What happened was, the college, being under the provision of the University of Melbourne, was being ‘collapsed’ down and merged in the Uni of Melb’s normal educational offerings. This is a pretty big deal, as VCA has some of the best training in Australia for artists of a number of different fields; and has a focus on ‘practical’ over ‘theory’. Under the Uni of Melb umbrella however, the courses would turn into mainly academic tuition, meaning a huge loss in technical, proficient training and more of an emphasis on writing essays over, you know, actually knowing how to make art.

This caused a huge uproar for students and teachers alike. Many of the staff were let go, chose to leave, stayed under protest, or simply got lost in the confusion. Students suddenly discovered they were without lecturers, a budget for their courses, some lost their course (not just the puppetry students; in the biggest turnaround ever, the musical theatre course which had been open for literally one year was closed), and in fact, the entire campus had been shut down and everything removed. 

This past year has seen a lot of campaigning - it being an election year in Australia, it’s even caught the attention of a number of hopeful politicians - and a review had been made of the action. Well, about two months ago, the review was handed down. A number of things are important to mention: puppetry got a specific callout, thanks to a well-worded submission from UNIMA Australia (and a submission in front of the review panel, in conjunction with a number of well-known puppeteers).

Secondly, last week the Uni of Melb announced that they are reversing their position, in response to this review. Well, it’s almost a reversal. VCA (or VCAM as it was renamed) will remain as a single entity, the courses will remain practical and not theory-based, and the ill-appointed Dean who was going to implement the changes has resigned. You can read the full response here. There’s nothing about the puppetry course, but I suspect that will be going down the drain anyway - VCA was way over-budget and I have no doubt the bean counters are looking for a way to slice and dice wherever they can.

Of course, this sums up only a small fraction of the … well, fracturous goings-on at the Uni of Melb. From conversations with those affiliated with the uni, it was obvious that the only thing anyone knew in the past year was that nothing was known. Teachers themselves have been left out of the loop. … And suddenly I’m extremely grateful that I never attended. 

Although it’s not safe to yell ‘hurrah’ yet, this is a good sign. Make enough noise, and the administrators will listen. Arts activism and advocacy works; and that you can never be too complacent about making sure your local university, college, politician, or whoever, knows how much the arts means to you. 

As usual, there’s no prize: just a little award icon people can put on their websites. Those people who get an award: feel free to right click, save and use. I’d appreciate it if you could link the image back to me. (How to nominate a site is explained at the bottom of the post)

Seriously Swazzled …. Puppet101

Technically this award should go to Swazzle, since this is just one of their blogs. I’m a big fan of the company’s work (the colour scheme on their Audrey puppets are amazing), but I highlight this one blog in particular for a number of reasons: a couple of their blogs seem to have been rerouted to non-existent pages; most are not updated very often (even in the past couple of years); and there is some awesome posts on the blog. Sean Johnson is the guy who updates Puppet101.

My favourite posts are below. Many of you, I expect, will have seen these already, but they’re worth revisiting. 

• A ‘how to’ (more like behind-the-scenes of building) on making a muppet-type cat, Ratchet. It’s quite long and in-depth, with each step laid out and pictures to go with it. For those just starting out in puppet making, this is a great example of how puppets are designed, right through to the end product and the finished details. (There’s also a snowman tutorial to check out) In fact, it’s a great post for anyone of any skill to read and enjoy,
• The Peas; another how to, this one on making peas-in-a-pod. This fun little tutorial was posted on Puppetbuilding.com (back when it was online), so if you have been looking for it, look no more!
• A tutorial on making rods for muppet-type puppets using piano wire. This is one of those posts that if I had the right tools, I’d try myself. This is a very professional way of making rods, and another one ideal for those just beginning in puppet making.
• Check out the video at the bottom of this post: a demo reel. I think I want to hate these people, they just look like they’re having so much fun doing what they love. Hard not to be jealous! (If you’re curious, check out the behind-the-scenes pics of the green screen video showcased in the demo reel)
• There’s much more to be found, including posts on eyes and what materials to use; safety tips; other tips; book recommendations; and a lot of inspiring images of their puppets. Do dig back into the archives, it’s worth a look!

