January 13-19, 2005

mixpicks

Hand Me the Mic

by Tami Fertig

Sing-along

Karaoke's long been the sport of the brave. Quiet friends might tag along for support but remain too chicken to take part, only to croon later in the privacy of the shower. It's time these worthy companions, too, embarrassed themselves in public. For a less daunting approach, suggest taking the stage under the guise of a hand-held sock animal at this Wednesday's Puppets Take Manhattan, the first in an anticipated monthly puppet karaoke series at Fishtown's Manhattan Room. Local puppeteer filmmakers Alex Strang and Scott Purcell, known together as Waiting for Cable, provide the hands behind the show's steady cast of characters. Their puppets have already made regular appearances at North Third's weekly FancyPants Cinema and include a robotic British carrot, a Southern belle (pictured), a catlike ex-backup singer and a baby alien who can sing remarkably like Whitney Houston. One puppet is made almost entirely of fruit. Another works as a soda tester. A marked difference from more traditionally serious puppeteering, Waiting for Cable's karaoke show is "completely frivolous," says Strang. "Bizarre storylines and goofy fun stuff." Puppets will tackle every genre and style from disco to Elvis. In addition to karaoke, there'll be a couple of short films and puppet skits. Bring your own handmade puppet ("Make it pretty large, and make it weird," says Strang), pick a song from the playlist and win prizes like old records, toys and comic books. "It's harder than it looks to control a puppet and sing at the same time," warns Strang, though surely a bit of alcohol will loosen even the shyest tongue and hand.

Puppets Take Manhattan, Wed., Jan. 19, 9 p.m., $2, Manhattan Room, 15 W. Girard Ave., 215-739-5577, www.cybergecko.com.