Troggg and Marina met Socky the Sock Puppet during an Instagram Live test.
Author: Brett Hansen
Dance Like A Unicorn on Spotify
Our debut single “Dance Like A Unicorn” is now on Spotify! Our characters Marina (blue) and Scrambles (red) are the singers. Challenge: Can we get 1000 individual listens (ie. 1000 different phones) in its first week?
The single will not only be available on Spotify, but also on YouTube, Google Play, iTunes/Apple Music, and various other music streaming services. You can even hear a snippet of the track on TikTok, and people have already started using it on their little TikTok videos.
The other place where you can download Dance Like A Unicorn is BandCamp. The link is here: https://larrikinpuppets.bandcamp.com/track/dance-like-a-unicorn?fbclid=IwAR28k3Piz0oRXH1SToDjh3WCbNIFnSLUYYCaAcPfeOzYgdXBinlJeZm-mzE
At BandCamp you can choose to download it for $1 or more if you wish.
We’re hoping to get more than 1000 listens to Dance Like A Unicorn on Spotify so that the app starts tracking new listens. When a track has under 1000 listens, it is simply listed as “< 1000”. We would like to start seeing numbers beyond 1000.
Thanks for your support! And keep an eye out for more of our songs on Spotify, BandCamp and many other music streaming services!
Larrikin Puppets on TikTok
You can find all kinds of funny, silly little skits by Larrikin Puppets on TikTok, including our very own song, “Dance Like A Unicorn”.
AUDITION CALL: Hijabi Girl: A Musical Puppet Show
AUDITION CALL: ATTN MUSICAL THEATRE KIDS!!!!!
Larrikin Puppets is seeking four children aged between 9-12 who can act and sing to provide voice acting and broadway musical style singing for a recording studio project. The auditions and recordings will take place in Brisbane. This is for a voice cast recording for ‘Hijabi Girl: A Musical Puppet Show’ and not for a live stage performance by the children. Hijabi Girl is a children’s book for ages 7-9 that Larrikin Puppets will transform into a musical theatre performance featuring puppets. We are seeking four different children – three girls and one boy. Their spoken voices and sung vocals will be used as character voices for the puppets in the upcoming touring show. We encourage children from Turkish and Vietnamese backgrounds to apply, as two of the puppet characters have these backgrounds. We do have a budget to pay, but it is only very small. Voice cast will be credited wherever possible. Super fun opportunity to work alongside puppetry arts professionals. Please send expressions of interest to elissa@larrikinpuppets.com.au
Blue Card holders:
Elissa Jenkins – 690261/3
Brett Hansen – 1161011/3
2019 Year in Review: Larrikin Puppets Bigger and Better
Just when it felt like things couldn’t get any bigger and better for Larrikin Puppets, along came 2019. In our seventh year we experienced more growth, clients further and wider and big deal experiences beyond our wildest dreams.
FESTIVALS AND PUBLIC EVENTS
This year we traveled down to Kyogle in NSW for the Fairymount Festival, Coffs Harbour in NSW for the Special Children’s Christmas Party and up to Rockhampton in Central QLD for the Festival of the Bazaar.
We performed a full day of shows at the Cooroy Fusion Festival, and three full days of performances at the Pine Rivers Show.
We travelled past Toowoomba for the Jacaranda Day Festival in Goombungee, and performed our first theme park shows at Aussie World as part of the Kids FUNderland Children’s Festival.
It was great to be part of Kids Collective this year at South Bank and Roma Street Parklands, the 2019 South Indian Festival, and two days at the Laidley Heritage Weekend. We performed at two mid week festivals designed especially for toddlers this year – The Under 5’s Day By the Sea at Deception Bay, and Redcliffe Teddy Bear’s Picnic at Woody Point where we launched our ocean-themed puppet show, “Marina’s Marine Adventure”.
