A Brief History of Eastern Puppets
by Gail Lang

Puppets, all-time favorite toys of both children and adults, come inmany sizes, shapes, and varieties. Early types of puppets include shadowpuppets, glove puppets, rod/stick puppets and marionettes. Early shadowpuppets probably were silhouettes set in motion by the firelight againstthe sides of nomads tents. Puppets acquired limbs, becoming movable rodpuppets; and eventually they acquired strings to become marionettes.

The art of puppetry still flourishes. True puppeteering requires a lotof practice to perfect the craft. Puppeteers must actually be performers,storytellers, technicians, and perhaps even artists. They must be actorscreating reality on stage. As storytellers they must get the audience involvedin the show. They have to perform technical movements with their puppets.They may also make their own puppets. A sense of humor and love of fun,thrown in with their other talents, contribute to the fun and entertainmentfound that are basic elements of puppet shows.

In ancient India, China, and Turkey shadow puppets were beautifullydecorated, leather cutouts. The Tholumatte shadow puppets of southern Indiaare wonderful examples of the Eastern shadow puppets. These four to fivefeet leather puppets are only made from hides of animals that died of naturalcauses. They are beautifully colored and supported by vertical rods. Thelegs hang loose while the hands are attached to rods. The tales presentedby them dealt with gods and demons. The movement, size, style, manner ofoperation, and content of the plays gave each type of puppet its uniquequalities. Men enjoyed the beauty, color and design of the characters becausethey watched the plays from the same side of the screen as the puppeteer.Women and children were only allowed to view the play from the back ofthe screen so they saw only the shadows.

The Indians had a unique puppet show. It was performed outdoors behindsheets of fabric hung from bamboo. A row of coconut shells behind the sheetswere filled with oil and burned throughout the show. The flickering lightsprobably made the character's movements seem more magical.

One of the older forms of puppetry in India was the Wayang Purwa. Anartist known as a Dalang put on the show. He would operate each characterhimself and recite each line in shows that lasted all night. He also operatedseveral musical instruments and sound-effect items throughout the play.These shows took a great deal of practice, determination, skill, memorizationas well as talent on the part of the Dalang. These special performanceswere usually reserved for special occasions such as birthdays or weddingsof the wealthy and important people of society.

Another older form of Indian shadow puppetry was the Wayang Kulit, meaning"Skin or Hide performance". These 18" - 30" tall puppetswere made from heavy leather that was extensively stenciled with intricatedesigns. There had to be at least 12 specifically-placed, chiseled motifson each puppet. Each of these motifs had a specific meaning. The paintingof the puppets was as important as the motifs. The construction of thepuppet required everything be done in an exact order and accompanied byprayer. There was a great deal of religious connection to many forms ofpuppetry through out history. One form of Wayang Kulit puppets exists todayonly in the museums of Thailand. At 3' tall it's every bit as beautifuland intricate as its predecessors.

The Far Eastern shadow puppets of China are other fine samples of shadowpuppets. They are also extremely large and ornate but made of a much heavierleather with stronger support rods attached to the necks. The main differencebetween Indian and Far Eastern puppetry is found in the play itself. TheChinese puppet plays portrayed the history and folklore of the people.Classic tales about emperors, heroes, enemies, battles, women and loversreplaced the religious overtones of the Indian puppet plays.

An interesting feature of Chinese puppetry was the coloring of the puppets.Viewers knew which characters were good or bad by the colors used. Red,white, gold, black, or blue face colors represented the puppet's stateof mind and emotions. A figure might be displayed at different times duringthe show in different colored faces to exaggerate his emotions. Colorsalso identified the puppets in India. For example, women were in hues ofyellow, orange and brown.

Turkish puppeteers were creative with puppet movements. Turkish puppetsoperated by rods that attached perpendicularly to a hole in the top oftheir bodies, enabling puppets to bend over and do somersaults. Althoughpuppets could not turn around during a play, rods attached to either sideenabled the puppet to face right or left.

The variety of puppets is extensive; but, for now, this should openyour mind to the wonders of puppetry and help you appreciate the art, historyand creativity behind the next puppet show you see.