The Puppet Hacks Glossary
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- Adam KreutingerRonnie Le Drew (1947–2026) was a British puppeteer whose s...
- AirbrushAn airbrush is a small spray tool that atomises thinned pain... More
- AnimatronicsAnimatronics is the use of motors, servos, cables and electr... More
- Antron FleeceAntron fleece is the nylon fleece that became the standard s...
- Arm RodAn arm rod is the thin control rod running from the puppetee...
- ArmatureAn armature is an internal wire or jointed skeleton inside a...
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- Ballard Institute and Museum of PuppetryThe Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry is a public pup...
- Basil TwistBasil Twist is an American puppeteer whose work strips puppe...
- BastingBasting is temporary stitching used to hold pieces in positi...
- Bil BairdBil Baird (1904–1987) was America's foremost marionette ar...
- Black Light PuppetryBlack light puppetry is performed on a blacked-out stage lit... More
- BlockingBlocking is the planned movement and positioning of puppets ...
- Body SuitA body suit is the fabric body of a puppet — the part belo...
- Bonnie EricksonBonnie Erickson (born 1941) is the designer and builder behi...
- Bread and Puppet TheaterBread and Puppet Theater is an American political puppet com...
- Brian FroudBrian Froud is a British artist and conceptual designer whos...
- BunrakuBunraku is the classical Japanese puppet theatre in which th...
- Burr TillstromBurr Tillstrom (1917–1985) created Kukla, Fran and Ollie, ...
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- Caroll SpinneyCaroll Spinney (1933–2019) performed Big Bird and Oscar th...
- Caroly WilcoxCaroly Wilcox (1931–2021) was a Muppet builder and the wor...
- Center for Puppetry ArtsThe Center for Puppetry Arts in Atlanta is the largest organ...
- Contact CementContact cement is a flexible solvent-based adhesive applied ...
- Contemporary PuppetryContemporary puppetry is the body of work made since roughly... More
- ContouringContouring is the practice of turning flat foam sheet into a...
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- FabricFabric is the outer surface of a puppet — the skin, the cl... More
- Faux FurFaux fur is synthetic pile fabric used for puppet hair, crea...
- Faz FazakasFranz "Faz" Fazakas (1918–2013) was the engineer behind Mu...
- FeltFelt is a non-woven fabric made by matting fibres together u... More
- Fleece
- FlockingFlocking is the application of short fibres to an adhesive-c...
- FoamFoam is the structural material most soft puppets are built ... More
- Frame LineThe frame line is the bottom edge of what the camera sees, a...
- Frank BallardFrank Ballard was the American puppeteer and designer who fo...
- Frank OzFrank Oz is the Muppet performer behind Miss Piggy, Fozzie B... More
- Full Body PuppetA full body puppet is a costume-scale figure worn by a perfo...
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- Giant PuppetA giant puppet is an oversized figure built for parades, pro...
- Glove PuppetA glove puppet is worn like a glove, with the performer's fi...
- GluingGluing is how most of a puppet actually gets joined — the ... More
- Grain LineThe grain line is the direction of the threads in a woven fa...
- Green ScreenA green screen is a solid coloured backdrop that is removed ...
- GulletThe gullet is the throat area behind a puppet's mouth — th...
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- Half-Ball EyesHalf-ball eyes are hemispherical eye blanks — commercially...
- Hand PuppetA hand puppet is worn directly on the hand, with the perform...
- Hand-and-Rod PuppetA hand-and-rod puppet is operated with one hand inside the h...
- Handspring Puppet CompanyHandspring Puppet Company is a South African puppetry compan...
- Henson StitchThe Henson stitch is a hand-sewing technique for joining fle...
- Hot Glue GunA hot glue gun melts solid adhesive sticks and dispenses the... More
- Hot Wire CutterA hot wire cutter melts through foam using an electrically h...
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- Jane HensonJane Henson (1934–2013) co-created the Muppets with her hu...
- JawThe jaw is the lower half of a puppet's mouth — the plate ...
- Jerry NelsonJerry Nelson (1934–2012) was a Muppet performer and singer...
