Ignorance

Ignorance by The Old Trout Puppet Workshop. Jason Stang Photography.

Misery is a uniquely human condition, we are reminded, in The Old Trout Puppet Workshop‘s Ignorance, a morbidly funny and touching look at our prehistoric ancestors now playing at the Berkeley Street Theatre. This “world wide open creation puppet show” was written with the help of anonymous contributors on The Old Trout’s website, the result of which is an arftul and entertaining examination of mankind’s ignorance through the ages—part nature documentary, part Hitchhicker’s Guide for the ice age.

Narrated by Judd Palmer, Ignorance features Nicolas Di Gaetano, Trevor Leigh and Viktor Lukawski, three skilled puppeteers clad in matching grey pyjamas, horned, grunting, howling and talking in jibberish as they manoeuvre between handling paleolithic characters, beasts, and little old men. The show moves seamlessly from cave to city using brilliant props, such as a glowing fire, a brick building, mini cars and a balloon-making conveyor machine, while images are projected onto a screen inside a giant tusk-shaped set.

Self-referential, hilarious and intentionally cruel, Ignorance pokes fun at our ability to imagine situations or worlds that we perceive to be greater than our own, causing us to feel unsatisfied with our lives as they are. It turns out, we’re making the same mistakes now as we were in ancient times, but, thanks to The Old Trout Puppet Workshop, at least we can laugh at ourselves together.

Ignorance runs until December 15 at the Berkeley Street Theatre. Visit canadianstage.com for more information and to buy tickets.

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