STUFFED AND UNSTRUNG @ Henson Alternative (SLC: Apr 4)

“It’s nearly impossible to do anything but laugh. Grade: A”  - Entertainment Weekly

IT’S TWO SHOWS IN ONE…AND IT’S NEVER THE SAME SHOW TWICE!

A NIGHT OF MAJOR LAUGHS, NOT FOR MINORS

HENSON ALTERNATIVE’S

STUFFED AND UNSTRUNG (Uncensored)

A WestBeth Entertainment and Henson Alternative production

Kingsbury Hall
April 4 at 7:30PM

Created by Brian Henson and Patrick Bristow

Featuring the Miskreant Puppets

STUFFED AND UNSTRUNG (Uncensored) is a live uncensored show that lets loose the perilous and provocative elements ofcomedic improvisation on stage with a bunch of puppets.  Produced by WestBeth Entertainment and Henson Alternative, STUFFED AND UNSTRUNG (Uncensored) is created by award-winning director, producer, and writer Brian Henson and actor and improvisational guru Patrick Bristowand featuresThe Jim Henson Company’s renowned puppeteers. The Miskreant Puppets, as Henson Alternative has dubbed them, are the stars of the show; Patrick Bristow serves as host, and Musical Director is Willie Etra.

This one-of-a-kind comedy made for grown-ups is playing at Kingsbury Hall on the University of Utah campus on Thursday, April 4 at 7:30 PM.

Tickets ($24.50 -$36.50, $5 for U students with ID) are available at the Kingsbury Hall box office, 801-581-7100 or www.kingtix.com. For more information, please go to www.stuffedandunstrung.com.

STUFFED AND UNSTRUNG (Uncensored) is a wild romp in which the skilled art of puppetry and spontaneous comedy collide. Unpredictable and irreverent, it’s never the same show twice. Expert puppeteers create twisted scenes and songs on the fly, as suggestions from the audience prompt the improvised storylines unfolding on stage. This production delivers “two shows in one” as the hilarious puppet action is projected live on large screens flanking the stage, while the puppeteers race around below – displaying their skills in full view of the audience. With live musical accompaniment and Bristow as host, STUFFED AND UNSTRUNG (Uncensored) boasts a cast of six world-class puppeteers in an uninhibited live puppet performance, as never seen before.

STUFFED AND UNSTRUNG (Uncensored) evolved from Henson’s previous production “Puppet Up! -Uncensored,” which made its debut at the 2006 HBO Comedy Festival (Aspen, CO) and later toured the 2006 Edinburgh Festival (Edinburgh, Scotland), The 2007 Comedy Festival (Las Vegas, NV) and to Australia’s Sydney Big Laugh Comedy Festival and the Melbourne International Comedy Festival (both 2007). The New York engagement of STUFFED AND UNSTRUNG marked the debut of a completely revamped production featuring all new technical wizardry with original music and staging.  The Miskreant Puppets, stars of STUFFED AND UNSTRUNG (Uncensored), appeared alongside Cee-Lo Green and Gwyneth Paltrow at the 2011 Grammy Awards, and will be featured in a full-length film currently in the works.

Brian Henson (Creator, Producer) is Chairman of The Jim Henson Company and an award-winning director, producer, writer and puppeteer. Henson served as Executive Producer on the television projects "Farscape: The Peacekeeper Wars" (which he also directed) and "Jim Henson's Jack and the Beanstalk: The Real Story" (which he also co-wrote and directed). He directed “Battleground,” an Emmy Award-winning episode of the “Nightmares & Dreamscapes” anthology for TBS. Previous television projects that Henson produced include "Farscape," "Gulliver's Travels," "Muppets Tonight," and "Dinosaurs." Henson's film directing credits include “The Muppet Christmas Carol” and “Muppet Treasure Island.”

Most recently, Henson has served as an executive producer of the Emmy-nominated science-readiness pre-school series “Sid the Science Kid,” airing daily on PBS KIDS^®. The series features his groundbreaking work at Jim Henson's Creature Shop, one of Hollywood's preeminent character building, digital and physical visual effects facilities. Henson was part of the team that first created and utilized the Henson Performance Control System, a powerful custom-based interface for puppeteers, which won an Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Scientific and Engineering Award in 1992. He also led the Shop's work with its revolutionary digital puppeteering technology, the 2009 Emmy^® Award-winning Henson Digital Puppetry Studio that is featured in STUFFED AND UNSTRUNG (Uncensored) as well as “Sid the Science Kid” and “Wilson & Ditch: Digging America.”

STUFFED AND UNSTRUNG(Uncensored) Co-Creator/Host Patrick Bristow is best known for his television appearances, most notably as "Peter" on the groundbreaking ABC series "Ellen." Other small screen appearances:  "Curb Your Enthusiasm," "Seinfeld," "Friends," "Mad About You," "Whose Line Is It Anyway?" and others. Film credits include "The Longest Yard,"  "Austin Powers," "So I Married An Ax Murderer," "Twilight of the Golds," and the accidental comedy "Showgirls."   He performed, directed and taught at The Groundling Theatre. Directing credits include the Off Broadway run of "Stuffed and Unstrung," "Hot Dog TV" for The Cartoon Network, numerous theatre productions and the 2004 L.A. Weekly Theatre Awards Show. His improv company, "Improvatorium" produces costumed and improvised short plays in Hollywood. And just like everyone else, he has a first draft of a screenplay somewhere in his house.

Henson Alternative is The Jim Henson Company’s label for content created specifically and exclusively for adult audiences. Previous credits include “Tinseltown” for Logo, “Puppet Up! – Uncensored” for TBS and the upcoming feature film “Happytime Murders” currently in development.