bare and gloomy, slender, strange little creatures moved with stiff,
imposing gestures. It is an ominous world, the atmosphere vibrating
with hidden terror, tense emotions and lonely overtones. Princess
Ygraine, to the little Tintagiles: “There, you see...? Your big sisters
are here ... they are close to you ... we will defend you and no evil
can come near.”
Oh, the tenderness, the dauntlessness, the pathos ... high hearts
encircled by creeping, inevitable doom.
Then the old man, mumbling at his own bewildered futility: “My soul is
heavy to-day.” (A hand is raised, an old hand, tremblingly.) “What is
one to do...? Men needs must live and await the unforeseen.... And
after that they must still act as if they hoped....” (The arm drops,
heavy ... a silence.) “There are sad evenings when our useless lives
taste bitter in our mouths ... etc.”
The scene proceeds, on and on in ascending tensity, readers sitting at
the wings, puppeteers operating the wires high up, the director off
at his desk in the dark, ... and the marionettes animated into vital
significance, symbols of supreme and simplified fervor ... dread, love,
courage....
“They are shaking the door, listen. Do not breathe. They are whispering.
“They have the key....
“Yes, yes, I was sure of it.... Wait....”
Old Aglovale faces the slowly opening door, his sword outstretched; the
others stand rigid with terror.
“Come! Come both....”
They face the door, they hold it. Their watchfulness avails for the
time being. The door closes.
“Tintagiles!”
Aglovale, waiting at the door: “I hear nothing now....”
Ygraine, wild with joy. “Tintagiles, look! Look!... He is saved!...
Look at his eyes.... You can see the blue.... He is going to speak....
They saw we were watching.... They did not dare.... Kiss us!... Kiss
us, I say!... All, all!... Down to the depths of our soul!...”
A silence, a long silence. Then ... the boards creak as the operators
stand up to rest their aching backs.
“Well, Belangere mounted the steps pretty well that time. But don’t
forget to take a stitch in her left leg; she still has a tendency to
pivot.”
“Yes, I’ll do it and I’ll lengthen her back string; I think that’s it
... and take away some of Aggie’s hump.”
From the sublime to the absurd, no doubt. But there are the puppets
hung up ... quietly and sternly gazing, each little character.
No, they are not absurd, patiently, almost scornfully awaiting the
subtler grasp of some master hand to bring out the rare potentialities
sleeping within them. Awkward, silly dolls they may appear in a clumsy
hand, but even we amateurs who serve them faithfully sense more than
this in them. So, while we pull the strings and move these singular,
small creatures in measured gestures we feel that we are handling crude
but expressive symbols of large, fine things.
THE MAKING OF A MARIONETTE
The puppets used in the Cleveland Playhouse are neither realistic,
humorous, nor clever. They are very simple, somewhat impressionistic
and quite adequate and effective for certain types of drama. They
appeal to the imagination of the spectator. Under favorable conditions
one forgets their diminutive size, their crude construction, even their
lack of soul.
[Illustration: PATTERNS FOR THE MARIONETTE BODY DRAWN BY THE SCULPTOR,
MR. MAX KALISH]
These patterns for the marionette body were drawn by the sculptor,
Mr. Max Kalish, especially for figures which were shown with little
clothing on. If the dolls are to be dressed it is better to make
separate upper and lower arms and legs, and to join them flexibly or
stiffly, as the action of the particular puppet requires.
The material we have used is soft white woven stuff (stockings from the
ten-cent store!), which can be painted with tempera any color desired.
The patterns shown allow for a good seam. The front and back are alike,
also right and left limbs. Each marionette will need some adjusting
which one discovers as one works along. We have used a narrow tape to
join the arms and legs.
The dolls are stuffed with soft rags or cotton. The limbs must be
stiffly filled out and firm, the chest also. The lower part of the
torso should be left softer. In the hands we insert cardboard to
stiffen the wrists.
We use lead to weight the dolls. Small shot is good for filling up
the hands and feet. Larger pieces of lead are used for the torso,
lower arm and lower leg. No lead is put in the upper arm or upper
leg. The reasons for this will be discovered as soon as one practices
manipulating the figures. Care must be used to have the body properly
balanced and to have the feet heavy.
