For what must be one of the most creative and satisfying of crafts, Puppets and Puppet-Making provides the perfect introduction to the art as well as the means for mastering the more complicated skills and subtle effects.
Making and Manipulating Marionettes is a comprehensive guide to the design, construction and control of string puppets, a craft and performance art that has fascinated audiences for over two thousand years. Topics covered include: An introduction to the marionette tradition and the principles and practicalities of marionette design Advice on materials and methods for carving, modelling and casting puppet parts Step-by-step instructions for the construction of human and animal marionettes using traditional techniques and latest materials Detailed explanations for marionette control, stringing and manipulation Secrets for achieving a wide range of special effects and traditional acts, tricks and transformations
Directions and diagrams for making various types of puppets, dressing and handling them, setting up a stage, and writing and producing one's own show. Includes three puppet plays.
Expert guide explains how to construct several types of puppets and presents exercises for developing distinctive voices, learning puppet movement. Includes stage design, writing plays, directing productions, more. Over 150 black-and-white illustrations.
Marionettes are loved by puppeteers and audiences for what they can do on stage, but they can be challenging to design, make and perform. This beautiful book clearly explains the process from making the puppets to putting them on strings and bringing them alive. Detailed step-by-step instructions are given to make three marionettes - a walking bird, a dancer and a wooden man - each using different tools and materials, with progressively trickier techniques. Written by a leading puppeteer, it celebrates the art of the marionette. This book includes a showcase of marionettes from around the world to illustrate the variety, and richness of this ancient art which are superbly illustrated by 247 colour images with step-by-step instructions.
It's a simple equation: old sock + craft foam x glue = a collection of the most amazing incredible, outrageous, awe-inspiring sock puppets you've ever seen. Sock Puppet Madness includes 35 of the most fun, outlandish, off-the-wall and enchanting characters on the planet, and by following the simple step-by-step instructions, you'll be able to put together your own puppet in no time. Take Bawston the ornery cat puppet, for example. He's a baseball fan with a questionable temper, so watch what you say to him. A more friendly guy is Sebastian Metaphor. He may seem aloof with his hipster appearance but behind those sleepy eyes lies a heart of gold. If you're a sophisticated sort why not have a crack at Penelope Durtlinger, an heiress to a small fortune with an insatiable thirst for power. All the puppets are so simple to create, using just a few readily available materials that cost next to nothing - plus everyone has an old sock they can use, right? So what are you waiting for? Buy this now and make your own collection of sock puppets and join in the fun. And once you've made all the projects, why not create your own characters based on friends and family, too.
Theatre-Rites are regarded as pioneers in the field of object-led and site-specific performance, creating ground-breaking work for family audiences since 1995. This book marks the company’s 25th anniversary, offering the first in-depth exploration of artistic director Sue Buckmaster’s visionary practice, in which anything can be animated. This book draws on original research, including five years of in-depth interviews between its authors, images from Theatre-Rites’ archive and Buckmaster’s private collection, detailed observations from the company’s professional training workshops and personal reflections on past productions. A timely and compelling advocacy for the importance of high-quality experimental arts provision for young audiences is made, distilling learning from decades of the company’s professional activities to motivate and empower the next generation of object-led theatre-makers. Theatre-Rites: Animating Puppets, Objects and Sites is an invaluable resource for any puppeteer, actor, dancer, visual artist, poet or student interested in expanding their understanding of how to incorporate puppetry and/or symbolic objects as metaphors in their work.
Puppets & Puppet Theatre is essential reading for everyone interested in making and performing with puppets. It concentrates on designing, making and performing with the main types of puppet, and is extensively illustrated in full colour throughout.Topics covered include: nature and heritage of puppet theatre; the anatomy of a puppet, its design and structure; materials and methods for sculpting, modelling and casting; step-by-step instructions for making glove, hand, rod and shadow puppets & marionettes; puppet control and manipulation; staging principles, stage and scenery design; principles of sound & lighting and finally, organisation of a show.
A practical, accessible and inspiring guide to using puppetry in theatre--the perfect entry point for anyone looking to use puppets in their productions, to explore what puppets can do, or to develop their puppetry skills. Written by an experienced theatre and puppetry director, Mervyn Millar's Puppetry: How to Do Itfocuses on the performer and the craft of bringing any puppet to life. No puppet-making is required to use this book: starting just with simple objects, it lays out the skills required to unlock a puppet's limitless potential for expression and connection with an audience. Inside you'll discover fifty practical, easy-to-follow exercises - for use in a group or on your own - to develop elements of the craft, build confidence and help you improve your puppetry through play and improvisation. Also included are sections on different types of puppet, thinking about how the puppeteer is presented on stage and how to direct and devise puppet performances. Ideal for actors and performers, for directors and designers, and for teachers and students of all ages and levels of experience, this book will demystify the art of puppetry, and help you become more confident and creative with all kinds of puppets and objects on stage.