TW Fest Interview

Harry's interview, from the Tennessee Williams and New Orleans Literary Festival re: online auction

INTERVIEW WITH 

MARIONETTE MAKER:

HARRY MAYRONNE

We spoke with the marionette maker himself, Harry Mayronne, and asked him about his creative process, inspirations, and his connection to Tennessee Williams.

What drew you to the art of puppetry? How long have you been crafting marionettes?

At the age of three and a half, I visited “The Ringling Circus Museum and Hall of Fame” in Sarasota. There, I saw my first marionette show and also had the opportunity to observe one of the artists who created the outdoor statues in the children’s play area. The first thing I remember creating of my own was a head made from papiér maché over a large balloon. This was for a Halloween costume. In grade school I experimented with hand puppets, and by junior high I was ready to try creating a marionette. 

Tell us a little about your connection to Tennessee Williams.

Today I live in the French Quarter, just around the corner from where Tennessee Williams once lived and wrote. Growing up in New Orleans, I was exposed to his work in high school, where the drama department did productions of The Glass Menagerie and Suddenly Last Summer. I do have a special memory: My friend Mink Stole was in town to appear in Williams' The Mutilated. We were in Jackson Square when she suddenly quoted one of Trinket Dugan’s lines from the play. Something like, "It's such a clear frosty night, you can see your breath in the air.” Because it was unusually cold, as she said the line I actually COULD see her breath in the air!

What inspired you to create a conglomeration of Tennessee Williams & Blanche DuBois?

Several of the characters I have created are writers. Shakespeare, Proust (currently at Creason's Fine Art II in the French Quarter), Brecht (with whom I performed at Berliner Ensemble with Nina Hagen), Elisabeth Hauptmann (Brecht’s translator and collaborator), John Waters, and French writer Boris Vian. It occurred to me that I had neglected to do a local writer. So, I created a head of Tennessee which remained unfinished for about two years. One day, I decided to continue working and was about to create a torso when I came across a female torso I had previously made. I placed the head on the torso and it came to me: Tennessee as Blanche Dubois. The writer, contemplating the character. An internet search turned up some photos of Vivian Leigh’s costume from the film, A Streetcar Named Desire. I used this version as a start on the clothes. The colors were a bit off for me (the film having been made in black and white, all that mattered was how they looked on screen). I made some dye adjustments and it all came together.

How long does a marionette take to create? Can you tell us about your creative process?

Marionettes are inherently a bit labor intensive. Sculpting, creating a plaster mold, then a positive image, carving, cutting, hardware, fabric, sewing, creating the controls and stringing. Days, weeks, months, years. It depends on the project. Often, the time spent  actively doing the physical work is less than the time spent on the planning and decision making. The creation of the head, in particular the eyes, can be quite emotional.

Who are some of your biggest inspirations?

My parents (both artists) always encouraged my creative endeavors. The ongoing discussion at home always centered around art versus craft, educated versus intuitive art, what is art, why is it art. I lived with constant inspiration. I am inspired by people who trust their own opinions, and by those inquisitive types who never lose the need to explore and learn. One artist whose work I love is Jose María Cundin. Extraordinary sense and use of color, wit, and humor. “Tennessee as Blanche” is my first venture away from a literal visual portrayal of a subject. I so aspire to allow myself the artistic freedom that Cundin has and uses to produce his glorious works. And now I refer back to Boris Vian. I discovered the iconic French writer, poet, musician, singer, critic, translator, inventor, engineer, and pataphysician in 2012. I was inspired to create a Boris marionette, with which I performed his 1954 anti-war song “Le Deserteur." The response led me to visit his former home at Cité Véron in Paris. I was greeted by my now friend Nicole Bertolt, who represents Vian’s creative works. She was surprised to see someone from New Orleans show up with a marionette of Boris. She was intrigued enough to make a visit to New Orleans the following year. I knew enough French to ask her to explain the meaning of pataphysics. She replied, “Harry, vous etes un pataphysicien!”