King Lear with Puppets

King Lear. Dir. Conrad Bishop. Perf. Conrad Bishop and Elizabeth Fuller. Produced by The Independent Eye.  Premiered at the Eye Studio, Sebastopol, California 21-29 March 2015 and at The Emerald Tablet, San Francisco, 10-26 April 2015. DVD. The Independent Eye, n.d.

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We've heard about The Tempest with puppets (for which, q.v.).

Now we also have King Lear with puppets.

I found the former more compelling—and perhaps that play is more conducive to being given the puppet treatment—but there's still something intriguing here.

Two actors, each handling multiple puppets, provide a streamlined version of the play. One of the puppeteers also plays Lear in his own person.

It's a little confusing to describe, so let's let the show speak for itself. Here's the end of Act II, scene iv:

It's an impressive undertaking, but I think the version of The Tempest is more successful.

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Links: The Film at the Independent Eye.

Click below to purchase the film from the Independent Eye.

Purchase Link


Bonus Image: The Puppets Watch as Lear Exits into the Storm