Splish and Splash

At the Witte Museum trying to make talking about the water cycle "fun". Whoopeeee!


In 2005 I got a edu-tainment job at the Witte Museum playing the part of...of ...well I'm not really sure who or what I was supposed to be but the part came with a steady check so there you have it! Someone at the Witte had been to New York and saw "Avenue Q" on Broadway, which used muppet- style puppets but didn't hide the puppeteers, and thought it would be fab to do that in their museum. The difference being that I would be the sole actor on stage and I'd be playing two parts in what essentially would be a ventriloquist act. I tried to convince them that having me do a ventriloquist routine without the necessary skills would not work but they weren't willing to listen. Oh, well.

Chad Miller and I would be playing the same part but doing the shows on different days. I wanted to be paid a certain amount per show but they thought I was asking for too much though they didn't tell me to take a hike. I have to mention that back in 1992 I was in a play there and the salary then was still the same thirteen years later. After some haggling this is how they finally resolved the issue.

They gave me the contract to review and sign and on it was my name. So far, so good. A few lines below my name was a break down of my pay per show. Are you ready for this? I would be sharing my salary with my puppet. He would be making a little less per show than I would (which was a relief) but there it was in black and white. For some reason that made sense in their happy little world. That's comedy!

I wish I still had that contract because I'd like to frame and keep it as a reminder that even the "man" can still have the heart of a child and believe the magic of puppetry gives life to inanimate objects. He was real to the "man" and that's what it's all about people. "Come with me and you'll be, in a world of pure imagination...".