Shadow Workshop: The Owl and The Pussy Cat

I ran a workshop with 16 - 20 year olds on Shadow puppets. Successfully showing the students another form of visual storytelling that can be used in comic art. 

We took Edward Lear's short story "The Owl and The Pussy Cat" and narrated it using sequential images.

Shadow puppets originated from China during the Han Dynasty. When one of the concubines of Emperor Wu of han died from an illness, the Emperor was devasted and summoned his court officers to bring his beloved back to life. The offices made a shape of a concubine using donkey leather. Her joints were animated using 11 separate pieces of leather, and adorned with painted clothes. Using an oli lamp they made her shadow move, bringing her back to life.

The Owl and the Pussy-cat went to sea
    In a beautiful pea green boat,
They took some honey, and plenty of money,
    Wrapped up in a five pound note.
The Owl looked up to the stars above,
    And sang to a small guitar,
'O lovely Pussy! O Pussy my love,
      What a beautiful Pussy you are,
          You are,
          You are!
What a beautiful Pussy you are!'

Pussy said to the Owl, 'You elegant fowl!
    How charmingly sweet you sing!
O let us be married! too long we have tarried:
    But what shall we do for a ring?'
They sailed away, for a year and a day,
    To the land where the Bong-tree grows
And there in a wood a Piggy-wig stood
    With a ring at the end of his nose,
          His nose,
          His nose,
With a ring at the end of his nose.

'Dear pig, are you willing to sell for one shilling
    Your ring?' Said the Piggy, 'I will.'
So they took it away, and were married next day
    By the Turkey who lives on the hill.
They dined on mince, and slices of quince,
    Which they ate with a runcible spoon;
And hand in hand, on the edge of the sand,
    They danced by the light of the moon,
          The moon,
          The moon,
They danced by the light of the moon.

by Rachel Taylor.