Luis Ticker

Nordland Visual Theatre describes the production as follows:
"Luis Ticker arrives for his first posting as a border guard at a remote outpost. His untiring efforts to retain a high standard of discipline are constantly undermined by his grumpy counterpart. When political tensions reach breaking-point, the border guard’s morals are put to the test. Suddenly a whole world is dependent on them."

The performers were Adam Fuller, Kim Heron and Chris Pirie.

Sources: Figurteatret i Nordland, www.figurteatret.no/produksjoner; sceneweb.no

Donated by Figurteatret i Nordland, 10.01.2023

Based on the photographs, it appears that most of the puppets in this production are constructed from wood. This article describes the main character, Luis Ticker, who was constructed from wood.

The facial expression was heavily caricatured, with a long nose, protruding eyeballs, large ears and a mouth and chin that split the face in two when the mouth opened. The face was not painted, and neither were the hands that were made of wood, large and coarsely carved. Ticker was clothed in a uniform-like costume including a tight red jacket with various decorations, including fringed epaulettes, gold buttons and a wide gold band that crossed over the chest. He wore wide knee-length trousers and long black boots. The red jacket may have been made of a thin wool or a fleece cloth.

The above description is based on photographs. 

Ticker appears to have been constructed in a classic manner, in wood, with a large mouth to open and joints in the body, legs and arms. A rod (probably of metal) was fixed to the back of the head, which was the main method of controlling the puppet. The arms and legs were directly controlled; i.e. the performer moved the limbs and joints with his/her own hands. This is clearly visible from the photographs. We see also that there was more than one performer for each puppet. 

The puppet’s inner structure/skeleton was most likely also made of wood; it was necessary to use a solid material for the various constructions. The puppets also had to be used in many performances. 

In this production, the puppets and performers were visible on the stage, and they interacted during the performances. 

The above description is based on photographs. 

The production company Green Ginger was born out of Spitting Image, the hit series that was popular on the BBC from the 1980s, and whose puppets also featured in a music video for the legendary band Genesis (Land of Confusion; 1986). In Outpost, Green Ginger collaborated with performers known from The Lunatics (Vindstille) and Pickled Image (Hunger, Coulrophobia, etc.) Green Ginger had earlier visited Stamsund and Nordland Visual Theatre with guest productions including Bambi and PRAT.