On Sunday, April 23, at 12:30pm, I went to see The Adventures of Alvin Sputnik: Deep Sea Explorer in the heart of Calgary: VertigoTheatre. In other words, I went to see a masterpiece of animation, puppetry, acting and ukulele playing. Yes, you heard me, ukulele playing.
The play ran for about fifty minutes, and it was truly a work of art. It was set years ahead of our time, when the oceans have all risen and one man: Alvin Sputnik, had to save all humanity and find his wife’s soul. Not only was it incredible, TAAS (The Adventures of Alvin Sputnik) had a strong message to it.
The puppet, Alvin Sputnik, was made out of a buoy (for the head) and the puppeteer’s free hand acted as its legs and arms, like so:
Could there be anything cuter? Anyways, as I was saying, I absolutely loved the show and would definitely recommend it to anyone who wants to see a small deep-sea diver go through a bitter-sweet adventure.
They have spent trillions of dollars on a space program only to find out that we are alone in this world.
One of the most touching scenes, in my opinion, was when Alvin started to play with a plastic bag. This is a great example of how the play can incorporate a pretty decent amount of pain and grief into the plot in a fun and light-hearted way that makes TAAS suitable for all ages.
Even though the show has left Calgary, I highly recommend going to see this wonderful little play or visit Vertigo Theatre to attend another great show. Be sure to check out Vertigo Theatre’s 2017-18 season because I’m sure they will bring more shows just like TAAS.