♥ How to nominate a site: send me an email. I really am interested in seeing anything about puppetry that: is innovative; thoughtful; useful (ie. tutorials, etc); fun; kooky; has amazing images; or great site design. I’m NOT interested in links for puppet selling sites UNLESS you run a blog on it. I’m happy to give awards for the whole site or for individual pages/blog posts. Please include the site’s name and URL, and whether or not you’re nominating someone else or yourself. And please remember common courtesy: spamming me will only encourage me to avoid your site and/or delete everything you attempt on submitting on sight.

Swazzle Demo Reel Summer 2010 from Sean Johnson on Vimeo.

1. The puppeteer, no matter whether they are visible or not, should be comfortable at all times. Much like in dance or circus, puppeteers must have the flexibility to move freely in their clothing, without fear of tearing, tripping, general restriction in movement, or having parts of their costume interfere (or get caught) with their puppet.
2. The clothing should therefore also be light in weight; thin materials are better, as they allow the puppeteer to remain cool underneath hot lights and whilst exerting themselves onstage. (Puppetry is also, just like dance, very tiring and … yes, sweaty!)
3. Shoes, gloves, hoods and other items also merit discussion, and I will do so in more detail below. Although as a general rule of thumb in theatre, it’s best to leave your jewellery at home; unless it’s part of the costume you have been directed to wear.
4. If the puppeteer also acts as a character separate to their puppet’s character, the costume may be distinctly in contrast with the puppet itself. However, as a general rule of thumb, the puppeteer’s costume if visible, should not distract from the actions or character of the
   puppet. (In this context, it’s easy to explain why many visible puppeteers, such as those in Avenue Q, wear light grey, dark grey, or black. These colours are neutral, and easy to blend in with the sets/props/puppets, no matter what the setting is)
5. If the puppeteer is to be ‘invisible’ using light curtain or blacklight, then the person should be covered head to toe in black. A much more detailed explanation has already been written here.
6. Costuming can often be more than clothing; see costume puppets for more info.

Even with having puppeteers visible on stage, there are a variety of ways to do it. Puppeteers can dress a la bunraku, with black costumes, hoods and gloves; some leave the face visible (that is, no hood) but remain wearing gloves and black costumes. Others prefer no gloves at all (it can hinder the dexterity of the puppeteer, as well as make it harder to sense nuanced actions through the puppet); even in wearing black, variety can arise, through male/female differences in wearing pants versus skirts respectively. Not to mention the fact that costumes can be of the non-black, non-neutral variety (see below).

‘Invisible’ can mean many things as well, since puppeteers can be visible to the audience, but not lit, so they remain a shadowy figure upstage. In my first self-produced show, we had gone with the use of a light curtain, but on arrival discovered the lights were silver-painted. In order for light curtain to work, the whole room must be in black, even the paint job of the lights directly above us (this was a non-theatrical room done up for the event with platform, black curtain and temporary lighting rig). But amazingly, even the reflection of these silver lights were not enough to counteract the light curtain effect, and the audience was so busy watching the puppetry, they did not notice the slight appearance of us puppeteers working below the silvery lights.

Another factor is whether or not you have something to hide behind. In many Asian forms of puppetry or when working on film or TV, there is a ‘hide’; a false wall which you can stand/kneel behind. In this situation, puppeteers raise their arms above their heads in order to present the puppets to the audience, and are not seen at all. And when working behind a shadow puppet screen, you are likewise not visible at any point. In these situations, puppeteers may wear whatever is comfortable to them, with no concern about aesthetics.

Should the puppeteer be visible?

