The "Chongming Sack Puppet Show" is a traditional art form, hailing from Chongming County in Shanghai. What makes it different from everyday puppetry is that it's the hard work of just one person. The puppeteer does all the singing, accompanied by some fancy footwork, using only fingers to control the puppets.
The actor usually carries a shoulder pole to perform for the audiences in villages. A small stage is on the one end of the pole and a high-legged stool on the other, causing this art form to be known locally as "Wooden Figure" or "Shoulder Pole" theater.
How does it all work? Before the show, the actor hides under the stage and sits on the stool. The floor length curtain hides the puppeteer from the audience. There are simple instruments like gongs and cymbals underneath the stool. After a musical introduction the show begins. This traditional art originated in Suzhou, a city in Zhejiang Province, and spread to Chongming 160 years ago. It had almost died out until the Shanghai culture development foundation rescued this cultural heritage from history's dustbin.
(CCTV.com March 3, 2003)
