Puppets, Puppets, Puppets

There’s this wonderful look on someone’s face when greeted by a puppet. An instant smile. An eagerness to hear more. Some little children find puppets scary. Hopefully, they grow out of this fear.

Last year we needed entertainment for our Purim party. Puppets! I declared. Do we need to buy the puppets, I was asked. No, I will make them, I said in haste. I had no idea how to make a puppet. But I have sewing skills and determination. The first puppet I made was with orange fabric. He was a bit too scary. He was awkward. He probably won’t show up in any puppet show. Next puppet. I had some grey fabric, and I found a puppet pattern that I highly recommend. The puppet pattern is for a person puppet, but I adopted it and transformed my first one into an elephant. Mr. Peel the elephant came to life after hours of sewing. Meet Mr. Peel the grey elephant. It turns out elephants do have something to do with the Chanukah story. I think in the Book of Maccabees the elephants were defeated.

I then proceeded to create some Purim puppets: Esther, Achashverosh the king, and Haman, the ultimate bad guy. Esther came out as a sassy, middle-aged friendly character. You can see her in my illustration at the bottom of this post. Achashverosh looked like an old guy.

As a puppet, Haman does not appear as threatening as he sounds in the Purim Megilla. I hope he doesn’t scare anyone. Do endearing, friendly villains exist?

A puppet can bring a smile to a child or even a sad adult. The endearing expression, childlike appearance, and non-threatening, friendly voice can soften up many a person.

As I was new to puppet creation, it was challenging yet reward to sculpt their faces, dress the puppets, and do their hair. By the time I created Benny and Judy (see below), I had a little more experience.

Two new puppets were introduced for Chanukah: Benny the Bochur and Judy/Yehudit. The boy and girl pair can play in any future puppet show, explaining whatever topic is chosen.

On Chanukah two yeshiva bochrim of Congregation Etz Ahaim in Highland Park, New Jersey presented a puppet show starring Mr. Elephant Peel, Benny the bochur, and Judy/Yehudit. Mr. Elephant explained to the children why we play dreidel on Chanukah.

It’s fun to draw and paint a puppet. Such expression!