The Face Behind the Puppet (Part 1)

Hello All! I am so glad to have you back. Last week Kasey gave us an exciting look inside of the renderings and costume design that was so wonderfully created for this show. This week however, we will be harking back to the puppetry. Operating a puppet is no joke. Many people see it as a childish hobby or an awkward talent, but as one of my previous posts proclaimed, puppetry is an art form.

For all of the TYA shows that we do here at BYU there is a requirement that each actor must meet, in order to take part in the performance. It comes in the form of a class, twice a week from 8 am to 2 pm. In this class, the actors will learn how to perform for children and thoroughly rehearse the play that they will be putting on.

However, this show has been rather unique. In addition to learning how to act for children, and thorough rehearsal of their show, these actors have spent hours learning puppetry. Back aching, finger cramping, sore knee making puppetry. In today’s blog post, we will find out their motivations for doing so and how they have grown from it.

This is Chandra Lloyd. She is a seasoned veteran of Young Company. She also is a seasoned BYU puppeteer with her involvement in The Selfish Giant. She plays the part of Bottom the Weaver, who we will here from on next week’s post.

Eric Stroud: What made you do a TYA show?

Chandra Lloyd: I love Theatre for Young Audiences. I think kids have wonderful imaginations and I really enjoy working with them. I’m also very interested in working with kids in a therapeutic setting in the future and love every experience I have doing workshops with them. I believe in educating them for the future, but in unique ways they will remember and be able to put into practice. It is a very rewarding experience.

Eric: How has it been working with puppets? What’s been your favorite part? What’s been the most challenging part?

Chandra: I love working with puppets. After doing The Selfish Giant, I was excited to do it again. There is something magical about seeing a puppet come to life and have its own personality. I’m always amazed at how they take on a life of their own and though you control them, they influence you in that control. The most challenging part is really focusing on the puppet, never letting your attention stray. They are dependent on you for life and breath and you must give yourself over to their needs with an intense dedication. It is rewarding and magical, but challenging to give them that life.

Eric: What do you think the puppets add to the show?

Chandra: Magic and imagination. They add an entire new world with different rules and less gravity. They make it fun and funny. They are such a creative element of the show.

This is Emily Simons. Not only is she new to Young Company, but also to theatre (having a background mostly in debate). She brings a lot to the table in skill and it is a blast to see her connected to her puppet and its personality. She plays the part of Hermia the lover and Starveling the puppet (who we will meet next week).

Eric: What made you do a TYA show?

Emily: Well, I have always been a big fan of Shakespeare, especially A Midsummer Night’s Dream. I also really wanted to preform for kids. It’s an amazing opportunity and I’m very blessed to be a part of it.

Eric: How has it been working with puppets? What’s been your favorite part? What’s been the most challenging part?

Emily: The puppets are amazing! I definitely had to buff my arms up a bit to hold it for long periods of time. They are super fun to play with and I’m excited to see the audience’s reaction to them.

Eric: What do you think the puppets add to the show?

Emily: I believe that the puppets add an element of fun to the show. It gives the audience a chance to use their imaginations to believe that the puppets are people with motivations and feelings.

Check back next time to meet the rest of our puppeteers!

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A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM

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[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="376"] Margaret Roper[/caption] Margaret More Roper: Scholar and Daughter by Adam White, dramaturg Thomas More was a family man; he was married twice and had four children with his first wife, Jane Colt. After being married for six years, Jane Colt More died, leaving More with four children: Margaret, Elizabeth, Cecily and John. However, More quickly remarried to the widow Dame Alice Middleton, marrying her within a month of his wife’s death. While many of his friends resisted the rapid nature of the arrangement, More went through with it. Thomas and Alice More would raise the four children Thomas More had with Jane, as well as Alice’s daughter from her previous marriage and a foster daughter. Certainly, More valued his family and the welfare of his children. More also valued the power of education. He insisted that his daughters be educated through rigorous schooling, and this was unusual in 16th-century England, as society at large believed women unfit for scholarly pursuits. Despite cultural and institutional norms, Margaret More, the eldest of the More children (and More’s favorite, some would argue), would grow to become one of the most educated people in all of England, a woman of great scholarly knowledge. Margaret More Roper was tutored at home and became well-known for her studies, particularly for her adeptness in Greek and Latin. Her skill in writing and speaking Latin would impress the clergy of England. This specialty is reflected in a scene in Bolt’s A Man for All Seasons where Margaret and King Henry VIII engage in a bit of Latin language sparring. She would also become the first woman who was not of royal birth to publish a translated book. In October 1524, Roper published an English translation of a book called ‘Precatio dominica’ written by Thomas More’s good friend Erasmus. This book was based on the Lord’s Prayer. Instead of translating the book directly from Latin to English, Roper would use her extensive knowledge of both languages to construct the themes and the meanings Erasmus had written in to the treatise with her own words. [caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="291"] Erasmus, Dutch humanist and good friend to Thomas More[/caption] It was Margaret who would visit the imprisoned Thomas More the most often. They were very close, writing letters to one another regularly the duration of their relationship. It was in a letter to Margaret that Thomas More confided, “I do nobody harm, I say none harm, I thinke none harm, but wish everybody good. And if this be not enough to keep a man alive, in good faith I long not to live.” We have good reason to believe that Margaret More Roper very well understood what would be her father’s fate. After Thomas More’s execution, Margaret More Roper and her husband William Roper would continue to carry on his legacy in their own ways. William Roper would write the first biography of Thomas More, a glowing and gracious document that would influence our understanding of More’s personality for hundreds of years to come. Margaret More Roper actually kept her father’s head after his beheading, pickling it to preserve it from decay. While many of us may find that historical tidbit a tad macabre, I would like to believe that Margaret More Roper had deep admiration for her father; perhaps it was out of this feeling she kept his head. Please stay tuned to the 4th Wall Dramaturgy Blog to catch clips of my interview with Mallory Gee, the actress who will portray Margaret More Roper in BYU’s A Man for All Seasons. Bibliography: Abernathy, Susan. "Margaret Roper, Daughter of Sir Thomas More." Early Modern England. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Feb. 2014. Duerden, Richard. "A Man for All Seasons." Telephone interview. 31 Jan. 2014. "Margaret Roper." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 28 Sept. 2013. Web. 02 Oct. 2013. "Sir Thomas More Quotes and Quotations." Sir Thomas More Quotes and Quotations. Luminarium. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Nov. 2013.

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The Face Behind the Puppet (Part 1)

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