Pioneer Valley Puppet Company

Whether it's a birthday party or a product launch party, I come to the event with the kinds of routines people are going to talk about. You will also find that I have placed a unique twist on many yesteryear classics such as the popular Egg Bag trick and Linking Rings. But let's look at some points of contrast;

The Primary Birthday Package delivers 20-30 minutes worth of show, complete with rabbit (Harvey) and another surprise puppet guest, named "Mark" (we keep him a mystery). We call this "The Magic Birthday" in that (with the kid's help) we create all the trimmings, hats, noise makers, EVERYTHING for the party, including games, balloons and in some cases we can even produce the cake, ice cream and punch... by magic! Another option is the levitation of the special child as part of the festivities.

Yes, we can do limited balloon work for your event; displays and balloon twisting upon request. This IS NOT something we hire out as a stand-alone service however.

The Adult Side of Things lends a more traditional bit of business in which we feature some classic demonstrations in slieght of hand. This includes an amazing adventure with a 6 foot length of rope, my Comedy Ring Act, a few intimate bits involving rings, rope, coins and cards... including one of the most impossible card tricks in the business, something you have to see to believe. A key highlight of this act is my tribute to my mentor through the presentation of The Orange Bowl Mystery -- two large glass bowls are shown empty and from nowhere over 3 lbs of real oranges are produced. This is a very rare effect that leaves folks talking for years. This is roughly 40 minutes + in running time (adjustable according to client needs).

The Family Affair... that's where the puppets come into play... "The Night of the Paranormal Puppets"... a full hour of magic & mentalism that features all three of our puppet comrads; Harvey, Bob & Theo. This is an hour + program with key highlights including; Bob, the Bird that Knows All in a Q&A sequence with guests; Harvey O'Hare and his uncanny skills in Premonition; and Theo the Bear, donning a blindfold (and covering my head with a heavy cloth bag) and then identifying random objects from the audience (just like the Evasons do on Tv).

Yes, I do rely on a power wheelchair for distance, but have limited mobility. For this reason I cannot do long periods of standing or strolling unless in the chair. In addition, Theo the bear, who does most of our meet & greet engagements, is so big that we have to use the chair to safely move him around in a crowd.

Halloween is one of my busiest times of year because I am available to present Seance enactments as well as interactive ghostly encounters. We strongly recommend scheduling such things 6-9 months in advance, especially if you want anything on the weekend of All Hallow's Eve.

I have exceptional resources which means that I can generally accommodate any client's needs when it comes to special exhibits, promotional features, etc. This includes big illusions or even a tailored illusion-filled production, the magical appearance of a new product/exotic animals, and more. The catch is, such specialty items are expensive, requiring special construction as well as added rehearsal time with a cast. We will strive to be competitive when it comes to price, but be forewarned.

Yes, we can help in creating both, a custom puppet as well as puppet-based commercials and video on your behalf. Our sources in this arena are also leaders in automatronic exhibitions.

My interest in Magic & Puppets started way back in 1964 through the CBS Saturday morning line-up featuring "The Magic Land of Alakazam" followed by "Shari Lewis & Lambchop"... over the years I have worked in nearly all aspects of professional magic, even spent time as an assistant to the late Waylon Flowers (Waylon & Madam) as well as technical support to some of the biggest headliners of the industry. While living in Las Vegas I was co-designer and developer with Ken Whitaker & the Creative Illusions team which served clients around the world, most notably the team of Siegfred & Roy, David Copperfield, Lance Burton and many others.

In my early years, I specialized in big illusions, but by the time I was 25 I was working primarily as a Mind Reader and Bizarrist. I'm well known in those arenas and have about a dozen books in print, addressing the art of Mentalism. My illusionist years put me in the role of lead assistant to historian/inventor Kirk Kirkham, which places me in a coveted legacy tracing back to the great Howard Thurston and Will Rock.

As I head to my 65th birthday I find myself coming out of retirement after nearly 20 years doing little other than greeting folks in my hometown of Northampton, with my Bear friend Theo and of course, Harvey O'Hare and Bob from time to time (see our gallery). So we decided to create a brand new Birthday Show as well as adult/family programs featuring my twist on several yesteryear classics.

As a rule, we need little to nothing for our primary programs as they stand, the only "issue" that may exist from time to time centers around transportation and the possibility of needing access to my wheelchair, other than that we need very little in way of room and can even work downstage from the drum kit if you have a band in place.

Birthday Parties require an empty room large enough to contain the planned group and roughly a ten by ten space for us to work... if the client requests the levitation effect, we will need to be approximately 6-8 feet from the front row of the gathered masses.

If we are doing a stage/Parlor styled presentation, I will supply a memory stick with music and other cues. For smaller groups I supply a small self-contained sound system.

Our Seance & other Halloween season programs are staged according to the client's interest; either as a parlor performance or the more traditional gathering around a single table with 12 total guests. Please inquire as to what works best for your situation.

Specialty scenarios will be addressed as they arise.