The control is a simple piece of wood with five screw eyes to which the
strings are tied. More may be added to operate the feet or for other
purposes. When using these extremely crude little dolls, however, it
is best to depend upon simple means and a few gestures. The strings can
be of heavy black thread or fishing cord, the latter is not so apt to
become twisted. The strings are attached to the hands, the shoulders,
and the center of the back. The hand strings should be loose, the
others carefully measured to balance the doll evenly.
In dressing the puppets one must allow plenty of room at the elbow,
knee, etc., for free action. We have kept our dolls very simple, the
faces and hands painted over, the hair of wool or cotton.
Of the manipulating little can be said. There is no way to learn
except by getting up on the bridge and _doing_ it. Too much petty
gesticulation in these dolls is ineffective. It is better to hold the
gesture. Deliberation and patience are the chief requirements for a
successful operator, given a certain natural deftness of hand which is
primarily essential.
_Construction of a Marionette Stage_
BY RAYMOND O’NEIL
The marionette stage shown in the diagram has a proscenium opening
six feet long by four feet high and is meant for productions that use
marionettes from twelve to fourteen inches in height. It is a stage
that can be built even by amateurs both readily and cheaply. It is,
of course, necessary that some one who is familiar with the electric
wiring should be consulted in that part of the work.
The stage is in two sections: the stage floor proper, to which is
attached the footlight box, and the proscenium arch, which is made to
be demounted and is held to the stage floor by right angle braces. The
stage floor itself is made of ⅞″ stock which may run from eight to
twelve inches in width. These boards are fastened to 2×4’s which run
from the front to the back of the stage. Three lengths of these 2×4’s
are all that are necessary. The box which holds the footlights may
be made of ½″ stock which should be just deep enough to hold 60-watt
lamps. Three circuits should be run into this box to provide for red,
blue and green lamps. The diagram shows only one lamp to each color
placed in the box, but to obtain the best results three or four lamps
should be used on each circuit. Small stage connectors which can be
obtained at any electrical dealer’s should be placed in the floor to
take care of the lines that run to No. 1 border, No. 2 border and to
the various other lamps such as small floods and small spotlights,
which will be found necessary for different effects. Both No. 1 and No.
2 borders should have three circuits running into them for red, blue
and green lamps, and there should be from four to six lamps on each
circuit. These borders may be placed in any position from the front
to the back of the stage that the setting may demand. A convenient
place from which to suspend them is from the operating platform which
is built over the complete length of the stage at such a height as to
clear any set that may be used.
The proscenium arch should be built of ⅞″ stock, preferably of white
wood, because of the fine surface which it presents, if it is to be
decorated. The upright sections of the arch should be at least as
wide as those shown in the diagram, because they must carry the three
circuits for the proscenium lights, the belt that raises and lowers
the curtain, and also special lamps and appliances that will be found
necessary for various types of production. The diagram shows one green,
one blue, and one red outlet on the two sections on the top section of
the arch, but it will be found very convenient to have at least two
outlets for each of these colors on each of the three sections of the
arch.
[Illustration: DIAGRAMS FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF A MARIONETTE STAGE]
The curtain can be the ordinary window shade. After removing the
spring, attach it to the face of the proscenium arch with ordinary
window shade fixtures. It should be wide enough to lap well over
each side of the arch, and the end which extends to the right of the
proscenium opening should be sufficiently long to carry a 2″ belt for
raising and lowering it. This belt can be of webbing and should be held
taut near the bottom of the proscenium arch by a small roller, as shown
in the diagram. It is necessary that this belt should be far enough to
the right of the proscenium arch opening so the hand which raises and
lowers the curtain will not be seen by the audience.
The outlets for the various circuits on this arch may be either keyed
sockets or porcelain receptacles fastened to the face of the arch.
Both for the sake of the better framing of the settings to be used on
this stage and for more effectively masking off the sides and the top
of the stage, it is a good plan to build all around the opening of the
proscenium arch at right angles to it an inner proscenium which may
run from 6 to 9 inches in width. This inner proscenium may be made of
half-inch stock. If the inner proscenium is used, it will be necessary
to hang the curtain sufficiently behind the face of the main proscenium
so that it will clear the inner proscenium as it rises and falls.
