El Museo Argentina del Titere in San Telmo in Buenos Aires is a sweet little place. The Bohemian building and intimate theatre packs families into this simple venue.
There is an incredible museum of antique puppets from around the world there, exemplifying the forms of shadow, marionette, stick and hand. My inner child delighted in the animals, devils, clowns and other characters. During the show, simple stories, such as a dialogue between a bee that loves a flower and a worm that wants to eat it, are played out using lots of lively interaction with little children and eager families calling out responses to the puppet's questions, clever gestures and choreography. Rhythm and language is introduced to these little minds, and their imaginations are piqued.
Puppets are an integral part of childhood and you can use them in education and yoga for children. The word puppet comes from Anglo-Norman word "poppe," which means doll. They have been around for thousands of years, dating back to Chinese shadow puppets These figurines served as analogy for human matters ranging from spirituality to politics to commercial purposes, and naturally to entertain and educate children.
Puppets relate fun stories and introduce a means of man creating and controlling other worlds, as well as trying do define his own. Puppets are an extension of oneself, and when kids play with puppets, imaginary worlds and unique expressions come forth. They explain, explore, embrace and critique one's human condition, and are safe to act out, act up, wonder out loud, or unburden themselves or release feelings. Puppets act to guard against frustrations and disappointments, or experience justice.
Puppets provide kids a place to find peace of mind and spirit. Stories of every day life are told and children relate to the characters and identify with the problems and receive solutions. Indonesian Wayang Kulit shadow puppets relate the Hindu epic stories of the Ramayana and Mahabharata to its people. US soldiers were even reported to be using puppets to approach young Iraqi children and help them, bringing a medium between them to disarm fear and communicate information.
I have collected a variety of puppets over time. Many of them were given to me by friends. Just recently I picked up quaint knitted finger puppets in the Sunday San Telmo, Buenos Aires street fair. Each puppet calls to me in a different way and serves a different purpose. The swan imparts yoga knowledge, the peacock represents the ego, and the crow comes out for stories of death.
I always use a puppet to open and close my Storytime Yoga classes. It sets the bookends for the ritual and suspends time and space, taking the child from profane space into sacred space where he or she experiences the yoga.
I keep a big "mystery" bag of different puppets. Kids are rewarded by getting to pull a puppet out, then make up a story with it or put a yoga pose to it. Children eventually bring in their own stuffed animals or puppets and are asked to name it, tell a story about it, and teach a yoga pose that it does!
Bring puppets to your class. Find puppets that you are attracted to. Spend a little time getting to know your puppet. What voice does it have, personality, talents? What yoga philosophy can it impart? Use puppets to ask, "Who is it? What's its name? Is it a boy or a girl? What is it's problem?" We can create stories from the puppets, write down words and sentences, then act the story out with yoga.
Try making puppets with kids. I made puppets with children in Mexico who had nothing. So toilet paper rolls, paper, glue, scissors and crayons are all that are needed to bring their imaginations to life. Paper mache is always a fun craft, as are making stick puppets and shadow puppets. I took photographs of my own children, printed them out on paper, then cut out the forms and cut off the arms and legs. A second printout I cut out the legs and arms separately, then adhered them to the first printout. A straw taped on the back completed the stick puppet, and my kids had fun playing with "themselves." Old socks are fun to make puppets out of, and don't forget brown paper bags!
Even adults can have fun with puppets. I remember seeing a Cuban group perform a black light puppetry show and it was dazzling, performed in silence and set with music. The Mum Puppet Theater in Philadelphia claims puppeteering as a high art form for every age alive and is highly recommended. Puppets are a great way to self-reflect, sit back and realize that we are one with the puppet and its universe!
