Crash Pad
An integral part of my theatrical existence is the art of puppetry. Jim Henson was never absent from my childhood and I have spent years training, building, performing and refining my puppetry skills. For the stage or personal commission, I create hand, soft foam, rigid foam, mechanical and parade style puppets from the pattern to the finish.
From left to right: Herb--the innocent and aloof everyman; Mooch the Monster--gruff and lovable; Rustle the landlord--he's foreign and...foreign; Chad the Bird--the brainchild of Josh Zagoren, he's the no nonsense, quick witted, id we all connect to and aspire to be like if only for a few hours a day.
Crash Pad--a conceptual puppet series staring Chad the Bird was designed and built by myself and Josh Zagoren. Herb, Mooch the Monster and Rustle the Landlord were specifically tailored to this project and have been re-tooled for various guest appearances and hosting gigs throughout Chicago. Herd, my first ever 'professional puppet' was a labor of love that I built with few opportunities to utilize him. His introduction to Crash Pad allowed the crew to have a straight man which pulled everything together.
Chad the Bird
The key component to Crash Pad was the brain child of Josh Zagoren; the infamous Chad the Bird. Originally, Chad was cobbled together for a Cornservatory production before Josh relocated to California. He was used and abused and in much need of repair. With the return of Josh (and Chad) to Chicago, he became a resident fixture at The Paper Machete.
I was commissioned to recreate two replicas due to the amount of performance and demand for Chad not only for the Machete, but various other projects around town. Josh and I worked closely to preserve the integrity and important features, movement and subtle variations that improved on the puppet's iconic look.
Deconstructing the original would have destroyed the sum of the parts and since he was a hodge podge of found materials and fabrics--not to mention a bit of a local celebrity of sorts--reproduction was going to be a tricky endeavor to maintain the original design with new resources.
I sourced the long pile pink fur, highlighter yellow fleece, and neon boa arms to match the primary. The shirt and pants sleeve, eyes, and posable hands were all improvements from the original concepts. It was a pleasure to create these replicas given the simple style yet complicated intricacies required to match the well known