Puppet Circus

Dust jacket notes: "The end of the nineteenth century was the heyday of the novelty puppet and marionette. In this book, Peter Fraser, a well-known authority in the field of puppetry, has selected the appropriate marionettes from the Victorian originals and has placed them I a circus setting, with step-by-step instructions for making them. Thus, we have here such traditional circus characters as the ring master presiding over the whole company, acrobats, jugglers, a clown, a tight-rope dancer, a weight-lifter, and a prancing horse. There are also the simple 'toy' puppets like the Monkey-on-the-Stick and Jumping Jack. In The Puppet Circus, the author has worked out the reconstruction and control mechanisms as close to the originals as possible, and provides diagrams and drawings to make possible the simple construction and operation of the characters in the puppet circus. Individual sections of the book also cover a performance of a puppet circus, using shadow, rod, string and glove puppets, and the painting, plastic modeling, and authentic costuming of the puppets. The excellent instructions and descriptions of the puppets and the staging for the show will enable beginners and experienced puppeteers to put on a successful performance that will delight audiences of all ages."