Handplayers

Handplayers is a term used in discussions of puppetry and performance to describe performers who create and manipulate characters primarily with the hands, without relying on rods, strings, or other mechanical aids. The term is not widely standardized and may overlap with more common descriptions such as glove puppeteer or finger puppeteer.

Techniques include finger puppetry, where a small figure sits on a finger; full-hand puppetry, where the entire hand is used to form and animate a character; and hand-shadow play, where hands are positioned to cast silhouettes on a screen. Proficiency emphasizes timing, expressive gesture, and clear character work achieved through hand movements.

Historically, forms of hand-based manipulation appear in many theatre traditions, including pantomime and shadow theatre across cultures. In modern practice, handplayers perform in children's theatre, street performances, and educational settings, often in workshops that teach storytelling, rhythm, and instruction through manipulation of figures.

In contemporary performance, handplaying is valued for portability and immediacy, allowing intimate engagement with audiences in small venues. It also informs experimental theatre and multimedia pieces that foreground the hand as an instrument of narrative and character.

See also: puppetry; glove puppetry; finger puppetry; shadow play; mime.