Video from the opening event – young people laugh while making the puppet dance. One person moves the legs and the other moves the arms – the uncoordinated dance moves can be very original and fun. (Live music by the awesome band Loki Rhythm)

This project was inspired by the marionette puppets I loved to watch as a child. I have fond memories of a Mexican man who sold marionettes along a road between Oxnard and Santa Barbara, California. Standing in the shade of tall eucalyptus trees he held a number of them on each arm and could magically make them come to life. During one of the times we stopped to see his puppets, my parents purchased one for me. This little marionette stayed with my parents up until last year when he finally came back to me. He now lives in my living room and still brings me that happy feeling from my childhood.

I designed and built this interactive sculpture called Esqueleto Danzante – Dancing Skeleton – from the cabinet down to the fingers on the little skeleton puppet. The hardest part was figuring out the overhead rigging and manipulation of his limbs. After some trial and error he came to life with one person working his legs and another working his arms. I had my family play with him and called my neighbors over with their kids to see if it would function property… and we all had a good laugh which meant I was on the right path.