Puppets and Puppet Theatre

139 Pages·1999·16.47 MB·English

by  David Currell

PUPPETS AND
PUPPET THEATRE
David Currell
First published in 1999 by
The Crowood Press Ltd
Ramsbury, Marlborough
Wiltshire SN8 2HR
www.crowood.com
This e-book first published in 2014
© David Currell 1999
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted
in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy,
recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in
writing from the publishers.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this
book is available from the British Library.
ISBN 978 1 84797 790 8
To Emily Ayşa and Alexander Emre, my children, who love puppet theatre.
Photo Credits
Courtesy John M. Blundall, Puppet Theatre Consultant, The Scottish Mask and
Puppet Theatre Centre, Glasgow: 35, 136 (a) (b) (c) (d) (e) (f), 169 (a) (b) (c);
courtesy Coomber Electronic Equipment Ltd, Worcester: 196 (a) (b) (c);
courtesy Ray & Joan DaSilva, DaSilva Puppet Company, Bicester, Oxfordshire:
165 (b), 202, 206; courtesy Mary Edwards, The Puppet Factory Ltd., Far Forest,
Worcestershire: 4, 42, 43; Steve Finch, courtesy Puppet Centre Trust, London
(Hogarth Collection) and Salford Museum & Art Gallery: 38; Steve Finch,
courtesy Puppet Centre Trust, London (on loan to touring exhibition, courtesy
Jim Henson Productions) and Salford Museum & Art Gallery: 6; Chris
Lawrenson, courtesy Lyndie Wright, Little Angel Theatre, London: 182, 203;
Philippe Mangen, courtesy Puppet Centre Trust, London (on loan to touring
exhibition, courtesy John Blundall, Scottish Mask & Puppet Theatre Centre): 10,
39; courtesy Puppet Centre Trust, London (Crafts Council Collection): 36;
courtesy Puppet Centre Trust, London (Jessica Souhami Archive): 128 (b);
courtesy Ian Purves, International Purves Puppets, Biggar, Lanarkshire,
Scotland: 195 (a) (b); John Roberts, courtesy Lyndie Wright, Little Angel
Theatre, London: 99; David Rose, author’s collection: 5, 9, 32, 37, 52, 59, 79,
110 (b) (c) (d), 138 (a) (b), 140 (e), 153 (c) (d) (e), 190 (a), 117, 118, 119, 120,
130, 133, 186, 188, 189; David Rose, courtesy Puppet Centre Trust, London: 16,
19 (a) (b), 69; David Rose, courtesy Puppet Centre Trust, London (Barry Smith
Collection): 7, 21, 22, 27, 33, 53, 58; David Rose, courtesy Puppet Centre Trust,
London (Crafts Council Collection): 15; David Rose, courtesy Puppet Centre
Trust, London (Hogarth Collection): 1, 2, 3, 17, 103; courtesy Albrecht Roser,
Stuttgart, Germany: 198; Stephen Sharples, courtesy Christopher Leith, London:
128 (a); Stephen Sharples, courtesy Lyndie Wright, Little Angel Theatre,
London: 44; Barry Smith, author’s photograph collection: 26, 165 (a), 201;
Barry Smith, courtesy Puppet Centre Trust, London (Barry Smith Collection):
11, 13, 68, 171, 172; David Stanfield, courtesy Lyndie Wright, Little Angel
Theatre, London: 8, 46, 61, 62, 65, 102, 200; courtesy Strand Lighting Ltd.,
Middlesex: 187 (a) (b) (c) (d), 192, 194 (a) (b); courtesy Lyndie Wright, Little
Angel Theatre, London: 47, 123, 124, 191, 199, 205; courtesy Zero 88 Lighting
Ltd., Cwmbran, Gwent: 193.
Contents
1 An Introduction to Puppet Theatre
Puppet Theatre Heritage
The Nature of the Puppet
Types of Puppet and Staging
Using This Book
2 The Anatomy of a Puppet
Principles of Design
Proportion and Design
Puppet Structure
Glove Puppets
Hand Puppets
Rod Puppets
Animal Rod Puppets
Bunraku-Style Rod Puppets
Hand-Rod Puppets
Rod-Hand Puppets
Rod-Glove Puppets
Rod-Marionettes
Marionettes
Animal Marionettes
3 Heads – Materials and Methods
Tools
Exploring Materials
Sculpting
General Principles
Foam Rubber
Polystyrene
Expanding Foam Filler
Wood
Modelling
General Principles
Paste and Paper
Paper Pulp
Plaster and Muslin
Milliput (Epoxy Putty)
Fibreglass
Casting
General Principles