This is probably a longer discussion than necessary here, but suffice to say that it’s entirely up to you. Some people think seeing the puppeteer (or the puppeteer’s skin - hence the gloves and hoods) is distracting to the audience. The truth of the matter is that if it’s good manipulation, an interesting and engaging story, and genuinely believable acting, then the audience won’t even see the puppeteers. Indeed a lot of audience members will remark after performances how much they forgot about the puppeteers altogether. Gloves and hoods and all that jazz is entirely subjectivel unless working in blacklight, green screen or light curtain. From a personal point of view, I prefer the ungloved look, I enjoy watching the intricacies of the dexterous hand movements, and I like being able to see the engagement on the face of the puppeteer. In actual fact, in certain contexts (such as using rods that are not black), the contrast between gloves and the puppet can also be just as distracting as seeing skin.

… We’ve discussed briefly comfort and visibilty, but the context of the play and the director’s vision also comes into it. Puppeteers do often interact with their puppets - especially in ventriloquism - so having an appropriate costume to go with the performance is a good idea. Aussie puppeteer Murray Raine performs cabaret acts, and as you can see by his costume, it is in keeping with the glitz and glamour of cabaret. Blackhole Theatre’s Coop, which is set in a chicken coop, has their puppeteers dress in a slobbish, outback manner. Asyphyxia’s The Grimstones is a gothic marionette performance, and the performers wear appropriately dark outfits. Just from these three examples alone, you can immediately see that puppeteers do not have a ‘traditional‘ costume, but rather a wide variety of options depending on the style and content of the play. I can imagine it would be a wonderfully simple idea to combine recycled costumes with puppets made out of recycled materials. Indeed, at one university show I did, we had a costume (a dress for a homeless woman) made entirely out of coloured plastic bags woven together.

…But now let’s turn our attention to some of the details of common costuming for puppeteers.

What kind of gloves should you use?

This one again is more about comfort than aesthetics. Some puppeteers find that wearing gloves with fingers are too difficult (for reasons mentioned above), and indeed with thicker gloves, it is not that great for dexterity. So some puppeteers - especially those working with muppet-type puppets - prefer fingerless gloves. Choice of material is important too: for example ladies’ evening gloves are shiny and slippery, not great for creating good grip with your puppets or for hiding in blacklight. In fact, I have a pair of homemade gloves using a soft, light, almost-fleece material. They are actually long enough to go just over my elbows, and have elastic at the opening. If you’re working in light curtain, blacklight, green screen, or in any situation where you want to avoid seeing skin, then long gloves are a good idea. The length ensures your arm will never been seen, even when wearing long-sleeved tops, and the elastic ensures that no matter how much you exert yourself onstage, the gloves will never sag or fall down - both something easily seen by audiences, and frustrating when trying to manipulate puppets and hold your clothing up. 

What kind of shoes should you wear?

I’ve often heard puppeteers stating that they prefer to wear socks on stage; even soft-soled shoes like dancers wear. However, as a stage manager and someone trained in theatrical OH&S, I can tell you that’s a really stupid idea. In fact, I have a better reason for saying that. When I was 10, I dropped a nine-pound bowling ball on my left foot (don’t ask why, and yes, it hurt). I’ve seen stilt walkers fall (and been trained to do it safely myself), techies get hit on the head with spanners from people working above, I’ve personally seen a circus performer accidentally kick a ring as he was diving through it and get hit in the head and immediately rushed to hospital when he - and it - landed. I’ve worked ten metres above the stage on a see-through metal platform and watch a rigger (luckily harnessed) fall from it. I’ve seen a friend and colleague fall right through a block of steps as soon as he stood on it, in the middle of a performance. This is just a very small sample of the dangerous things I’ve seen or done in a theatre, and I’m very safety-conscious. Wearing shoes is a small price to pay to ensure you don’t stand on broken glass (says the puppeteer who dropped a glass bowl prop onstage whilst packing up one night), don’t stand on any nails lying about from building things, don’t get hurt in the dark with a puppet’s rod or puppeteer’s elbow, and don’t have heavy theatrical lights landing on unprotected feet. So really, my advice is: wear shoes. Any kind of shoes that are comfortable, won’t hurt you (ie. blisters, falling apart, etc.) and will protect your toesies. Take it from me, it may not stop you from getting hurt, but it will make it less likely and much safer all around.

