Puppet Show – The Diabolical Doctor Vysarius and his Theatre of the Damned (2015)
ABOUT
The Diabolical Doctor Vysarius and his Theatre of the Damned was performed at SUNY Purchase’s Zine Feast on May 3rd, 2015, at the Stood. The original radio drama was adapted into a live, costumed reading and puppet show.
CAST
- Matthew DeCostanza . . . Doctor Oswalt Karll Leippoldt
- Margaret Powers . . . Doctor Vallentin Vysarius
- Michael Guardiola . . . Maximilian II, House of Fumfenhauer
- Troy Schipdam . . . Lord Porkeo
- Steven Glavey . . . The Cardinal / The Valet
- Costume Designer . . . Margaret Powers and Steven Glavey
- Puppets, Makeup, and Special Effects . . . Margaret Powers
Note by Troy Schipdam
The Doctor Vysarius live show was actually our second live staging of Spectral Citadel radio plays. The first one occurred a year prior. That performance reminded me that I had developed a rather strong case of stage fright. This time however, my anxiety on stage was curtailed by wearing full clown makeup, tights, and by being tasked with playing a guitar in front of an audience for the first time in my life. Of course, I would be singing about tipping "the tipsy-woo" in the one and only Doodle-Doo Song, and picking some yellow posies to, well, come in handy for giving Onan's due in My Sue. Lord Porkeo is a character very emblematic of The Spectral Citadel pantheon, and of Steven's wit, imagination, and humor. I have never considered myself much of an actor, but contributing to the story that eventually developed into the Doctor Vysarius opera were some of the most formative and fun art projects of my life. My stage fright has since considerably dulled, the role of Lord Porkeo has continued to live a life of its own, and we, The Spectral Citadel Spooks, remain very dear and close friends today.
The Spectral Citadel started as a horror-comedy radio drama anthology show on SUNY Purchase's student radio (WPSR), where I was a DJ and staff member. I first heard of the show when reading through pitches with my colleague at the station, Matthew Decostanza (Doctor Leopold above), who agreed that this was exactly the kind of experiment we were interested in producing. The Spectral Citadel was scheduled to air during the last live slot on Friday nights, 11pm-12am. That time slot--which would 100% of the time extend well beyond one hour--quickly became the beginning of the best nights of my time at college.
At first, my role was more of a technical one--setting up the studio for a live show and, more importantly, creating a recording that could be meticulously edited in post. After a few shows, the cast invited me in as a guest to voice a minor character. I don't remember who the character was or what voice I gave them, but I remember Steven and Meg (The Cardinal and The Valet above, respectively) responding to my voice with wide eyes and laughter that required strength to subdue on air. From then on, I was invited to play larger and larger roles, organically becoming part of the show's original quartet. I am glad to see that our serendipitous collaboration has blossomed into the Vysarius of today, continuing to bring people together through the stygian hallows of The Spectral Citadel.
