The Art of Puppetry

Puppets come in all shapes and sizes and there are a variety of forms of puppetry. A general definition of a puppet is a "figure whose movements are controlled by another through strings, rods, or hand movements" (Copp, 2002, 1). There are shadow puppets, string puppets, glove or hand puppets and rod puppets. Each type of puppet dictates a unique form of puppetry. String puppets commonly called marionettes are jointed figures most often controlled by strings from above, while hand or rod puppets are most often controlled by the puppeteer from underneath the figure.

Puppets and puppetry have long fascinated man and been a part of his culture. Greek accounts of fifth century BC refer to figures operated by strings and to traveling players putting on puppet shows. As one historian argues, "Glove puppets may be very ancient. Speaight mentions that the Greek word koree as meaning both a sleeve that covers the hand, and a small statue" (Observations, 2003, 2). Like singing, however, some of the earliest forms of puppets and puppetry were central to religious ceremonies. Tribal hinged masks or jointed skulls probably represent the most primitive forms of puppets, used by African tribes. In agriculture-related festivals Native Americans used puppets and the Egyptians favored terra cotta as their favorite material from which to fashion puppets. Puppets and puppetry have evolved for centuries with a variety of countries contributing to the dif

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udy puppet shows (Staddon, 2003, 1). While puppets were popular with the masses, especially those of the Commedia dell'arte which often satirized authorities and poked fun at the injustices of life, puppetry was also popular among the high ranking. In his diaries, Samuel Pepys makes the first mention of open-air puppet performances. As Staddon (2003) writes, "Pepys writes that he watched the puppets a few times, once he stopped for a show in Hyde Park and it made him late for an appointment with the king" (1-2). Puppets and puppetry also enjoy a rich history in America. The more famous American puppets and puppeteers show the variety of puppets and forms of puppetry that have evolved in American culture. Howdy Doody was a marionette, Kukla Fran and Ollie were hand puppets, and the puppets of Mr. Rogers, Paul Winchell and Jerry Mahoney are ventriloquist dummies. Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy were perhaps the most popular American puppet and puppeteer act in history. Hand puppets also enjoyed enormous popularity in the form of Shari Lewis' Lamb Chop. The diversity and popularity of Jim Henson's rod puppets known as the Muppets pervade American culture. Aside from entertainment, puppetry enables the puppeteer to extend

Category: Arts - T