Spring We invite you to join us on our Bread and Puppet farm for a week of song, dance, ritual, shared meals, and time spent in the wild, muddy, and hopeful spring fields and woods.
WHEN: Tuesday April 7-Sunday April 12 (6 days). Campers are expected to be able to participate for the full time.
WHERE: Bread and Puppet Farm, Glover, Vermont, USA
WHAT: A six day workshop. Songs, dance, silence, folk magic, walking, snow, mud, sourdough, fires, crafts, will all be elements of our daily life and the final participatory ritual. We will spend most of our time outside, weather permitting. The logistics and physical labour of maintaining our temporary community and of putting on a public event will be part of this apprenticeship! This includes everything from cooking meals, to washing dishes, chopping and stacking wood, cleaning outhouses, putting up parking signs, shoveling snow and more.
WHO: Puppeteers, students, carpenters, office workers, singers, dancers, folklorists, painters, farmers, witches, school teachers, gardeners, car mechanics, makers and dreamers of all kinds are invited to work with us! We are committed to making our workshop and ritual a space for people of all ages, ethnicities, gender identities, nationalities and backgrounds. Not having theater experience should not deter you from applying No apprentices under the age of 18 without a parent. Limited to 15 participants. Applications due ASAP; rolling admission.
COST: sliding scale $450-900
HOW to apply: Fill out this registration form https://forms.gle/BYWJ4532dtsdQw57A
We are not online every day, but will get back to you within a few days.. Once you have been accepted, please pay a $200 fee to hold your spot, the remaining balance will be due on March 15.
MORE
April is a busy time in the folk calendar. The spring winds, running sap, migrating birds, dangerous and generous spirit of the spring waters, remembrance of the dead and the ancestors— each call for moments of observation and ceremony. In this workshop, we will create a participatory ritual to banish everything bad and welcome in the spring.
We’ll use old folk traditions and rituals from Eastern Europe as our starting point. We’ll learn simple songs from Russia, Ukraine, Georgia, and Lithuania and sing them together as part of our meetings. Drawing from ancient rites of sun worship and land blessing, we will enact a ritual of beauty and hope in defiance of the cold and bloodthirsty logic of the ruling class and the bleakness of the current moment.
Spring Workshop Schedule: (subject to change)
Monday 4/7 Arrival, afternoon/evening
Tuesday 4/8– Friday 4/11: Create, sing, dance, rehearse, be in ceremony.
4/12: 12 noon Performance/Ritual in the Bread and Puppet field. 3-7 pm clean up. 7 pm bye bye dinner.
4/13: Clean up and Depart
Daily Schedule: 9-5, with a break for lunch.
Songs: We will start and end each day with songs. Some of the traditions we will draw from:
*Sutartines, an incredibly beautiful pre-Christian tradition of group singing from Lithuania, with the potential to lead to elevated states of consciousness by connecting us with each other and the melodies and dissonance, rhythms and images of nature. *Traditional calling in the spring songs from Russia, Ukraine, and the Baltics *Shape Note hymns, made up songs, and more
Housing: Shared bedrooms in our farmhouse and a nearby house. Early April is often cold and our farmhouse is cold and drafty! If you need privacy or more comfortable accommodations, we recommend Labour of Love B&B, just 2 miles down the road. Participants who provide their own housing get $150 off of tuition.
Meals: Simple, mostly vegetarian meals provided. We will take turns cooking and cleaning.
PAYMENT:
The cost of the apprenticeship is $675. We are offering a sliding scale— if you cannot afford the full tuition you may pay the reduced fee of $450. And, if you can afford it, you can pay forward with a fee of $900. There is an initial, nonrefundable $200 deposit to hold your spot, payable once you have received a confirmation/acceptance email.
The remaining $475 is due on March 15. This amount is nonrefundable, except in cases where we cancel or that we deem refundable. (ie, if you get sick)
$675. This price covers our costs of food, housing, staff, and overhead.
$450. Reduced fee: for those who cannot afford the full price.
$900. Pay it forward: this price will enable us to cover tuition for those who can’t afford it., and to continue holding our rituals at Bread and Puppet. We thank you!
- 1 or 2 partial work trade spots available for an experienced cook. To apply, send an email with “SPRING COOK” in the subject line to mariabreadnpuppet at gmail dot com. Do you have experience cooking vegetarian meals for 20? As a cook, you will miss out on several hours a day of singing & ritual making– are you ok with this? Must be punctual and willing to work in a small somewhat chaotic kitchen.
Thanks for your interest, please get in touch with any questions. mariabreadnpuppet at gmail.com
Bread and Salt 