*NOT FOR CHILDREN.

WHO IS GUIGNOL? The beloved Guignol puppet of Lyon, France was born in puppet plays featuring Polichinelle, the French version of the Commedia Dell’Arte’s low-brow character, Pulchinello. The Guignol puppet was added in 1808 by a dentist of Lyon, France who had begun performing the puppet plays to allay the fears of patients. In England, Pulchinello became Punch of the Punch & Judy show, who is also featured in our show.This GRAND GUIGNOL CHILDREN’S SHOW NOT FOR CHILDREN presents classic folk tales in their darkest forms: Little Red Riding Hood: a Horror Play, Hansel and Gretel: a Horror Play, The Ugly Duckling: a Melodrama Ballet, and Rapunzel: an Erotic Thriller by French finger puppets.  We also offer a pre-show absinthe presentation and tasting.  Masks, birthday cake, over the top dance numbers, puppets, and a lot of blood.  And a little boob. The show is not appropriate for children.

WHAT IS GRAND GUIGNOL? The Théâtre du Grand Guignol in Paris (1897-1962) achieved a legendary reputation for explicit violence, blood-curdling terror, so that a resident doctor was needed onsite to treat fainting spectators. A performance at the Grand Guignol strove to terrify and titillate the spectator through a mixture of horror, laughter and the erotic. A typical evening’s entertainment exploited the contemporary audience’s fears, taboos and desires.  The name Grand Guignol is a play on the “big puppet” show, both in size and for ‘big people.’  Known as an “evening of hot and cold showers” the performance alternated farce and horror plays.
 
BACKGROUND FOLK TALES: The origin of folk tales, such as Little Red Riding Hood and Hansel and Gretel varies greatly, as they were passed down orally. There is no single original version, source nor meaning of these stories, rather they vary by culture and era.  In the late 17th Century, Charles Perrault, French courtier to Louis XIV, first published folk tales, sanitizing the darker bawdier oral versions, making them more palatable for his salon peers and adding his own moral messages. A century later, the Grimm Brothers collected and also published the folk tales for academic purposes, then later, seeing the marketing value, adapted them for children. Contemporary versions are often even less violent and less sexual. But certain essential elements remain the same among centuries and continents, making them a fascinating and powerful expression of the human psyche and an appropriate match for the Grand Guignol.

Pre-sale tickets are HIGHLY recommended – www.brownpapertickets.com and more info at www.grandguignolers.com.

WHERE:  Art/Works Theatre * 6569 Santa Monica Blvd. * Los Angeles, CA 90038.  
 
DATES: Dec. 5 – Jan. 10. 2009 Fri/Saturdays at 8:30 (except 12/26), with two Thur. (12/18 & 1/8)
and two Pay What You Can Sun. (12/28 & 1/4) at 7pm. * Pre-Show Absinthe Demo about 1/2 hour early *
* grown up drinks & absinthe * SUGGESTED DRESS: Cocktail, Birthday Party and/or 1920s-30s.  TICKETS:  $20-30

Downtown ~ Los Angeles

Santa Monica ~ CA

Westwood ~ CA

Day of the Dead takes on a new meaning this year for the community of East Los Angeles as its residents prepare to celebrate not just the commemoration of their dearly departed but probably the last weekend-long festival at Self Help Graphics’ current location.

“When last we left our embattled arts activists at Self Help Graphics, they were on the verge of eviction from their longtime headquarters in East L.A. Even some true believers were ready to count out the struggling community-based institution that has been a beacon for Chicano art for almost four decades.

But the group is still alive and kicking as it prepares for its biggest event of the year, the Day of the Dead on Nov. 2, with a display of colorful altars, a procession and a concert. The group’s legendary print shop remains active too, with an exhibition of political posters that opened Friday in collaboration with Farmlab, the experimental arts complex that is hosting the show at its gallery north of downtown, and La Casa del Túnel, a new Tijuana gallery located in a house once used by drug dealers to cover a border tunnel for smuggling.

Self Help’s barrio spirit of perseverance is what earned it a reputation for nurturing great art on a shoestring. Showing it can survive despite adversity serves its cause much better than complaining about the nuns who sold the building the nonprofit had occupied rent-free for decades.” Click here for the full LA Times article and here for the full schedule of events.

The downtown crowd can hit the 7th Festival de la Gente, a community festival and fine arts exhibit followed by a Masquerade Ball for those lucky enough to have hit number 21. Go to www.festivaldelagente.org for more info.

Also worthy of mention is Plaza de la Raza’s Saturday event where you can catch altar-maker Ofelia Esparza’s first solo exhibit at the Plaza’s Boathouse Gallery. Click here for more info.

With the Holidays right around the corner, the Day of the Dead celebrations are also a great place to find unique gifts by our talented local musicians, writers and artists.