Basil Twist's Petrushka

Annenberg Center Live presented the Igor Stravinsky-Michael Fokine ballet Petrushka, the tale of a puppet come to life, as interpreted by Bessie and Obie Award-winning puppeteer Basil Twist. Twist has garnered popular and critical acclaim for his conception of puppets as doppelgangers for human emotions. His ballets are performed by life-size puppets and are intended for all demographics, from drag queens to grade-school children. In Petrushka, Twist pays homage to one of the landmark ballets of the early 20th century, which brings storybook Russia to the stage. A cohort of Philadelphia puppeteers were engaged in workshops and had the opportunity to visit Twist's studio in New York City, where he demonstrated some of his techniques of puppet construction.