Puppetry Training for Contemporary Live Theatre

This article discusses the development of formal puppetry training over the last century, commenting on the move from a technical and craft-based approach towards a sensibility focused on animation of multiple forms. The article notes the different and complementary approaches taken by European puppetry training institutions and the current emphasis on animism as an approach to animation. Within this approach, the puppet as character, previously paramount in puppet theatre, is discarded in favour of the animation of matter, objects, shadows and other forms, which are seen as ephemeral; the puppeteer is consequently required to move fluidly between different modes of performance, whilst retaining attention and focus outside the body