All circuits should lead to a switch-board on which small knife
switches may be used. This switch-board should also carry several
rheostats or dimmers. The more dimmers that are used the greater will
be the possibilities in lighting. These dimmers can be made of special
high wattage resistance wire, which can be obtained or ordered from any
electrical dealer. In the making and wiring of the switch-board, it is,
of course, necessary to obtain either a professional electrician or at
least professional advice.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
BADIN, ADOLPHE. Les Marionettes de Maurice Sand. L’Art, 1885.
CAINE, WILLIAM. Guignols in the Luxembourg. Oxford and
Cambridge Review, 1910.
CALTHROP, A. An Evening with the Marionette. The Theatre, 1884.
CALVI, EMILIO. Marionettes of Rome. The Bellman, 1917.
CHAMBERS, E. K. The Mediaeval Stage. Vol. II.
COLLIER, JOHN PAYNE. The Tragical Comedy of Punch and Judy.
CRAIG, GORDON. Articles in “The Mask” and “The Marionette.”
CURTIS, ELNORA WHITMAN. Dramatic Instinct in Education.
DELVAU, ALFRED. Le Théâtre Érotique Français sous le Bas-empire.
DURANTY, LOUIS ÉMILE EDMOND. Théâtre des Marionettes du Jardin
des Tuileries.
ENGEL, CARL. Johann Faust.
FEISE, E. The German Puppet Theatre.
FERRIGNI, P. Storia dei Burattini. The Mask.
FEWKES, JESSE WALTER. A Theatrical Performance at Walpe. Hopi
Katchinas.
FLÖGEL, KARL FRIEDERICH. Geschichte des Grotesk-Komischen.
FRANCE, ANATOLE. On Life and Letters. II Series.
GAYET, A. Oldest of Puppet Shows. Boston Transcript, Nov. 2,
1904.
GLEASON, A. W. Last Stand of the Marionettes. Collier’s Weekly,
1909.
HIRSCH, GILBERT. A Master of Marionettes. Harper’s Weekly, 1912.
IRWIN, E. Where Players are Marionettes. The Craftsman, 1907.
JACKSON, F. NEVILL. Toys of Other Days.
JACOB, GEORG. Das Schattentheater in seiner Wanderung vom
Morgenland zum Abendland.
JEROME, L. B. Marionettes of Little Sicily. New England
Magazine, 1910.
JOLY, HENRI L. Random Notes on Dances, Masks, and the Early
Forms of Theatre in Japan.
JONES, HENRY FESTING. Diversions in Sicily, Castellinaria, or
other Sicilian Diversions.
KLEIST, HEINRICH VON. Über das Marionetten Theater. Berliner
Abendblätter.
KOLLMAN, ARTHUR. Deutsche Puppenspieler.
LEE, VERNON. Studies in the Eighteenth Century in Italy.
LEMAÎTRE, JULES. Impressions du Théâtre. Vols. IV and VI.
MACDOWALL, H. C. The Faust of the Marionettes. MacMillan’s
Magazine, 1901.
MAGNIN, CHARLES. Histoire des Marionettes en Europe.
MAINDRON, ERNEST. Marionettes et Guignols.
MATTHEWS, BRANDER. A Book about the Theatre. Puppet plays, old
and new. The Bookman.
MICHEL, WILHELM. Marionetten. Dekorative Kunst, 1910.
MICK, HETTIE LOUISE. Puppets of the Chicago Little Theatre.
Theatre Arts Magazine, 1917.
MIYAMORI, OSATARO. Tales from Old Japanese Drama.
MODERWELL, HIRAM K. The Marionettes of Tony Sarg. Boston
Transcript, 1918.
MOULTON, R. H. Teaching Dolls to act for Moving Pictures.
Illustrated World, 1917.
NICHOLS, FRANCIS H. A Marionette Theatre in New York. Century
Magazine, 1892.
