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Brooklyn’s nautical rock wunderkind
Jollyship the Whiz-Bang is (alternately or simultaneously)
a puppet troupe, rock band, and theater production company.
They have performed in festivals the world over, invited on
the renown of their legendary live shows, which incorporate
music, puppetry, video and comedy in elaborate spectacles.
Jollyship the Whiz-Bang was conceived in 2002 by playwright
Nick Jones and composer Raja
Azar. The origin of the group really began with a song, "Pyrate
Love," performed while the two were working for the
Bindlestiff Family Cirkus. The warm response to this
ballad of rape and murder became the central premise for an
expanding musical and theatrical universe. A mission was forged
to create a massive live musical pirate puppet sea saga, to
be performed in sequential episodes developed and presented
over the course of many years. Years later, this has yielded
10 full length multimedia productions (or “episodes”),
including several full scale theater productions (“Sleepless
Fishes,” and its sequel “Crabquistador:
Scavenger of God”). Their work has culminated in
a self-titled show, "Jollyship the Whiz-Bang," which
played an extended run to sold out crowds at Ars Nova in the
summer of 2008, and which garnered massive
praise in The New York Times, the New Yorker,
Variety and Time Out, to name but
a few.
Jollyship released an EP in 2006, “Curse
of the Ancient Legend” following their first album
“Songs to Drown
By." A new album, featuring songs from their recent
show, is forthcoming. The last muster of crewmembers had Keith
Fredrickson on lead guitar, Dan Kutcher on
bass, Nick Jones on lead vocals, rhythm guitar,
and puppets, Mr. Skeevy on keyboards, accordion,
and puppets, Jesse Wallace on drums, Julie
Lake and Steven Boyer on backing
vocals and lead puppets, and Kris Anton doing
video design and giving technical support.
Visit Jollyship on Myspace. . .
myspace.com
jollyshipthewhizbang
And Facebook!
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