Fig. 5.—Preparing saturated solution.
Fig. 6.—Grooved cork for “dripping” solutions.
A tumbler glass full of saturated solution has first to be prepared, and this is best done by tying about 1⁄2 lb. of Hypo in a piece of muslin, so that it may be held against the rim of the glass and allowed to hang in hot water after the manner of Fig. 5. When an appreciable quantity of the salt has dissolved, the liquid being but lukewarm, the muslin bag may be removed and the solution stirred gently. Then it must be stood somewhere firm, and allowed to remain absolutely undisturbed until cold. There should then be a glass full of clear liquid, and the phenomenon is at hand.
Let the smallest crystal of solid Hypo be dropped in this liquid, or let it but be disturbed, and behold! a wonderful transformation proceeds, until the glass interior becomes a shimmering mass of sparkling crystals. The reason of this curious behavior is not far to seek. Hypo, in common with most chemicals, dissolves to a greater extent in hot water than in cold, but is different, inasmuch as the excess of salt does not settle out as the solution becomes cold. Cold solution is therefore really over-saturated, and to such an extent that only an extra crystal or the least disturbance is sufficient to upset the delicate balance, upon which climax the great excess of Hypo soon settles out.
(5) This is another reaction in which Hypo takes part, but one other substance is required as well, viz. permanganate of potash. Condy’s fluid is equally suitable, and in either case the solution need only be weak—just a transparent deep pink color. The vessel containing this permanganate may be about half full. When Hypo solution is gradually dripped into this and the mixture stirred, the color is immediately dispelled, leaving the liquid clear as water.
Inasmuch as every photographer knows the necessity for washing his prints until all fixing salt is removed, this decoloring action may be fully employed in testing the washing water occasionally. When it no longer affects the tint of a pink permanganate solution he may rest assured that the deleterious Hypo—like some friends in being welcome so they stop not too long—has really departed. For the ready performance of this experiment it may be noted that any solution can most easily be “dropped in drips” from a bottle whose cork is cut grooved at both sides (Fig. 6).
Fig. 7.—Sensitizing blue-print paper.
Experiment C.—Blue Print Paper
Engineers’ drawings have for many years past been copied upon ferro-prussiate, or “blue print” paper. The original design being made in opaque ink upon tracing linen, a sheet of the sensitive paper is held against this in strong daylight until blue coloration has advanced everywhere except beneath the ink lines of the drawing. These remain yellow, or rather white, when finished, as the excess of sensitive salt is removed by washing.
Since this last operation is in itself all-sufficient to insure permanency, the simplicity is unique. In fact, the impossibilty of securing other colors than blue has been the only factor to exclude this process from far wider use.
The preparation of the sensitive surface presents no great difficulties, provided a drawing-paper of good quality be used. It should be cut into strips about 6 inches wide, which are passed one by one up and down (see Fig. 7) through a dish containing the following solution: 1 oz. ferri-cyanide of potash + 4 oz. water, added to 1 oz. ammonio-citrate of iron + 4 oz. water. (Note—4 oz. water = nearly 1⁄4 pint.) This must be done in very dull light—candle or paraffin oil by preference—and the wet paper pinned up to dry in a dark cupboard, hanging from the edge of a shelf or other projecting support. Then it may be cut into pieces of the required size and stored with a wrapping of tissue and brown paper in a handy box.
All manner of designs may be produced on this paper, such for example as fern leaves, lace, and embroidery. Actual sea-view photos or imitation moonlight views also look very well indeed. Another notion is to secure the copy of some picture printed in black on thin paper, which has been oiled and dried in order to render it translucent for quicker printing. The final washings should be thorough, and then the blue print will last its maker as long as the latter cares to keep it.
Experiment D.—To Show the Constituents of White Light
Few physicists to-day doubt that light consists of waves set up in an all-pervading medium called ether; that, moreover, white light is composed of different tinted rays—to be seen reflected from the bevel edge of a looking-glass, or indeed from the more natural rainbow—which further are caused by the different lengths of waves whereby the colored lights are propagated.
Now we may produce these phenomena for ourselves by cutting a slit 11⁄2 inches long in a temporary window-shutter, or, more conveniently, in the end of a large wooden box (A, Fig. 8). Near this a glass prism, such as once adorned gas-pendants so profusely, must be supported (B, Fig. 8) on a block of wood, and at the opposite end of the box a sheet of paper pinned to the inside (C, Fig. 8). The arrangement is shown in the diagram.
