Photos by Daniel Munguía

England’s famous Punch and Judy.

The National Puppet Museum

beautiful lady, whose almond-shaped eyes THE REASONS

A and wrap-around costume announce her

birth in a far-off land; exotic figures that
project their shadows on a white curtain; a tiny
The museum, unique in Mexico and Latin Amer-
ica, was born in August 1991 to honor the most
army in perfect formation; a circus, complete with famous, illustrious company of puppeteers in
fierce lion and brave lion-tamer; the “Catrina” on the history of our country, “La Compañía de Autó-
a bicycle; and many other figures that have been matas de los Hermanos Rosete Aranda” (The
the delight of children of several generations and Rosete Aranda Brothers’ Company of Automo-
countries: this is what the Museo Nacional del tons). They were not the first to make puppets
Títere (National Puppet Museum) holds. Its in Mexico; but, for more than 100 years, differ-
location in the city of Huamantla in the state of ent members of this family delighted thousands
Tlaxcala is not arbitrary: it was there that for of Mexicans with their figures’ expressive faces
more than 100 years the country’s most extra- and bodies animated with as many strings as
ordinary puppets were created. needed to create the most audacious movement.

92
 MUSEUMS

The Aranda brothers and sister (Julián, Herme- the puppets, gave the performances depth and
negildo, Ventura and María de la Luz) learned made it possible to have a great many mari-
the art of puppet-making from an Italian pup- onettes on stage at the same time. The compa-
pet master living in Huamantla around 1830. ny also had its own printing press that pro-
In 1835, they founded the National Company duced its tickets, programs and the dialogue
of Automotons with puppets they had made. used in its acts, sold for only six cents. One of
After the first two brothers died, Ventura and the most famous, “The Speech of Vale Co-
María de la Luz, together with the latter’s hus- yote,” was the inspiration for actor Mario
band, Antonio Rosete, continued performing, Moreno to develop his character “Cantinflas.” In
first in a corral and then in the city’s first theater. the early 1940s, more than 100 years after its
More than four generations continued and per- foundation, the company closed its doors. Later,
fected the family’s puppeteering tradition, turn- the puppets were sold to collectors and muse-
ing their company into Mexico’s most famous, ums. However, some have been recovered and
a favorite of children and adults, of poets and are on display at the museum together with orig-
writers, whose tours included Mexico City, inal scenery, trunks, programs, tickets and other
several other cities throughout the country, the memorabilia of their golden age. Among the
United States and Central America. If anything most valuable puppet characters in the museum
distinguished the Rosete Aranda performances, collection are Vale Coyote, Doña Pascarroncita
it was the immense variety of puppets in each and Pilluelo Dinamita, although they are not on
show, whether in their classical repertory, opera, display. Madame Gloppier, Mr. Bell (named in
zarzuela, or a circus, a palenque,1 a bullfight, or honor of a famous English clown who settled in
the commemoration of the September 16 Inde- Mexico) and Mr. Orrins, the last two indis-
pendence Day parade, performing with real pensable characters from the Rosete Aranda
scenery and accompanied by orchestra music. cast, are on display, however.
In their heyday, the Rosete Arandas had a
collection of more than 5,000 wooden pieces,
whose expressive faces and detailed costumes THE ROOMS
made them worthy of everyone’s admiration.
Some marionettes had up to 19 strings that, when The museum has eight permanent exhibition
ably handled, made their movements precise rooms that show puppets from around the world.
and meticulous. The theater that could be dis- Each room has a description of the puppets’ main
assembled, with its three bridges for handling characteristics, the way they are handled and

Room 1. Shadow puppets from faraway lands.

93
Voices of Me xico • 61

the use they were given, whether religious, edu-

cational or recreational. Room 1 shows puppets
from Asia and Indonesia, with their centuries of
puppeteering tradition. Some figures are made
of leather or parchment and are to be used as
shadow puppets; and there are other tri-dimen-
sional and flat puppets. Room 2 boasts represen-
tatives of the history of puppeteering in the West;
outstanding among them are ancient European
puppets like Maccus and Neuropastas, dating
from the third century before Christ, and repro-
ductions of England’s famous Punch and Judy.
A display shows engravings and brief texts about
puppets from around the world and, across from
it is a map that at a touch of a button shows the
country they are from. Clay figures with move-
able parts found in Cacaxtla are part of the col-
lection in Room 3. Rooms 4, 5 and 6 pay homage
to the different stages of the Rosete Aranda com-
pany. Room 7 holds a small collection of puppets
Doña Pascarroncita still wears her original costume.

In their heyday, the Rosete Arandas had a collection

of more than 5,000 wooden pieces, whose expressive faces
and detailed costumes made them worthy of admiration.

Rooms 4 and 5 exhibit the creations of the Rosete Aranda family.

