A Body of controller: 9½ in. long; 1⅝ in. wide B Cross bar: 7½ in. long; 1⅛ in. wide at center C Shoulder controller: 6 in. long D Foot controller: 8½ in. long; ⅞ in. wide E Screw and nut for fastening cross bar to body of controller F Post for holding foot controller when latter is not in use G Pivot (nail) 1 Back string 2 Head strings 3 Shoulder strings 4 Hand strings 5 Sword strings 6 Knee strings
With your sketches and materials before you, cut out the costume in the same way that you would cut out doll clothes. It might be wise to experiment with paper patterns before you cut into your materials. Avoid wide seams, as they make a garment clumsy. Both your mother and your sewing teacher can give you valuable suggestions for both cutting and making. When your marionette is costumed, drive a staple into each shoulder for the shoulder strings. It is a fine art to costume a marionette. It requires not only research and thought but it also requires skill, taste, and subtle character appreciations.
Controller. Here is a sketch of a controller suitable for the true marionette. The frame is made from wood, the loop is of leather. Follow the measurements and directions as indicated.
Strings. Black and white woven fish line makes the very best strings for your marionettes. It is strong, it does not tangle, and it is almost invisible. Unfortunately it is expensive. A fifty-cent spool will string but two marionettes. Strong gray linen thread may be used instead. If you cannot get gray linen thread, then use white linen thread and gray it by rubbing with a cloth that has been dipped in black paint or in India ink. If you use black thread, gray it by rubbing with white chalk. Strings should be made as nearly invisible as possible. If the linen thread is rubbed with a little beeswax, it is less liable to break and to become tangled.
Cutting the Strings. It is an exciting moment when you begin to cut the strings, for the strings bring the puppet to life. The first to be cut are the head strings. They should be at least forty-two inches long and should be tied securely to the head staples. Next, measure and cut the hand strings. These will be longer, since they are measured from the palm of the hand as it hangs down. Allow three extra inches for arm movements. The back string is measured from the small of the back. The knee strings are measured from the knees. The shoulder string is not cut at this time.
Attaching the Strings. The head strings are the first to be attached to the controller. Next in order, attach the back string. Now you are ready to measure and attach the shoulder string. It goes from one shoulder up through the screw eyes in the swinging bar, and then down again to the other shoulder. When the knee strings have been attached to the separate horizontal bars, your marionette is complete.
ANIMAL MARIONETTES
It is possible to make a surprising number of different kinds of animal marionettes. There are many plays in which they are indispensable. For instance, in Men of Iron, the horses are indispensable, as there could be no tournament scene without them. The bear and the doves are not indispensable but they add a touch of humor and lively interest. When we gave the play the making of these animals presented an interesting problem. Two boys asked to be responsible for the horses in Men of Iron. They went downtown and looked about in the toy departments of the largest stores until they found two wooden toy horses exactly in scale with the 15-inch marionettes which were to be used in this play. They began by taking the horses off their wheeled platforms. These toy horses were very stiff. In order to enable them to move their heads, necks, and legs, it was first necessary to saw off the heads, necks, upper and lower legs. The drawing shows the way these parts were again attached so that great freedom of movement was possible.
For the bear marionette, a teddy bear was used. Since a teddy bear is very stiff, it was necessary to remove all the stuffing from the head, body, and legs. In order to make the head drop forward, the snout was weighted with a small three-cornered sack of shot. The paws were also weighted in order to make the bear stand naturally. The bear was very lightly restuffed. The strings were attached to each side of the head, to the shoulders, lower part of the back, and to each of the four paws. The marionette was reweighted no less than four times, in order to get the right balance to make its movements seem natural and bearlike.