Learn

AKA how to make an Avenue Q puppet - AKA how to make Rod/Kate/whoever from Avenue Q - AKA Avenue Q replicas

I like to go to Yahoo! Answers and try and give some advice on making puppets. A regular question there - and elsewhere - is where to buy (or how to make) puppets from Avenue Q. I haven't seen the show, but am naturally aware of it, and its popularity.

As mentioned in my other blog posts on NOT making puppets like The Lion King and not being able to find Muppets/Sesame St patterns, puppets seen on TV or in shows are always copyrighted (in fact, any puppet design will be copyrighted). And unless you find puppets sold as official merchandise, there will be no one selling these puppets (not unless they want to get sued for breaking copyright laws). It doesn't matter whether you want to perform with it, or just want it as a souvenir; if it's not sold by the legal copyright owner, then you won't be able to buy it. Additionally, if you can't find any information via Google or other searches, then it's more than likely that there's no info for a reason (simply, that they're not sold anywhere). The puppets were made by Rick Lyon and if you like his work so much, why not contact him to make you something unique to you and your needs: naturally, don't expect him to make you an Avenue Q puppet, as he probably has a contract with the producers that makes his Avenue Q designs exclusive to the show.

With that in mind, there are things you can do:

• Read this thread on Muppet Central forums, where the copyrights for this show are discussed in detail
• Read this thread from the Avenue Q forums, about buying replicas
• Use a free puppet pattern, or one purchased from Project Puppet.com, and modify it to look similar to an Avenue Q puppet
• Commission a puppet maker to create one for you. It's more than likely that any puppet maker will refuse to make it exactly the same, and some puppet makers may refuse to do it altogether. I don't recommend approaching anyone to make you a replica, nor do I endorse replicas of any sort

As with all successful puppet shows, people see it and simply think: "I want one". Well, take a moment to think of the puppeteer whose designs you'll be ripping off. Despite how it might seem, 99% of puppeteers are not anywhere near as successful as Jim Henson was, and ripping off their work is not only disrespectful, but means those puppeteers lose out on any money they could make from their work.

Do yourself a favour - create your own puppets from scratch. The beauty of the muppet design is that the technique is the same; but a zillion different characters can be made from that one technique. You'll find it's much more enjoyable creating your own characters, and you can celebrate your love for Avenue Q by buying approved merchandise from their site. There's plenty of info here on how to make your own muppet-type.

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