Cindy Speck considers herself the perfect straight man, er woman.
Quiet, reserved and, according to her mother, a classic first-born child, Speck isn't one to be the cut-up in the room. But on stage performing her ventriloquist act, her calm demeanor makes her the perfect foil to her characters' grandstanding behavior.
"The characters are so opposite of me that people can't believe it's me," she said.
Sometimes even Speck's mother has been surprised at what her daughter's characters, such as Freddie the smart-alecky boy, say.
"She used to get in the car and say I can't believe Freddie said that," Speck said.
As if Speck, 48, of Zelienople wasn't really doing the voice, although she barely moves her lips when her characters talk.
Speck performs about 145 shows a year in the region, mostly in schools, churches and senior centers. The lack of ventriloquists in the area fuels the demand, she said.
She uses five puppets: Freddie; Harold, an older man; Rosie, Freddie's younger sister; Nellie, an older woman; and Spanky, an English sheepdog.
Certain letters are difficult for ventriloquists -- such as P, B, M and F -- but Speck has performed for 36 years and doesn't have any pronunciation problems. She will use two characters at a time, seamlessly passing from one voice to another, including hers.
"Oh, she's good," Peg Boal, 92, said to her neighbor at a recent show. "Oh, she's one of the best."
Speck's act is typically 45 minutes long and mostly a comedy and singing routine. It's wholesome, devoid of any dirty jokes. A devout Christian, Speck believes her talent is a gift from God to share her faith.
"You'll be amazed at how relieved someone is when you assure them that it's clean," she said.
In a recent performance for a women's group at North American Martyrs Church in Monroeville, Speck had Nellie (the older woman) yodeling to "I Want to be a Cowboy Sweetheart."
For the children in the crowd, Speck and Freddie told some simple jokes.
Freddie spelled kitten. "K-I-I-T-T-E-N," he said.
"It doesn't have two 'I's,' " Speck said.
"My kitten does," Freddie said, meaning two eyes. The children laughed.
Speck first performed for the church group two years ago, amazing the women with her talent, Marge Samek, 81, of Monroeville said.
"It's a nice, clean show," Samek said. "I don't like the dirty, slutty stuff, and you can assure children can come."
Raised in Western Pennsylvania, Speck started performing as a ventriloquist when she was 12. Her parents for Christmas gave her Jimmy Nelson's instructional record on ventriloquism. Nelson is famous for his 1950s and '60s routines and Nestle commercials with sidekicks Danny O'Day and Farfel the dog.
She took to it immediately, said her father, Jerry Burr. The morning she received the present, she rushed over to her father after he came home from milking cows on their farm.
"She met me at the door with this little puppet and said 'Gee Dad, I think I can do this,' " Burr said.
In her teenage years, she'd make $50 a show. When she went to Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va., she stopped performing. Working as a teacher after graduation, she'd use Freddie for lessons in the classroom.
After she returned to Pittsburgh area and started a family, she was looking to supplement her income.
Pulling Freddie out for some shows seemed like the best idea, said Speck, who has two sons.
"It fits in my life well because I want to be with my family," she said.
She said that when she's away from her family performing, her best moments come when she makes a sick or sad senior citizen laugh.
"She's genuine," her mother, Louise Burr, said. "What you see is what you get. Her heart is in what she is doing, helping people get enjoyment out of life."
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