Live Puppetry

Backstage at a Punch and Judy show

By March 5, 2015 August 7th, 2017 No Comments

Although you can find hundreds of videos of Punch and Judy shows on YouTube, much less common are videos that show the process that goes on behind the scenes. Punch and Judy performer Richard Coombs – generally regarded to be among the best Punch performers in the world – has been rectifying that, mounting a Go Pro Hero camera inside his puppet booth to provide a fascinating backstage perspective on traditional Punch and Judy shows (in addition to the video embedded above, he has one of the famous Punch and Judy crocodile routine, which you can also watch from the front).

Richard’s YouTube channel also has time-lapse videos showing how he puts up his Punch and Judy booths, which incidentally are some of the nicest I’ve seen:

I really enjoyed seeing these videos. Miniature “action cameras” like the Go Pro Hero are amazing pieces of technology. We’ve shot several backstage videos on Go Pro cameras for PuppetVision: The Movie and I would love to see more performers using them to share their work.

To learn more about Richard and see more of his work, visit RichardCoombs.co.uk and subscribe to his YouTube Channel.

Special thanks to The Punch and Judy Fellowship for sharing this!

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