traditional puppets games-italy

Interview with Valeria Bianchi

Italian puppeteer 35 years old

PUPPET THEATREPUPPET THEATRE

The passion for the puppet theatre is a passion for the most part of "generational" type. This craft, in fact, has been so far handed down from father to son;…Years ago, Valeria Bianchi, has discovered thanks to old photos the existence of an incredible family story that justified her passion for the theatre. Her great-grandfather Francesco at the end of the nineteenth century, founded Posabella Company in which worked also his grandfather Oscar as a child (the run was familiar). Since then the theatre has remained ashed in family DNA. It skipped a generation then it reborned in Valeria.

The first steps in the theatre (as an actress) were moved to the high school, following laboratories the European Advanced Course on Theatre of the Theatre of Actor Techniques (summarized: "Course on Commedia dell'Arte"), organized by the Teatro Ateneo of La Sapienza University of Rome from 2003 to 2006. She has developed a particular concern of puppetry in 2007, when she attended a training course in Cervia, in Emilia Romagna region. The programme included construction and animation of figures, puppets, marionnets object theatre and storytelling. It was a great learning experience and intense. Valeria Bianchi deals with theatre training projects and creativity with award-winning performances around the world. She recently founded, the UNTERWASSER company, whose first project is "OUT"

When and how did she start taking an interest in puppet theatre?AnsweAnswe

rr

Question #1Question #1

The Puppet and figure theatre has difficulty finding appropriate recognition in Italy and it is often labeled with superficiality by the majority of the organizers as a theatre exclusively for children. Pupi Siciliani are a rare exceptions, but they survive in the south of Italy. We have also popular masks as Pulcinella, Arlecchino, Colombina, peculiar characters of Commedia dell’Arte and they are very popular during Carnival time.

European production is full of examples of this type of shows dedicated exclusively for adult audiences.

How is it considered the puppet theatre in Italy nowadays?AnswerAnswer


The Puppet theatre in Italy has ancient origins, Reinassance, even earlier, linked also to Commedia dell’Arte, dated back to XVIII century. It was intended for a different audience, more noble and cultured the marionette, rudest and popular burattini often voice of the people through them, even joked about power, sometimes aimed to let the characters tell what the actors could not or would say..

Each region, each city, every place of Italy has its pattern fixed in the character that depicts and represents human vices and virtues . Very popular characters also puppets are Pulcinella, Arlecchino, Colombina, Dott. Balanzone etc…They talked often in dialect.

How was it considered in the past?AnsweAnswe

rr


The puppet theatre can be considered a valuable aid to the educator’s work, also for the psychological impact. The children creating and building together a play can develop a higher and more lively interest in the fellows. Working and playing together creates the spirit and group cohesion, practicing imagination and creativity. Puppets and marionette represent another “other than yourself. A little truth and a little fake in the sense that the child believes the puppet, but also knows that it is fake. Children give them their emotions becoming star although should not meet the public. Puppets help to develop cognitive dimension, body dimension, communicative dimension, creative dimension.

What is the psychological value of this kind of theatre?AnsweAnswe

rr

Question Question #4#4

"OUT" my last show, is a project that borned from the need to address the issue of opening emotional; delicate and poetic work, aimed to children and adults.

In the show "OUT" the audience while seeing the puppeteer, thinks the puppet "animated anyway. It’s a dumb show is travelling the world, because it uses a language understandable to all.

Can you tell us something about your last show?AnswerAnswer


Today the figure theatre is mostly relegated to death traditions, "folkloric", or in children's shows.The main topics covered in the theatre are the needs felt by people : "power, sex, fame" and are certainly not particularly suitable topics for children. A little interaction on this theme very few parents choose to go to puppet theatre with their children, instead to the cinema. This workshop has focused on this issue and puppets are more linked to grandparents’ than parents’ experience. We can reinforce interaction with grandparents creating t links also by this tool and toy. This interaction seems could be practiced and achieved.

Is there interaction between the generations considering this type of theatre and laboratory?AnsweAnswe

rr


With the advent of television and technology many art forms, including puppetry, have fallen into oblivion, ceasing to exist, therefore the generations of the new parents, they do not know it very much. I think this kind of theatre can create much more real spells, more exciting than digital ones which nowadays are considered more fashionable and now also in the theatre is very much used. The language video and the theatre language are totally different. In the theatre what you live in a day, it can never be repeated identically, as in a video always identical to itself, which is impossible in the theatre.

What is the future for the puppet theatre?AnsweAnswe

rr


In Italy the figure theatre is not a kind of theatre appreciated a lot ,even we have a long tradition. This kind of theatre has had a non-uniform development, led by families who have traditions especially at regional level as in Piedmont or in Sicily. “ famous Pupi Siciliani.” Which have also received international recognition being included in the Intangibile Heritage of Humanity. In other countries, such as France for example, there are puppetry and figure academies, and many other theatre schools where every year there are popular festivals as the one in CharlevilleTurkey is known of the "Shadows tradition", the "Leather Shadows" and the most famous characters called "Karagöz, and Hacivat”.

How much is the tradition of puppet theatre relevant around the world and in those countries participating in Erasmus?AnsweAnswe

rr


PUPPET WORKSHOP PRODUCTIONThe puppetry, includes different types of puppets divided into puppets, marionettes, and shadows, which in turn have different variants depending on the places where they were born.

Building puppets by hands is an art that takes years of practice and passion. Nonetheless, it is easy to build for itself a mere puppet with newspapers, paper tape and wire.What we are doing in school is a simple string puppet

How to make a puppet?AnsweAnswerr


Valeria Bianchi“OUT”

U N T E R W A S S E R Company

traditional puppets games-italy

Education