One is the “burattino,” hand puppet, animated by the hand of the puppeteer, who is positioned under the stage. The puppeteer is also the one who gives the voice to the puppet and tells the story.
The second type is the “marionetta,” marionette, controlled by strings attached to the extremities of the body and on the head of the puppet. The puppeteer moves the puppets from above by pulling and moving the strings, also giving voice to the characters while narrating the story. The puppets are usually depictions of human figures and wear miniature clothes.
In Genova Campomorone, my family and I visited a museum dedicated to this latter form of art.
The museum, located inside the municipality building in a beautiful and well-preserved ancient palace, was conceived to introduce the art and popular traditions through a museum exhibition which is free of charge and open to the public but which also occasionally offers live shows.
The Museum is spread over several rooms on the ground floor plus a bookshop and a room where theatrical performances take place.
The Marionette Museum displays the collection of Angelo Cenderelli who created it in the 19th century.
The collection is of extreme interest not only for the richness and complexity of the materials and it contains 70 puppets and hundreds of props.
The theatre space is very quaint and it was originally used in the nineteenth century by aristocratic families and in the early twentieth century by the bourgeois. Over the years it has been the subject of restoration and various installations which summarize both the skill of artisan know-how and the harmony and theatricality that these artifacts reveal at first glance.
Among the iconic figures to focus on are those of travels to the East, the revisiting of Jules Verne’s Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea and the servants of the Italian commedia dell'arte.
Many are the books, scripts and publications about this artistry on display as well.
A very knowledgeable personnel is always available to give out information and answer any questions visitors may have even if the museum is completely free of charge and does not accept donations either.
Inaugurated in the year 1996, the Museum aims at both preserving and informing about an art which had an intense activity in the 19th century and with great appreciation from the public.
In the 50s of the last century, however, this tradition began to decline even though some shows still exist today.
Also the hand puppet artistry had its decline but many are the shows (mostly for children) who can be seen at itinerant theaters around Italy during the summer months in particular.
In Genova there is also a permanent show, at one of the city’s main theaters, where the actors play along with hand puppets, being all part of the story telling.
There is also a puppet making laboratory whose educational function emerges above all when children are involved both in the construction of the puppets and in the acting.
In this way, they candidly express their imagination and perform gestures that in reality they couldn’t perhaps do.
It becomes a pedagogical path to facilitate meeting, socialization and expressiveness in children and adults alike.
It is a theater project with puppets, created by the collaboration of passionate educators and a creative director. Both children and senior citizens can participate in all workshops and projects to embrace the ancient dream of all people: creating something that comes from real life in an imaginary situation.
