Diana Bayliss
Professional puppeteer and actress, Diana Bayliss, achieved a BA (Hons) Performing Arts degree at Bradford & Ilkley College in 1984.
Diana set up The Black Cat Theatre Company in 1985,
to promote live theatre with puppetry performances,
workshops and training for theatres, schools, libraries,
museums, community venues, fetes and festivals
throughout the UK and occasionally abroad. She has
received numerous commissions to create and deliver
puppetry projects for education and health organisations
and to build puppets for theatres and artistes. Diana
specialises in producing storytelling, shadow theatre
and puppetry inspired by Hindu culture, often working
with visiting and resident Indian puppeteers, dancers,
textile artists and musicians to create and present
performances and run residencies and workshops.
“I started performing professionally with puppets whilst
still at Ilkley College, cutting my teeth on play schemes
in the summer before my final year, with a little shadow
show Teaser and the Firecat, adapted from a song by
Cat Stevens. We were the last intake of students for
the Performing Arts Course at Ilkley so when I became
pregnant with my third child during the second year
I could not take time out. The staff were wonderfully
supportive and the intimacy and rural aspect of the
college was ideal.
Two events within the course made a big impression
on me. Impact Theatre worked with our year group
to create an on-site performance and for 2 weeks it
was anarchic and inspiring. Performers emerging from
the shallows of the tarn as dusk fell signalled the start
of our show and with a costumed brass band, led the
audience over the moor to the college where there were
environments, sound-scapes and performances, finishing
with a huge bonfire. My input was to create a series of
shadow theatre scenarios in the 4, first floor windows of
the art block, which were watched by the audience from
the path below.
The other landmark was seeing Lizzie Allen from
Freehand Theatre work one of her puppets when she
was a supply tutor. I was immediately drawn to this
powerful medium. Some time later, looking for an idea
for an art project, I found a book on making marionettes
and decided to have a go. I’d never carved before but
the tutors were encouraging and so I created my first
wooden puppet, Patrick. I was pleased with my creation
but at a loss to know what to do with him and his 9
strings. However, I had got the puppet bug and in my
research had become intrigued by shadow theatre.
Around the same time I also began my yoga career,
and its practice and teaching has become a part of my
life. I began to visit India and my interest in Indian
culture and the arts became entwined leading to many
collaborations in performances and educational projects
with Indian artistes. For me, puppetry encompasses
the four subjects that I studied – drama, art, music and
dance so that within my work I have the freedom to
continue to explore and develop my practice of all the
arts.”
Photograph supplied by Diana Bayliss