We also had a lot of fun this year performing for children and families at pubs, clubs and RSLs for various family fun days and school holiday events. We even performed a Christmas show this year at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre in Boondall!
Our biggest festival experience this year was at the Brisbane Festival – performing puppetry on stage at The Tivoli with legendary rock/fusion band Regurgitator as part of their new children’s act, “Regurgitator’s Pogogo Show”. Working with the members and management of Regurgitator was amazing for us. We also worked on one of their music videos. More on that below.
FILM & TV
In addition to performing on stage with Regurgitator’s Pogogo Show, we also puppeteered the characters in their music video for “Best Friends Forever”, which screens on ABC Kids. These same sock puppet characters were the ones we performed on stage with the band.
The other big television project we worked on was a TV pilot filmed in Sydney with a celebrity. The show is currently being pitched to networks in Australia and the USA.
And just this week we have been approached by a major production company for some potentially life changing TV work in the new year. We are contractually forbidden to disclose any more than this, but watch this space!
CHILDCARE CENTRES AND SCHOOLS
We performed a very large number of childcare centre puppet shows this year, with most centres opting to book our bigger and better childcare show with both performers. Elissa has also served as story teller during our “Story Time with Larrikin Puppets” performances.
The national Design and Technologies Curriculum, Drama, English and Book Week events kept us very busy visiting lots of primary schools all over Queensland for puppet shows, puppetry performance workshops and our newly launched sock puppet making craft workshop.
LIBRARIES
We were back in Rockhampton this year to visit all of the libraries in the region – this time to run our puppetry performance workshop. We also presented our Storytime with Larrikin Puppets show at the Fraser Coast Libraries and Logan Hyperdome Library. Our premium sock puppet making craft workshop (which includes a puppet show, a performance workshop and the construction of your very own detailed sock puppet) was presented at Lockyer Valley Libraries and was a big hit with all ages in the Gatton and Laidley communities.
HAMILTON ISLAND
In the June/July school holidays we were flown to beautiful Hamilton Island for a series of puppet shows and puppetry performance workshops for tourists visiting the Whitsunday island. While most of 2019 has been dry and hot, most of the rain we saw this year occurred on the usually sunny Hamilton Island during that time – so our puppets made for great indoor entertainment for families unable to take part in water sports and other outdoor activities.
TROGGG THE WEDDING MC
When Larrikin Puppets began seven years ago, the option to book Troggg the blue monster as MC for your wedding reception was always there, but never booked. Over the years Troggg has emceed other events such as film screenings, festivals, annual general meetings and media launches. But in 2019, Troggg hosted the glamorous wedding reception of Thomas and Allison at Events On Oxlade – a lovely venue in New Farm on the banks of the Brisbane River.
HIJABI GIRL: A MUSICAL PUPPET SHOW
Hijabi Girl is a children’s book for ages 7-9 that Larrikin Puppets began transforming into a musical theatre performance for schools featuring puppets. Co-authored by prolific Australian author Hazel Edwards OAM and children’s librarian Ozge Alkan, this fun, musical puppet show will shine a spotlight on much-needed multicultural themes around diversity, identity, anti-bullying and creative problem solving for presentation at schools across Australia in 2020. We ran a successful crowd funding campaign, raising $8,321 to help fund new puppet and set builds and exceeded our crowdfunding goal. Thanks to everyone who contributed! Melbourne-based The Puppet Creation Lab have begun work on the main cast puppet builds, and we began work on scripting and song writing.
ISLAND PUPPETRY WORKSHOP
With so much else on our plate, we didn’t feel up to running our intensive public puppetry performance workshop this year. We really enjoyed the successful 2017 and 2018 events in which participants joined us on Bribie Island from Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Mackay and Brisbane. After we received a request for some private puppetry tuition from professional New Caledonia entertainers Olivia Buna and Eric Chivot, we decided to open the day up to a small, low key gathering in our home so that Olivia and Eric could riff off more than just each other during the workshop. It was a fun and rewarding day for all.
