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Rumble in the box! W’burg theater hosts Cardboard Robot Battle

Rumble in the box! W’burg theater hosts Cardboard Robot Battle
Jess Davis Photo

Talk about paper cuts!

Williamsburg theater Standard ToyKraft will transform into a life-size, low-budget Rock ’Em Sock ’Em Robots arena on Jan. 30 for its fourth Cardboard Robot Battle. The event sees wannabe warriors don homemade bot costumes and awkwardly battle it out in the ring, and has become one of the most popular events at the theater, an organizer said.

“We thought it might be a silly idea that someone might enjoy checking out, but for our first one, the theater was filled beyond capacity,” said Daniel Patrick Fay, artistic director of Standard ToyKraft. “They are funny, and everyone likes a little carnage and violence.”

Fay recruits about nine players to slug it out at each skirmish. Contestants must construct their robots out of nothing but cardboard, packing tape, and paint. They then engage in a brawl where the goal is to reveal the human beneath your opponent’s robot shell.

Fay said he came up for the idea for the event a couple of years ago during a workshop for a puppet show, during which he and some other puppeters experimented with placing cardboard shapes around the stage. He suggested that it would be fun to have fights with the shapes, and the idea eventually evolved to making cardboard robots for battle. Puppeteers still comprise the majority of the competitors, but Fay said the battle is open to anyone.

The robots are divided into weight divisions like heavyweight or lightweight, though Fay said he assigns the categories according to experience level as well as the weight of the robot. Each warrior is allowed to have a one-person “pit crew,” who can help them reinforce their tape between rounds, but cannot add new parts.

For extra spectacle, the organizers build a real ring to accommodate the fights and there is room for a screaming crowd outside the ropes, Fay said.

“It is kind of like a ridiculous Roman coliseum,” he said.

Cardboard Robot Battle at Standard ToyKraft (722 Metropolitan Ave., third floor, between Manhattan and Graham avenues in Williamsburg, www.stand‌ardto‌ykraf‌t.org). Jan. 30 at 8 pm. $13–$15.

Reach reporter Danielle Furfaro at dfurf‌aro@c‌ngloc‌al.com or by calling (718) 260–2511. Follow her at twitt‌er.com/‌Danie‌lleFu‌rfaro.
Lightweight, heavyweight, paperweight: A former cardboard robot contender.
Jess Davis Photo