What kind of hood should I wear?

If we’re talking light curtain or blacklight, then a very simply hood can be made. From memory, my friend Jeany made us some to wear for our show, and it comprised of a series of straight panels for around the face, joined into a tube, and then a circular piece added to the top (imagine a tin can sort of shape, with the lid removed, almost Ned Kelly style). To allow the puppeteers to see, a rectangular area is cut out of the hood at the eyeline, and replaced with a piece of black mesh. The mesh is see through (because of the small holes in the fabric), but not so see-through that the audience can make out facial features. This mesh is also used in costume puppets, where the puppeteer’s eyes are not in the same place as the costume’s. Hoods can be found at any number of blacklight puppet sellers online, but they are very easy to make and someone with basic sewing skills would have no trouble making it. Whatever you do, make sure the hood is light and breathable. Attaching the hood to the neck of a costume is a pretty bad idea, since it makes removal difficult (especially in an emergency) and breathing harder. It gets very hot inside the hood. Instead, ensure it is long enough to cover the neck, and let it hang free over the head and down to shoulder level. In addition, a plastic band or circular brim inserted into the top of the hood will aid in making sure the fabric doesn’t constantly rub the face or make breathing difficult, and is particularly a useful addition for those wearing glasses (as I can attest to. PS. The mesh will indeed prevent your glasses from sparkling in the light and ruining the ‘invisibility’ of your costume)

Is there a reason that women tend not to wear skirts or dresses instead of pants?

Again, it’s up to your comfort and the style of performance. When my company decided to restage our first show, we made our own costumes (having initially borrowed some from uni) and instead of using black pants/top and hood, we decided to make long medieval-style dresses. They were quite stylish, not too medieval, without being ornately decorated or over-the-top. They suited the content of our play (an abstract series of short scenes), were individualised to each person but still retained an overall theme, and were of the same black fabric as our stage curtain. They were neutral enough to be worn in different shows that had different settings. (There was no hood, although we planned on adding some, cape-style) Personally, I found my custom-made dress to be just as comfortable and fitting - in a contextual sense - as wearing pants. Although it would have been nicer if we had remembered to add some pockets as well  Many female puppeteers wear short or long skirts and dresses, but I sense that pants are more common due to the decreased likelihood of having flowing clothing getting in the way of movement or getting caught on sets and props. It’s the same reason why ties are less likely to be seen in a woodworking shop; they can be dangerous for the person wearing them. (In a more realistic sense, women may avoid wearing them for reasons less practical: not wanting to deal with people looking up their skirts whilst they are in unusual positions often necessary to get the puppet in the correct place onstage) Additionally, in a mixed-gender cast, it may be an aesthetic choice to have all puppeteers wearing the same, or similar, outfits in order to decrease the contrast between each other, their puppets and their sets, making them less noticeable overall to the audience.

Other clothing suggestions:

As a puppeteer, it may be a good idea to wear cargo pants, or something with pockets. For small companies who tour, or solo performers, this is especially useful as it allows the person to wear items such as: iPods or remote controls for sound playback and/or lighting operation; props or small objects (kazoos or other instruments); cheat sheets or running orders; torches; or anything else that might be handy. I know cargo pants are terribly passe but actually they come in real handy when working in a theatrical environment, and can be just as good, or better, than wearing a toolbelt, especially when trying to create a costume that fits into the context of being visible onstage whilst still being neutral.

… I’m sure there are plenty of other things to discuss in terms of costuming for puppeteers, but that should get you started. If I’ve missed something, or you have a suggestion, leave a comment and I’ll add it to the post.

Last week, after having made the (relunctanct) decision to once again up my web hosting package, I was checking my web stats. I used to be really anal about checking them, not wanting to miss out on some ‘important’ logs of what people find popular. Since going to Atlanta last year and getting out of the habit of checking them every five seconds, I tend to only check maybe every few days; or if I get spammed, sometimes the comment looks spammy but I check my stats just in case.