All up it has been another fulfilling year for Larrikin Puppets which went by very fast! 2020 already looks like a bigger year for us again with several projects to be launched, including a children’s album of songs, and more travel in store.
Have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
From Brett and Elissa.
2019 Christmas Entertainment with Larrikin Puppets
Larrikin Puppets will be out in the community again providing exciting and colourful Christmas entertainment this year.
So far we have a wonderful roster of puppet show performances booked at schools, childcare centres, vacation care programs and a corporate Christmas party at a Brisbane law firm.
Interestingly, we have not yet been invited to perform at public events this year such as community Christmas carols or shopping centre Santa arrival celebrations. If you would like Larrikin Puppets at your shopping centre, festival or Christmas carols event, we would love to hear from you.
Booked Christmas Puppet Shows – 2019
- Tuesday 19 November – St Peter’s Catholic Primary School, Caboolture
- Sunday 24 November – Special Children’s Christmas Party, Coffs Harbour Showgrounds (private event)
- Monday 2 December – C&K Ashgrove West Preschool & Kindergarten Centre
- Monday 2 December – Green Leaves Early Learning, Reedy Creek
- Tuesday 3 December – Wagner Road Childcare and Kindergarten, Clayfield
- Thursday 5 December – Wagner Road Childcare and Kindergarten, Clayfield
- Thursday 5 December – Cooper Grace Ward Lawyers Kids’ Christmas Party, Brisbane
- Friday 6 December – C&K Ashgrove West Preschool & Kindergarten Centre
- Friday 6 December – Kidz Magic, Heathwood
- Tuesday 10 December – GCIT Children’s Centre, Ashmore
- Wednesday 11 December – Crayons Early Learning Centre, Hatton Vale
- Thursday 12 December – C&K Beachmere Community Kindergarten
- Monday 16 December – Sunkids Children’s Centre, Oxley
- Tuesday 17 December – Gumnut House OSHC at Greenbank State School
The audience always has a fantastic time at these puppet shows. Christmas entertainment is something we take seriously, and have serious fun doing as well.
Larrikin Puppets continued to thrive in 2019 with puppet shows and workshops across South East Queensland, Central Queensland and Northern New South Wales.
We recently performed a series of school holiday puppet shows on Hamilton Island and in Rockhampton. We were also a feature act at the Pine Rivers Show, performing three puppet shows a day across the three-day event.
For television, we performed the puppetry in a music video for Regurgitator’s Pogogo Show (ABC Kids), and worked on a TV pilot in Sydney for a puppet cooking show starring Chef Jason Roberts (Studio Ten / Ready, Steady Cook).
Previous television appearances have included Totally Wild (Network Ten) and The Bureau of Magical Things (Network Ten / Jonathan M. Shiff Productions).
We present colourful and exciting Christmas entertainment with our comedy-variety Christmas puppet show for all ages, featuring zany Muppet-style characters performing songs, skits, jokes and live audience interaction.
Watch The Reindeer Pokey
These shows encourage audiences to dance, sing and play along. Featuring two professional puppeteers, the show has become a family favourite at many Christmas events over the years.
See Our Public Shows In Action
We have trained professionally in the United States with Jim Henson puppeteers from Sesame Street and The Muppets.
We hold current Blue Cards and Public Liability Insurance.
Planning a Christmas event?
Enquire now about availability for your school, childcare centre, shopping centre or community event.
Marina | Larrikin Puppets
Sunday, 11 August 2019: It’s been 2 years since we’ve had Marina. Happy Birthday Marina! She’s still actually 3 but thinks she’s 5. It’s all very confusing …
www.larrikinpuppets.com.au
Larrikin Puppets at Kids Academy – Hope Island | Child Care Puppet Show
Larrikin Puppets are performing two puppet shows for the children at Kids Academy – Hope Island on Wednesday, 24 July 2019.
The first show will be at 10am for the 3–5 age group.
