Holly Go Deadly

Chaos Corner Puppets

Design construction and performance

Meet Holly Go deadly,  a spooktastic puppet. She may be dead but be prepared for a tantalising burlesque performance, where she strips down by more than just her clothes! Not for the squeamish, Holly Go-deadly combines cabaret and Horror to create a hilarious trip into the dark hours. Brought to you Bryony McCombie Smith and Izzy Hollis of Chaos corner Puppets.

Holly Go Deadly is a table top cabaret act, that I developed with funding from Nottingham Puppet festival 2024. I intend to develop it into an entire show adding other undead characters.

There were quite a few challenges with the build as she needed to come to pieces but still move nicely when assembled.

I sculpted the head and face in clay and the built it up using paper Mache and mask making techniques. With a hollow head I could build my mechanisms into, this was vital as the puppets head comes off as part of the performance. I built up a smooth finish using gesso before painting and varnishing the head.

Most of the construction was built using a ply wood frame with a carving foam carved into shape. this was the paper mache’d and finished to match the head.