MARIONETTES
Marionettes are those puppets that are worked from above, usually by string or wire. These attach to a "control" which one or more puppeteers holds and by moving the control or the strings attached to it, causes the puppet to move.
in human-like marionettes, the weight of the body is supported by strings fastened to the shoulders and the head. When the puppeteer puts more tension on the shoulder strings it allows the head to move. There are usually strings to the knees, hands and back. Additional strings may be added to allow the figure to perform special operations. A skeleton which comes apart and re-assembles is a standard "specialty" puppet for many puppeteers. Marionette animals are often common.
Different marionettes require different kinds of controls, A popular form looks something like an airplane. Some spectacular puppets have very complicated controls and may require several people to work the puppet simultaneously. A skeleton which becomes "dispointed" requires a control which allows tension to be shifted so that the bones of the skeleton may separate and come together again. A puppet "Salome" required a control to which strings which could be detached were fastened. Each of these strings went to one of the "Seven Veils" that she shed during her dance. The puppeteer needed to be able to detach the veil and have the "puppet" throw it away!
In "hand" or "glove" puppets where the operators hand is actually inside the puppet, it is easy for them to pick up objects and put them down. Marionettes require complex stringing to handle such tasks.
A marionette from India
Click here for a larger picture
Click here to see other marionettes
