Henny Hen (Høne Pøne)

Wang and Helgesen write: "Temporal had brought in a new technique with the charming duck of Festen på taket* (The Party on the Roof). It was continued in The Hen Who Had to..., where the poultry were given the same kind of tripping, expressive feet, and a caricatured language on their irrational, but determined wandering towards Dovre Mountain. In particular, the hen, played by Kjersti Germenten with desperate energy and overwhelming humour, became a hit." (2000:303).

Sceneweb refers to the other puppets registered from this production. These are Roosty Rooster (Hane Pane) and the fox. 

The production was revived in 1978.

SOURCES:

Wang, Ragnhild and Vibeke Helgesen: Den magiske hånd. Dukkespill og figurteater gjennom tidene (literally: The magic hand. Puppetry throughout the ages). Pax forlag, Oslo 2000.

Oslo Nye Teater (Oslo New Theatre). Performance program.

Donated by: Knut Wiulsrød. Imported 24.05.2020. 

*Not yet translated into the English. The title within parentheses is the Norwegian title's literal meaning.

The outer, visible material used for Henny Hen (Norwegian: Høne Pøne) was elastic cotton terry cloth. The head, the body, the tail, the wings, the collar of feathers surrounding the neck and more were made from this material. Legs and feet were likely also made from this, but it is also possible that the material used for these was thin glove leather. The body and the head of the puppet were likely shaped from plastic foam. The feet were padded and under the feet small pockets were fastened, adjusted for the puppeteer's fingers.

Henny Hen (Norwegian: Høne Pøne) was not an ordinary rod puppet with movements centred on the arms. The puppet was shaped in plastic foam and was set in motion with a thin iron rod going through the puppet's body and head. The rod was prolonged by the puppeteer's grip on it. With the other hand, the puppeteer could move the puppet's feet.

In the performance program, adapter Peder W. Cappelen wrote the following: "The form of puppetry allows for great freedom and richness, switching between lyrical and dramatic parts. One may jump from the quiet and poetic to the burlesque and grotesque, for then through the change of pace slide over to the pathetic and solemn. In this form, there is deep theatricality, in the creative sense of the term, fascinating both children and adults." Oslo Nye Teater (Oslo New Theatre)'s puppetry: The Hen Who Had to..., program (1976).  

In 1975, Kari Sundby became the artistic director of the puppetry at Oslo Nye Teater (Oslo New Theatre). In an interview, Kjersti Germenten stated the following: "When Kari Sundby came to the puppetry, her sense of quality and the fundamental theatre disciplines she knew were exactly what the inexperienced staff needed. She could convey involvement in the situations, interpretation of the puppets, and psychological motivation for the actions within a scene. If the direction was right when it came to developing a distinct puppetry style, is an open question." (Wang, R. and Helgesen. V.: 2000: 302-303).