PEIXOTTO, ERNEST C. Marionettes, and Puppet Shows, Past and
Present. Scribner’s Magazine, 1903.
PETITE, J. M. Guignols et Marionettes.
PISCHEL, RICHARD. The Home of the Puppet Play. (Translated by
Mildred C. Tawney.)
POCCI, FRANZ VON. Lustiges Komödienbüchlein.
POLLOCK, W. H. Punch and Judy. Saturday Review, 1900.
REHM, HERMANN SIEGFRIED. Das Buch der Marionetten.
SERRURIER, L. De Wajang Poerwa.
SERVAES, FRANZ. Neue Theaterpuppen von R. Teschner.
SPERANZA, GINO CHARLES. Marionette Theatre in New York.
Saturday Evening Post, 1916.
STARR, LAURA B. The Doll Book.
STEVENSON, ROBERT LOUIS. Essays.
STODDARD, ANNE. The Renaissance of the Puppet Play. Century
Magazine, 1918.
STORM, THEODOR. Pole Poppenspäler.
STRUTT, JOSEPH. Sports and Pastimes of the People of England.
SYMONS, H. An Apology for Puppets. Saturday Review, 1897.
VASARI. Life of Il Cecca.
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1909.
WEED, INIS. Puppet Plays for Children. Century Magazine, 1916.
WEST, HENRY SUYDAM. Puppet Warfare in France. Literary Digest,
1915.
WESTWOOD, J. O. Notice of Medieval Mimic Entertainment.
Archeological Journal, Vol. V.
WITKOWSKI, GEORG. Introduction to Goethe’s Faust.
WOLF, GEORG JACOB. Das Marionetten Theater Münchner Künstler.
Dekorative Kunst, 1911.
YOUNG, S. G. Guignol. Lippincott’s Magazine, 1879.
ZIEGLER, FRANCIS J. Puppets, Ancient and Modern. Harper’s
Magazine, 1897.
* * * * *
_All the Year_, 1894. Greek Puppet Show. From the Works of
Heron of Alexandria.
_Current Opinion_, 1916. Paradox of the Puppet.
_Current Opinion_, 1913. Return of the Marionettes.
_Eclectic Magazine_, 1854. Puppets of All Nations.
_Encyclopaedia Britannica_, Vol. 17: 723.
_Illustrated London News_, 1911. A Javanese Topeng Dalang.
_Kind und Kunst._ Vol. III. Illustrations of Puppet Shows.
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Exposition.
_The Marionette._ Vol. I.
_The Mask._ Vols. I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII.
_The Sketch_, 1916. Illustration of the Gair Wilkinsons’
Puppets.
FOOTNOTES
[1] Oh, ladies and gentlemen, patient sitters for portraits, what if
the puppets do reverse the usual order of things? Must you not envy
them? Think of having your portrait painted first, the portrait of
the _ideal you_ by an artist, and then having a complaisant Creator
fashioning your features into the nearest possible semblance of what
you might wish to be! Think of it. How delightful for you and how
simple for the portrait painter!
[2] Only the principal male parts were allowed to speak Sanskrit
according to the conventions of Hindu dramaturgy. Lesser male and all
female parts were spoken in Prakrit.
[3] There are many Italian names for the puppets. From _pupa_, meaning
doll, is derived _pupazzi_. From _fantoccia_, also signifying doll, we
have _fantoccini_, or little dolls. From _figura_, statue or figure,
comes _figurini_, statuettes or little figures. _Burattini_ comes
from _buratto_, cloth, being made mostly of cloth. _Marionette_ is a
modification of _Maria_, the Virgin, meaning little Maries from the
early statuettes in churches. Another explanation is found in the tenth
century Venetian _Festival of the Maries_. Upon one occasion Barbary
pirates carried off twelve Venetian maidens in their bridal procession.
The rape of the affianced Virgins was avenged by Venetian youths and
thereafter celebrated annually by a procession of richly dressed girls.
These later were replaced by elaborately gowned figures carried year by
year in the procession--hence Marionetti, little Maries.