Now notice, if you regard this screen from the open top—a large cloth covering head and box in order to keep out superfluous light—a band of color is depicted thereon, gradating gently like a rainbow from violet through blue and yellow to red. Thus the white light which entered through the slit has been separated into its component parts. So far, gorgeous enough! But for the photographer much greater interest is at hand, will he proceed as follows. Place the box so that bright sunshine enters through the slit, and after fastening a piece of blue print paper instead of the white on the box interior, allow this to print, at the same time excluding extraneous light by a dark cloth overspread. When this piece of paper has been washed and fixed, the colored band should have registered itself in various shades of blue, from which it will be noticeable that the purple and blue lights have darkened the paper most, whilst red and yellow hardly affect it at all. If ordinary printing paper, or still better, a photographic plate (in which latter case a considerably shorter exposure will suffice, and outside light must be rigorously excluded) be used, instead of the blue print paper, the result is still more striking.
Fig. 8.—The refraction of white light into its constituent colors.
From this experiment further is to be gathered the reason for developing plates by red light, which evidently does not affect the sensitive surface in any appreciable degree. But, on the other hand, special orthochromatic plates are made which, by dyeing, have been rendered sensitive to the yellow rays as well as to the blue, and if one of these be employed to “take” the colored band, technically called “spectrum,” a totally different gradation is obtained compared with that on an ordinary plate or on “blue print” paper.
Then again, suppose instead of sunlight, ordinary lamplight or incandescent gas be used as an illuminant, the gradation varies, whilst still another modification is to photograph the spectrum of a methylated spirit-flame in which common salt is being burnt. In this case the light is so yellow that an orthochromatic plate must be used. Another illuminant worth testing is magnesium ribbon, which also may be ignited in the spirit-flame.
Before saying a final adieu to these spectrum results, one last item remains for remark—last but not least. We say that the series of visible colors extended from violet through blue and yellow to red, and that darkness obtained at each end. Well! Mount a plate or piece of printing paper inside the box, so that half of it is well in the darkness beyond the bluish-violet bands, and expose long enough to secure a slight opacity in these parts (i.e. where the blue bands fell) when the plate is developed and fixed. The half of the plate which was in darkness and therefore apparently received no exposure, nevertheless develops darker than the remainder, seeming to indicate that some light, although invisible to the human eye, had affected the sensitive silver compounds in the plate. This is actually the case. The rays of light which exert this wonderful influence are called “ultra-violet,” meaning beyond the violet, and their existence explains, amongst other matters, why photography of the heavens has revealed the presence of many thousands more stars than can ever be seen by man. Such stars emit only “ultra violet” light.
Experiment E.—One Person in Two Places—and Spiritualism
Pictures of a man decapitating himself, or of the reader’s sister turning the skipping-rope for another girl, who is herself, may justly be called mystifying. Not only may they almost deceive the operator himself, but will quite nonplus the uninitiated, to whom proofs may thus be presented of the most impossible happenings. Two methods are applicable to the production of such freak portraits, viz:—
(1) To photograph the entire picture in two separate halves on the plate, moving the sitter from one position to another for each exposure.
(2) To employ a background as dark and dim as practicable, whilst well-lighting the sitter and furniture, and giving a separate exposure for each position of the model. The latter procedure is by far the simpler, and provided reasonably correct exposures are given, success should not be very elusive.
To take for a concrete example the portrait of a boy playing checkers with himself. Hang up a curtain of black or deep-red material in some dark recess of a room, and a few feet before it stand a small bamboo table with checker-board, &c., complete, at which the person to be photographed may be posed sitting. As mentioned above, all available light must be concentrated on the group, whilst if the model be wearing light clothes, the effect will be enhanced accordingly.
As to the camera, this may with greatest advantage be of the focussing type, or at any rate a box instrument fitted with magnifiers, so that by being placed near to the sitter the latter may be rendered large and sharp in the portrait whilst the background remains indistinct. This should be of such a size that its somber image well covers the whole plate. A suggested arrangement for the tableau is sketched in Fig. 9.
The first exposure may be made with the person seated at 1—the left-hand side of the table—he either resting one finger on a checker as if about to make his move, or adopting such other pose as his acting capabilities may suggest.
Primarily the time of exposure should be just sufficient for the light-clothed sitter, and therefore not enough for the table and background, which receive a second exposure. This should be made when the model has taken his chair to the opposite side of the table, and again assumed a position natural to the player, who anxiously watches his opponent’s play.
