DRAMA OF WORKS
A B O U T
"At the end of the night of time all things return to my nature; and when the new day of time begins I bring them again into light. Thus through my nature I bring forth all creation, and this rolls round in the circles of time. But I am not bound by this vast work of creation. I am and I watch the drama of works." — Bhagavad Gita
“One of the companies at the center of [the new puppetry renaissance] is Drama of Works, a Brooklyn-based collective led by Artistic Director Gretchen Van Lente…While many contemporary companies inspire ‘oohs’ and ‘ahhs’ from their audience, the focus is sometimes so exclusively on craft that the end result feels a little shallow. I have often left productions impressed by technique but wishing technique had been applied to something with more narrative and thematic depth. Drama of Works, however, consistently produces work that functions and satisfies on multiple levels.” – Frank Episale, Performing Arts Journal
Drama of Works, “New York’s tightly organized satirists” (In Pittsburgh), is known for its innovative works “high on fantastic production value” (Village Voice) that cross the line between actors and puppeteers. Led by Artistic Director Gretchen Van Lente (former board president of UNIMA-USA), Drama of Works (DOW) has taken its unique brand of theater to venues as diverse as New York’s P.S. 122, the International Festival of Children’s Theatre in Subotica, Serbia, and to the stages of Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island and has gained members, fans and supporters along the way.
Drama of Works has performed abroad at seven international festivals to date, crossing the globe from Canada to Turkey. DOW’s original production, WARRIOR, received a special award for Best Original Adaptation and was nominated for Best Original Creation and Best Actor (Amy Carrigan) at the World Festival in Prague. In their second year at this festival, DOW took home the prize for Best Original Performance for another original work titled, WARHOL™.
PUNCH
Drama of Works runs the acclaimed cabaret series, PUNCH. With general, themed "Kamikaze" and film nights - you can get all your short puppet needs from PUNCH!
PUPPET SCHOOL
Puppet School is a place where adults can come to play and learn about all different kinds of puppet construction, performance and everything in between... Contact us to get on the mailing list!
TRAVEL
Drama of Works has traveled to Istanbul, Prague (pictured), Toronto, Serbia, and all over the Northeast United States. If you'd like us to tour to your festival or theater, please let us know!
FOR HIRE
We have worked for NOKIA (shadow film pictured on giant screen at Heathrow Airport), PLUG Independent Music Awards and numerous theaters. Have a cool puppet thing you need done? Let us know!
SHOWS
Drama of Works' productions have won multiple awards. They are appropriate for children and adults and feature a wide range of puppet styles and techniques.