Talking Sock

Welcome! We are so excited to bring you our first episode, published on World Puppetry Day, March 21, 2020.

We all have a stake in talking about education, because we have all been to school. It has fascinated me that the more puppeteers and practitioners I come across, the more I found they have a background as an educator in some way.

Katherine Hannaford is no exception to the rule. An art t...

This week, its all about Dinosaurs!

I think when you have a passion about something, and you've held that passion for a long time, that is something to be celebrated!

Philip Millar loves Dinosaurs. And boy I'm glad he does. He's brought dinosaurs back to life for Polyglot Puppet Theatre, Creature Technologies and through his own company, Puppet Vision.

In this week's episode of Talking Sock, we talk about Philip's history ...

Kay Yasugi has fashioned herself into a staple of Australian puppetry. Based in Sydney, Kay brings her true sense of joy to every performance, workshop and puppet she brings to life. She is a powerhouse theatre maker, performer and builder trying to create as many opportunities for puppeteers in Australia as she can. In this episode we talk about Kay’s love of Puppets, but also her love of puns! We find out about the landscape...

A Life In Puppetry

In this first half of our two-part interview with Richard Bradshaw, we talk about his beginnings at The Clovelly Puppet Theatre and The Marionette Theatre of Australia, his travels as a touring performer and his time with Jim Henson and Caroll Spinney

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World renowned shadow puppet master Richard Bradshaw needs no introduction to the international puppetry community. His work has been seen by mi...

Giving Life to Puppetry

In this second episode of our two-part interview with Richard Bradshaw, we discuss UNIMA Australia, a book about shadow puppets, Norman Hetherington of Mr Squiggle and how Richard makes his puppets so distinct and engaging for young audiences.

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World renowned shadow puppet master Richard Bradshaw needs no introduction to the international puppetry community. His work has been seen by milli...

In this week's episode, I am joined in Sydney by Kailah Cabanas.

A content warning for our listeners, this episode does include content related to mental health and disordered eating. If this content brings up sensitive thoughts or feelings, contact www.beyondblue.org.au / 1300 22 4636, www.kidshelpline.com.au / 1800 55 1800 or www.lifeline.org.au / 13 11 14

Kailah, is an independent actor and puppeteer and trainer who is kic...

In this week's episode, I am joined by President of UNIMA Australia and owner/ operator of Dram Puppets, Richard Hart.

Richard has been performing under Dream Puppets for nearly 25 years and has been the President of UNIMA Australia for the past 6 years.

Dream Puppet shows use black light puppetry where the signature character, Dreamer, adventures through time and space in Richard's highly visual and largely conceptual style....

Welcome to another episode of Talking Sock,

In this week's episode I am joined by Sue Wallace, professional puppetry artist and co-artistic director of the Sydney Puppet Theatre. Sue was a puppeteer at the Marionette Theatre of Australia in Sydney during the 1980s. She engages in all aspects of puppetry including directing, building and designing workshops.

We discuss the Sydney Puppet Theatre and its initiation of the "One V...

Australian puppet builder Chris Ragg is a Melbourne based Muppets lover who has been perfecting his craft for the past 30 years.

Hailing from New Zealand, Chris has recently commercialised his practice by forming his label, Puppet Tribe. 

We talk the ins and outs of building hand and rod style puppets to perfection, and even being validated by the designer and maker of Miss Piggy. Chris also leads us through his adventur...

Talking Sock Podcast is the Number 1 Podcast for Puppetry in Australia.

We'll be taking a mid-season hiatus while we adjust to our online interview strategy during the nCOVID19 Pandemic.

We'll be back in 2 weeks, at the new release time of 6am, Thursdays Australian Eastern Standard Time.

Until then, check out over 7 and a half hours of great interviews here on Talking Sock.

Stay safe, stay home, and thanks for listening...

Jhess Knight has made herself into a key player in the Melbourne puppetry scene since her return from The London School of Puppetry in 2014. Five years on from her training, Jhess' passion, drive and honed business skills have seen her become the creative director of the internationally successful 'Trash Puppets' and 'The Puppetsmithery'.

Joining us by correspondence from Portland, Oregon, Jhess talks sock about her current fell...

Cam Ralph's journey from creating characters in school textbooks, to animating them for the screen, to voicing and puppeteering them in some of Australia's most popular children's television and theatre shows is certainly one that feels full circle.

Cam joins me on this week's episode to unpack his unique approach to character, and to give us his insights on finding the truth in all performance styles.

Joining us by correspon...

Dennis Murphy has been working as an independent puppeteer for over 30 years. Based in Old Toongabbie NSW, he is Australia's resident expert in Commedia Dell'Arte Puppetry.

Growing up in the prairies of Iowa, Dennis was fed on vaudeville and puppetry and has become a great ventriloquist and entertainer. His breadth of skills and his longevity come down to his intricate methods of research, which he describes as his 'obsessions' ...

Puppeteer, actor and writer Drew Wilson was always the guy with the career I wanted in puppetry. With roles in Australia's very first Warhorse, to playing the heroic title role of Lazer Beak Man for Dead Puppet Society, Drew has fascinated me in the fact that he maintains his terminal loveliness while also abstaining from labelling himself as any one kind of artist. In this industry Drew has harnessed interests and embraced his wei...

Australia is a big place, so the team of artists, sculptors and engineers at A Blanck Canvas make their puppets to size.

Joe Blanck is the mastermind behind some of Australia's best and brightest roving puppets, seen at festivals and site activations here and all over the world.

In this episode, we discuss Joe's expansion of his business and ask him what it's like to go from artist to designer and CEO. Join us for...

It's so nice to be back, and for a brief moment, back in the studio face to face with Voodoo Puppeteer Alien with Extraordinary Abilities (as stated on his U.S green card) - Danny Miller!

After finding a love of puppets from his family, Danny's passion for puppetry was reignited when he saw Ronnie Burkett perform 'Billy Twinkle' at Melbourne Festival. With the momentum brought on by The Eugene O'Neill Puppetry Conference, Danny ...

Hailing from WA, Leon Hendroff is a material mastermind. In his large scale work for various festivals including the annual Joondalup Festival and as a resident designer for Spare Parts Puppet Theatre, Leon's work is renowned for its poetic beauty.

In this episode, Leon and I discuss his signature works, String Duet and String Symphony, his work for Spare Parts and his family design studio. We also discuss his love of puppetry ...

Andy Freer is the Artistic Director of Snuff Puppets, a puppetry institution of Melbourne that was incorporated in 1992. Andy has been performing as a puppeteer for over thirty years, right back to his days growing up in Canberra before a whimsical stop off Melbourne in Melbourne after a particularly successful show in Adelaide became somewhat more permanent.

In this episode, I discuss the origins of Snuff and it's creative poi...

Well, this one was a true honour and such a treat. In this special length 90 minute episode I talk with the man under the worlds most famous purple puppet - Heath McIvor. Heath has been a pioneer of the industry for over 15 years, seamlessly merging puppetry with stand up comedy and showing the world that puppets can be for adults too.

This personal hero of mine and I talk about all things Randy from his origins, through to Sam...