Date: Tue, 9 Dec 2008 08:40:50 -0500
From: "Hobey Ford" <hobeyone-AT-gmail.com>
To: puptcrit-AT-puptcrit.org
Subject: Re: [Puptcrit] Marionettes: their appeal


I have used one marionette in my shows over the years.  I like to use
it to run around the audience and jump up in peoples laps.  I love the
way marionettes unlike othe puppets at close proximity seem to be just
totally alive and synonomous from the puppeteer.  I am intrigued by
marionettes and they were my entry point into puppetry.  I prefer
working with rod puppets though for their direct action and
practicality.  I mess around with marionettes as a hobbiest.
On Tue, Dec 9, 2008 at 1:01 AM, Mathieu René <creaturiste-AT-primus.ca> wrote:
> What makes marionettes seem so wonderful?
> A lot of puppeteers and non-initiated alike have a tendency to think of pro
> marionettes as the highest form of puppets.
>
> What makes them so attractive?
> Is it the obvious difficulty of creating them, the mind boggling mastery it
> requires for it to be pure delight?
> Or is it something much more?
> What brought you to choose marionettes, if you are a dedicated practitionner
> of that form?
>
> I'm very curious about what others here think, what brought them to
> marionettes, and what keeps them with it.
>
> My thoughts:
>
> I'm attracted to marionettes both  as a puppet builder and as a performer.
> But I'll admit the builder side has more power right now.
>
> My goal is to soon make a very well functionning marionette mostly out of
> carved wood, which would look good and well-finished, even undressed.  I
> traded a mask for some medium chisels recently, and have a few small Dremel
> carving bits. I hope to get some small "gouges" for details soon. I'll ask
> around, and see antique shops. I might even make my own gouges, if it comes
> to that.
>
> My biggest technical limitation is lack of knowledge about making precise
> tongue and groove articulations with hand tools. I don't have access to a
> detail bandsaw yet. I'm thinking of getting some miniature saws.
> I recently found out that fine metal saws are very good for cutting wood.
>
>
> Marionettes were the second type of puppets I had a satisfying success with
> (the first was a rod puppet).
> My three first marionette figures, built as a set for children, were very
> simple, but moved well, despite and thanks to the limited articulations and
> few strings. I should have built a copy of one for myself.
> They were fun to play with, and I'm sure they could have been made to
> perform.
>
> I made a few more marionnettes over the years, the latest were a set of two
> for a short film, two years ago.
> The film is supposed to be ready for release this Christmas.  I hope they'll
> make a trailer, as for noew, it's not scheduled to hit the web. It,s meant
> for film festivals and TV shorts.
>
> I saw Stephen Mottram's show a few weeks back, and it gave me the temptation
> to get back to work on my miniature bird marionette.
>
> It's so small I had to build the head out of lead, which I hammered into a
> ball shape. All it needs to be completed is a better leg articulation (like
> real birds, because right now, it's got mamal legs) and a prettier, more
> compact controller.
>
>
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