ROZSA PRESENTING SERIES EVENT

Leonardo is a terrible monster. He tries so hard to be scary, but he just… isn’t. Then Leonardo finds Sam, the most scaredy-cat kid in the world. Will Leonardo finally get to scare the tuna salad out of someone? Or will it be the start of an unlikely friendship? The plot thickens when this pair meets Kerry and Frankenthaler, an even scaredier-cat and her monster friend. Kerry and Sam need to make a big decision: will they just be scaredy cats or can they become friends?

Leonardo! A Wonderful Show About a Terrible Monster uses hundreds of illustrated paper puppets, book pages, two-dimensional props, furry monster puppets, and songs to bring Mo Willems' books to life. Manual Cinema wanted to re-create the experience of holding one of Mo’s book pages, which are big, bold, colorful, and full of visual rhythm, with a playful use of scale. Like all Manual Cinema productions, you’re invited to watch the big screen like a traditional movie, or to watch the artists below as they create the story in real time. (There is no wrong way to watch the show!)

CONTENT GUIDANCE | Recommended for ages 3 and up. There are some loud sounds, flashing lights, and furry monster puppets in this show!

Things to know

EST. RUN TIME | 45 min., no intermission
SEATING| General Admission
PUBLIC TICKETS| Pay As You're Able ($25 Full Fee)
MICHIGAN TECH STUDENT RUSH | Reserve online or walk-up

Plan your visit with information about parking, accessibility, Pay As You're Able ticketing, and more. 

Contact the Rozsa Box Office with any questions about this event via phone at 906-487-1906, or by email at rozsa@mtu.edu. View current Box Office Hours. 

Related Events

Manual Cinema's Leonardo! A Wonderful Show About a Terrible Monster - Class Acts Performance
9:30 a.m. on October 18th |  The Rozsa Center's Black Performance Hall
Schools and other Pre-K and K-12 education groups are invited to this Class Act performance of the Manual Cinema performance.

The IncredibleBank Monster Mash Party
11-2 p.m. on October 19th | Rozsa Lobby
Join us in the Rozsa Lobby between Saturday matinee performances for an incredible Monster Mash party for all ages, sponsored by IncredibleBank! Costumes are welcome.

Treat Street
3-5 p.m. on October 19th | Downtown Houghton
Celebrate Halloween in Downtown Houghton at the 15th annual Treat Street!  Local businesses will hand out candy to all the little goblins and ghouls.

Explore upcoming Rozsa Presenting Series events.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

About Manual Cinema

Manual Cinema is an Emmy Award-winning performance collective, design studio, and film/video production company founded in 2010 by Drew Dir, Sarah Fornace, Ben Kauffman, Julia Miller, and Kyle Vegter. Manual Cinema combines handmade shadow puppetry, cinematic techniques, and innovative sound and music to create immersive stories for stage and screen.

Using vintage overhead projectors, multiple screens, puppets, actors, live-feed cameras, multi-channel sound design, and a live music ensemble, Manual Cinema transforms the experience of attending the cinema and imbues it with liveness, ingenuity, and theatricality. The company was awarded an Emmy in 2017 for “The Forger,” a video created for The New York Times, and named Chicago Artists of the Year in 2018 by the Chicago Tribune. Their shadow puppet animations were featured in the 2021 film remake of Candyman, directed by Nia DaCosta and produced by Jordan Peele’s Monkeypaw Productions. In 2022 they premiered Leonardo! A Wonderful Show About A Terrible Monster, an adaptation of two books by celebrated children’s author Mo Willems, and a live adaptation of their 2020 streaming hit A Christmas Carol.

In 2023 Manual Cinema completed production on their first self-produced short film, Future Feeling, and will be touring with folk rock band Iron & Wine in 2024.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Show Credits

Created by Manual Cinema
Inspired by the Books Leonardo, The Terrible Monster & Sam, The Most Scaredy-Cat Kid in the Whole World by Mo Willems
Directed by Sarah Fornace

 

 

 

About the Presenter

The Rozsa Center for the Performing Arts cultivates a vibrant and connected community through experiences that bring the Keweenaw together. Located on Michigan Technological University's campus in Houghton, Michigan, the 80,000-square-foot arts center's design is inspired by the inclined look of the local copper mine hoists and shaft houses inside and out. Event spaces include the Rozsa Lobby, James and Margaret Black Performance Hall, Rozsa Backstage, Rozsa Art Galleries, and McArdle Theatre. As the largest theater in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, the Rozsa dramatically expands the region’s access to large-scale performing arts events including Broadway tours, ballet, cirque, music, and more.