From: HobgoblinH-AT-aol.com
Date: Tue, 23 Nov 1999 13:38:30 EST
Subject: Re: PUPT: student inquiry


In a message dated 99-11-23 11:28:12 EST, Preston writes:

<<  Study all the obvious things: theatre, acting, directing, design, tech, 
visual
 arts, sculpting, painting, drawing, etc.   Get experience with actual 
puppeteers.
 (Be careful!  It's hard to tell them from the fake puppeteers.) But besides 
this,
 while you are in college, study as much other stuff as possible: languages,
 science, history, literature, math, etc.  >>

Languages has proven to be a real boon at my end. It complexifies your 
thinking processes. Then there is the extra added bonus that if you translate 
other people's old plays, you have no copyright concerns, ha ha. As for all 
those art and theater courses, nice, but some of us are just too weird and 
egocentric to survive in classes like that. You can still learn a lot by 
attending lots of productions, museums, exhibits, that sort of thing. And 
there ain't no school that larns you better than making all your own mistakes 
first-hand. So write plays and make things and look forward to failure. Never 
bothered Edison.

<<Because, eventually, after learning what to do with the puppets, you are 
going to have to come up with something to say with them>>

Too true. So what Preston is saying (if I dare interpret) is: "Become a 
mensch." Trying to figure out what they were going to say took me 45 years to 
figure. Making a gorgeous puppet-- child's play by comparison. Thank God, now 
they never shut up.
 
Two more cents from
Alice


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