In South Philly, Puppets Can Sing

Editor's Note: Phillyist has seen and enjoyed Puppet Karaoke before, but we thought it was time to revisit and reiterate. Also, you know how we love a good post about faux penises...

You haven't lived until you've seen a puppet named Fruitwa sing "Touch me in the morning."

Seriously.

And things really aren't right until you've chair-danced while a paper bag puppet resembling Vincent Price belts out "Timewarp."

We saw all of that and more on Saturday night, when the Puppet Karaoke Universe Show took over Connie's Ric-Rac Comedy Theatre in the Italian Market.

What exactly is puppet karaoke? Exactly what it sounds like. Performers hidden by a black curtain sing karaoke while making puppets and mouth the words to the songs. Sound amusing? That's because it is.

Regular performers, such as Mitzil P, Kissel the Raccoon, and the Boxy Twins have running story lines and full-on personas. Mitzil P, a puppet that hails from Magic Fairy Land, was mourning the loss of her pet dandelion, so she sang "Daniel" by Elton John. The Boxy Twins, appropriately named because they're made out of copy paper boxes, bantered with the MC, talking trash and telling him to "Recognize!" in a high-pitched voice a la Towelie from "South Park." The twins sang "Bad Bad Leroy Brown."

Between acts, acoustic duo The Discount Heroes kept the audience entertained, with a noteworthy performance of "The Weight" by The Band.

In addition to the regulars, amateur puppeteers perform as well. The best of the night was first-timer Baron von Pecker, the self-described uncircumcised "penis from Berlin." The flesh colored hand puppet, who'd modeled his curly mustache after that of Salvador Dali's member, sang a rousing rendition of "Girl from Ipanema." In a German accent. We knew we'd gotten our $10 worth as we sat mesmerized by hand-puppet junk singing a bossa nova standard.

The event is BYOB. So get liquored up and make a trip to the emergency puppet station, where amateurs can make their own puppets right on the spot. Next up: Puppet Karaoke Xtreme Punk Makeover. Check the site for scheduling information.

Image courtesy of Puppet Karaoke Universe Show.