Junior Vent
University
This page is devoted to
ventriloquism for teens and under! From learning the basics to buying a
puppet to nailing that performance, this page will tell you how.
I Want to
Learn Ventriloquism! How Do I Get Started?
Ventriloquism is an amazing art that anyone can learn
how to do. All it takes is time and practice. Learning vent (short
for ventriloquism) is not quite like learning to play the piano, although
both take a lot of time and practice. There are ventriloquists all
over the world, but probably not down the street from your house.
You can't just walk a couple of blocks and take lessons from a
professional vent. So the best way
to learn the basic skill of talking without moving your lips is through a
home study course. With the use of email and the internet, you can get
help and advice from professionals who are all across
America.
Here are some links to some different resources and
home study courses that will help you get started:
*Axtell
Expressions offers free
ventriloquism lessons online. This is a good
place to get started before you delve into a more in-depth course of
study.
*The Dummy Works offers the Maher
Home Study Course. This has been a tried and true way to learn
ventriloquism. Many of today's ventriloquists got their start on
this path.
*Lee Cornell offers
Ventriloquism
101. This a video course teaching the basics of ventriloquism.
You can also get Ventriloquism 101 plus the Maher Home Study Course
together.
*Pete Michaels offers the first Home-Study
Course on Video. It's step-by-step instructions on a high
quality DVD.
The best place to learn is with other
ventriloquists. Plan to attend the largest ventriloquist gathering in
the world...the Vent Haven ConVENTion in Ft. Mitchell, KY July 18-21,
2007. Spend four jam-packed days with over 400 ventriloquists, from
beginners to pros, kids to adults.
New this year is the
Junior
Vent University at the ConVENTion just for kids 16 years and
under. Two workshop sessions will focus on topics like vent
basics, stage techniques, writing scripts, finding performances, and
developing characters. Each session will be taught be three
professional ventriloquists. Plus young vents will get a chance to
do some brief performing for their peers. This will be a great
opportunity to spend one on one time with the Pros!
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Buying a Puppet
Ventriloquism sounds cool and unique. You're
ready to dive in and want to get a puppet or figure to get started.
Check out some of these places that sell figures just right for someone
who is just beginning.
The
Dummy Works offers a page of lowcost puppets ranging in price
from $19.95 to $39.95. These are inexpensive starter figures perfect
in size and weight for a junior performer.
Axtell
Expressions is often known for its latex bird puppets but they offer
more animals than you can imagine and people puppets too. Animals
from farm
to woods to pet shop to wacky, there are lots of choices of puppets
here.
One
Way Street also offers a wide range of puppets including a page of
puppets under $50. They have people, animal, and special puppets,
plus a group of puppets just for ventriloquism.
The
Dummy Shop has critters, birds, and people puppets from which to
choose. This figure maker offers free shipping through DHL on
orders.
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Crowd
Crontrol for the Young Vent
by Hannah, Urbana,
IL
Sure,
you’ve probably heard of many tips and tricks on how to deal with
hecklers and unruly crowds but it’s different if you’re only five
years older than they are. If
you’re a kid ventriloquist, you’re most likely not doing corporate
hot-shot banquet gigs; most likely, you’re doing birthday parties, Cub
Scout meetings, church gatherings, and, basically, any kind of event where
there are a lot of children. Usually,
children know how to behave and sit there sweetly, but once they get into
your routine and your puppets, there’s a chance they’ll get carried
away.
What most adults do would be to set up a barrier or
arrange for other adults to watch the children, but if you’re not that
much older than the kids are, they just see you as another kid.
Adults (like the parents in charge) often don’t seem to notice
you might need help with the kids because they don’t see you as an
authority figure either. What
I prefer to do is to set up with a bit of space between me and the
audience so we’re not next to each other like best friends. That
way, if they start jumping up
I have some time to react. Instead
of making fun of them like adults might do with other adults who are
annoying, I first ask them to sit down because they’re intimidating my
friend (the puppet). Sometimes that doesn’t work because they’re so
enthralled with the puppet, so I then let the puppet talk to them and they
usually listen better to the puppet because they’re so entranced by it.
If the kids are too talkative, I might have the puppet stop talking
or ignore the problem kids. If the kids get too “handsy”
oftentimes I’ll just have the puppet hide until the kids are back in
their seats.
So, remember, even if the kids are incredibly
touchy-feely and annoying all it really means is that they really like you
and your puppet and, in the end, that’s a good thing!
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Creating
a Character
The following excerpts were taken from
Creating a Character by Ken Groves. This is just a
sampling of the useful information found in his book.
What is the difference between a
puppet and a character? "A puppet is a tool to create laughter
or to get a message out...A character comes from within the
performer. The character is a defined personality [with] its own attitudes, gestures, phrases, and appearance.
A character is developed over time with experience and hard work, trial
and error...Characters are created when there is a noticeable difference
between the puppet and ventriloquist."
"You need differences in
personality."
If I am strong; they are weak.
If I am nervous; they are calm or laid back.
If I'm normal; they're neurotic.
If I'm dumb; they're real smart.
"Define
your personality on stage and then set and define the character's
personality, making sure there is a big difference. From this
difference you can find humor." Use the following questionnaire
to help you create your puppet's character.
Use
this link to download a PDF version of the questionnaire below. You
can open it and print it using Adobe Reader.
Character
Questionnaire
Name:
Age:
Occupation:
Hair:
Eyes:
Skin:
Body
Type: (weight, physical type):
Voice
Type & characteristics (high/low):
Outstanding
physical characteristics (first thing noticed):
Bad
and good habits (whistles, laughs too loud, etc.)