Making a Plaster Cast
Casting a Rigid Head
Casting a Latex-Rubber Head
Painting and Finishing Head, Hands and Feet
Principles for Painting the Face
Materials and Methods
Hair
4 Construction Techniques
Heads
Necks and Neck Joints
Eyes
Moving Mouths
Bodies for Glove and Hand Puppets
Rod Puppet Shoulder Blocks
Bodies for Rod Puppets and Marionettes
Waist Joints
Arms, Elbows and Shoulder Joints
Hands and Wrist Joints
Legs and Knee Joints
Hip Joints
Feet and Ankle Joints
Costume
5 Control and Manipulation
Glove and Hand Puppets
Rod Puppet Controls
Rod Puppet Manipulation
Marionette Controls
Marionette Manipulation
6 The Shadow Puppet
Principles
Construction
Simple Shadow Puppets
Articulated Shadow Puppets
Decoration and Colour
Three-Dimensional Puppets
Tricks and Transformations
Full-Colour Puppets in the Traditional Style
Control
Principles
Methods of Fixing Main Controls
Controlling Moving Heads and Mouths
Arm Controls
Leg Control
7 Staging Techniques
Staging Principles
General Staging Structures
Simple Staging: A Table-Top Theatre
Flexible Staging Units
Stages and Scenery for Glove, Hand and Rod Puppets
An Open Booth
A Proscenium Booth
Accessories
Scenery
Stages and Scenery for Marionettes
Staging
Accessories for Marionette Stages
Scenery
Staging for Mixed Puppet Productions
Curtains and Backcloths
Drapes for the Stage
Proscenium Curtains
Backcloths and Back-Screens
Staging for Shadow Puppets
Stage Construction
The Screen
Scenery
8 Lighting and Sound
Lighting the Puppet Theatre
Different Types of Lighting
Lighting for Glove and Rod Puppets
Lighting for Marionettes
Lighting for Shadow Puppets
Lighting Control
Colour Lighting
Organizing the Lighting
Lighting Equipment
Black Light Technique
Sound
Principles
Microphones
Sound Systems
9 The Performance
Essential Considerations
Variety Shows
Plays
Principles for Adapting a Story
The Scenario and Script
Design and Construction
Music for the Show
Voice Work and Recording Technique
Manipulation and Movement
Rehearsal
The Performance
Useful Addresses
Index
Acknowledgements
P
uppeteers world-wide are generous in sharing their knowledge, skills and
experience, and I have been extremely fortunate to benefit from this
generosity in the preparation of Puppets and Puppet Theatre.
For information on their approaches to puppet making and performing, as
well as for photographs, I am indebted to John Blundall, Ray DaSilva, Mary
Edwards, Geoff Felix, Christopher Leith, Ian Purves and Lyndie Wright.
Technical information on lighting and sound has been received from Sue Davies
and Bill Richards of Strand Lighting Limited, Claire House of Zero 88 Lighting
Limited, and Mark Piatkowski of Coomber Electronic Equipment Limited.
Others who have contributed photographs are listed separately.
My very sincere thanks are due to David Rose, a friend, colleague, and
photographer, who has been extremely generous with his time and expertise, and
has made it possible to include so many colourful and informative photographs.
I am grateful also to Loretta Howells (Director), Allyson Kirk and Glen
Alexander of the Puppet Centre Trust, London, who have provided reference
resources, technical information and photographs, and made available the
Trust’s extensive collections for photography.
The late Barry Smith, Director of the Theatre of Puppets and Ray DaSilva,
Co-Director of the DaSilva Puppet Company, shared their individual approaches
to puppet performance for a previous book, which is embedded also in the
present work. I therefore acknowledge with gratitude the major contributions
made to the performance chapter by each of these puppet masters.
Finally, I am extremely grateful to the team at The Crowood Press, who have
been enthusiastic and supportive, and helped to make the book a pleasure to
write.