Our 167th production has premiered on YouTube today! “Rey of the Discarded” is a video short on pollution and the animal’s role in the ecosystem using rod puppetry from the point of view of a blue crab. It was filmed in June in several locations throughout the Caribbean: St. Thomas, St. Criox, and San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Cast and Crew:
Words Written and Performed by Julio Martinez, Direction and Puppeteering by Michael Verderber,
Camera and Scenography by Katherine Orozco-Verderber, Music by Down Chamber, and a huge technical thanks to Amber Badger!

UPDATE! Here is the newly released singular outtake we put out. A woman and her family interrupted the shoot by asking is questions; it was adorable. Watch it here:
https://youtu.be/BxfBZZlj63w?si=-5IGXTeh7vDSGWr7

Quick update! Our upcoming crab-puppet short film, code named “Short Crab”, has temporarily wrapped filming for now! We shot at four different Caribbean/Bahamas locations; St. Thomas, St. Criox, Puerto Rico, and Coco Cay. At present, the short utilizes all four locations and explores the beach life of a crab. Any additional beach footage will be shot in Corpus Christi, TX.

Zero Untitled are gearing up for a busy summer in 2024. In addition to rehearsals of our new dramatic puppet film, “The Absence of Everything” by Katherine Orozco-Verderber (see other post below), we have three other works around the bend!

Continued performances of “Kame’s Golden Tune” and “Ba Pot-Bellied Pigs” will occur on July 6 and 7 as part of the Texas State Museum of Asian Culture’s Tanabata Star Festival and their birthday party, respectively. Like before, expect performances to happen on a cycle throughout the museum. See the above flyer for more information. UPDATE: July 7th has been POSTPONED due to HURRICANE.

And speaking of puppetry, the new Julio Martinez poetic work, featuring a crab puppet, will be shot on location in the Caribbean! Locations being considered are Puerto Rico, St. Criox, or St. Thomas, depending on location availability. This project should reach completion in early July.

Designed with help from Daniel Rodriguez, the teaser flyer for “The Absence of Everything” is up! The production is in rehearsal for a June or July filming and premiere.

Zero Untitled and Down Chamber’s annual Drone Day collaboration is up on YouTube but will premiere at 12:01 AM on May 25, as part of the official Drone Day activities! World-wide fans of the genre of drone music will livestream, listen to, perform, and discuss this unique genre. Here is the link to the YouTube video: https://youtu.be/ybYPDpa24KI

A brand new kamishibai written and developed by Daniel Rodriguez had its World Premiere at the Texas State Museum of Asian Cultures as part of the Cherry Blossom Festival on April 13! The Cherry Blossom Festival brought in over 600 people; all had the opportunity to watch our shows that were performed in rotation for several hours.

“Kame’s Golden Tune” is based on the traditional Japanese story about a man who finds a singing turtle. All goes well until the turtle is kidnapped by a nefarious con man!

The play, performed by the playwright, was performed alongside “Ba Pot-Bellied Pigs”, which was performed by new Zero Untitled actor Bailey Goodrich!

NEXT PERFORMANCE:

May 18th, 2024 – 3:00 (both plays)

July 6, 2024 – 6:00 – 9:00 (part of the Tanabata Star Festival activities)

July 7, 2024 – 12:00 -5:00 (part of the 50th Anniversary Celebration activities)

Zero Untitled celebrates our 21st birthday today!

We have produced and performed films, plays, immersive theatre, children’s theatre, adaptations, performance art, music performances, experimental theatre, fire breathing showcases, puppetry, mime shows, improv comedy, improv drama, clowning, and more!

We have staged shows or filmed in the following countries: England, South Korea, Honduras, Mexico, Greece, Italy, and most recently, Ireland!

Our plays, novels, poetry, and experimental pieces have been published worldwide.

See you on the stage!

The World Premiere of Michael Verderber’s new kamishibai adaptation “Ba Pot-Bellied Pigs” (based on the classic “Three Little Pigs”) opened at the South Texas Japanese Culture Forum 2024 on March 10 at the Texas State Museum of Asian Cultures.

This play, along with future kamishibai works developed by Zero Untitled will be performed in steady rotation at the museum for the next several months.

Next performance:

• Private performances for schools, March 22

• April 13 at the Cherry Blossom Festival at the Texas State Museum of Asian Cultures, time TBD.

Update! Here are some images from the March 22 performance at Jubilee Kingsville! More images are found on the show page!

The opening night of the 2024 version of our murder-mystery improv show “Death In The Aisles” was a wild ride featuring suspects like the estranged son, bitter fashion designer, disgruntled ex-cop, kooky librarians, and other bizarre characters! Two more Kingsville performances are scheduled for the 9th and 16th at The Novel Blend book store.

Zero Untitled is continuing to branch out into new territory – the Japanese style of storytelling and theatre called kamishibai. “Kamishibai” translates to “paper theatre”, a genre in which cards displaying images help convey a story.

The first kamishibai will be “Ba Pot-Bellied Pigs” a take on the classic “Three Little Pigs” story, with a Vietnamese setting. The first performance will occur in March 10, time is TBD, at the Texas State Museum of Asian Cultures. Flyer designed by Juan Villarreal.