Puppets as Storytellers (THTR20042)

A puppet allows alternative modes of authorship not easily achieved with live actors. This subject will initially examine the history of puppetry as a story telling language including the methods of construction and operation of various styles of puppet. The outcome of allocated research topics will inform the design and construction of a specific puppet character. Students should then apply this research to the design/making process required to make a puppet. The emphasis will be on the animation of the inanimate through the discovery of a “soul”. The puppet must have a purpose for being “alive” a reason to exist, a world to occupy, and a history of experiences to define the character that emerges

Some materials will be provided as part of a materials levy ($50.00 per student) however students will also need to supply specific materials for the realisation of their individual designed puppet in addition to this fee. Costs will vary depending on materials selected.