Dear Librarian,
For almost 30 years Napa Valley based Magical Moonshine Theatre has been presenting fine quality musical puppet and mask productions coast to coast in the U.S. and abroad in 18 countries in Europe, Asia and Latin America. Our mainstage shows have been internationally acclaimed and honored, toured abroad for the U.S. state department, headlined at festivals too numerous to mention, and been given the highest "Exemplary" rating by the California Arts Council Theatre Panel. While some California libraries have been able to offer our programs to their patrons (with enthusiastic response), many libraries have found that the size of the staging and the fees necessary to mount a full size Magical Moonshine production have been too much for their library system. To this end, and as a result of your requests, we are now offering special library programs that are scaled down in size and price while still retaining the magic and delight that have made our programs popular for over a quarter century. We hope you will find these offerings meet some of your programming needs.
Yours truly,
Michael & Valerie Nelson, founders Magical Moonshine Theatre
tel: (707) 363-4573
Click here to send us an Email: mail@magicalmoonshine.org
Want to see a list of libraries where we have performed? CLICK HERE
Library Programs
(scroll down for additional programs)
Shadow Tales (various titles including but not limited to the productions pictured):
Shadow puppetry creates a mysterious and wonderful world where color, light and story enthrall adults and children alike, belying its simplicity. Using both black and illuminated shadows, MMTheatre presents literature and folktale inspired stories from around the globe.
From the Rudyard Kipling "Just So Stories," The Cat That Walked By Himself makes a deal with the first humans to share their cave on his terms.
Dragon, Tiger and Bear In this unscary, Southeast Asian folktale, Dragon, Tiger and Bear live with Man, and each sets out to try to frighten the others with unusual results.
Staging requirements: In general Magical Moonshine technical needs are simple and we will supply staging and lighting for all productions.
Room Lighting: These productions rely on light and shadows for their magic, and need to be presented in a space where light can be dimmed to some extent (it does not have to be black, but the dimmer the better, and there can not be uncovered windows behind the performance or skylights directly above it. If you could view an overhead projector or film, you should be able to see the shadow play.)
Space Needed: In general these shows need a space on the floor (or raised stage) 8 feet wide, 8 feet tall and 6 feet deep.
Audience age and size: Age may vary depending on production, but generally recommended for ages 3 & up, with audience size up to 150.
Set up and take down: Allow 30 minutes for set up and 30 minutes for taking down.
The Puppet Man
For hundreds of years puppet entertainers have roamed the streets in countries all over the world. They have sought to delight, amuse, reform their audiences, as well as earn their keep in society. Traditional puppet characters such as England's Punch and Judy, Germany's Kasperl, and France's Guignol all evolved from humble folk origins, nurtured by these street performers. They spoke to the dreams, fantasies and frustrations of the everyday life of the people of their time. The Puppet Man, Magical Moonshine Theatre's Michael Nelson creates his own version of traditional European street theatre. The performances are colorful, lively, spontaneous and ever-changing. In this selection of skits and bits selected from years of performing in the "strolling puppet stage" audiences, puppeteer and puppets respond to each other to create the play together in this uniquely exciting theatrical experience: The Puppet Show!
In the Puppet Man, Michael wears the puppet stage which walks around with him, in this very lively and hilarious show.
Staging requirements: In general Magical Moonshine technical needs are simple and we will supply staging and lighting for all productions.
Space Needed: In general these shows need a space on the floor (or raised stage) 8 feet wide, 8 feet tall and 6 feet deep.
Audience age and size: Age may vary depending on production, but generally recommended for ages 3 & up, with audience size up to 150.
Set up and take down: Allow 15 minutes for set up and 15 minutes for taking down.
Fowl Play & The YellowRed Circus
Benjie Nelson's UNI award winning "Fowl Play" and his latest creation, "The YellowRed Circus" are available on a limited basis (as his busy schedule permits). Benjie was born into the puppet theatre, and started appearing on stage when he was 2. He has performed and toured with his parents throughout his childhood and now, with a masters degree from Stanford and full time work as a robot engineer, he still finds a little time to perform his own shows.
To Link to Benjie's webpage click here.
Animal Folktales of the Americas
This is Magical Moonshine's award winning collection of mainstage productions based on traditional folktales, some of which have been performed by us for over 23 years. Live singing and music, puppets and mask. While more expensive than our offerings above, they are large, full stage shows that can be viewed by audiences of 500-1000 and have been enthusiastically received at a number of libraries with larger performing areas and audiences. For more information about the many programs in this series, click on this link to go to our main website listings -
We do offer a substantial discount for these programs for libraries depending on the situation, location and number of performances (as much as $600.00 off.)