Willow Glen Resident
News
No strings attached at puppet workshop
By Mayra Flores De Marcotte
A box of stuffed bunny rabbits sits on a table at Hicklebee's bookstore. Katherine Tillotson walks over, picks one up and to the delight of all the children watching her, magic happens--the rabbit comes to life.
Tillotson is the children's book illustrator of When the Library Lights Go Out, Night Train and Nice Try, Tooth Fairy. She is teaching a workshop on puppets at the Willow Glen bookstore.
The window display at the store gives a glimpse into her illustrations and puppets.
"To me, there's something magical about puppets," Tillotson says.
Tillotson talks about the frequent use of puppets in other cultures, such as the stick puppets in Thailand, marionettes in France and the bunraku in Japan and their power to hold an audience captive.
"They entertain. They tell a story," she says.
Along with their influence around the globe, puppets resonate among all ages.
"It reminds people of being playful and helps them imagine things," Tillotson says. "It gives them a sense of their own imagination and creation. It's something completely original."
The San Francisco artist was introduced to puppets as a child. Her parents gave Tillotson a puppet stage as a gift, but it was when she illustrated her first manuscript about puppets that she became captivated with the entertaining figures.
"My interest really came with the story," she says. "The story was just the black and white text. I had to illustrate these characters and figure out what they looked like so I made puppets as my visuals."
The puppet workshop is a first for Hicklebee's. Children learned the function of puppets, how to make them out of paper and socks, and then create a world with them.
"The children learn a little about the history behind puppets and got the "creative juices flowing," Hicklebee's co-owner Valerie Lewis says.
"There are two things happening at the workshop," Lewis says. "The kids are not just creating a puppet they can take home, but a story to go with it as well."
Lewis met Tillotson at a book vendor and publisher's event. Tillotson gave a presentation on using puppets to engage readers and Lewis asked her if she would be interested in giving a workshop at the store.
"I've found that programs inspired by someone with new ideas are always great," Lewis says. "She's done her homework, and I'm thrilled we can have someone so talented here."
The workshop for children was one of three workshops offered this summer. The series kicked off with a book art workshop offered four times and a one-time collage workshop, all designed to enhance children's imaginations, while encouraging them to pick up a book and read.
"With puppets, you can't pick one up without turning it toward you, thinking up a name for it, and thinking up a story," Lewis says. "The minute you put a puppet on your hand, imagination rules."
Hicklebee's Children's Books is located at 1378 Lincoln Ave. For more information, call 408.292. 8880 or visit www.hicklebeesbooks. com.
