THE HAPPY PRINCE
THE FAQ's
(frequently asked questions)
What are the puppets made of?
The heads and hands of the characters are modelled in plasticine or clay, and plaster of Paris moulds are made from these originals. Liquid latex rubber is poured into the moulds and left for 1/2 hour. When the mould is emptied, a thin film of rubber remains which dries in about 36 hours to become a flexible rubber copy of the original model. As this rubber head is too soft to support itself, a wooden framework has to be built inside. The puppets bodies are made from interlocking pieces of plywood and padded with foam rubber. Arms and legs are wooden. A special leg movement mechanism, designed by Peter Franklin, allows the puppets to be operated by one person. Strings run up from the puppets knees to a bar which can be twisted to make the legs rise and fall alternately, by moving the rest of the puppet along at the same time the illusion of walking is created.
The shadow puppets have been cut from thin pieces of white card and are joined together with pieces of fuse wire. They are operated by clear acetate strips. The shadow puppets are mounted on sheets of perspex which can be quickly changed on the platen of an overhead projector.
What are the puppets eyes made of?
The eyes of the puppets are modelled at the same time as the rest of the head and are still made of rubber, but once they have been painted they are covered with clear nail varnish to make them reflect the lights and look alive.
How did you get the lettering onto the big book?
The text was photocopied onto acetate film and put on an overhead projector and projected onto the blank canvas. Each letter was then traced over in grey paint, it took 3 days to complete the painting of the text.
Why does the Playwright have a green face?
Obviously the Prince was going to be in tones of one colour - gold - so it seemed an interesting idea to dress each of the other characters in tones of a single colour. Blue for the Matchgirl, purple for the Mayor, and, as the Prince's skin tone was the same as his clothes, why not flow the colour of their clothes into their skin and hair colour too. The world is made up of people with different skin colours, does it matter if the playwright has green skin?
How do you take the eyes out of the statue?
The jewel that you see the swallow carry is not the same jewel that was in the eye of the Prince. When the Prince turns away from the audience for the swallow to take the jewel, Peter pulls a lever which flaps the sapphire up into the head of the Prince. Steve takes another jewel from his pocket and fixes it onto the swallows beak to make it look as if he has taken it from the eye.
Are the jewels real?
No, the jewels are made from coloured glass which is cut or facetted like a real jewel, they have a backing of mirror to help them catch and reflect the lights and are called 'mirror stones'.