May 4, 2011
~10-Minute Puppets~
with Noel MacNeal and Scribble Press
Greetings WiCM,
When meeting people in an industry as segmented as media, there’s a tendency to label. This person is a book person—boys, ages 8 to 11. That person is a tv person, development to be precise. That person next to her has a book in development intended for 8 to 11-year-olds who like tv. But so many people have interests that span several of these categories, like creative streams flowing over county lines.
Noel MacNeal, puppeteer extraordinaire, reminded me how wonderfully sprawling talent can be. Noel began his long, fruitful puppetry career as a wrangler over twenty years ago. He developed under the greats and eventually inhabited the souls of several of our favorite characters. His familiar voice instantly reveals that Noel was pulling the strings behind Magellan of Eureka’s Castle and Bear of Disney’s Bear in the Big Blue House. Check out his very interesting bio here.
Noel met us at Scribble Press (look this place up; very fun) and presented his new book, 10-Minute Puppets. Born from the many times Noel had spontaneously relied on his puppetry skills to entertain his young son, 10-Minute Puppets was chock full of colorful, creative ideas. Noel demonstrated many of them, animating puppets of various construction with mesmerizing skill. Whether it’s an old sock or a Snuffelia Pachydermus, there’s something magical about puppetry.
Noel showed us how to build several of our own simple puppets, many of which were detailed in the book. 10-Minute Puppets was a fantastic trove of ideas, tips, and accessories, but its point was even bigger: ideas are everywhere. I didn’t know—or had forgotten—how a hand with two well-placed magic-markered googly eyes can become a complete character. I also didn’t know—or had forgotten—how fun a few hours of creating these characters can be.
WiCM members seized upon Noel’s message. We were all soon busy at play, building our own paper frogs, injecting them with personalities, and sending them into their own stories. It was liberating to discover the creative possibilities around us and to witness the creative surge among us. Just as Noel is so many things—puppeteer, writer, director, bear, dragon—we can also embody many roles.
This event was just so fun. Making and decorating the puppets was nourishing play. But I also loved how Noel expanded our understanding of performance, puppetry, and our own creative potential. Well done, Noel. Keep them coming, WiCM.
Until next time,
Lucas
Children's Media Association 
Nice blog review of me and my book. Thanks! WICM