Fire-Breathing Puppets

and other "Sideshow Puppetry" at the 2005 International Puppetbuskers Festival

by Ruben DeSomer

Puppetry, Not of The Penis
The international Puppetbuskers Festival, arranged by the European Figure Theatre Centrum, celebrated its 17th edition in 2005, strangely enough this was also the first time that there was such a high amount of “sideshow” puppet acts. In total there were four acts that somehow can be connected to the sideshow of days gone by. There were two acts that featured fire breathers, and another shown by the Italian group “Girovago e Rondella” (http://www.girovagoerondella.it/)most known because for their hand puppetry but who also perform as a small circus. The troupe leader and "pater familias" contorted his body and bent his muscles and became a living doll. With use of makeup his nipples became the eyes and the mouth was placed on his belly. The eyes were animated by the breast muscles and the mouth was moved by the lower abdomen. It reminded me of contortionists who are able to control almost every muscle in their bodies.

A second act was the “Manoviva” (http://www.girovagoerondella.it/manoviva/) or living hands, hand puppetry, using circus as their inspiration. One of the acts was fire breathing. The handpuppet even juggled a bit with sticks that were burning before firebreathing. The fire was real but it was fuelled by a volatile dust.
The second act that brought a combination of firebreathing and puppetry was the French “Le Fil a la Patte”. They were programmed with two acts “La Valse a mille tons” and “Les Perles d’enfers”. “Les Perles d’enfers” was completely devoted to the fires of hell. The main character was a silver devil seated on a throne which was pushed by a servant, the puppeteer dressed as a gnome. A diabolic show was given focussing on juggling with fire, and breathing it. The fire was probably derived from gas, cunningly disguised as the servant’s hunch. The sticks used for juggling were fed by some kind of oil or other inflammable substance. A third notable act was devoted to mummies. The “mummies” brought by “Les Contes de la chaise porteurs” from France, were an interesting lot. They revived the mummies by using their own bodies, the mummies hands were the hands of the puppeteers. They were carried on the backs of the artists. The illusion was near perfect, it almost seemed as they were alive. The act even had a matching store. Mister Dumoulin is crazy for mummies and decides to expose his collection to the general public in a travelling exposition. However during the opening a small magical grain of sands runs amock, resulting in total chaos.
Conclusion
Using exhibited people as a source of inspiration for Figuretheatre isn’t new. Jelle van Rossem student of “the firmament” brought in 2005 a series of performances completely devoted to freaks but this was in a controlled environment, a theatre stage. However exhibiting dolls or puppets with a freaky touch have been around much longer. Movies and television have especially made great use of freaky puppets more than once. Two examples are David Lynch's film Eraserhead and the television series X-Files which featured an episode titled Humbug where a Siamese twin detaches itself from his brother and goes on a killing spree. What makes these street performances new and interesting is the fact that they work on the street and anything can happen. Yes they also could be performed on a stage but in essence they are meant to be played outdoors.

Photos by Annelies Rogier