Alissa Mello

Paulette Richards

Hazel Briar

Laura Purcell-Gates

Race, Gender, and Disability in Puppetry and Material Performance investigates and expands the multifaceted how and what of puppetry and material performance. This engaging collection explores how puppetry and material performance challenge and transform representations of race, gender, and disability through the powerful medium of object and effigy forms. The book also examines gender roles within puppetry and how puppetry addresses societal anxieties about the other and bodies traditionally excluded from normative spaces. Part 1: Reframing Puppetry Through Race, Gender, and Disability establishes a theoretical foundation for understanding puppetry as a site of intervention—whether in political protests, theatrical productions, or educational contexts. Part 2: Negotiating Identities builds on this foundation by examining how puppetry operates as a tool for reshaping identities and expanding representation. Part 3: Performances of the Other emphasizes how puppetry challenges established norms of embodiment and inclusion, offering possibilities for cultural reclamation and the redefinition of marginalized identities. Featuring nineteen chapters by leading experts, this collection illustrates how puppetry can challenge conventions, articulate nuanced identities, and illuminate complexities of race, gender, and disability. Race, Gender, and Disability in Puppetry and Material Performance is ideal for students of theatre and performance studies, theatre artists, scholars, and anyone seeking a deeper understanding of puppetry and material performance.

Laura Purcell-Gates

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