Bong Bong Bong against the Walls, Ting Ting Ting in our Heads October 14, 2010

October 14 thru October 31, 2010
La MaMa E.T.C. (First Floor Theatre)
74 East 4th St, Manhattan
Presented by La MaMa E.T.C. as the opening production of the La MaMa Puppet Series
Thursdays through Saturday at 8:00 PM, Sundays at 2:30 PM; $18 general admission.
Box office (212) 475-7710, www.lamama.org
Running time 60 minutes.

Italy's Dario D'Ambrosi, a radical innovator of the theater and founder of the movement called Teatro Patologico (Pathological Theater), will stage a tale about the genius and love of mad children, told with a cast of five. There will be set and life-sized puppets designed by Italian stage designer Aurora Buzzetti. The play is the opening production of La MaMa Puppet Series, a festival of puppet theater from all over the world. Its world debut will be October 14 in La MaMa's First Floor Theater, where it will run through October 31. Performances will be Thursdays through Saturdays at 8:00 PM and Sundays at 2:30 PM.

"Bong Bong Bong against the Walls, Ting Ting Ting in our Heads" is the kind of play that could only be written from the experience of Dario D’Ambrosi, who for over 30 years has worked with mentally disabled people in Italy. The piece is a theatrical portrait of mentally ill children, whose thoughts are cloudy but whose souls are clear, who are bespattered with pain but whose dignity shines. In fairy tale style, it dramatizes how their imaginations are limitless and how they flourish when they are loved. The story is told as a dreamy fantasy, with live music, singing, dance and puppets. Set and Object/Puppet design are by Aurora Buzzetti (Italy). Buzetti developed the concept of the puppets in collaboration with mentally-ill actors and theater artists of Dario D'Ambrosi's newly-established Teatro Patologico (Pathological Theatre) in Rome, based significantly on their ideas and drawings.

Official Website: http://lamama.org