Fig. 9.—One person in two places.
| A. | Table. |
| B. | Black or red curtain as background. |
| C. | Fireplace. |
| D. | White sheet as reflector. |
| E. | Camera. |
| 1 and 2. | Positions of sitter in first and second exposures. |
All possible care must, of course, be taken to keep the table undisturbed during the model’s movements, and also to insure that no lighter object than the sitter himself has a place in either exposure just where he appears in the other. For example, a pile of books must not be photographed during the first exposure just behind or in front of the position which the model is to occupy during the second exposure; otherwise the vision of books through the person’s transparent chest, or a similar incongruous phenomenon, will result.
Spirit Photography
Spirit or ghost photography is but a modification of these methods. The chief element of success is to ignore the caution of the preceding paragraph, and render the ghost figure as transparent as possible. The first exposure should be an adequate one of the human model, who has twisted himself into an attitude of groveling terror compatible with the fright from which he is supposed to be suffering, whilst the background behind him must be dark and indistinct, if he is next to impersonate the spook. The latter’s surroundings, on the contrary, may be as detailed and well-lighted as convenient, because the white-robed figure is to appear transparent.
A sheet will be fit apparel for the “spirit,” and must be large enough to drape entirely the gliding form with outspread arms.
The second exposure must be abnormally short, so as just to obtain a faint impression of the sheet and its folds. Finally, if the terror-stricken person can maintain his attitude of fear during the first exposure, and also for the photograph of the ghost, whose rôle may be taken by some one else beneath a sheet, there is no necessity to have any part of the background unusually dark. Still, darkness is said to favor spooks, so the background is perhaps entirely a matter of choice.
With such dash toward the borders of the spiritual realm, this series of photo experiments must conclude. The most ardent camera fiend can scarcely denounce them as embracing too narrow a field when he considers that ghosts as well as mundane matters—psychical and physical alike—have been approached. Even if his finger-tips do not resemble ebony with silver nitrate, he may still rightly term his hobby the “Black Art.” And his friends! Well, if present at the researches, may their remarks be unheard. Doubtless they will ponder deeply, and conclude that the camera does sometimes lie.
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Sun pictures of the earliest types had been no long time in existence before a rumor spread that photography could not lie. Critics and admirers of the new process rightly enough concluded that a knight of the camera must be constrained to narrow interpretations by his instruments as no artist is by his brushes. But this conclusion, held widely now as then, is only in part correct. The camera records the relative position of objects absolutely, but may on the other hand ruthlessly destroy all sense of perspective, or render globular images of rectilinear buildings. Nor are these the only peculiarities which, in themselves disadvantageous, may frequently be turned to account by the photographer.
Sensitive plates are seldom correctly exposed. They either suffer under- or over-exposure, and when there is a gross error the resulting picture either lacks detail and is blotchy, or else presents the light gradation of a London fog. But, as a set-off to these failings, it might be noted that moonlight pictures are obtainable by excessively short daylight exposures, which give only the outline of the objects, and a contrast between light and shade appropriate to night scenes, whilst photographs of flowers, portraits, and cloud studies may mostly receive full exposure with advantage, the softness of lighting engendered lending additional charm to such subjects.
Fig. 10.—Slanting screen (C) with circular aperture to equalize exposures of sky (A) and foreground (B) in landscapes.
Landscapes commonly reveal over-exposure of the sky or inadequate exposure of the ground and objects, because the amounts of light emitted by these respective portions differ so much. To obviate this difficulty an early photograph worker devised, and indeed used, the arrangement of a circular aperture before the lens, slanting so that it might not admit such large parallels of light from the sky as from the ground portion. The device is more easily understood from the accompanying sketch (Fig. 10).
Fig. 11.—A method of securing “modeling” in portraiture.
The portrait hunter should rejoice to realize that, by judicious procedure, persons of the coarsest complexion may be flattered in their likenesses. Not the least valuable dodge is to render freckles and red blotches invisible by the use of orthochromatic plates, and, if necessary, a yellow screen, which articles prevent the pink skin from securing any advantage over the insular blotches in point of actinic light value.
A supplementary method of securing pleasant portrait effects is to mount a disc of cardboard (A, Fig. 11), round whose edge holes of various sizes from 1⁄4 to 5⁄8-inch diameter and about 1⁄2-inch apart are cut (B, Fig. 11), in front of the camera on a spindle (C, Fig. 11) as shown. Any one of the holes should be adjustable exactly in front of the lens, and the mode of usage is to spin the card disc rapidly whilst the exposure is being given. This should, of course, be proportionately longer than usual.
