Ben Thompson works the Lorax’s feet by bending over and working the feet with his hands. That then focuses the audience’s attention onto the Lorax and not the puppeteers, even though it’s so tempting to watch the mastery of the puppeteers. Both Ricardo-Pearce and Caldow look directly at the Lorax as they manipulate it. He is manipulated by three puppeteers: David Ricardo-Pearce gives the Lorax his distinctive voice complete with moral indignation Ricardo-Pearce manipulates the head and one arm Laura Caldow manipulates the other arm and projects the Lorax’s pained feelings with her own face, creased in anguish sometimes. The Lorax is a pear-shaped fluff-ball puppet of orange fur/hair. The Once-ler favours emerald green skinny pants and accessories that also match his green hair. Rob Howell’s sets and costumes are an explosion of vibrant neon. So his production never lags in pace or the “wow!” factor. Our senses are bombarded with sound, light, colour and dazzle. Director Max Webster is mindful that we live in a time of whizzing, colourful distraction.
What followed was a tug of war between the Lorax, who was desperate to protect the trees, and the Once-ler who only saw how much money he could make by producing Thneeds which required cutting down more trees. This aroused the Lorax, a furry creature who “ Speaks for the Trees” and tries to protect them. The Once-ler sold the Thneed instantly! To make more Thneeds, the Once-ler needed the soft tufts at the top of the Truffula Tree for more knitting, so he cut one down. He somehow created a Thneed, a knitted grarment that had so many uses I can’t list them all here, so I won’t. The Once-ler was determined to show his family he could amount to something. The family threw him out to rent his room for more money than the Once-ler made. He did his best to work and bring money into the family but didn’t really shape up. But he tells them the story that led him to this lonely existence. He can’t tell them what “Unless” means because he doesn’t know.
They are disturbed by an irascible person named The Once-ler (Simon Paisley Day) who lives high above them, it seems in a tree, alone. A group of innocent young people, playing in the woods, stumble upon a monument with the word “Unless” on it. Puppetry direction by Finn Caldwell for Gyre & GimbleĪ lively, inventive, raucous show about a rather important subject handled with thoughtful care and conviction. Puppetry designer, Nick Barnes and Finn Caldwell At the Royal Alexandra Theatre, Toronto, Ont.
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