This week I had the pleasure to talk to John Roberts about his time in China and talk about the differences between the European upright marionette control and Chinese paddle control.

They have a huge number of strings which means they can have things like hands that can pick things up.  Heres my attempt to make a pair of hands.

Below is a video of some in action - I found myself watching the puppeteers almost as much as the puppets.  
their choreography is so tight - it's not often you get to see marionettists in action.

The Chinese marionette below is by John Roberts from puppet craft - my photos don't do it justice in anyway but it shows what they are like on the inside. I was a little suprised by how simple they construction methods were - rolled newspaper for arms - just cloth legs but the costumes and paint are so intricate and then you get to the stringing and discover that she is anything by simple.

I've been experimenting with an eye mechanism.
Might come in handy when I need a shifty character.

This one is a pretty basic toggle directly attached to the back of eyes on a pivot.  

It took some trial and error to see what would work but was really interesting to try of lots of different things until I got the movement I was after.  

Whilst I was playing with eyes Lyndie was trying out a type of javanese puppet hand she's not made before to see how it worked.  it's a solid piece with fingers joined.  it's strong but also quick (comparatively) to carve because the thumb is inline with the rest of the hand.

Lesson of the day: Even after 50 years in puppetry there are still new and exciting things to try for the first time.