And then a little light relief. A Little Bo Peep made out of recycled packaging, made to amuse my daughter and grandchildren who were coming to play later in the day. 

More puppets with my grandchildren. This time, Dogs Don't do Ballet http://www.puppettheatre.co.uk/whats-on/puppetry/dogs-dont-do-ballet-865469535. It was very funny, a pantomime puppet show. My little grand-daughter, nearly two watched in rapt silence, and my grandson, who is nearly four, loved it.  

Went to see a children's puppet show this morning with my daughter and grandchildren. The story was called Cloudman http://www.cloud-man.co.uk/index.htm, and described a whimsical journey to the top of the mountain to make a childhood dream come true. There was a wicked twist to the story towards the end, but it finished happily ever after.  

In the second part of the day, the puppets were put away and Rene's box of objects were put out on a table. We then went through a series of exercises/games that allowed us to tell our own stories and witness each other's. The objects acted as powerful symbols, their placement, position and actions drawing out  and holding extraordinary, and sometimes unrealised, thoughts and emotions. This might sound heavy duty but it was done in play, and so hard facts became touchable reality. I'm so glad I attended this workshop which I booked on a whim, a gut instinct. I feel like a seed has been sown and that after I graduate I now have a direction I am moving towards. 

I was particularly drawn to the dolls in Rene's http://renebaker.org/ collection of puppets. I had three particularly favourite dolls as a child. Mrs Tubby, a baby doll given to me by mrs Tubby. I've seen her like in books of collectables but where my mrs Tubby is I don't know. Mrs Tubby was a fat baby doll, all plastic with big painted eyes. Matilda was a christmas present, I think, she was rather pretty with dark hair. And Sylvia, a doll with short crunchy gold hair, not so pretty as Matilda but she had come with an amazing wardrobe of clothes made for her by my wonderfully sweet and gentle great aunt, Auntie Leska. I don't have Matilda or Sylvia any more either, I rather hope that they have ended up in a nice puppeteer's family of puppets, as the dolls in the pictures below have done.

The second day of the workshop was more about working with objects which somehow seemed to be easier. We spent the first part of the day re-learning to play, allowing the puppets to lead our play and then playing interactively with the puppets as our mediums which is harder than it sounds. My puppet was a beautiful doll, Ashputtel or Cinderella, her dress was made of that gorgeous synthetic silk from the middle first part of the twentieth century and parts of the fabric had faded less where the folds of her skirt had stopped the light penetrating.  

Day 1 of a two day workshop taught by Rene Baker at the Norwich Puppet Theatre http://www.puppettheatre.co.uk/whats-on/masterclasses/puppet-and-object-medium-and-mediator. Inspiring and challenging, it's the first time I've done any work using puppets as my voice. I went to a couple of making-puppet workshops about 5 years ago but this is a whole new game. I am very much out of my comfort zone, but I'm enjoying trying to play and looking forward to tomorrow