Giant bug invades Artown

“Hello, everybody,” the 12-foot-tall praying mantis said to the gathering crowd. No, it wasn’t a scene from “Alice in Wonderland” or from “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.” It was one of the many unusual events happening during Reno’s 31-day Artown celebration on Friday night.
The Mantis glowed green with static-electricity plasma dome eyes that reacted to human touch. Each scale was outlined in electroluminescent neon wire that is bendable and cool to the touch. Damian Janssen, who created the monstrous bug with Rex Norman, said they wanted people to be able to interact with her, love her and be afraid of her. She was waiting for Artown’s screening of “The Wizard of Oz” to end so all the little munchkins and their parents would come and enjoy the neon bug’s performance.
“We’re going to freak some kids out,” Janssen said gleefully.
With giant pinchers and moving mandibles, the tall creature can move through crowds and threaten or be petted as it wishes. The Mantis is a giant puppet is constructed of light-weight plastics and mounted to a metal backpack frame for mobility.
This isn’t her first performance. She frightened and enchanted students at Bud Beasely Elementary School at a special assembly (see videos). And she led a Fourth of July parade out to the end of the street to watch the fireworks.
Janssen said he and his two daughters had a lot of fun preparing for the parade. All over the neighborhood they posted
“That looks like a Burning Man bug,” one man correctly observed.
Janssen said they were honored to receive a grant for the Mantis from Burning Man, a week-long celebration with more than 25,000 people in the Black Rock Desert. Even though the Mantis was constructed for Burning Man, Janssen brings out the bug every chance he gets.
“You can’t live for one week of the year,” Janssen said.
Janssen is a real estate agent by day, but he said he doesn’t let his professional life get in the way of enjoying life.
“Some people think you have to maintain an image and play golf in you spare time,” Janssen said. “My clients like it that I let my freak flag fly. It lets them loosen up and we have a lot more laughs that way.”