Date: Fri, 3 Dec 1999 01:56:13 -0500
From: heyhoot-AT-mindspring.com (Christopher Hudert)
Subject: Re: PUPT: Puppetry Appreciation


 How 'bout a title such as "Representational Theater - puppets and objects
in motion" or "A Brief History of Puppets in the Theater".
 Wish I could tell you how to sell it to the powers that be, but then again
if I could, I would be doing it a lot more than the occasional workshop or
class that I am now. In my limited experience in this area it is much like
a courtship. Rarely do we get to WOW such a skeptical audience as the
theater department administration, more often it we have to woo them.
Perhaps to begin with you could offer a joint venture with the theater
dept. to get your foot in the door. Or maybe start by offering internships
to students - depending on your style and how often you build a new show -
there could be design (stage, costume, puppet), lighting, set construction,
voice, acting and movement through an object/puppet and so on. I know that
you do have an internship program but maybe that could help key into the
theater department's interest.
 As for theater departments being more resistant than dance or art
departments I would hve to agree. I believe that is is due, at least in
part, to the attitude that you don't do "serious" theater with puppets.
Dance can see the movement aspects and art can see the sculpture, design,
graphic aspects, but puppets on a stage for adults? Next thing you know
you'll be telling me that there are puppets in such hits as "Nunsence",
"Little Shop of Horrors", "Lili/Carnival", "Lion King", "Equus," "Beauty
and the Beast", "Sugar Babies", "Buskers"...  When I was a Theater Ed major
the only thing worse than being interested in musical theater was being
interested in children's theater. Bring up puppets and it's guilt by
association for one or both of the above.
 You can't teach an appreciation for puppetry until you build an
appreciation for puppetry. This begins to be a catch 22 situation. I think
you are exactly right on the two questions that they will want answered.
<"Why is puppetry important?" and "Why do our students need to understand
it?"> I'll attempt my version of an answer to these two questions as it
applies to this situation.
 First, why is puppetry important? Good puppetry is theatre in a nutshell.
It is both elementary and advanced. It takes us to another place and
dimention of theatrical performance, unachievable by the breathing actor
alone. It encompases every aspect of theater and encorages an understanding
of the relationship of all of the elements and how they work together. It
allows a performance to be believable in a way that actors alone (as in
without puppets) can not.
 Why do our students need to understand it? Beyond the aspect of early
history of performance which includes puppets as a major communication
tool. Beyond the fact that more and more puppets are being used in film,
tv, and broadway to day than ever before. Beyond the fact that these
puppets are more and more complex, there is the simple fact that an actor
that can bring an inantimate object to life and give it character will be
much better equiped to bring a character to life on stage or screen.
 And on a slightly different topic, while I do not disagree with Marianne's
statement that >sometimes a puppet can do more than an actor<, I know the
reverse is true too. The thing is to ask why use a puppet instead of an
actor? It is usually because a puppet can do things that a person can not
or at least do them better than an actor can. For instance, a talking
animal as a puppet is much more acceptable than an actor dressed up as an
animal. Certian movements through time and/or space is better achieved by a
puppet. A puppet adds a new dimention to the performance and sometimes the
physical abilities of a puppet enable the performance to engage the
audience and create a much more spectacular show on the same budget as an
all actor performance.
> but how do you explain that to a non-puppeteer. Especially people who've
>had an experience with bad puppetry?  <
 Yes we are pretty much preaching to the choir here. I think much of the
answer lies in pointing out good puppetry - puppetry in shows that they had
most likely not even considered as pupptry - and then expanding on that.

 In regard to the trouble with Audry II, perhaps you could try explaining
to her that the two of you are a team. When you are out of sync you both
look bad. You just want to see that she looks good too. Then see if she
will try a little experiment with you. Let her sync to your singing "Row,
row, row the boat..." nice and slow, to see what it is like. Do it a couple
of times - in front of a mirror so she can see it. Then when she has it,
jazz it up or throw in some adlibs. Then before she gets mad, explain that
that is what the problem is that you are having. It's not that you don't
like her ad libs, it is that the two of you go out of sync and you both
look bad. She can help you do your job better and you in turn will help her
look better.
 What were you thinking? Probably: "This will be fun. I can take it. It's
not THAT long in the plant. If I survive my great grandchildren will
someday tell their friends that their great granma was a plant. Gosh, if I
take this gig I won't have to deliver pizzas to make ends meet...." This is
one of those jobs that they always talk about. They say "it builds
character". That's other person speak for either "I did it last year and
I'll never do it again" or "you'll hate it now but people will talk about
it now, and you'll romanticize it later."

Well, I hear my bed calling me a sleepy head so I had better go check and
see what it is talking about before I drool on my keyboard and bonk my head
on the monitor....  zzzzzzzzzzzzz


Christopher




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