Night+Day

tuesday
october 14
How About a Nice English Punch? Maybe nobody told British master puppeteer John Styles that October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month here in the States, or maybe Styles knows and is counting on local audiences recognizing that Punch & Judy is a very old act. Styles, whose handiwork gained recognition on our side of the Atlantic in films like Time Bandits and The Avengers, does a Punch & Judy puppet and magic show with hand-painted wooden puppets and a candy-striped stage reminiscent of the Victorian era, when the Italian-based commedia dell'arte character Pulcinella was remade to reflect the medieval English fool. Kids, to whom cruelty comes naturally, have since enjoyed the story of the mean, hunchbacked, hook-nosed husband and his nagging wife. The show begins at 7:30 p.m. at the Cowell Theater, Fort Mason, Marina & Buchanan, S.F. Admission is $5-10; call 621-7797.