Anyway, I’d just seen a google search in my stats – puppetry in Australia – and was gleefully/sadly seeing that UNIMA Australia’s website, still with its ‘coming soon’ message, was higher in the rank than my site. Gleeful in that my hard work was paying off; sad that I’ve actually made myself compete with … myself!

In thinking about it, writing a decent post on ‘puppetry in Australia’ is a good idea. Although it sounds quite generic, it’s not. This site proves it in more ways than one: puppetry in Australia is incredibly hard to find. That’s one of the reasons I’ve been more active with UNIMA Australia, and why I wanted to redevelop their site.

My first step into what I would call the consciousness of the local puppetry community is something that somewhat haunts me to this day. Although I’m told nobody remembers it, I do, very much so that I remark on it as being how I’m ‘known’ in the community. Whether it’s true or not, I can’t say, but I do know it struck a chord.

As usual, there’s no prize: just a little award icon people can put on their websites. Those people who get an award: feel free to right click, save and use. I’d appreciate it if you could link the image back to me. (How to nominate a site is explained at the bottom of the post)

Phantastic Photos …. Theatrical Dolls (aka All Puppets)

This has been sitting in my bookmarks list for a long long time, but I never get around to posting about it. The site is a Livejournal community collection of well-photographed puppetry from around the world (mostly Europe though), and decent sized pics too. For the most part, descriptions and text are in Russian, but that’s ok: the photos are so diverse and detailed that one can get lost in the images for hours. There’s not just photos of puppets, but photos of puppets interacting with audiences, ephemera (photos, paintings, etc of puppetry from the past), puppets in rehearsal, puppets on the street… etc etc. The site is updated almost as regularly as mine, so there’s plenty of things to see. This is definitely one of those sites you come back to for a breather, for inspiration, for comparison, or just for curiousity. PS. Not just photos, but videos too!

I’d like to say that I’ve been keeping up-to-date reading this site, but I haven’t. So most of my favourite posts will come from the latest entries on the site. Also, just from the first three pages, it’s too hard to pick just a few, so these are my favs of the favs (in no particular order).

• Theatercontact’s scared man sitting next to a huge crocodile (the expression on the man’s face is hilarious!)
• Jutta Schubert’s man on a cross (I love the way the lighting catches the angular carving of the puppet)
• Blind Summit Theatre’s rehearsal with lifesize male puppet
• Fitz! Caterpilla puppet (indescribable… just check it out!)
• Michael Chavel’s Evolution (actual painting here)
• Theater1’s kitchen set and whale puppet prop
• Institut für Theater’s (Stuttgart) royal puppet
• And the last one: Aussie theatre company Strange Fruit, doing what they’re known for. Street theatre in period costumes on top of very large and wobbly poles! (Er, see it to understand the explanation better) It’s not quite puppetry, but it sure is cool!

♥ How to nominate a site: send me an email. I really am interested in seeing anything about puppetry that: is innovative; thoughtful; useful (ie. tutorials, etc); fun; kooky; has amazing images; or great site design. I’m NOT interested in links for puppet selling sites UNLESS you run a blog on it. I’m happy to give awards for the whole site or for individual pages/blog posts. Please include the site’s name and URL, and whether or not you’re nominating someone else or yourself. And please remember common courtesy: spamming me will only encourage me to avoid your site and/or delete everything you attempt on submitting on sight.

boB has been doing a live puppet show on BlogTV for a while now. At first he was doing it with ‘Zlorg’, another puppet, but now he’s got his own show, Just boB. The green lizard does a hour-long vaudeville-style show once a week - or is that twice? - with games, activities and odd segments. Predominantly he makes fun of viewers though, especially if they’re trolls.  Be warned: the show is not safe for work or kids.

