Richard Bradshaw (puppeteer) explained

Richard Bradshaw (born 1938) is a leading Australian puppeteer.

Life

In June 1949 the Sydney Herald announced weekly shows for children at the Children's Theatre at Burnie Park, Clovelly directed by Edith Constance Murray.^[1] Leading Australian puppeteers Bradshaw, Norman Hetherington and John Lewis of Jeral Puppets were among those who demonstrated their skills at the theatre.

Bradshaw was Artistic Director of the Marionette Theatre of Australia.^[2] He is a shadow puppeteer who writes for puppets.^[3] In 2005, he was commissioned by Terrapin Puppet Theatre to write The Storyteller's Shadow: a Celebration of Hans Christian Andersen which toured around Tasmania, to Denmark and to Singapore and Malaysia. Jim Henson, a fellow puppeteer, featured the work of Bradshaw as part of his six-part television series on puppetry. His shadow puppets were used for animations and stories on ABC's Play School.^{[4] [5] [6]}

Bradshaw was awarded the Order of Australia Medal for services to puppetry and the performing arts.^[7]

Further reading

• Benson, P.D., "Good Show, Super 'Roo", The Australian Women's Weekly, (Wednesday, 25 September 1974), p.113.
• Book: Billington, Michael . Michael Billington (critic) . 1988 . Performing Arts: A Guide To Practice And Appreciation . New Burlington Books . London . 1-85348-115-7.
• Bradshaw, R.,"Norman Hetherington 1921 – 2010 (Eulogy)", O.P.E.N., No.11, (December 2010), pp.2–4.
• Camens, J. "The Mysterious Potamus", The Australian Women's Weekly, (Wednesday, 17 January 1979), p.17.
• Carr, V., "The Actor in the Wings", The Australian Women's Weekly, (Wednesday, 26 February 1969), p.7.
• Book: Currell, David . David Currell . 1985 . A Complete Book of Puppet Theatre . A & C Black (Publishers) Ltd. . London . 0-7136-2429-9.
• Guss, Naomi, "Australian puppetry – Richard Bradshaw", School of Puppetry, 7 January, 2010.
• Book: Vella . Maeve . Maeve Vella . Rickards . Helen . 1989 . Theatre of the Impossible: Puppet Theatre in Australia . Craftsman's House . Roseville, N.S.W . 0-947131-21-3.

Notes and References

1. News: 1949-06-19 . Young People's Theatre Opens . Sunday Herald . 2024-01-02.
2. A Complete Book of Puppet Theatre by David Currell, p.50
3. Performing Arts: A Guide to Practice and Appreciation by Michael Billington, p.160
4. Web site: Living in the shadow of a puppet regime - ABC (None) - Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
5. Web site: - YouTube. YouTube.
6. Web site: Puppets' shadows in a different light for kids. 24 March 2013.
7. https://honours.pmc.gov.au/honours/awards/870542 www.itsanhonour.gov.au