Antoinette Snyman is a well known South African puppeteer. She is both known for her great manipulation and puppet making skills.
Contents |
Antoinette Snyman was born in 1952 in Johannesburg, South Africa. She matriculated in 1970 at the Hoer Meisiesskool Helpmekaar in Johannesburg. At school she was never really exposed to any form of art, but in 1970 she went to the Johannesburg Civic Theatre, where director Michal Grobbelaar gave her a part-time job in the ticket office in spite of her stutter. She wanted to apply for a bursary from Goudstad Onderwys College, but she wasn't accepted because of her speech impediment. At that stage Alida von Maltitz and Ann Bailes were busy with shows for the "Johannesburg Civic Theatre: Marionette Company". Snyman was fascinated. She thought that if she could not speak with her voice, she could learn to "talk with her hands".
During school holidays, she worked with Bailes and Von Maltitz at the Johannesburg show grounds, moving props and doing any other backstage work. Later she was allowed to manipulate some marionettes. Her confidence grew, because she could hide behind a marionette and become a character instead of being herself. Eventually she lost her stutter. She thought puppetry was the perfect job for her because she never stuttered while operating a puppet.
From 1971-1974 she paid for her own studies at Goudstad Onderwys Kollege. During holidays she still worked for the JCT: Marionette Company. Von Maltitz taught her how to manipulate marionettes, but because she was too shy to ask for guidance, she developed a different manipulating style and technique. At the same time she was taught all aspects of the theatre, from puppet and costume construction to script analysis. In 1975 she started teaching Afrikaans and Mathematics at the Art, Ballet and Music School in Johannesburg, while still doing puppetry part-time and during holidays.
After Von Maltitz and Bailes left the Company in 1973, Snyman worked for Dinah Newton and Jean Watson. As payment, Snyman asked them to carve her a marionette, which was a little wooden boy she still uses to this day. Having her own marionette meant she could now practice until she became a skilled manipulator.
In 1975, with the first broadcasts of the SABC where hand and rod puppets were also used, Snyman was ready to learn how to manipulate hand puppets, as she wanted to extend her range. This was the beginning of a long career as a manipulator of marionettes, hand and rod puppets for TV. She manipulated such characters as Liewe Heksie, Sarel Seemonster, Mina Moo etc.
In 1978, Snyman put together a street theatre show with the few marionettes she had. These she even took to New Zealand in 1979, where she performed. In 1980, after a six month break, she returned to South Africa, but she had to work as a journalist because she found that puppetry was not a sustainable career in South Africa. The SABC closed their workshops and scaled down the Afrikaans programmes in 1997. Snyman started her own television production company and although it was too late to do Afrikaans videos for the SABC, she marketed her own work, which was very profitable.
After her return from New Zealand, she continued performing her one-woman show "Antoinette's Marionettes", on a part-time basis. She uses small sets, which hide the body while she works above it. She paints and makes her own sets. Different puppeteers and puppet-makers have made puppets for her, therefore she has built up quite a collection, together with these that she made herself. Peter-Paul Collard made her a number of carved marionettes.
In 2000, Snyman and Von Maltitz started a new venture by founding the "Johannesburg Puppet Company", at the Rand Afrikaans University or the University of Johannesburg, with donations by the Tesson-trust.
Snyman performs regularly at birthday parties, twice a year at the Johannesburg Puppet Theatre at UJ.
Her Repertoire includes:
Snyman recently also started a new venture by founding "Pulane Handmade Toys and Dolls", where she trains people to make ragdolls, puppets, dolls, cushions, sleeping bags etc. She also makes and sells puppets, including marionettes; finger puppets; hand puppets etc.