It’s pretty hilarious, and boB can now be found on Youtube too, with out-and-about videos, blooper reels, and yes, even a fan club. Heck, the show is so popular that even when boB turns up to record segments outside of his normal show schedule, about a hundred people will turn up. I think this is a really interesting example of making puppetry for the net, especially when it comes down to dealing with the unruly mob and their misconceptions of what puppetry should be.

boB has an uncanny sense of improvisation and a great conversational style when it comes to interacting with audiences, as you can see from this out-and-about video below. As boB says, don’t forget to "twit face space tube" him…

Nori has given me permission to post them here, but I will note that he has also posted them on his site. You can find the entry here or bigger pics here. (PS. If you go to the main url - http://norisawa.net - and click on the ‘English’ link, you will see his old site in English. It seems he’s updated his site since I looked at it last and the blog appears on the main url instead of the rest of the site) If you want a laugh, check out this totally hilarious pic of Nori with one of his puppets; did you know he also makes marionettes?

I don’t have any text that goes along with the images, so I hope Nori doesn’t mind if I add some (hopefully explanatory) comments to go along with them. All photos copyright Nori Sawa and used with permission. A big thank you to Nori too for sharing these amazing pics.

Here we can see the students practicing the movements of the legs. You can see in the foreground the woman is holding a rod that comes out at the back of the foot.

Scroll down to the next pic…

Three women operate the full puppet: as with all bunraku, one person operates the head and right arm (the master/woman on the left); one person operates the feet (middle woman); and one operates the left arm (woman on the right… and yes, she’s operating the arm. The rod on a bunraku is actually at the elbow joint, in this case the angle makes it look like the back of the puppet). I assume the others are looking on in order to understand the techniques.

Again we find three puppeteers operating the puppet, from the image it appears that they are making the puppet walk. To the left you can see one of the puppeteers in traditional costume and shoes (not the master puppeteer who operates the head, as the costume pictured is black, typical of assistant puppeteers).

If you see the larger version of the photo, you can more clearly make out the rod at the elbow of the puppet. It has a trigger system which makes the puppet’s hands rotate and make different gestures. Many bunraku have similar systems.

This is a female bunraku, which appears to be ‘reading’ a scroll, with the help of some black-clad puppeteers/prop assistants (propeteers? ). The woman at the bottom of the kimono operates the ‘feet’. Female bunraku actually don’t have feet, since the kimono covers any sight of the feet, so the puppeteers actually bunch up the cloth with their fists in order to give the appearance of feet. You’ll notice the man on the right has his left hand tucked under the obi - this is how the puppeteer accesses the head mechanism, as there is a hole in the costume for the hand.

In this image we see a male bunraku. Note the high shoes worn by the lead puppeteer. This is part of the costume that signals the difference between the master puppeteer and the assistants. But the height also allows for easier manipulation by the master, since it gives some distance from the third puppeteer (the one crouching). 

We also see a drum used for accompaniment, and a low ‘hide’ or curtained wall, which is often used in puppetry to create scenery and hide the puppeteers.

And finally we have this wonderful image of a female puppeteer with a bunraku. I love how this image shows a sort of rapturous expression to the puppet, and the concentration of the puppeteer; I still find it remarkable that one can have such split attention despite the fact that the puppeteer must always be aware of the eyeline of the puppet. 

… That’s it for the pics, but if you head to Nori’s site, you’ll find more great images and things. Head to the main url given above; click ‘English’. Check out the gallery for pics of the marionettes; and the ‘report’ page for other images and news… and even videos on Youtube. A big thanks once again to Nori for allowing me to post these pics.

I will add one more thing: Americans and other countries are lucky, as they have local/state guilds to join as well as the huge national centre of UNIMA. We in Oz only have UNIMA, which hardly fills up the large space of our country in terms of offering ways to get together with the local puppetry community. Had we resided in the US, the answer would be hugely dissimilar. Further to that, this question can actually be extrapolated to fit much of the Australian cities/towns as well, with slight modification for Perth, Sydney and Adelaide (all three have fairly decent puppetry communities and large companies to visit).