[4] The research of scholars has discovered in the Ulm versions of the
Faustspiel the suggestion for the _Prologue in Heaven_, although in the
puppet play it was held in the Inferno before Satan, not before Die
Padre. _Faust’s Monologue_ seems patterned after that in the Tübingen
play or that of Frankfurt am Main. The metaphysical debate between
Faust and Mephistopheles has its prototype in the Augsburg Faustus. The
tavern scene may have been drawn from a similar scene in the Cologne
play. Similarly the Phantasmagoria of Blocksberg and other arrangements
may be traced back to the old puppet show Faust.
[5] Mrs. Browne, in any case, has not been discouraged. In 1918 she
instructed her class in the dramatic department of the University of
Utah in the principles and methods of marionette play, developing
possible puppeteers for the future. The next spring we find her
assisting Mr. Sarg in directing and staging his little puppet drama,
_The Rose and the Ring_.
[6] At the same time a less successful and quite unfinished dress
rehearsal of another drama was performed; but this play on which the
manipulators had labored for many months was abandoned because of too
great difficulty in manipulating ... and because of other complications
which shall be nameless.
[7] Mr. Alfred Kreymborg informs me that _Lima Beans_, one of his
amusing little poem-mimes, was played by puppets in Los Angeles, under
the direction of Miss Vivian Aiken. Mr. Kreymborg has written that he
considers “the only possible approach to a Synthetic stage is derived
from the marionette performance.” Of the puppeteers in Los Angeles, one
would like to hear more.
[8] Mr. B. Pollock, 73 Hoxton St., London, writes: “I still publish
Juvenile Plays and also supply foot lights and tin slides which are
used with the theatre. I have now been carrying on the business for
forty-two years and my father-in-law about thirty-eight years before
me.”
[9] Mr. G. Bernard Shaw has written of England: “The old professional
marionette showmen have been driven off the road by the picture
theatre. I am told that on the Continent where marionettes flourish
much more than here, they have suffered the same way from the
competition of the irresistible pictures. And I doubt whether they will
recover from the attack. I am afraid there is no use pretending that
they deserve to.”
How consoling to turn to Mr. Gordon Craig, who has prophesied
optimistically in _The Marionette_: “Burattini are magical, whereas
Cinema is only mechanical. When a framework of a film machine is one
day found by curiosity-hunters in the ruins of a cellar and marvelled
over, the Burattini will still be alive and kicking.”
_Index_
Ache, d’, Caran, designs silhouettes for _Chat Noir_, 98–99.
Actors, used with marionettes, in Italian church festivals, 51;
in medieval French churches, 82;
in Germany in seventeenth century, 123–125.
Aiken, Vivian, 183.
_Alice in Wonderland_, in Chicago, 178.
America, marionettes in, 163–191.
American Indians, use of articulated images in ceremonials, 164–170.
Ames, Winthrop, interest in marionettes, 184–185.
Ananda, annual performance in temple, 30.
Anatole, M., founder of the Vrai Guignol, 107–108.
Antinoë, excavation of marionette theatre in, 16–17.
Antiquity of puppets, 15.
Antwerp, underground theatre in, 141–142.
_Apotheosis of Bacchus_, representative Greek show, 19.
_Apuleius_, quoted on Greek puppets, 18.
Ariosto’s _Orlando Furioso_ in Sicily, 71–76.
Aristophanes’ _The Birds_ in puppet performance, 105.
Arlecchino, Italian puppet character, 22, 57.
Baden-Baden, puppet show of Ivo Pühony, 134.
Bali, Wayang plays in, 28.
Belgium, puppets in, 140–142.
Bergerac, Cyrano de, duel with ape, 84.
Berlin, production of _Doctor Sassafras_ and _Two Dancing Chinamen_,
134–135.
Bertrand, French showman, 86–87.
_Birds_ of Aristophanes produced, 105.
Black, John, 182.
Blei, Franz, quoted on shadow play in Munich, 132;
on types of plays for puppets, 210–211.
Bohemia, puppet plays in, 136.
Boinet, Paul, operator on _La France_, 109.
Bologna, theatres in, 69.
_Bonifrates_, definition, 80.
Boswell, quoted, 154.
