This afternoon, the Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA) hosted the second of two stagings for A Christmas Carol, Oy! Hanukkah, Merry Kwanzaa in its Marvin & Betty Danto auditorium. An estimated 275 people were in attendance, mostly families with elementary-school-aged children and younger. [1,2]
As contrasted with approaches by the Meredith Marionettes Touring Company and works of Dreamland Theater as covered previously in Saline Journal, members of the Czechoslovak-American Marionette Theatre troupe appeared along side their string-puppets throughout the show. [3-5]
In fact, they were, at a minimum, co-stars.
DIA materials provided context for this, beginning with note that the “tradition of itinerant puppeteers reaches as far back as the seventeenth century.
The typical puppeteering family owned a portable theatre including stage, about twenty marionettes, and a set of a least four backdrops ….
One performer, usually the principal, the father of the family, or head of the troupe, produced the voices of all characters and was also the main puppet operator.
For anyone used to set designs that minimize visibility of operators and riggings, A Christmas Carol, Oy! Hanukkah, Merry Kwanzaa made for a stark departure from its first moves. This was essentially a one-man show, featuring an appropriately costumed, engaging, and at times clever story teller who employed string puppets as adjunct gimmick.
Importantly, operator Vít Hořejš could easily be heard to the fourteenth row of Danto as he delivered both important narrative dialogue and seemingly extemporaneous violations of the fourth wall. The audience loved it, enthusiastically reacting to every cue. [6]
As another interpretation of the Charles Dickens classic, this Czechoslovak-American Marionette Theatre addition is a worthy one. Some will never depart from the 1938 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer motion picture starring Reginald Owen. Others prefer the musical Scrooge released thirty years later with Albert Finney. That’s just the start of a list that includes further entries ranging from that of legendary comedian Bill Murray to Star Trek actor Patrick Stewart. [7-14]
Longer-time residents of Washtenaw County may also remember annual readings before capacity crowds at the Clements Library by University of Michigan professor Bert Hornback in the 1980s. [15,16]
At the same time, while very much Dickens — and perhaps even true to traveling Czech family puppeteers of the seventeenth century — the technical delivery was markedly different from that of Meredith Bixby, Dreamland Theater, and even the core of DIA collections displayed along the hallway opposite the Marvin & Betty Danto auditorium here. [17]
These marionettes were less than a third the size of those displayed as typical representations earlier this month at Saline Library. As a result, the capability of making finer movements to closer approximate that of humans was not possible. To get from one part of the stage to another, figures often hopped and flew (even when not called for in the script), as opposed to =walking. [18-20]
It was also difficult to see much of the string-puppet action for anyone seated more than a handful of rows from the stage at the Detroit Institute of Arts.
Puppet shows are typically best suited to more intimate environments. [21]
Larger-sized puppets would have better leant scaling stage performance of course. But larger marionettes are heavier to operate, present signicantly greater logistics challenges in property management in storage, transportation, and over the course performances, and cost more to purchase and maintain.
Providing a venue where considerations of both art and function can be assessed as a piece is a core value of the Detroit Institute of Arts. Before opening the current on A Christmas Carol, Oy! Hanukkah, Merry Kwanzaa earlier today, one DIA host promised something that can’t be found “in books or movies or online.” [22]
In the end, they delivered all of that.
References
- Detroit Institute of Arts (home page).
- “Czechoslovak-American Marionette Theatre presents A Christmas Carol, Oy! Hanukkah, Merry Kwanzaa” (December 29,30, 2019) Detroit Institute of Arts.
- “Once Upon A Time, Marionettes Set The Stage For Entertainment Techniques That Remain Relevant To This Very Day” Dell Deaton (September 10, 2018) Saline Journal.
- “Local Marionettes Are Alive And Well In Ypsilanti, Currently Performing Original TV Star Trek Material Through December 16” Dell Deaton (December 10, 2018) Saline Journal.
- Czechoslovak-American Marionette Theatre (home page).
- “Theatrical Dictionary: Fourth Wall” TDF (December 6, 2017) YouTube.
- “Learn About A Christmas Carol” Charles Dickens Info.
- “The Project Gutenberg EBook of A Christmas Carol, by Charles Dickens” (August 11, 2004) Project Gutenberg.
- “A Christmas Carol (1938)” IMDb.
- “A Christmas Carol (1938) Official Trailer – Reginald Owen, Gene Lockhart Movie HD” Movieclips Classic Trailers (October 14, 2014) YouTube.
- “Scrooge 1970 – Theatrical Trailer” Vince Connor (December 25, 2016) YouTube.
- “Scrooge (1970)” IMDb.
- “Scrooged (1988)” IMDb.
- “A Christmas Carol (1999)” IMDb.
- “AADL Talks To: U-M Emeritis Professor of English Bert Hornback” (February 13, 2016) Ann Arbor District Library.
- “Bert Hornback, UM English Department, portraying Charles Dickens; BL021076” (November 22, 2016) Bentley Historical Library, University of Michigan.
- “Puppets @ the DIA!” Detroit Institute of Arts (April 23, 2010) YouTube.
- “Year-end report on Bixby Marionette Trust disposition outlined steady, important forward progress” Dell Deaton (December 11, 2019) Saline Journal.
- “Process: Making Marionettes” Etsy (January 25, 2011) YouTube.
- “Mastering Marionettes: Marionette Performance Techniques – FREE CHAPTER” Stan Winston School (September 30, 2016) YouTube.
- “Scott Land Marionettes and Puppet Co – Come See The Show!” Scott Land (June 23, 2011) YouTube.
- “The town square of our community, a gathering place for everybody” Detroit Institute of Arts.