Hey,
would you recommend any puppetry courses or groups in Melbourne that I could join? (I know you’ve got a list but what would you recommend?)
Cheers,
‘D’

Hi ‘D’,

There are no specific groups that you could join really. In Australia, we have one umbrella organisation, which is UNIMA Australia. However, they don’t run events, they just act as a conduit for people to get information about puppetry that’s locally based.

For courses you are best off re-reading my list. Sadly the only full-time course at VCA has been cancelled, and short courses do not exist. One day workshops are your best bet, and even then it’s very limited. (Particularly so for adults, but children’s workshops are often found at community festivals, Artplay - at Fed Square - and with small puppetry companies) You may wish to check out Polyglot Puppet Theatre, as I believe they do have classes for adults as well as kids.

This frustrates me as well, so maybe one day I’ll get off my butt and organise a regular group meeting/workshop/event for puppeteers and those interested.

I will add that you’re not limited to what’s in Melbourne: many international puppeteers are getting online and doing live workshops. A really worthwhile resource is this: http://www.blogtv.com/People/StiqpuppetsLive. A Canadian puppet maker has been running weekly live workshops for a while now. The great thing is that his schedule is roughly in the middle of the day Australian time, and the workshops are recorded so you can play them back later if you miss them. (There are also a couple of really good forums: Puppets and Stuff, Puppet Hub, and the email list Puptcrit. All worthy reading and large communities who share info. There are also other people who have been starting to run entirely online workshops, using patterns, downloadable information, videos, and so forth)

Having said all of that, it also depends greatly on what kind of things you want to learn. Learning to perform with puppets is vastly different than learning how to make them; likewise, learning to make/use a marionette is going to be vastly different than making/using a muppet-type. Most workshops will focus on one or two different types of puppets, rather than the whole gamut.

Ultimately, my best advice is to get some books. I know that doesn’t sound like as much fun, but there are some excellent books, patterns and other things out there, which are just as good as having someone in the room with you. And you don’t have to hope that a workshop is available near you. Personally, I’ve found it infinitely more useful to purchase some good books and work on my own in my spare time.

If you let me know specifically what you’re interested in, then I can perhaps give you some references to puppet companies who run workshops in the area you’re looking to learn about.

Cheers, Naomi

[At this point, I send a second email, as there was something I missed…]

Hi ‘D’,

Sorry I just checked my web stats and realise that you probably didn’t see this extensive article on my site. I do list links to puppetry companies who offer workshops, but this article goes into more detail and was what I was referring to in my last email about ‘re-reading’ my site.

Hi Naomi,
thanks for that!
Is it possible to undertake puppetry at Swinburne without doing the whole course?
 
Cheers,
‘D’

Hi ‘D’,

No, I don’t believe it is (having been a student there myself, I know of about one or two people who managed to do the course in part-time hours – although ended up dropping out in one case - but never heard of anyone doing only one component). The way the course is structured it wouldn’t be easily doable anyway, since the components usually require you to mix in skills and work from other subjects, and the end-of-semester productions require undertaking a wide range of roles (which you learn in the other subjects). If you can stomach the length, I go into great detail about what the course is like here and how the puppetry component fits in.

Having said that, it might be worth talking to a different person: Al Martinez. He runs some short courses I believe, and is quite well-known (he also did a lot of internships with VCA students I think), although the courses aren’t listed on his site. I have a feeling he’s just finished a course but I’m not sure when the next one is. It’s probably as close as you can get to a decent course without having to do the whole two years at Swinburne. (Although I don’t know what exactly Al’s course entails, I have been to his workshop and it’s definitely worth considering)

Cheers, Naomi

Hi Naomi,
I’m going to email Al, hopefully he’s still doing them because they’re not stated on his website.
Cheers,
‘D’

Hi ‘D’,

I’m pretty sure Al will be running one soon (we are both on the committee for UNIMA Australia and mentioned it to me at our meeting a month or so ago), but either way he’s a good person to talk to as he might know of other courses around.

Good luck with the hunt!

Cheers, Naomi