London Street Punch

I am a professional street Punch showman based in London. I am not paid a fee for this work. I rely on a collection taken during the show by my bottler and outside man, Ian Carter. I also perform internationally at a wide variety of venues; under contract and busking. To the best of my knowledge I am the only showman in Britain performing Punch on the street for a living, and one of the few professional traditional street puppeteers in the world.

Each working day I give approximately six presentations, or three and a half, to four and a half hours work. Performance times vary between fifteen and fifty minutes, depending on many factors. I pay my bottler thirty percent after our expenses. His role crucial to the success of the show. He provides security and collects money. This is a very difficult job.

I first saw a Punch and Judy show as a child, on a beach in the South of England. My show grows from that experience. I tune my swazzel to the sound I remember from that day. It was a professional show given by Frank Edmonds; everyone was expected to pay.

In 1969 I was able to buy a set of figures made by the late Fred Tickner. I still use them today. Throughout my career in the dramatic theatre, as a performer, technician and designer, I would perform Punch when there was no other theatre work, always at paid venues, usually children’s parties, never in the street. I developed a friendly family puppet show.

When I became a full time street showman, I quickly discovered that there is a fundamental difference between a paid child’s party and earning a day’s wages (for two men) in the street. London is a hard city; people do not visit the city centre to give us money. We have to take it from them. A street show must have a hard edge and a dark side, to succeed with a sophisticated crowd.

London is the most cosmopolitan city in the world, I am, therefore, very experienced at engaging large audiences of all ages and nationalities. My show is not text based. Over thousands of performances, under the harsh conditions of the street, I have been forced to develop communication techniques and ‘tricks’, unique to this profession and of ancient origin. I have to create a drama that is universal, or archetypal.

A very important element in achieving the “universal” is reflection (of the crowd). I have to step away from my ’self ‘, no opinions, age, gender, no politics, Punch belongs to everyone. The old showmen referred to themselves as “Punch workers” not puppeteers; they referred to Punch as a doll or, figure; not a puppet and I believe this is correct. We work the Punch; the audience together with Punch create the drama. Gradually, in this reflective process, archetypes develop subconciously and it feels as if the show runs itself. Over a long period one’s brain becomes a store of seemingly limitless ‘business’ and repartee, constantly added to; used over and over again, often at great speed, always in a new way and always with one aim; to give each individual a dramatic experience deep enough to justify asking them for money.

Aristotle said in his work ‘Poetics’ that for a tragedy to succeed, the emotions, “pity and fear” are essential. This has been my direct experience. I would add that for a comic tragedy, hunger and love, also seem to be essential emotions for a successful street show. By successful I mean, of course, a show that makes money.

I would say that a Punch show is authentic if it earns the showman a living wage, in the centre of the city, where the human soup is at it’s thickest and richest. Clean money, most of it freely given, in exchange for a glimpse in the mirror.

Copyright: Konrad Fredericks

2010