Chicago Reader: Chicago artist Gretchen Hasseʼs work stretches over many media, including video, animation, comics, painting and drawing, kinetic sculptures, robotics, and public murals. She’s also a cofounder of the Logan Square collective gallery space Agitator. But her latest creative obsession, The Dinosaur Opera, is perhaps the simplest to explain.
Who doesn’t love dinosaurs? The title alone for this performance would make me want to attend, as a human being who has eyes and a healthy love for Netflix’s Camp Cretaceous. All jokes aside, I do really love the concept of this show. Tackling environmental issues and history can be a really daunting task, especially in such a volatile political climate. By bringing dinosaurs and comedy into it, you can make it a much more accessible performance that asks the audience to consider the issues being discussed while also allowing them to laugh and enjoy themselves. And puppet theater has a longstanding history of being creative and almost experimental in a way, bringing joy to people across decades and in many different forms. I really, really want to see the Dinosaur Opera.
ReplyDeleteI thoroughly enjoyed reading this article. I’ve been a fan of dinosaurs since I was a child watching Dinosaur Train on PBS Kids, and lately I have developed an increased interest in puppetry. I dabbled in puppetry as a child, but never anything at this level. The image of the dinosaur ‘Dahlia’ looked amazing, and I would love to have the opportunity to create puppetry that cool. I also like the accessible nature of puppetry, as anybody can make them out of virtually any material and play with them in any location. It’s a great way for children to play, and for artists and performers to tell stories, portray concepts, or symbolize themes. There is also an inherent comedic quality to the use of puppetry, as seen in CMU’s production of The Inseparables. My favorite parts of the show was when the puppets were used in one of the fake battle scenes. It was very memorable and brought a lot of joy to the production.
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