Jessica Doles and Zanden Hogrelius prepare for the upcoming performance. (Photo by Daniel Daw)
The art of puppetry has been around for centuries upon centuries with many different styles ranging from 2D shadow puppets to marionettes. Though puppet theater has had some presence in Flagstaff, it isn’t until now that NAU will have its own student-performed puppet show.
NAU Theater Presents “Puppets!” is a product of Theater 440, a class that has a different subject every semester depending on the instructor’s preference. Previously it had been used by Professors Patrick Battles and Kate Ellis to explore the use of masks on stage, which resulted in to two performances run by the class. This year, it has been used once again by Professor Ellis with the intention to teach her students about the history and techniques of puppetry. Ellis said she has always possessed a passion for puppetry.
“This is always been like an area of interest to me,” said Ellis, “And [it’s] something that we have not done with the students since I’ve been here, either in terms of using puppets in a show or teaching a class.”
There are 20 students in Theater 440 with four different skits between them. These performances include “The Adventures of Winnie-the-Pooh,” “Jack and the Beanstalk,” “Rapunzel” and an original story created by the students. Each of these are appropriate for all ages and will be done in different styles, through shadow puppets, rod puppets, hand puppets and marionettes respectively. Ellis said the class was geared towards raising students’ understandings of world cultures.
“I was more specifically addressing global awareness,” said Ellis, “And really address with the class how puppetry has been used internationally and how old a tradition it is.”
Preparing for a puppet show usually requires six months to a year of development that involves building and refining the components to a performance. After studying the historical uses of puppetry during the first half of the semester, the students of Theater 440 only had an entire month to write their scripts, practice their technique and build their own puppets. Ellis said she encouraged creativity and resourcefulness in the building process.
“Within the shows that are going to be performed, it’s much more a combination of new, purchased materials and recycled,” Ellis said.
Though puppetry is very much a part of theater, it is not done in the same fashion as performing a play with actors. Because humans naturally have more life and energy in them than inanimate figurines, puppeteers have to be able to bring passion and vitality to their “constructed actors.”
“Puppetry is as old as theater,” Ellis said, “And there’s some evidence that it may actually be almost older in terms of the use of figurines symbolizing something else, which is essentially what puppetry is: endowing figurines with life.”
Nathan Spector, a senior theater performance major who worked on “The Adventures of Winnie-the-Pooh,” said he decided to work on puppet theater because it would be a different experience compared to using live people. The focus is placed on action rather than dialogue; “Jack and the Beanstalk,” for example, contains no dialogue whatsoever.
“It was a new medium of theater I’ve never seen before, and I was interested in the construction and manipulation methods,” Spector said. “Puppetry is all about the ‘what,’ not the ‘how’”
Jessica Doles, a senior theater design tech major playing Jack in “Jack and the Bean Stalk,” found manipulating puppets as a very engaging experience despite not being an actress.
“I love how puppets transcend ages.” Doles said. “They’re not just for kids.”
Whether NAU will see another puppet performance after Puppets! is up in the air, but Ellis has expressed her readiness to continue teaching the class.
“Especially after spending as much time on the class as I have, want to see more of this being done,” Ellis said. “The students seemed to have had a really good time doing it. The students have grown so much in their ability and understanding in how to use the puppets they created, and I want to see that continue.”
NAU Theater Presents “Puppets!” will be shown in the Studio Theatre at the Fine Arts building on Dec. 9 – 10 from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. and Dec. 11 at 2 p.m. Tickets are available at the Central Ticket Office at $2 for NAU students with an ID, $14 for NAU employees and seniors, and $16 for general admission.
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