Ukeleles Make Everything Better
“One-Man Show”, hearing that phrase makes my skin crawl, my mind is racing at the horror of sitting in an un-air conditioned black box for 45 minutes watching another egotistical actor whimsically perform some creative story he came up with as a child and has now produced into his epic “One-Man Show”.
Out walks actor/creator/animator/director, Tim Watts; clad in wet-suit, long stemmed lamp strapped around his cerebellum – not at all cliché for as show titled . Cue laugh. My mood continues to shift when Watts sits down at his lab-top and begins to draw on his computer tablet. “Hi” appears on the circular screen, and through a series of simple strokes and without making a sound, Tim Watts has humorously asked us to turn off our cell phones, not to take any pictures, and to feel free to laugh.
All of a sudden a black and white animation begins on the screen depicting the state of the world after the seas have risen. Humans live on the tops of sky-scrapers, tips of mountain peeks, and anything else that has managed to escape the rising water. Alvin Sputnik, whom recently lost his wife, embarks on a journey into the deep sea to find middle earth. As he follows the light of his deceased wife’s soul throughout the depths of the ocean in hopes he can catch her while fulfilling his journey to find middle earth, Sputnik happens upon a series of roadblocks – with each one reminding the audience of the wonderment and simplicity we all encompass within the curiosity of human nature.
As we follow Sputnik on his journey, Watts creatively and intuitively uses puppetry, animation, and live music to open our hearts to the world of Alvin Sputnik. His puppet: a simple hand puppet with some great disco moves. The animation: uncomplicated and straightforward. The music: one word – ukelele. The combination of these three elements and the seamless transitions from anime to 3D prove Watts to be a multi-faceted, capable performer.
Simply put - Alvin Sputnik brings the substandard realm of “One-Man Show” to a higher level with it’s perpetual, transient beauty.
~ Laura Quackenbush