Bouchor, Maurice, presents _Noël ou le Mystère de la Nativité_,
110–111.
Brann, Paul, founder of theatre in Munich, 130.
Briocci. _See_ Brioché.
Brioché, Giovanni and Francesco, famous 17th century showmen, 84–86.
Broemel, Carl, 183.
Browne, Mrs. Maurice, founder of Chicago Little Theatre, 173–178.
Buelens, Pieter, Belgian showman, 141.
Buffano, Remo, 171.
Bulley, Margaret, 157.
_Burattini_, description, 54;
derivation of name, 55.
Burma, development of puppet stage, 29–30.
Caine, W., quoted on Paris Guignols, 197–198.
Calthrop, A., on modern Venetian show, 68.
Cardboard plays, 192–194.
Cascio, Salvatore, 172.
Cassandrino, Italian puppet character, 58, 60.
Catacombs, jointed images in tombs, 22.
Catania, religious plays in, 77–78.
Cecca, mediæval Italian mechanician, 51–52.
Central Asia, two types of puppets, 30.
Ceylon, early religious puppets, 33.
Chambers, E. K., quoted on use of puppets in churches, 53.
Champs Élysées, home of the Vrai Guignol, 107–108;
performances, 197–198.
Character types. _See_ Types.
Charles V of Spain, 78.
_Chat Noir_, home of _Ombres Françaises_, 98–100.
Chicago Little Theatre, successful performances in, 173–178.
Children’s productions, 192–194.
Chopin, life enacted by Cleveland puppets, 182.
Christmas plays. _See_ Religious plays.
Church festivals, in Italy, 51–52. _See also_ Passion play; Religious
plays.
Cibber, Colley, writes for marionettes, 153.
Cleveland, Italian performance in, 172;
Playhouse, puppet productions, 178–183;
performance of _The Rose and the Ring_, 200–201;
construction of dolls, 221–224.
Clisby, George, 179.
Cologne, home of Kölner Hanneschen Theatre, 128.
Comic element in puppets, 203–205.
_Commedia dell’Arte_, influence on Italian marionettes, 57–59.
Constantine, Italian puppet character, 58.
Construction of marionettes, 221–224. _See also_ Materials; Mechanism.
Construction of marionette stage (O’Neil), 226–229.
Craig, Gordon, experiments with puppets, 160–163;
_Game of Marionettes_, 192;
on educational importance of puppets, 202;
on actor and marionette, 208–209;
on future of puppet plays, 214.
Crawley, London showman, 153.
Cruikshank, pictures of Punch and Judy, 149.
Cuccoli, Filippo, 69.
Curtis, Elnora Whitman, on educational value of puppets, 201–202.
Dalang, definition, 27.
_Dame aux Camellias (La)_, parody on by George Sand, 94.
_Death of Tintagiles_, production in Cleveland, 179–180;
rehearsal of, 218–221.
Deaves, Harry, retired American marionettist, 171.
_Deluded Dragon_, produced at Chicago Little Theatre, 174–175.
Denmark, puppets in literature, 140.
Dickens, Charles, quoted on puppet shows in Genoa, 63–66.
Dickson (pseud.), operator-magician, 101.
Dieppe, annual _Mystery of the Assumption_, 82–83.
_Docha_, definition, 113.
_Doctor Sassafras_, artistic production in Berlin, 134–135.
Dolls, mechanical, in vaudeville, 170–171.
_Domèvre, The Seven Chasseurs of_, 111–112.
Don Quixote and the puppets, 79.
Dorothea, popular puppet character of Hamburg, 115.
Drama, poetic, difficulties of production, 190–191. _See also_ Plays.
Drama, varied repertory of Italian marionettes, 59–62;
classic, given at _Le Petit Théâtre de M. Henri Signoret_, 102–105.
Duranty, Charles, attempt to uplift Guignol, 108.
Edgerton, Mrs. Seymour, 174.
Educational value of puppets, 195, 201–202, 213–214.
Egypt, possible birthplace of marionettes, 16.
Ehlert, Ernest, gives shows in Berlin with Pühony’s puppets, 134–135;
on Pühony’s marionettes, 206.