Novel Results
Excellent imitations of crayon pictures are to be produced by taking the required photograph through a negative screen, which has been made by copying to equal size or slight reduction, a piece of rough drawing-paper rubbed evenly with charcoal. It is employable in two ways, either by keeping it in contact with the sensitive plate in the dark slide whilst the photograph is being taken—a slightly longer exposure being given—or else holding it in the frame on the opposite side of the negative to the sensitive paper during printing, which is conducted in the sunshine.
By systems of double or triple printing, all manner of novel results are obtainable. The only difficulty presented in this work is that of correct registration, but if printing paper—the most usual medium—be employed, this should not be insurmountable even at the first trial. As a first instance of these compositions, suppose out of black paper 4 inches by 6 inches, a piece be removed the shape of the negative portion required, and this mask be used to print through on to a sensitized postcard. The black shape removed should have been gummed on to tissue paper and this used, after the picture portion has been secured, to print a border—showing the grain of the translucent paper—around the photograph.
For a second, and last, example of triple printing, proceed by first preparing the negative of a picture frame, in which, however, an ordinary plain canvas surface has superseded the work of art. The idea is then, by multiple printing, to introduce a camera view into this frame image, and so make the result resemble the copy of another painting.
Cut a black paper mask with an aperture the exact size of the canvas image in the frame negative, and through this mask print the photograph required a shade lighter than usual. Then substitute the frame negative, and, with the same mask in place, secure a slight record of the inner canvas image over the photograph already printed. This gives the requisite oil painting effect. Lastly the piece of black paper, originally removed to form the mask, is fixed over the canvas image of the frame negative and the sensitive paper replaced in position, so that registration and printing of the frame periphery is secured. Then toning and fixing ensue, and the “fraud” is complete.
Fig. 1.—Plan of Marionette stage.
CHAPTER XLI
HOW TO MAKE AND WORK MARIONETTES
Constructing the Stage
Marionettes, though claiming no rivalry to the time-honored institution of Punch and Judy, have a great charm of their own, and, with no traditional story of Punch, Judy, and Dog Toby, are at liberty to perform whatever play their manager may desire.
Although it is possible, of course, to purchase ready-made Marionette theaters and puppets, the purpose of this chapter is to describe a method by which the whole apparatus can be constructed at home at the cost of very little money and time.
Naturally, the first thing to be made is the stage. This must depend very much upon the Marionettes you intend to work. As a convenient size, suppose you decide upon figures 8 inches in height. This means that the frontage of the stage must be about 28 inches wide by 16 inches high, whilst it will run back to a depth of some 14 inches.
Make a base of plain wood, 42 inches by 22 inches. If more convenient this can be made in two pieces, each 21 inches by 22 inches. These fit together flush and are held by a couple of hooks and nails fastening beneath. Glue a block of wood at each corner to form a support, as shown in Fig. 1, which depicts the under side of the base. A, B are the two hooks and nails; C, C, C, C are the above-mentioned blocks. At a distance of 2 inches from what will be the front, and 21⁄2 inches from either end, cut a mortice in each piece of the base (D, D in the figure), through which the tenons of the stage front will project. They must, therefore, be made to suit the thickness of the wood employed. At a distance of 5 inches from the back make four mortices, a couple in each part of the base as E, E, E, E in the figure. These will serve to hold the rear of the stage.
The front of the stage is now constructed as indicated by Fig. 2. Two pieces must be made exactly similar to one another, each to form one-half of the front. The tenon, D, should be long enough to pass through the mortice made for it in the base, and project from the other side sufficiently to allow of a peg being pushed through a hole bored in it. This peg will serve to maintain the upright front in place. Furthermore, two hooks must be placed upon one of the halves, to fasten to corresponding nails in the other half, thus holding the pieces of the stage front firmly together.
The back of the stage consists of two pieces of wood each 18 inches by 18 inches, having tenons to fit into the mortices below the pegs, and fastened together by hooks and nails. Before proceeding further with the work, bore two holes, of sufficient size to hold a piece of stout copper wire firmly in each piece of the base (P, P, P, P, Fig. 1). The use of these will be explained shortly.
Fig. 2.—Construction of front of stage.
