Punch and Judy
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Punch and Judy is a popular British glove-puppet show for children (although the earliest shows used marionettes), featuring Mr. Punch and his wife Judy. The performance consists of a sequence of short scenes, each depicting an interaction between two characters, most typically the anarchic Mr. Punch and one other character. The show is traditionally performed by a single puppeteer, known as a Professor, who of course can only perform two characters at a time (one puppet on each hand.)
CharactersHistory
The Punch and Judy show has deep roots; it is ultimately based on the Italian commedia dell'arte, and the figure of Punch derives ultimately from the stock character of Pulcinella. He is a manifestation of the Lord of Misrule and Trickster figures of deep-rooted mythologies. Judy was originally "Joan".
May 9, 1662 is reckoned the birthday of Mr. Punch, for that was the first time the diarist Samuel Pepys observed a Punch and Judy show near St. Paul's Church in London's Covent Garden. It was performed by an Italian Punchman, Pietro Gimonde operating as "Signor Bologna". Pepys described the event in his diary: "...an Italian puppet play, that is within the rails there, which is very pretty, the best that I ever saw, and great resort of gallants." This is considered the first written record of a Punch and Judy performance. Pepys went back several more times and continued to be amused. The Punch he saw was a marionette not a glove-puppet, and worked his show within a tent.
The "Punch and Judy" show spread across Europe and regional variants were developed. In Germany Punch is called "Kasper" and Judy is "Grete". The characters date back to the 18th century in German speaking countries. In the Netherlands Punch is called Jan Klaassen and Judy is Katrijn, in Denmark Mester Jackel, in Italy Pulcinello (with Pulcinella as the female part), in Russia Petruschka, in Romania Vasilache and in France Le guignol.
In the early 19th Century the show was often simplified to an easily transportable booth (known as a fit-up) with a pair of sock puppet characters.
Modern performances of Punch and Judy are traditionally seaside entertainments, found in holiday resorts during the summer months. Apart from Punch and Judy, there is usually also their baby, a crocodile, and a string of sausages. The devil and Jack Ketch may also make appearances. The story changes, but the punchlines remain the same: Mr. Punch, for example, always says "That's the way to do it!"
Story
The tale of Punch and Judy varies from puppeteer to puppeteer and has changed over time. A typical variant is listed below. A transcript of a typical Punch and Judy show in London of the 1840s can be found in Henry Mayhew's London Labour and the London Poor.
Punch, in a fit of jealousy, strangles his infant child. When Judy flies to her revenge, she fetches a bludgeon, with which she belabours her husband, till Punch, exasperated, seizes another bludgeon and beats her to death, then flings into the street the two dead bodies. The bodies attract the notice of a police officer, who enters the house. Punch flees for his life; being arrested by an officer of the Inquisition, he is shut up in prison, from which he escapes by means of a golden key. The rest is often perceived as an allegory, showing how Punch triumphs over all the ills that flesh is heir to. Ennui, in the shape of a dog, is overcome; Disease, in the disguise of a doctor, is kicked out; Death is beaten to death; and the Devil himself is outwitted.
Featuring, as it does, a deformed, child-murdering, wife-beating psychopath who commits appalling acts of violence and cruelty upon all those around him and escapes scot-free, it is greatly enjoyed by small children. Terry Pratchett draws attention to this paradox in his short story Theatre of Cruelty, the last line of which is "That's not the way to do it."