- Jim HensonJim Henson (1936–1990) was the puppeteer and filmmaker who... More
- Julie TaymorJulie Taymor is an American director and designer whose stag...
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- L200 FoamL200 is a fine-cell reticulated foam that holds a crisp carv...
- Ladder StitchA ladder stitch — also called an invisible or slip stitch ...
- LatexLatex is a liquid rubber that cures into a flexible, paintab... More
- Lip SyncLip sync is matching a puppet's mouth movement to speech so ... More
- Little Angel TheatreLittle Angel Theatre is a dedicated puppet theatre in Isling...
- Live Hand PuppetA live hand puppet has open glove-hands worn directly by a p...
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- MarionetteA marionette is a puppet controlled from above by strings or...
- Michael CurryMichael Curry is an American designer and fabricator special...
- Molding and CastingMoulding and casting is the process of taking a negative imp... More
- MonitorThe monitor is the screen a puppeteer watches while performi...
- Mouth PlateThe mouth plate is the rigid two-part structure inside a pup... More
- MuppetA Muppet is a puppet built in the soft foam-and-fleece style...
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- Paint BrushesPaint brushes in puppet building are used less for painting ... More
- PalateThe palate is the roof of a puppet's mouth — the upper hal...
- Paper MachePaper mache builds a rigid hollow form by layering paper str... More
- Pattern MakingPattern making is the process of working out the flat shapes... More
- Peter LinzPeter Linz is an American puppeteer working with the Muppets...
- Peter SchumannPeter Schumann is the German-born artist who founded Bread a...
- PlayboardA playboard is the horizontal shelf a stage puppeteer works ...
- Punch and JudyPunch and Judy is the British glove puppet tradition built a...
- Puppet Slam NetworkThe Puppet Slam Network supports and connects puppet slams ...
- Puppet WranglerA puppet wrangler is the crew member responsible for the phy...
- Puppeteers of AmericaPuppeteers of America is the national puppetry organisation ...
- Puppetry in PracticePuppetry in Practice is an independent non-profit housed in ...
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- Reticulated FoamReticulated foam is open-cell polyurethane foam that has had...
- Richard HuntRichard Hunt (1951–1992) was a Muppet performer who joined...
- Rod PuppetA rod puppet is operated from below by rods running up into ...
- Ronnie Le DrewAdam Kreutinger (1988–2025) was a puppet builder and educa...
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- SandpaperSandpaper and sanding sponges are used in puppet building to... More
- ScissorsScissors and shears are the primary cutting tools in puppet ... More
- SculptingSculpting in puppetry means shaping a three-dimensional form... More
- Seam AllowanceSeam allowance is the margin of material between the stitch ...
- Sesame WorkshopSesame Workshop is the American non-profit behind Sesame Str...
- Sewing MachineA sewing machine handles the long structural seams in a pupp... More
- Shadow PuppetA shadow puppet is a flat figure held against a lit screen s...
- Shari LewisShari Lewis (1933–1998) was a ventriloquist, puppeteer, au... More
- Sid and Marty KrofftSid and Marty Krofft are Canadian-American brothers who buil...
- Sight LineA sight line is what a given audience member can actually se...
- SintraSintra is a brand of expanded PVC sheet — a lightweight ri...
- SkivingSkiving is cutting a foam edge at an angle rather than squar...
- SpandexSpandex — also sold as Lycra or elastane — is a highly e...
- Steve WhitmireSteve Whitmire is an American puppeteer who joined the Muppe...
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- Tabletop PuppetryTabletop puppetry places the puppet on a surface at roughly ... More
- Television PuppetryTelevision puppetry is puppetry built and performed for a ca... More
- The Jim Henson CompanyThe Jim Henson Company is the production company founded by ...
- The Jim Henson FoundationThe Jim Henson Foundation is an American grant-making body t...
- Theatrical PuppetryTheatrical puppetry is puppetry made for a live audience sha... More
- TongueA tongue is a small shaped piece, usually felt, fixed inside...
- Traditional PuppetryTraditional puppetry refers to the regional forms passed dow... More
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