The actual fabric of the stage is now complete. Bear in mind no string or wire should extend from the front to the back of the stage, for the simple reason that these spaces must be left perfectly clear to allow of the exit and entrance of the puppets.
Fig. 3.—Stage front completed.
Next fix the drapery in the form of curtains to each side of the stage front. These must be chosen according to your own taste, and should harmonize with the exterior decoration of the theater. The curtains should be gathered up and tacked to the stage front from the inside, as in Fig. 3, from which an idea of the general adornment of the whole theater can be gleaned.
A Movable Curtain
The following plan will be found very suitable for the arrangement of the movable curtain. Take a piece of strong copper wire and bend it, as shown in Fig. 4. The length of the unbent portion should be about 30 inches. Fit the two ends, A and B, into holes bored in the stage front, inside and above the opening. The wire rod will thus run the whole length of the actual stage, whilst the ends A and B suffice to clear the fixed curtains already tacked up. Hang the movable curtains by a number of little rings upon this rod. When drawn, the two curtains, which should be of some stout material, will completely cover the stage.
Fig. 4.—Wire rod for movable curtain.
The method of drawing the curtains is arranged thus: A string (L, Fig. 5) is passed through the loop C in the rod, through all the rings from G4 to G, where it is fastened, and then passed on through H and all those rings up to the loop D. The string L then returns through the H rings 4 to 1 to H itself, where it is fastened and ends. By pulling the string L when the curtain is drawn, the ring H is therefore drawn towards D and the ring G towards C, thus opening the curtains simultaneously by means of only one string.
Fig. 5.—Arrangement for drawing curtains.
Fig. 6.—Frame for wings.
Supposing the curtains to be now pulled right back, thread another string, M, through the loop E, pass it through all the G rings and across to H, where it must be fixed. Then pass this string through all the H rings, through the loop F, and back by way of H to the ring G, where it must be tied and end. It will now be found that by pulling the string M, the rings G and H are drawn together. To avoid any confusion, a distinctive mark should be placed upon the ends L and M of each string.
You must next bend a couple of pieces of strong copper wire into the shape depicted in Fig. 6. The sides A B and C D should measure 20 inches, whilst B C must be of such a length that the ends A and D can fit into the holes P P already bored in the base. These pieces of wire serve to support the wings, trees, or other stage arrangements as occasion requires.
The stage is now complete, and will take to pieces and pack up flat with no trouble or inconvenience of any kind.
Fig. 7.—A stage tree.
Interior Decoration
The next questions that arise concern scenery. This depends entirely upon the play to be performed. The floor of the stage must be covered with suitable paper, or better still with a carpet. In the arrangement of the wings and the scenery connected therewith, do not forget that the spaces on each side must be left clear. Marionettes cannot enter by doors, and a descent from the ceiling is not only undignified but impracticable. The side scenery must therefore be as simple as possible.
Unless your performance is to be upon a very extensive scale, the actual amount of scenery required is not great. An interior can easily be painted. Pieces representing the walls of the room can be hung upon what may be called the wing wires, whilst the rest of the interior can be painted upon the stage back.
In all probability a rural scene will also be required. A stage tree or two (Fig. 7) should be fastened to the wing wires, and the background of sky and landscape need present no difficulty to a handy amateur. Street scenes can be arranged by hanging the ends and fronts of houses from the wing wires, whilst the background may either depict the street fading into the distance, or have another house at the corner, after the fashion of stageland. A great variety of scenery may be made with the help of an artistic friend; and when at the theater, inspect the effects closely. By doing this many invaluable hints as to setting and scenic inventions can be acquired.
But what is a theater without the actors? Who are to perform upon the boards you have so carefully constructed?
It has already been mentioned that the Marionettes are to be about 8 inches high. This will be found a convenient size for the beginner, since very small figures are apt to be troublesome, and large ones are sure to prove unwieldly. It is important to have the Marionettes so articulated that they will readily answer every motion of the operator’s strings, and be neither too stiff nor too limp.
Fig. 8.—Dutch doll for puppet.
Home-made Figures
Fig. 9.—Universal arm-joint.
The following hints will show how the figures are to be made at home at slight cost. Get an ordinary Dutch doll (similar to that shown in Fig. 8) of the proper size and neatly made. Notice that the hip-joints allow the legs to move upwards freely, a convenience that the ordinary doll lacks. The knee-joints are after the same pattern, and allow the lower part of the leg to double up for sitting and kneeling. These joints should be made to work easily and evenly.
