Summary

Hand made marionette depicting a female ballet dancer dressed in a white tutul. It was manufactured and operated in Melbourne by Alex and Murray Smith, who performed as part of Le Forgeron Marionettes from 1930 until 1956.

Physical Description

Marionette depicting a ballerina. Unlike many others, it does not have a padded body - instead it appears to have been constructed with wood and then shaped with plaster, like the marionette heads. Her white outfit consists of a satin bodice which has been glued to her torso, short puffy sleeves, and full knee-length skirt made of white netting. Her dress has been decorated with green red and blue sequins around the neckline and waist. She stands en pointe and has red ballet shoes painted on to her feet. Her face is also unusual, as it appears to be a commercially bought, moulded fabric face. Thus the facial features are much finer and painted in a different style. The Ballerina has brown, wavy hair, which remains intact. Her arms are very loosely attached to her body, and her torso is quite cracked. She has a strange nail at the base of her neck. This marionette has a three piece mechanism. There are operating strings attached to numerous parts of her, including her head, limbs and shoulders. The feet have been weighted.

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