The second show will start at 10:45am for the 0–3 age group.
Larrikin Puppets perform a fun and exciting childcare puppet show that brings laughs to children and educators alike
Brett Hansen and Elissa Jenkins, along with their gaggle of funny, friendly puppet characters, provide high-quality, colourful entertainment for childcare centres, day care, playgroups and kindergartens across Brisbane, the Sunshine Coast, the Gold Coast and beyond.
To discuss availability and booking details for your childcare centre, please complete our
Booking Enquiry Form.
Please note: Shows with themed or educational content are performed by two puppeteers.
Description
We present a colourful and engaging puppet show for childcare centres, featuring zany Muppet-style characters performing age-appropriate songs, skits, jokes, games and live interaction with the audience.
The puppets encourage children to dance, sing and play along, supporting creative play for the 0–5 age group.
The performance concludes with a short demonstration showing how the puppets work and how they are performed.
Total duration: 45 minutes
Educational themes such as sharing, kindness, exercise, caring for the environment and healthy eating can be requested when completing the booking enquiry form.
In most cases, centres book our regular fun and energetic childcare puppet show celebrating creativity and play.
On the day
Puppeteers arrive approximately one hour before the performance start time to set up the puppet theatre, sound equipment, props and puppets.
The show is followed by a short behind-the-scenes demonstration explaining how the puppets are operated.
After the performance, all equipment is packed down efficiently.
What’s Included
- 30-minute puppet show featuring songs, games, jokes and audience interaction
- Short “How the puppets work” demonstration
- All equipment including puppet theatre, props, puppets and sound system
- Travel, set-up and pack-down
- Professional rehearsal and preparation time
- High-quality characters and puppetry
Professional Development and Formal Training
Brett and Elissa have completed three months of professional development in the USA, including advanced training with Jim Henson puppeteers from The Muppets and Sesame Street.
Blue Card and Insurance
Brett’s Blue Card number is 1161011/3 and Elissa’s is 690261/3.
We hold current public liability
Larrikin Puppets in Regurgitator’s Pogogo Show Music Video
Puppeteers Brett Hansen and Elissa Jenkins from Larrikin Puppets are delighted and honoured to be working on a music video, performing puppet versions of Regurgitator’s Pogogo Show band members and characters: Ben Ely, Quan Yeomans, Pete Kostic, the effervescent Koko direct from Planet Rainbow, Ghost Cat and Mr. Butt.
You can find out all about Regurgitator’s Pogogo Show at their official website.
Their debut album – The Really Really Really Really Boring Album (released through ABC Music) – is available to order or download from a number of different platforms listed here.
This is not the first time Larrikin Puppets have performed in a music video. Back in 2017, Triple J Unearthed High Indigenous Initiative Winner Tia Gostelow released a single called, “That’s What You Get”, which featured puppetry by Brett and Elissa in the video.
While the bulk of puppetry work Larrikin Puppets do is live performances, film and television work is always special for Brett and Elissa. Australia doesn’t have as many opportunities for puppeteers on television anymore. Gone are the days of Agro, Ozzie Ostrich, The Channel Niners, C’mon Kids, Shirl’s Neighbourhood, Lift Off, The Ferals, Mr. Squiggle and countless TV commercials featuring zany puppet characters made of felt and fur.
Opportunities like this are rare and very much appreciated by Larrikin Puppets. Brett Hansen has received advanced, formal training in the USA by Jim Henson puppeteers from Sesame Street and The Muppets – with specific focus on Henson style monitor puppetry for film and TV. Elissa Jenkins too has received some training in the USA at NYC’s The Puppet Kitchen.
Larrikin Puppets also provide puppetry for short films, TV shows and commercials. Our blue monster star Troggg will appear in any production, or Brett Hansen can puppeteer characters that you have created.
If you have a cast of performers without puppetry experience, Brett can provide training and supervision on set.
