Justin Lander and Rose Friedman the duo who call themselves "Modern Times Theater" play some lovely duets on cornet and ukelele at Vincent's in Worcester, one of our new favorite places

"Is that a tentacle?" Just one of the many moments of distress in our ham-fisted cardboard melodrama followed by a low-tech close up of the main characters.

What?... "Surprise, Surprise You Haven't Seen Everything Yet" Cranky Show narrated by Adam and Jimmy

Jimmy, Timmy and Lindsay sing "I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles" which makes the fathead so sad. Every time.

What could be more entertaining than singing, scatting bananas with a hairy coconut

Fyodor Dostoyevski, a long time supporter of Bologna

All the way from Dubuque, IA its Randy Clifton and his little doll, Hazel Darnell

Some close ups thanks to Megan Killimade from New London, CT

Adam and Timmy croon about Bologna Cologne

Every Bologna show needs a lounge act and this one is "pure class."

Thank you to everyone who hosted us and supported us by coming to our shows. We have never had so much fun. Stay in touch because the Bologna show may rear its fleshy pink face again in a town near you!

Horse-Drawn Spectacular

2009-02-03T20:23:00.000-08:00

THE OLD RELIABLE HORSEDRAWN SPECTACULAR in Cabot, VT. The Old Reliable Horsedrawn Spectacular was a 5 week tour from Northern Vermont to Central Massachusetts. We built a wagon and with 8 other people travelled 310 (or so) miles, performed 15 shows and ate the best food in some of the most beautiful places in the Northeast.

Drumming up an audience in Plainfield, VT

Horse tour - Day 1, Hardwick, VT (Clockwise from left: Lindsay McCaw, Evan Johnson, Bill + Barnes, Aviva, Laura Wallace, Adam Cook, Dave Bailey, Jesse Downs)

Best Man and Concertina take off at a trot from Mike and Sloane's farm in Greensboro, VT

Adam and Best Man--very handsome pair.

Past Events from Wisconsin (and Iowa)

2008-07-11T14:21:00.001-07:00

Live Art 2009 Pageant and Parade included 50 kids, 15 Fools, a 10 piece band and a giant houseboat. "Ship of Fools"

Workshop participant, hard at work

School of fish made in the workshop

115 foot long Sea Monster from the 2009 4th of July Parade, Madeline Island, WI. Built as part of the Live Art 2009 workshop. It was lovingly built by many hands under the direction of Adam, Lindsay and Tom Nelson

"Cardboard Radio," Gays Mills Folk Festival, 2008, Gays Mills WI. (Backdrop painted by Adam - part of his "Woodstoves I Have Loved" collection.)

Mayday and Halloween show, Minneapolis

2008-07-11T14:18:00.000-07:00

We owe a lot of our greatest experiences to the arts community in Minneapolis, MN.
Pictures of Mayday 2010: This Mayday Parade turned out to be a lot of fun. We managed to find some pictures here and there. Featured here are six dedicated puppeteers dressed as roosters pulling two golden chariots with winged archers atop accompanied by a flower clad band of horns drums and "thunder sheets." It was memorable.

This first picture is from Lindsay's first year on the Mayday staff. It is Old Man River or the Father of Waters in the 2007 parade.

Lindsay and Federica Collina menacing little red riding hood in the 2009 Barebones Halloween Show as giant vultures.

Lindsay's earthen piggy bank/wild boar from Mayday 2009 lovingly puppeted by Dan and Paul

2008 Mayday Racing Towards Collapse section

Spindle + Grendle, Halloween 2006

Adam as Zeus, Halloween 2008

Past Tours

2008-02-24T07:05:00.000-08:00

Boxcutter Cabaret Band, Spring 2008, Columbia MO. The Boxcutter Cabaret was a six week tour through the Eastern US. We joined forces with two other puppet duos: Modern Times Theater and RPM Puppet Conspiracy. We travelled together in a grease powered short bus.

Woodchopper Opera, Boxcutter Cabaret, Spring 2008, North Hampton MA - Adam is behind the stage, waggling the dollies.
(Photograph by Robert Tobey)

The Battle of This and That, Insurrection Landscapers (Jason Norris and Adam Cook), 2004, Olympia WA.
(Lindsay and Adam's first puppet tour together - pre-Dolly Wagglers)