Puppets. Teamwork. Magic.
ABOUT US
WithSince
The Colossal Squid required four puppeteers (one for the body, one for each tentacle, and someone to pull the wagon with the generator), so Sam recruited some help. “ANYONE WANT TO BE A TENTACLE OPERATOR?” he yelled, and several people enthusiastically answered the call, having no idea what that responsibility entailed. The Colossal Squid rampaged around the festival grounds all night long, much to the delight of nearly everyone in attendance. It demonstrated the tremendous potential that large-scale puppets have to generate feelings of awe and joy in those they encounter.
Sam left Esthetic Evolution with a heavily-damaged squid puppet, but with some amazing new friendships. Among them, James Sharp who said to Sam “I don’t care what you do next year — whatever it is, I want to help!”
Since then, the Colossal Collective has been designing and building large-scale puppets, and bringing them to festivals, concerts, and public gatherings all around the inland Northwest. While James and Sam still spearhead the projects, a much larger community comes together to bring these puppets to life. It’s all a labor of love: there are businesses and non-profit organizations that donate resources, share workspace, and allow access to their tools; there are festivals and events that offer grants; and there are dozens of talented, dedicated people who donate their time, knowledge, and skills.
Large-scale puppets remind us that no matter how old we get, we can still find magic in our lives. Not only that, we can create it!
THANK YOU
The Colossal Collective only exists because of the generosity of our sponsors.
Idaho Burner Alliance
IBA is a Boise-based non profit formed to foster art, science, and technology within the local community. The majority of our puppet construction takes place at Xanadu, the IBA's workshop, and we couldn't dream of a better home! Thanks IBA!
Trademark Design Fabrication
Trademark Design Fabrication has been providing the Treasure Valley with high quality branding, signage, and custom fabrication projects. It's a place where art, design, engineering, and fabrication all meet. They have an amazing team, and some amazing tools, and they provide the Colossal Collective with some serious help. Thanks Trademark!
Treefort Music Fest
Treefort brings over 450 bands to downtown Boise over 5 magical days. We love the opportunity to stomp around our home town. Thank you Treefort for embracing the Colossal Collective.
Materials Sponsors
These companies support us by supplying high quality puppet-building materials.
Asana Climbing Gym