We have received formal film and TV monitor puppetry training in the USA under Jim Henson puppeteers from The Muppets and Sesame Street.
Examples of our Film and TV puppetry (both as performer and trainer/supervisor):
Totally Wild – Long running kids’ TV series on Network Ten, Channel Eleven and TenPlay. In an episode filmed in January 2018 (aired in March 2018), Brooke Marsden interviews Brett Hansen about puppets, and uses Frazzamatazz to learn puppetry techniques. Brett Hansen and Elissa Jenkins perform Troggg, Marina, Flossy and Frizzby in the segment:
The Bureau of Magical Things – Kids’ fantasy-drama TV series on Network Ten and Channel Eleven produced by Jonathan M. Shiff, and starring Kimie Tsukakoshi, Jamie Carter, Elizabeth Cullen, Julian Cullen, Mia Milnes, Rainbow Wedell, Melanie Zanetti, Nicholas Bell, Christopher Sommers and Steve Nation. Brett Hansen was a puppeteer in Episode 11 – performing a magical pogo stick. Below are Brett’s scenes. Brett’s in the dumpster wrestling with Kyra (played by Kimie Tsukakoshi), and he has been digitally removed from scenes where the stick is bouncing around. The movement is all puppetry rather than CGI. There were three versions of the pogo stick. Two of them were puppets with green rigging attached for Brett to manipulate it. The third had no rigging, and was used in close ups where Brett peeked it out from behind a tree, made it look both ways, jiggle and fall down.
Juiced TV – Kids’ TV series created by Juiced Enterprises. Produced by Pip Russell, in partnership with Children’s Hospital Foundation. Brett Hansen puppeteered Troggg throughout the show as host, and was interviewed about puppetry during the show’s final segment:
Tia Gostelow: That’s What You Get – Music video produced by Emma Giddins, and directed by Branden Wittchen & Luke Angelo-Roberts at Why Not? Films. Larrikin Puppets’ Brett Hansen and Elissa Jenkins puppeteered Rick and Louisa – two puppets built for the project by Scott Richards at Maxx Puppets. As well as Tia Gostelow and the puppets, the video also stars actor Ryan Hance:
5 for 35 – Short film written and produced by Richard Bell. Co-Produced by Josh Milani. Directed by Brad Lindenmayer. Brett Hansen puppeteered Lil Gary Foley Psychiatrist, Lil Death (Moss) and others throughout the film. Screened in 2015/2016 at the 8th Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art (APT8) – Queensland Art Gallery/Gallery of Modern Art. 
Kev – Short film written by Branden J Wittchen, directed Luke Angelo-Roberts & Branden J Wittchen, and produced by Emma Giddins of Why Not? Films. Brett Hansen performed the puppetry for two characters in the film – Kev (a bigoted Aussie orange monster played by Frizzby) and a bumbling puppet Police officer who has his priorities all wrong: 
Heart of a Thousand Souls – Short film written and directed by Luke Walker, and produced by Jessica Magro. Along with Troggg (who has a minor role), the film stars Tahlia Jade, Ben Taylor, Charnstar Anderson, Kaushik Das, Cory Simpson and Rachel Partridge. Brett Hansen puppeteered Troggg in a few scenes:
http://vimeo.com/98850096
Vox Poppin’ – Troggg’s street interviews video by Greg Kelly at Creative Clones:
Larrikin Puppets Official Video – Larrikin Puppets filmed by Gabor Kukucska from InspireFlix:
The Puppeteer – Larrikin Puppets documentary by Gabor Kukucska from InspireFlix:
https://inspireflix.com/docos/the-puppeteer/
The Late Nite Show – TV show on 31 Digital, created by Scott Black. Troggg appeared as a guest a few times:
Showreel – TV show on 31 Digital, written by Matt Clayton, Clare Abbotts, Dani Bachinger, John Ryan, Catherine Tucker, Kristy Walker, and produced by Dan Randall. Production coordinator Brooke Matthews. Interview with Brett Hansen and Troggg:
CLUCK! Episode 1: The Cockblock of the Century – Web Series written by Lucy Nicklan, produced by Stephanie Walsh, and directed by Vincent Chen. Brett Hansen provided puppetry training, assistance and supervision on set for the two puppet characters (played by Jake Ashton and Kitty Gatling), puppeteered the main character in one scene, and puppeteered a tie being pulled into a paper shredder:
