File puptcrit/puptcrit.0802, message 324


From: Rolande Duprey <puppetpro-AT-aol.com>
To: puptcrit-AT-puptcrit.org
Date: Sat, 9 Feb 2008 19:07:15 -0500
Subject: Re: [Puptcrit] Destruction of Puppets


Mathieu,

I've had  similar experiences.

The best thing is to confront all possibilities upfront -- who will do  
repairs, what they will consist of, and the directions to care for the  
objects.

Unfortunately, there are many people -- even theatre pros -- that have  
no respect for the craft.

Rolande



On Feb 9, 2008, at 6:04 PM, Mathieu René wrote:
>> Oddly enough, no one has mentioned "puppeteers".  Far too many  
>> puppets
>> and much of our history has been destroyed because the puppets have
>> fallen into the hands of irresponsible. self centered, hacks.
>> From: "Jon Green"
>
> Indeed there are irresponsible "puppeteers" out there.
> I remember my biggest puppet ever, built from the drawn design of a  
> costume
> maker who didn't make puppets.
> It was 6 feet tall and 9 feet wide when its arms were open. I was so  
> proud
> of the smooth movement, the ergonomics, the faithfulness to the  
> original
> drawing. It was built in my strongest paper mache to date, and even  
> at that
> size, I wasn't worried about impacts or pressure even denting it.
>
> The Director calls me after the third showing of the play, in a panic,
> because the puppet's head had fallen appart during a performance,  
> the lower
> jaw remaining in the hand of the puppeteer.
> In retrospect, I think it must have been hilarious for the public,  
> being a
> Moliere play (l'Amour Medecin), and the character being a hack potions
> seller.
>
> Still, needless to say I felt panicked and immensely guilty,  
> thinking it was
> my fault somehow, despite my constant precautions against such
> possibilities. But when he brought me the puppet's head in a garbage  
> bag,
> damp with water, its nose and one cheek caved in, its jaw's hinged  
> areas
> melted, I realised it had been negligence on their part. I  
> questionned him
> some more, to find out: It was a damp summertime. They performed  
> outside, so
> they had stored the puppet in a corner of a hot tent, and "to  
> protect it",
> had slipped a large black garbage bag over it. Effectively trapping  
> any
> moisture inside, preventing it from escaping, which it would have  
> done very
> quickly, the puppet's openings  being designed to that effect.
>
> They did this against my advice. I always tell my new customers how  
> to take
> care of the puppets, and one of my insistance is on letting the puppet
> breathe, no matter the materials used.
>
> I was furious!
>
> Anyways, I had two days to fix it before the next show, and I wanted  
> to make
> sure I made this puppet head "idiot proof". So I first used towels  
> to absorb
> the excess moisture out of the paper, then dried the thing with a  
> hair dryer
> and a fan, then reconstructed the destroyed areas, inside and out. I  
> was
> able to recreate the look of the original design almost fully,  
> although
> there were subtles differences. When perfectly dry, I painted some  
> marine
> boat varnish (SPAR) inside the head (doing it outside), to seal it  
> as much
> as possible. I used a waterbased varnish outside the puppet, because  
> the
> spar was too yellow.
> I changed the leather hinges on the jaw to nylon webbing, following a
> puptcritter's advice.
> I now avoid leather in combination with paper mache.
>
> To prevent other catastrophies, I wrote an insanely detailed sheet of
> instructions (How to store and maintain puppets), which I sprayed  
> with a
> "map protector", making the paper completely waterproof and tearproof.
>
> It worked. I went to see the show again near the end of the tour,  
> and the
> puppet was in great shape.
>
> The sad part is that after such hard work, the puppet only performed  
> for one
> summer season, because this company (made up of freshly graduated  
> Theatre
> students) changes cast and show every time. It's probably still in a
> warehouse or a Theatre basement somewhere.
>
> A collegue recently told me that he stopped making puppets for other  
> people
> because he knew he could not control how they would use and take  
> care of
> them. I understand his frustration, but I love making puppets for  
> other
> people too much to be able to stop. I learn so much from each  
> project, each
> puppet, and I get some lessons on how to deal with people, as a bonus.
>
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