Theatre of Hand Puppets

The book starts with a brief history of puppets in the US then outlines how to write a script followed by how to make hand puppets, a puppet stage and how to rehearse and perform a show. A great read for beginners and good for seasoned performers as well. Included are some wonderful illustrations, photos and patterns for making hand puppets. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in puppetry.

Great Book! If you have ever had the pleasure of seeing him perform, then you know his quality. His book is equally well done. Learn how to make a professional grade (inexpensive) hand puppet and then he'll show you how to bring it to life on stage. Be the master of your own production.

I ordered this book directly from the publisher. I started reading it last night and could not put it down. The construction instructions are clear and look like they will be easy to follow. some patterns are included, which is fantastic! I'll have to copy and enlarge them, but i'd expect to do that with any book that includes patterns.The brief North American history of this style of puppetry at the beginning of the book was interesting. A large portion of the book is step by step instructions on constructing hand puppets in the way that the author does it. He describes well why he makes the choices he makes in construction. I like to know why as well as how so this especially appealed to me.The next part of the book talks about a variety of stage types, including advice on props and scenery. The remainder is about staging, manipulation, and acting with the puppet.I can really see someone who's never done a hand puppet show use this book as a guide to creating and entire puppet show, or, perhaps a piece of puppet theatre.I highly recommend this book!

Excellent for beginners.