Date: Sun, 15 Sep 2002 21:58:57 -0400
Subject: PUPT: Re: S & M   - - - er, Symbols & Monologues
From: Christopher Hudert <heyhoot-AT-mindspring.com>


I'm going to TRY to be brief 'cause I should be doing other things right
now. 

 There is a saying that puppets do better than they say. I find this is very
true, as the words are always said by someone for the puppets and their
delivery makes a huge difference. Puppetry is a highly visual medium.
Without the visual you have a radio play and that is no different than the
radio play of stage show or an actual radio play. The movement of the puppet
and what it accomplishes as a puppet is part of what compells us to watch.
The puppet, to me, is often more interesting as a silent actor than a
person. Manipulated well, it is just more compelling than a silent actor.
Often it is the subtlety of the movement that pulls you in the most.
 Which leads me to the idea that the puppet can move in ways that people can
not - even with many special effects. Thus, the saying to the effect of "why
do it with puppets when you could do it with people".
 But I would attempt to answer, in part, why to do it with puppets rather
than people when people might be able to do it just as well or perhaps, to
an extent, better. (Remember, I'm trying to be brief.) These are not hard
and fast rules, but:
    1) Some stories, particularly when performed for children, are more
palatable when performed by puppets.
    2) There are times when the audience will buy into a story a lot quicker
when performed with puppets than with humans. For instance, you can do 3
Little Pigs with people in costumes, but it works better with puppets. That
supports the "why with puppets" statement. But a story that does not have
animals to portray can be done with animal puppets playing the "people"
roles - say Huck Finn, et al - and be given a fresh approach and the
audience will buy into it even quicker than a people play.
    3) Economy. Sometimes it simply comes down to money.
    4) Scale. Sometimes, size does matter.
    5) Control. Sometimes you just want more control over all the parts that
make up a performance.
    6) A fresh approach to a classic story. Nuf said.

 So what about the monologues? Well, I think that if the puppet can perform
a piece better than you can it is appropriate. For instance, as a woman you
might want to choose a intended for a man. The puppet may be able to act
this better than you could. Or as an attractive woman to play a nasty hag.
Or, well you get the idea. It is all ironic since you would in reality be
the one acting it through the puppet, but the director might buy it quicker.
To a director's eye I'm not sure though whether this would show your range
as a performer or open their eyes to the use of puppets. Depends much on the
piece and how open minded the director was. In the end, if you can find
something a puppet can do better than a person you've got the game at least
partly won.

And that's my briefs on S & M.

Christopher




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