From: =?iso-8859-1?Q?Mathieu_Ren=E9?= <creaturiste-AT-magma.ca>
To: <puptcrit-AT-lists.driftline.org>
Date: Sun, 29 Oct 2006 03:48:42 -0500
Subject: Re: [Puptcrit] The Two Types of Puppeteers


>Of course few puppeteers actually fit perfectly in to either category, but
most of us do tend to gravitate towards one approach or the other.
- Andrew
--------------

Fascinating article, Andrew. Thank you for bringing that up.

You made me realise that I am more of technical puppeteer, in the current 
approach, but in fact I'm an emotional one inside.

I'm just starting to manipulate in front of people.
The only sort of performance I'm truly at ease with is the improvisation of 
making a puppet move the way it feels like. No scenario. This way I learned 
while animating theatre puppets (made for actual shows) but hired in the 
context of corporate events, such as private parties and parades.  My very 
first gig was at a Cirque du Soleil private party, the director of the 
Theatre (where I was the occasional Janitor) just told me to take a puppet 
and make it move.
"What?", I said "No training? no indication or pointers?". He just smiled 
and told me to have fun. How truly liberating...and terrifying! But I pulled 
it off, to my surprise, by necessity I guess, even interacting with a few 
celebrities I had only seen on TV before.
Turns out they are people made of flesh too.

When it comes to inventing a scenario or playing a pre-made one, I tend to 
analyse everything, which blocks me.  By old habits, I tend to overthink a 
lot of what I do, so it sometimes blocks the natural flow of what I feel 
like expressing.
In a way, the puppetmaker in me prevents the puppeteer from doing is work, 
because of the constant interruptions, the questionning, and the tendency to 
try to problemsolve isntead of playing with what's currently available.

Once I stop the questionning, and just "do it", almost everything falls into 
place quickly.
Doctor, am I NORMAL?


Mathieu René Créaturiste
Marionnettes, Masques, Etcetera...
Puppets, Masks, Etcetera...
www.creaturiste.blogspot.com
www.maskmaking.blogspot.com
creaturiste-AT-magma.ca
(514) 274-8027 

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