CLUCK! Episode 2: Fowl Behavior – Web Series written by Lucy Nicklan, produced by Stephanie Walsh, and directed by Vincent Chen. Brett Hansen provided puppetry training, assistance and supervision on set for the two puppet characters (played by Jake Ashton and Kitty Gatling), puppeteered the main character in one scene, and puppeteered a tie being pulled into a paper shredder:
CLUCK! Episode 3: Poultry in Motion – Web Series written by Lucy Nicklan, produced by Stephanie Walsh, and directed by Vincent Chen. Brett Hansen provided puppetry training, assistance and supervision on set for the two puppet characters (played by Jake Ashton and Kitty Gatling), puppeteered the main character in one scene, and puppeteered a tie being pulled into a paper shredder:
CLUCK! Behind The Scenes: The Puppets – Footage of Brett Hansen and Jake Ashton working with the puppets made by Lierre Beutel and Gemma Keliher:
Larrikin Puppets at Tarragindi Child Care & Development
We are delighted to be performing our puppet show again for the children at Tarragindi Child Care & Development on Wednesday, 17 July 2019.
We have fond memories of last year’s visit and the enthusiastic welcome from the children as we arrived.
Larrikin Puppets present a professional, engaging childcare puppet show
Larrikin Puppets is performed by Brett Hansen and Elissa Jenkins, working together as a professional two-puppeteer team.
Our colourful cast of characters provides high-quality entertainment for childcare centres, early learning services, kindergartens and playgroups across Brisbane, Ipswich, the Sunshine Coast and the Gold Coast.
All childcare shows are presented by both puppeteers to ensure strong audience interaction, character variety, and a dynamic performance experience.
For availability and booking enquiries, please complete our
Booking Enquiry Form.
Description
We present a colourful and engaging puppet show designed specifically for childcare centres.
The performance features lively Muppet-style characters performing age-appropriate songs, skits, jokes, games and interactive audience participation.
Creative play is central to the experience for children aged 0–5.
The show concludes with a short “How the puppets work” demonstration.
Total duration: Approximately 45 minutes.
Educational themes such as kindness, sharing, exercise, caring for the environment and healthy eating can be incorporated upon request.
Story Time Option
We also offer Story Time with Larrikin Puppets,
where a children’s book by an Australian author is brought to life with puppet interaction.
On the Day
The puppeteers arrive approximately one hour before the scheduled start time to set up the puppet theatre, sound equipment, props and characters.
After the performance and demonstration, we pack down efficiently with minimal disruption to your centre’s routine.
Inclusions
- 30-minute interactive puppet show
- “How the puppets work” demonstration
- Professional puppet theatre, props and sound system
- Travel, set-up and pack-down time
- Rehearsal and preparation time
- High-quality characters and professional puppetry
Professional Development
Brett and Elissa have completed three months of professional development in the USA, including advanced training with Jim Henson puppeteers from The Muppets and Sesame Street.
Blue Card and Insurance
Brett holds Blue Card number 1161011/3 and Elissa holds Blue Card number 690261/3.
We carry full public liability insurance through Duck For Cover Entertainers Insurance.
Sunkids at Burleigh said, “We had Larrikin Puppets attend our childcare centre and absolutely loved it! The children were laughing and engaged the entire time.”
Beaucare in Beaudesert said, “An absolutely fantastic puppet show! Very professional, engaging and educational.”
Larrikin Puppets also perform at public events hosted by childcare centres, including open days and community celebrations.