Music
tastes:
Most
and least favorite games:
Religion:
Schooling:
Phobias:
Where
originally from and where live now:
Lives
with who or what people (people, pets etc.):
Brothers
and sisters:
Relatives,
like or dislike:
How
say hello and goodbye:
Favorite
expression (always says):
Self
esteem (how character feels about himself):
What
do others like about this character:
What
do others dislike:
Talent
most proud of:
What
can't seem to do at all:
What
is funny to this person? Makes him cry? Angry? Jealous?
Who
is idolized and who is despised:
Philosophy
of life:
Most
exciting thing ever happened to:
Most
embarrassing, most frightening:
Latest
big event in life:
Where
want to go and be:
Current
car and wish car:
Biggest
lie ever told:
General
mood and how does it affect all else:
Whatever
character you create, the material needs to fit the character. If
the puppet is going to be a teenager, then jokes about a husband or wife
don't work. You should find that as you develop the character,
material and dialogue will emerge.
Now
it's time to give the puppet a voice that fits who he or she is. Be
sure the puppet's voice is different than your own. This is
called Voice Clarity. "Voice Clarity is important to make a
character believable. If there is no difference between your voice and the
puppet's voice, how can you possibly make people think there are two
different personalities on stage?...The voices must be different, strong,
clear, and enunciated."
Differences
are also important in the vent's and the puppet's appearance.
"If you and the puppet dress alike, it's hard to separate you and the
puppet into distinct personalities. And it's looks corny!...What can
you create to make your character memorable or peculiar? Can gestures make
your character memorable or unique?"
Finally
as your character begins to emerge and dialogues are being developed,
avoid two common stereotypes that have a negative impact. "The
first is always correcting your puppet or talking down to it. Never
be the authority figure over the puppet. You and the puppet are a
'comedy team' -- you are equals." Avoid dialogue like "'Quit
that. What's the matter with you?' Watch people in
conversation -- learn from them. When you talk to your friends, do you
keep telling them to 'Quit that,' 'Stop that,' 'Be good,' 'You dummy,'
'Behave,' 'Straighten up'? If you do, you need a different set of
friends."
"The
second big mistake is repeating the puppet. Why do you do
that? Maybe you have no voice clarity and your audience can't
understand the puppet. Maybe you only have ten minutes of material
and by repeating everything you now think you have twenty minutes.
Maybe it's a nervous habit you need to work on....When you talk to your
friends do you repeat everything they say? So get busy breaking bad habits
or never letting them form in the first place, like talking down to your
puppet, always correcting your puppet; constantly repeating your puppet;
always pulling, adjusting, or touching the puppet."
When
you get that character defined and your stage personality defined, you've
made a huge step forward in the world of ventriloquism.
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Ask the
Professor!
Want
help from a professional ventriloquist? Do you have a question that
you need expert advice about? This is the place for you. Each
month a professional ventriloquist will available to answer your questions
by email. Check back each month to see
Professor
Mark Wade is available to answer your
questions. Prof. Wade is the Executive Director of the Vent Haven
ConVENTion, putting together great conventions every year including this
year's Junior Vent University. He's also America's Foremost
Children's Ventriloquist and performs over 500 a shows a year. He
educates and entertains kids across the country and is the author of the
best-selling book on performing for youngsters called Kidshow
Ventriloquism.
Click here
to send your question to Professor Mark Wade.
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Junior Vent Feature
Meghan C.: Making People Laugh
Meghan’s
exposure to puppets started literally at birth when her ventriloquist
father Ed had a puppet on hand in the hospital room making people laugh,
on that joyous first day of Meghan’s life.
But it wasn’t until she was five years old that Meghan realized
her dad was making the puppet talk…talk without moving his lips, that
is. That’s when she
really started learning the art of ventriloquism by copying her dad, and
he went on to show her the basics. Meghan
says, “I got interested in being a vent because of my dad always
bringing puppets to life around me. He
always made me laugh, and I found I liked to do the same for others.”
Now at thirteen years old, Meghan is a
“certified” ventriloquist. This
means that she has completed the Maher Studios Home Study Course,
including a certificate. “I
took the course and practiced a bunch,” she reports, and now performs at
schools, libraries, talent shows, country clubs, birthday parties, the
Denver Children’s Museum, and even the Vent Haven International
Ventriloquist Convention. Her
first performance in front of a large audience was at the convention’s
Junior Open Mic. “I was
really nervous before I started my show.
Once I got going, I no longer had butterflies.”
When
asked what her friends think about her unique talent, Meghan says, “My
friends think that my ventriloquism abilities are really cool because it
is not something you see every day. A
lot of people think it is a special gift that you are born with when
actually it can be learned and then perfected with lots and lots of
practice.” Meghan’s main
puppet is named Willie Mac that she’s had for two years.
Willie Mac is equipped with moving eyes and eyebrows.
She also uses an Axtell bird puppet named Charolete, but between
Meghan and her dad they have 22 professional puppets in their repertoire.
Meghan doesn’t necessarily want to be a
professional ventriloquist but is considering careers where she could
incorporate her talents. “Maybe
I’ll be a doctor that works with kids.
I could use my puppet characters to make the kids more comfortable.
It’s sort of scary for little kids when they go to the doctor.
Also, I have always liked the weather science field (meteorology).
I could present the weather forecast with a talking cloud, tornado,
lightning bolts or sunshine. I
know I could make it really fun for ALL ages.”
She doesn’t have to make career choices yet.
For now, Meghan can just enjoy being a ventriloquist, performing in
front of an audience – small or large – having fun, and making people
laugh.
*Meghan is pictured above with
Candice Bergen, correpondent for 60 Minutes II, at the 2004 VH
ConVENTion.
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Please send
suggestions, comments, tips, techniques to Annie Roberts at aroberts@venthavenmuseum.net
.
Copyright 2007 Vent
Haven ConVENTion, Inc.
For information:
markwade@venthaven.com
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