See Spike Live on New Year's Eve!!!

Ring in the New Year with the next incarnation of Spike at the Oddfellow Theater in Buckfield, Maine! The show is "Dickie Hyper-Hynie's Rockin' New Year's Eve" from the man who puts the hyper in Hyper-Hynie, Michael Miclon himself. Joined by Michael Menes, Fritz Grobe, Drew Richardson, Shane Miclon, Aaron Dewitt and Casey Turner, the show will feature the best of 2010 along with new material.

Laugh all the way to next year!

Two shows, one at 7:30 PM and another at 10:30 PM! Tickets are $15 all seats.

Buy our tickets now!

This is a teaser-excerpt from the original performance art sci-fi piece "Spike" by Michael Menes & Company. This is a studio sample featuring the texture and mood of "Mr. Bubbles". The project, "Spike in the Wild" will feature scenes on a frozen quarry in the dead of winter in rural Maine.

©2010 Michael Menes & Co. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

December Update

From Michael Menes (Producer)...

Momentum continues to build and it feels like the project is moving into "scramble mode" where every hour counts!

Initially, the weather looked bad with a heavy rain and unseasonably warm temperatures in mid-December here in Maine. But the locations are now showing signs of freezing over and the snow levels are minimal which could be IDEAL for getting the main scenes "in the can". There is a very narrow weather window of mid to late January this year to acquire the outdoor scenes and we have to accommodate the schedules of the talent.

We will need to mobilize a team quickly!

If you'd like to help, contact Michael Menes at zigzago@aol.com

Mysterious Ice Balls

Perhaps the headline for this image should read: "Mysterious ice spheres encourage curiosity from passers-by in frigid Buckfield, Maine."

These ambiguous, near perfect icy orbs could show up in some of our high definition takes!

Can you guess how they were formed?

The New Mr. Bubbles

A word on the new Mr. Bubbles

by Michael Menes

Mr. Bubbles was really in need of a complete overhaul. He'd been thrown together with foam, zippers, velcro and hot glue in the "11th hour" before an opening night back in the day. He long since was retired up in my attic turning ever deeper shades of darkening yellow.

So in designing the new "Mr. Bubbles" (June, 2010), I tried to play with materials much in the same way as I did in creating the first version of the "Spike" stilt character. I tried to invent solutions and techniques based on specific tasks that the character needed to perform. The aesthetic (as it does in nature) follows as efficiently as possible the function of an organism which is great fun to explore.

I tried to get to know the materials (like chicken wire, pull ties, and magnets) as intimately as possible in getting away from the more problematic solutions of such things as velcro (doesn't release consistently or quietly!). I resisted the urge to "farm it out" although once I could actually demonstrate a technique with the materials, I could conceivably instruct a helper how to replicate something if needed. As a result, the sewing, stapling, grommeting, and other techniques were often "invented".

In the end, getting a prop so that it can be toured (not just performed locally) is very tricky (and sometimes expensive!). It could take many versions before it's really reliable. It has to be light, portable, easy to clean, durable, and most importantly do what it's supposed to on stage without issues over and over again! Oddly, after 3 weeks and almost $1,000 spent, I am extremely proud of this egg-like, shell-like, alien spore we refer to as "Mr. Bubbles."