INTERNATIONAL PERFORMANCES

NEWSFLASH!

The Grandan Puppets A Hit At the Gyeongju World Cultural Expo in Korea

Representing Australia at the World Puppet Festival at the World Cultural Expo on September 20th- 27th, with their Cabaret Show, Hi Jinx, the Grandan Puppets were well received. Drawing full houses with 600 people being packed into the 300 seat Hwang Theatre, the show played 3 times a day for seven days.

The normally reserved Korean audiences were drawn into spontaneous clapping as the disco number at the end of the show gave them the kind of ending normally only experienced at rock concerts.

A documentary and interview with Dan Jarrett was recorded by Korean TV and will go to air October 4th.

Gyeongju World Culture Expo 2007- South Korea

The Grandan Puppets were invited to represent Australia at this Cultural Expo which takes place once every four years, performing 3 times a day for 7 days.

To bridge the language barrier the show HI JINX was created.

HI JINX

A show with no dialogue (23 minutes duration) designed to appeal to all ages and with no dialogue can be enjoyed by people of all nationalities.

It is a mixture of the classical, beautiful, spectacular, bizarre and amusing.

The show is performed with the puppeteer "out front" interracting with the puppets.

THE HWANG THEATRE (where the performances took place) is a 300-600 capacity dedicated puppet theatre.

Hostess welcomes visitors to first view the exhibition of puppets from around the world in the foyer of the theatre.

"Porky," a fat little dog of Grandan's "Little Red Riding Hood Show" (5th from the right) stands on display among other puppets from around the world. As a gift to Mr Ahn, founder and leading puppet master of the famous "Arari Puppet House", Porky will continue to be featured in Mr Ahn's permanent puppet exhibition

Another part of the world puppet display.

SHOTS FROM THE SHOW "HI JINX"

Pavarotti opens.

A fairy is born out of a flower...

Minnie Me dances with the pretty lady..

The pretty lady becomes full size...

FUNERAL MARCH FOR A MARIONETTE

A puppet smashes to the floor..

No sign of life...

In the casket on the hearse off to be buried...

Prayers and tears...

Does a puppet ever die?

THE DISCO KOALA - shakes hands and dances through the audience.

A visit to the theatre by the Expo's Mascots

Our Expo Hostess who introduces each performance- Andre the Russian Juggler and Balancer who is our opening act.

Hostess, Andre, Miss Lee and two other staff members after show.

Family & staff including on the left, Mr Ahn, most respected and leading promoter and puppeteer in Korea. Mr Ahn is responsible for the puppetry events at the expo and is the permanent proprietor of the the traditional Arari Puppet House in Korea.

Miss Lee in Dan's hat backstage sharing a lighter moment.

Mr Kim, right hand man to Mr Ahn takes a break frontstage post performance.

The commemorative historical "9 level Pagoda" is given life again - a permanent building within the Expo park closes each evening of the Expo with a sound and light show.

Dan in front of the sound and light show.

Post performance- time out sightseeing

Gyeongju is an historical city. Once the Imperial city, the Tombs of the Emperors, part of the Shillah Dynasty are now part of the tourist and visitor's experience. Here Dan stands in front of one of the many "mounds" that is in reality one of the tombs of the Emperors.

Dan's delightful "Minders" - Mina and Miss Lee.

Mina and Dan in front of one of the few "opened" tombs- it is the tomb of an Emperor's horse.