94
 Museums

used in what were called the Cultural

Missions, which traveled throughout the coun-
try teaching people to read in the 1930s. Room 8
is dedicated to the golden age of Mexican
Guignol Theater, while the temporary exhibition
in Room 9 shows both marionettes and hand
puppets created by Donald Codry, an American
born in the early twentieth century who knew
and loved Mexico’s indigenous cultures and
their folk expressions, like masks.

SERVICES

The museum offers guided tours to schools and

groups that request them; each tour ends with a
puppet show. It also offers lectures, a documen-
tation center and a library specialized in puppet
theaters, advisory services, workshops for making
and handling puppets, as well as puppet shows.
In August, Huamantla celebrates the interna-
Mr. Orrins, an indispensable character in the Rosete Aranda cast.
tional festival of puppet theater, with the partic-
ipation of puppeteers from the world over. The
museum will shortly offer a virtual tour through
a multi-media package that will give a general idea
in color images of the content of its nine rooms
and data about the different puppets either on
display or in its warehouses.

Elsie Montiel
Editor

NOTE
1 InMexico, a palenque is a musical sporting event that in-
cludes singers of ranchera songs, cockfights and betting.
[Translator’s Note.]

MUSEO NACIONAL DEL TÍTERE

(NATIONAL PUPPET MUSEUM)
PARQUE JUÁREZ 15, CENTRO
HUAMANTLA, TLAXCALA
OPEN TUESDAY TO SATURDAY
10 A.M. TO 2 P.M. AND 4 P.M. TO 6 P.M.

The entrance to the museum.

95
 CISAN
p u b l i c a t i o n s

Globalidad y conflicto. La globalización y sus

Estados Unidos y la crisis del manifestaciones en
11 de septiembre América del Norte

José Luis Valdés Ugalde and Mónica Gambrill, comp.

Diego Valadés, comp.
In light of the importance of
The events of September 11, globalization today, scholars
2001 have prompted the con- from different countries have
cepts of security and globalization contributed articles to this book
to be posed in different ways and about issues that it affects: the
have given them new meaning. economy, political power, NAFTA,
This book is the first Spanish-lan- the labor market, drug trafficking,
guage academic publication in the environment, the judicial branch
which specialists from different of government and
fields analyze these issues. cultural industries.

El nuevo norteamericano: inte- Las relaciones de México con

gración continental, cultura e Estados Unidos y Canadá: una
identidad nacional mirada al nuevo milenio

Lawrence Douglas Taylor Rosío Vargas Suárez,

Remedios Gómez Arnau and
This book examines the Julián Castro Rea, compilers
implications of NAFTA and
hemispheric integration for the cul- This work seeks to answer some of
tural interaction among Canada, the the most frequently asked questions
United States and Mexico. It also about the future of the three
ponders the demands and effects countries’ relations by delving into
on these three countries whose both current and historical issues:
future holds similar or greater trade integration, drug trafficking and
challenges in the field of cultural migration, as well as other topics
unification. more recently included on the
agenda like human rights, democracy
and national security.
For further information contact:
Centro de Investigaciones sobre América del Norte, CISAN,
Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Torre de Humanidades II, piso 9, Ciudad Universitaria, 04510,
México, D.F. Tel. 5623-0015; fax: 5623-0014; e-mail: [email protected]
 CISAN
p u b l i c a t i o n s

Desde el Sur. Visiones de Los nuevos pobres

Estados Unidos y Canadá de Estados Unidos:
desde América Latina a los hispanos
principios del siglo XXI, vol. 1
Elaine Levine
Paz Consuelo Márquez Padilla,
Germán Pérez Fernández del Castillo Since the 1980s, Hispanics
and Remedios Gómez Arnau, in the United States,
compilers compared with other groups,
have dropped back
In this volume, Latin American socio-economically in three
specialists bring their own perspec- overall areas: the labor
tive to a broad spectrum of theoreti- market, the educational
cal, political, social, economic and system and social security. This
cultural issues in the United States, book looks at and
including federalism, foreign policy, analyzes this deterioration and
national defense and security, the its underlying causes.
environment and the impact of
globalization.

El color de la tierra. Límites sociopolíticos

Las minorías en México y fronteras culturales en
y Estados Unidos América del Norte

Barbara Driscoll de Alvarado and Barbara A. Driscoll, Claire

Paz Consuelo Márquez-Padilla, Joysmith, Elaine Levine,
compilers. Antonio Rivera and Mónica
Verea, compilers.
This work looks at diversity from
different perspectives: in particular, A multidisciplinary group of
it deals with the construction of Mexican and foreign
the Afro-American identity and specialists study the
the struggles of this group, the growing presence
implementation of public policies of the Latino community
in support of minority groups and in the economic, political,
the obstacles to their equal inte- social and cultural life of the
gration into all facets of life in United States.
Mexico and the U.S.

Forthcoming:
Las políticas exteriores de Estados Unidos, Canadá y México en el umbral del siglo XXI.
Desde el sur. Visiones sobre Estados Unidos y Canadá desde América Latina, vols. 2 y 3.
East Los Angeles. Historia de un barrio.