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It is easy to think about puppets as being entertainment for children. However, they are highly important in the theatre of many cultures.

Designers need to ensure that they choose a style of puppet that fits with the style of the performance and its artistic intentions. It is also important to consider the character created by the puppet. For example, is the puppet supposed to be friendly, or is it a dark, ominous beast as part of a production aimed at an older audience?

When choosing materials for a puppet, designers need to consider the weight, durability and cost of the material. The design also needs to consider how the puppet will be operated and by how many people. Puppets can be operated from off stage, on stage by rods or even worn by on-stage puppeteers.

• hand puppets - typically worn on one hand that can be used to operate a mouth, with the other hand used to operate an arm
• rod puppets - puppets operated using rods
• marionettes - puppets controlled from above using strings
• shadow puppets - flat, cut-out figures that are placed between one or more lights and a screen to create shadows