The arms should be attached to the body by what is known as a universal joint (seen in Fig. 9). Make the surface A B (Fig. 10) perfectly even, and then scoop a slight hollow in the wood. In this hollow drive a staple almost up to the head, leaving only enough room to insert a piece of string in the loop, whilst the head of the staple is level with the surface A B. Round off the end of the arm (Fig. 11), and pierce a hole about half-an-inch from the end. Thread a piece of string through the staple and through the hole in the arm, tying the ends together fairly tightly, so that the arm is perfectly free at the joint but does not hang loosely.
For the head, either touch up the original Peggy’s head to make it respectable, or remove it altogether, replacing it by that of a china doll. In the former case, a flaxen wig must be glued over the black painted hair, and a human complexion given to the crimson cheeks. Undoubtedly a better effect is produced by exchanging heads with a china sister.
The dressing of the Marionettes need be a matter of no difficulty. The costumes must depend entirely upon the nature of the play, although certain stock characters may be made once and for all, and kept in readiness. A sailor, a soldier in resplendent uniform, a policeman, and an ordinary man or two can be kept prepared; whilst for the fair sex, an old lady, a young one, a maid-servant, and a little girl are likely to be of service. The remainder of your cast must be regulated by circumstances. The clothing may be fastened to the above-mentioned characters; but in special cases the costumes should be made to take off as occasion may require.
Fig. 10.—Socket for arm.
Fig. 11.—Rounded end of arm.
Fig. 12.—Showing how and where threads should be attached.
Having prepared the figures, they must now be made to act and move in a rational manner.
Five black threads are attached to each figure and ascend to the flies, where they are manipulated by the performer. A glance at Fig. 12 shows how and where these threads are to be attached. Fix A and B to the right and left hand respectively, C and D to the knees, whilst E must fasten to the back, where it serves to support the figure. These threads should be very fine, for the whole success of your undertaking depends upon their concealment.
Working the Puppets
Fig. 13.—Finger loops for manipulating puppet.
There are two methods of holding the threads and working the puppets, the first of which is also shown in Fig. 12. The arm threads, A and B, are attached to the end of a stick, F; the leg threads are similarly attached to another stick, G, to the center of which the body thread, E, is fastened.
The sticks are then held, one in each hand, or both in the same. Although more convenient for manipulation, this method possesses the disadvantage of limiting each operator to the management of one puppet, and where there are several characters upon the stage, much confusion may result. If the two sticks be held in one hand free play, so far as pulling the strings is concerned, is allowed to the fingers, and there should be no difficulty in working two Marionettes at the same time, one with each hand.
An easier method of manipulating the figures is shown in Fig. 13. The thread attachments are the same, but instead of being fastened to sticks, each string terminates in a brass ring placed upon the finger. The threads should be of such a length that, when the hand is held as in Fig. 13, the body of the puppet will be upright, the legs stretched, and the arms dropped by the sides.
Place the rings upon the fingers in the following order: The body string, E, to the third finger; the leg strings, C and D, to the thumb and little finger; and the arm threads to the first and second fingers, as shown in Fig. 13.
With very little practice the figures can be made to walk, the progressive motion of the legs being manipulated by alternately moving the thumb and little finger. A similar movement of the first and second fingers will put the arms into action.
When sitting upon a chair, the lower parts of the legs bend by their own weight, and you will need only to pull the body string to make the figure rise quite naturally.
The theater, scenery and actors being ready, it remains to decide what they shall play.
Your programme must necessarily be chosen according to the audience. Presuming there is somebody to assist you in working the figures, thereby making it possible to have three or four characters upon the stage at once, the variety of plays is very great, and the choice of one or two short pieces should be easy. Several publishers issue large assortments of Marionette plays, and catalogues can be obtained giving full particulars as to the number of characters required, scenery necessary, and so forth.
The Marionette stage is not adapted to heavy drama. Tragedies would be ridiculous on the “two foot boards.” The rôles, therefore, assumed by each character should be amusing and topical, containing allusions likely to be understood by the spectators, and interspersed with such local “gags” as opportunity may suggest.
The two operators should divide their labors, as far as possible, in such a way that the lady does the female characters, whilst her partner works the men. The reason for this division is clear, for it will come more natural for a lady to caricature the female voice, whilst her accomplice will be better suited to the stern accents of the menacing policeman, or the passionate entreaties of the ardent lover.
