Stork

This is the stork from The Tall Tales of Paul Bunyan by Snapdragon Puppet Productions. The stork is a little rod puppet. His head is made from a small wooden ball, and his miss matched eyes match his goofy character.

Puss in Boots

This is Puss in Boots from Puss in Boots from Snapdragon Puppet Productions. This puppet may look familiar to you, that's because it is pulled from the same mold as Bartholemew (see previous post). Puppet builder Roger Mara, simply changed the cat's color scheme, added an new costume, and created a brand new character.

Teddy Roosevelt

This is Teddy Roosevelt from The Tall Tales of Paul Bunyan by Snapdragon Puppet Productions. This puppet is also a Bobberhead. It's complex rod control allows the puppeteer to open the mouth, move the hands, and move the legs all with one hand.

Bobberheads

This is Jimmy from the Tall Tale of Paul Bunyan by Snapdragon Puppet Productions. This cleverly designed rod puppet stands just under 10 inches tall. Puppet builder Roger Mara called these puppets "Bobberheads" because the heads are made from fishing floats or bobbers. The Spring 2007 edition of The Puppetry Journal includes detailed instructions that show how to make a Bobberhead. The puppet making guide is complete with a parts list, labeled illustrations, written instructions, and close up photos.

The Ogre

This Ogre hand puppet is from Puss in Boots, by Snapdragon Puppet Productions. The head is covered with antron fleece (also know as Muppet fleece), and airbrushed to give it definition. Puss and Boots debuted in the summer of 2006. It was the last puppet show that Roger Mara created.

Mosquito Rod Puppet

This mosquito puppet is from The Tall Tales of Paul Bunyan by Snapdragon Puppet Productions. The wings are attached by a small spring and controlled by black thread. This simple but inventive puppet is a great example of Roger Mara's cleverness as a puppet builder.

Babe the Blue Ox

Babe the Blue Ox from The Tall Tales of Paul Bunyan by Snapdragon Puppet Productions. This yonger version of Babe is a rod puppet, as he grows during the puppet show, he becomes a larger hand puppet. Babe's head is snipped from a block of foam, and a string is attached to his bottom jaw to open and close the mouth.

Bartholemew

Bartholemew the mischievous cat from the Princess and the Pea by Snapdragon Puppet Productions. The cat's head was sculpted in clay, molded in plaster and cast in neoprene.

Roger Mara's Workshop

During our trip to Seattle we had hoped to visit with Roger Mara, a puppeteer friend of ours that had been diagnosed with cancer. Sadly he passed away before we arrived. Roger was an amazing and talented puppeteer and puppet builder. His early death was a great loss to the puppetry community. When Patrick and I were just starting out, we often looked to Roger for help and advice. Drawing on his years of experience, he taught us how to run a successful and professional puppet company. While up in Seattle, Elizabeth Luce, his long time friend and collaborator kindly let us tour his workshop, so that we could see some of the new puppets he created since relocating to the Pacific Northwest. Over the coming days I'll be sharing some of Roger's puppets with you. I hope his work inspires you as much as it inspires me.

Friday Fun, Snapdragon Puppets

Roger Mara is a very the talented puppeteer and puppet builder behind Snapdragon Puppets. His web site, snapdragonpuppets.com has been completely overhauled, and it looks great. Along with plenty of puppet pictures and show information, the new site includes an extensive behind the scenes section. Roger covers a wide range of topics including casting small puppet heads, video and foam puppets, giant walk-arounds, and more. Snapdragonpuppets.com also has a large section dedicated to puppet video production, that gives an in-depth look into the making of the Emmy Award winning video The Mousecracker.

To learn more about Elizabeth Luse, puppet designer for Snapdragon Puppets, check out Patrick's 10 part interview with her in his blog Puppet Design.