Puppetry and THE LION KING
Puppetry plays an extensive role in bringing to life Disney’s The Lion King on stage. There are primarily two kinds of puppetry used in The Lion King. Bunraku Puppetry from Japan, and shadow puppetry from Indonesia.
Bunraku, or Japanese puppet theater, is probably the most developed form of puppetry in the world. The puppets are large - usually about one-half life size - and the main characters are operated by three puppeteers. The omozukai, or main puppeteer, manipulates the head and features and the right arm while the two lower ranked puppeteers operate the left arm and the legs (with a 10-year long apprenticeship on each before becoming an omozukai). The omozukai is visible to the audience (he is the star of the show) and often colorfully dressed while the other operators are ‘invisible’ in black robes and hoods.
Many bunraku plays are historical and deal with the common Japanese theme - the conflict between social obligations and human emotions (Simba’s emotional journey to recovery, from the sorrow of his father’s death to his return to Pride Rock and “the throne”). To use Bunraku’s puppetry in The Lion King was Taymor’s call as Director, since this style of puppetry allows for the audience to focus on the story.
The Indonesian form of shadow puppetry in stage production is called the wayang kulit. Stories presented are usually mythical & morality tales. There is an educational moral to the plays which usually portray a battle. Malay shadow plays are sometimes considered one of the earliest examples of animation, fitting for the translation of an animated movie to a stage production.
The puppets are made primarily of leather or wood and manipulated with sticks or buffalo horn handles.Shadows are cast using an oil lamp or, in modern times, a halogen light, onto a cotton cloth background.
Shadow plays are very popular even today. They are performed during sacred temple ceremonies, at private functions, and for the public in the villages. A performance can last all night long.
The traditional forms of Bunraku and Indonesian Shadow Puppetry mix with innovative new technologies to create a great range of movement possibilities. Take for instance the mechanics of Scar, the evil Uncle. Scar has battery packs on the side of his legs that are connected with cables in his back and hook up into his headpiece which then hooks onto his mask. He has a cable down his arm, and a little switch in his palm, that he works (to operate) the mask and its various attachments.
No actor is fully hidden by his mask or costume, and yet every actor is completely transformed by the animal character. When we ascribe human emotions and behaviors to animals, we distance ourselves slightly from those feelings and actions, often making difficult subjects more palatable. Take for example how The Circle of Life rouses feelings of awe rather than sorrow despite its ultimate focus on the inevitability of death. Puppetry stories are about people, in liberating animal disguise. That extra freedom is exactly what we need to provide a little perspective on our own behavior, longings, and fears. Not to mention, they’re cool.
Blog By:
Holly Mann - Executive Assistant
Broadway/San Diego-A Nederlander Presentation
January 21st, 2010 at 8:17 pm
He Wants To Be Simba, I Want To Be Nala, Calvin Wants To Be Mufasa & Rafiki, Monica Wants Sarabi, Stephiane Wants To Be Scar.