Marionette

Lore & Background

A marionette, also known as a string puppet, is controlled from above by a puppeteer, or marionettist, using wires or strings, with the specific attachment of these strings varying according to the character or purpose of the puppet. The puppeteer operates the marionette using a vertical or horizontal control bar, and may be either hidden from or revealed to the audience. These performances take place in various forms of theatres or entertainment venues, and marionettes have also been used in films and on television. The term itself comes from the French word for 'little Mary', a reference to the medieval French practice of using string puppets to depict biblical events, where the Virgin Mary was a popular character. While in France the word can refer to any kind of puppet, in other regions it is typically reserved for string puppets. Evidence of string-controlled objects dates back to ancient Egypt around 2000 BC, where figures of wood were manipulated to act as if kneading bread. Articulated puppets made of clay and ivory, controlled by wires, have also been found in Egyptian tombs. In ancient Greece and Rome, clay and ivory dolls with articulated arms and legs, dating from around 500 BC, have been discovered in children's tombs. Some of these dolls had an iron rod extending from the top of the head for manipulation from above, a technique still used in Sicilian puppetry, while others had strings instead of rods. However, some researchers believe these ancient figures were mere toys rather than puppets due to their small size.

Reader's Guide

Marionettes are controlled from above by wires or strings, with the puppeteer—called a marionettist—operating them using a vertical or horizontal control bar, either hidden or visible to the audience. The attachment of strings varies according to the character or purpose of the puppet. Their use extends beyond live theatre to films and television. Historically, string puppets were employed in ancient Egypt as early as 2000 BCE, where figures with movable limbs were manipulated by strings or wires, and similar articulated dolls of clay and ivory have been found in Egyptian tombs. In ancient Greece, puppetry was documented by Herodotus and Xenophon, and the Greek term for puppet literally means “drawn by strings.” Aristotle compared animal movement to automatic puppets set in motion by tiny triggers, while Archimedes also worked with marionettes. Plato’s writings reference puppetry, and the *Iliad* and *Odyssey* were performed using puppets. In Sicily, the *opera deî pupi* tradition uses hand-carved wooden marionettes to enact scenes from Frankish romantic poems, rooted in the troubadour culture of the 13th century. This tradition was listed on UNESCO’s Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2008. In the 18th century, composers including Gluck, Haydn, de Falla, and Respighi wrote operas specifically for marionettes, a practice continued today by the Salzburg Marionette Theatre. In the UK, the late 19th and early 20th centuries saw a revival driven by Harry Whanslaw and Waldo Lanchester, who co-founded the British Puppet and Model Theatre Guild. Lanchester later opened a dedicated marionette theatre in Malvern, and the Harlequin Puppet Theatre in North Wales remains the only purpose-built marionette theatre in the UK. Marionettes are distinct from other puppet forms such as finger, glove, rod, and shadow puppetry.

Did You Know?

• The Greek word for puppet, νευρόσπαστος (nevróspastos), literally means 'drawn by strings'.
• Aristotle compared animal movements to automatic puppets in his work On the Motion of Animals.
• The Indian word sutradhara means 'string-puller' or 'string-holder' and refers to a show-manager or puppet-player.