Working
Practice the parts carefully and thoroughly. Be ready with some joke or patter to cover any mishap that may occur. Accidents are unfortunate, but in Marionette-land quite probable, so if Aladdin’s left arm fails to work at the critical moment, there is nothing to do but make the audience think it all part of the fun.
Supposing the evening for your entertainment to have arrived, and that all is in readiness, place the theater upon a table at such a height that the spectators will get a clear view of the stage, but will not be able to see the flies. The table should be against a wall, and arranged in such a manner that you and your partner have sufficient room to move behind it. In the space between the table and wall a couple of boards must be placed on trestles, so that the operators may stand above the stage.
A curtain must hang from the ceiling to meet the top of the theater. On no account should the audience be able to watch the heads of the manipulators moving the puppets. There are few better plans than to have the stage arranged in the embrasure of a window, for the curtain can then be easily contrived, whilst the “show” does not take any of the space required for the spectators. But this, of course, must depend upon the nature of the room at your disposal.
The guests having been marshaled into their places, the entertainment should open with an overture. If there be intervals in the course of the play, the pianist will find fresh employment, whilst at times a running accompaniment is very suitable.
Start with a one act farce, to be followed by a fairy tale or pantomime. Conclude with another short farce, into which may be introduced all kinds of whimsicalities, jokes, local patter, and topical allusions.
The puppets will do exactly as you direct them. Make them work their best; let the show be worth seeing and hearing, for the possibilities of the Marionette stage are very great, and with ordinary care a most enjoyable entertainment can be produced.
CHAPTER XLII
LIVING MARIONETTES
A Good “One Man” Show
A living Marionette entertainment is well adapted for a “One Man Show,” and sure to prove a success. The very appearance of the weird creature, half human and half doll, makes the spectators laugh, and this laugh will scarcely subside until the curtain has been finally rung down on the entertainment.
Fig. 1.—The dummy body with the human head.
Fig. 2.—Front view of living Marionette stage.
The mysterious combination shown in Fig. 1 needs but little explanation, since it is very clear that the head is human whilst the body is wooden. This makes so comical a figure that anything but pure humor would seem singularly out of place issuing from those lips; it must, therefore, be clearly understood that the living Marionette is comic from beginning to end.
The stage must be about 3 feet wide, and of the same height, thus allowing room for the head and false body. The stage front may be made in the same manner adopted for the Marionettes proper, though so much space will not be required at the top, as can be seen from Fig. 2. The stage itself should be about 12 inches deep, and arranged at such a height that when standing behind, your chin will be about 11 inches above the stage. The whole construction will then be somewhat like the box and stage of an old-fashioned Punch and Judy Show.
A strip of perfectly black cloth is next stretched from side to side along the inner edge of the stage, i.e. the part farthest removed from the audience. This cloth should be 11 inches wide, and when in place will occupy the position shown in Fig. 3. Between this edge of the stage and the actual back of the box should be a space of 15 inches. The actual back must also be covered with black cloth. The sectional appearance of the stage will therefore be as in Fig. 4. An arrangement of curtains, as described in connection with the Marionette stage, must be fitted with the strings below the stage, in order that you may pull them unseen by the audience.
The wooden bodies should be 10 inches high, and headless. A collar must be sewn to the costume where the neck should be, in order to conceal the spot where the living head is thrust over the false body.
The most satisfactory way of working the limbs of the puppet is as follows: Above the stage, in the flies, a rod, upon which are strung several brass rings, extends from side to side (A, Fig. 4). Now the strings attached to the arms and legs pass up and through these rings, whence they descend behind the cloth screen and are moved invisibly by the operator. As there is only one figure to work, you can hold the arm threads in one hand, the leg threads in the other, whilst the supporting body thread passes in a loop around your neck. In this way the body is forced to move with the living head, as though really a part of it (Fig. 5).
You should now make up your face to suit the character. Suppose the body represents an ordinary Jack Tar, with bell-bottomed trousers, blue collar, and so forth. The comic sailor’s beard must be so adjusted that its bushiness will conceal what may be called the junction between your head and his false body. The hat or round cap can be put on at a nautical tilt.
Having fixed the body-thread around your throat and fastened the beard, crane your own neck forward, and place the Marionette body upon the stage, having the strip of black cloth between it and your shoulders. Arrange the arm and leg strings through the rings, and keep the ends in your hands ready for action. When everything is completed, draw the curtain and commence.