Puppetry of the Penis

Puppetry of the Penis is a performance show. The show was initially conceived as the title of an art calendar by Australian Simon Morley, showcasing 12 of his favourite penis installations (known as Dick Tricks). On New Year's Eve in 1997 he had a garage full of calendars to sell, and with requests for live demonstrations mounting he finally decided to create an act with fellow Aussie David "Friendy" Friend.
The theatrical contortion of the male genitalia (penis, scrotum, and testicles) into various positions along with comedic narration has since spread internationally. It is humorously called "Dick Trick" or "genital origami," referring to the flexibility of the human penis, testicles and scrotum.
The act was first performed on the international stage at the 1998 Melbourne International Comedy Festival in Australia. The show involves two nude men who bend, twist, and fold their penises and scrotums into various shapes.
The show has appeared in Australia, New Zealand, the UK, Europe, Canada, the US, South Africa and Argentina. It has also been the subject of Australian comedian Mick Molloy's 2000 documentary "Tackle Happy".
The duo has recruited teams across Australia, the UK and America, allowing performance demands to be met.
Due to the overwhelming success of the show the business was expanded to cater for private parties around Australia.
A "Puppetry of the Penis" TV special has aired in Australia on One. The show was covered in the "" episode, "Sex, Sex, Sex".
Background.
In 1966, Australian comedian Simon Morley created an art calendar that showcased close-up images of twelve penis ‘installations’. The concept was based on Morley and his youngest brother’s invention of a series of party tricks involving various contortions of their genitalia. In order to market the calendars, Morley devised a live routine. Morley’s first demonstration, held in a garage in 1977, was received well by audience members, and encouraged him to pursue the creation of a stage show in which to showcase the tricks. Morley enlisted David “Friendy” Friend, a Melbourne resident, as his stage partner, and together they developed a comedy routine based on Morley’s original concept. The title of the calendar, ‘Puppetry of the Penis’, was the inspiration for the title of the subsequent performance show, which featured a repertoire of similar contortions.
Summary.
The run-time for the performance is approximately one hour. The main acts are preceded by a stand-up comedian, which differs in various productions. The majority of the show features a series of ‘tricks’, which are manipulations of the actors’ penises into various forms. The creators describe this as “genital origami”. The contortions simulate commonly identifiable shapes, such as objects, architecture and people. The tricks include the Big Mac, the Loch Ness Monster, the wristwatch, the pelican, the Eiffel Tower, the hamburger, the bulldog, the windsurfer and others. The show consists of approximately 45 of the genital manipulations, accompanied by sound effects and comedic narration.
The performers wear only sneakers and capes and stand with their backs to the audience. A large-screen live-action projection is used to allow audiences to view the acts close-up. The show also includes a brief instructional demonstration for audiences to replicate the contortions, as well as an audience participation segment.
Tricks.
Their tricks include:
Productions.
Australian Productions.
The show debuted in 1998 at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, where it won the “Outright Best Show” award. The success of the initial performance prompted an eight-month tour of Australia. 
Overseas Productions.
In 2000, the creators performed the show at the Edinburgh International Fringe Festival, which was positively received by audiences. This was followed by a five-month tour in London’s West End as well as performances in Canada, the United States, Spain and Iceland. In 2001, Morley and Friend licensed the show to local production company Mollison, which produced seven supporting companies and a troupe of actors to assist with international performance demands. In 2003, the duo licensed the show to Foster Entertainment in the U.S. As of 2006, the show had grossed over fifty million dollars, and performed in 26 different countries in five languages.
Reception.
‘Puppetry of the Penis’ has received positive reviews from major international news outlets. Lyn Gardner of the Guardian called the production a “gently witty, surprisingly charming little show”, and remarked that the material was handled with “a high degree of decorum”. Theatre critic Jill Sharp called the show a “theatrical extravaganza, celebrating with tongue-in-cheek innocence the flexibility of the phallus”.
Other reviews were less favourable, criticising the show for its sexually graphic subject material. Conservative art critic Roger Kimball of the New Criterion magazine called the production as “a juvenile example of the normalisation of deviance”, likening it to toilet humour. Kimball said that the show was nothing more than a repulsive “publicity stunt”.
Controversy.
Production Bans.
Performance shows outside the pornography industry that feature genitalia risk breaching obscenity laws, even when legitimatised as genuine works of art. The Puppetry of the Penis production employs practical measures, such as having performers stand with their backs to the audience, in order to avoid claims of public obscenity, and to enable the show to be performed in mainstream and civic theatres. In its production history, the show has been banned from several international venues on the grounds of indecency.
In May 2002, ‘Puppetry of the Penis’ was banned from performing at the Royal Wanganui Opera House, New Zealand. The mayor, Chas Poynter, said “the community is aghast and upset about this show”. While the council was not able to prohibit performances of the show in other venues in the municipal, city authorities retained the power to ban the production at the civic opera house.
In June 2002, the show was barred from being staged in civic theatres in the Cairns and Bundaberg Councils in Queensland. Despite reviewing the ban at the request of Executive Producer Thomas Milazzo, the councils ultimately refused to allow the show to use their facilities. In regard to the decision, Bundaberg mayor Kay McDuff said the show was not “appropriate” for the Bundaberg civic theatres.
Legal Disputes.
On October 4th 2002, Morley and Friend were interviewed on KRON-TV’s Morning News show to promote performances of ‘Puppetry of the Penis’ in San Francisco. The duo appeared dressed only in capes and during the course of the live broadcast, one of the performers momentarily exposed his penis. The Enforcement Bureau of the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) received a complaint from a viewer and launched an investigation into alleged television broadcast indecency. The FCC concluded that Young Broadcasting of San Francisco, KRON-TV’s proprietor, was liable for a fine of $27,000 for violating federal restrictions regarding the broadcast of indecent material. This was the maximum fine for a breach of this nature. The Commission rejected Young Broadcasting’s claims of bona-fide news coverage immunity, on the grounds that the puppetry “display was not incidental to the coverage of a news event”. The station issued a press release apologising for the incident and paid the fee.
Adaptations.
Book Adaptation.
The creators published an instructional book, entitled ‘Puppetry of the Penis: The Ancient Art of Genital Origami’, in 2000. It featured photographs, accompanied by illustrations and text, demonstrating how to replicate 26 of the installations.
Director's Cut.
A Director’s Cut version of the show was introduced at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival in 2003. It featured new performers Brett Hartin and Aaron Bloomfield, and showcased home videos from the United States tour of the production.