Yaya Coulibaly
Encyclopedia
Yaya Coulibaly comes from an ancient family of puppeteer
s with roots in the Bamana kingdom of Segou in Mali
. He began his initiation into the magical world of puppet
and masquerade figures at the age of ten as an apprentice to his father. Later he studied art at the Bamako
National Institute of the Arts, and puppet theatre at the Institute International de la Marionette in France. He formed his own puppet company, Sogolon Puppet Troupe, in 1980 and has since become the leading custodian of the Bambara puppetry tradition, the oldest and richest of Africa’s surviving puppetry traditions. Coulibaly is the custodian of a vast collection of puppets, many of which have come down to him through his family. A selection of this collection is currently (2006) being exhibited at the Gold of Africa Museum in Cape Town
.
Coulibaly has created a new and dynamic puppet theatre that draws from the ancient traditions of puppetry in West Africa
. His performances incorporate traditional folk tales and legends and episodes from Mali’s great epics, as well as colonial history and commentary on contemporary life in Mali. The techniques in his performances include hand puppets, rod puppets, marionettes, masks and live music. He has performed widely in Europe and the USA. One of Sogolon's recent works, Tall Horse, is in collaboration with the Handspring Puppet Company
and is touring in 2006.
Puppeteer
A puppeteer is a person who manipulates an inanimate object, such as a puppet, in real time to create the illusion of life. The puppeteer may be visible to or hidden from the audience. A puppeteer can operate a puppet indirectly by the use of strings, rods, wires, electronics or directly by his or...
s with roots in the Bamana kingdom of Segou in Mali
Mali
Mali , officially the Republic of Mali , is a landlocked country in Western Africa. Mali borders Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the Côte d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west. Its size is just over 1,240,000 km² with...
. He began his initiation into the magical world of puppet
Puppet
A puppet is an inanimate object or representational figure animated or manipulated by an entertainer, who is called a puppeteer. It is used in puppetry, a play or a presentation that is a very ancient form of theatre....
and masquerade figures at the age of ten as an apprentice to his father. Later he studied art at the Bamako
Bamako
Bamako is the capital of Mali and its largest city with a population of 1.8 million . Currently, it is estimated to be the fastest growing city in Africa and sixth fastest in the world...
National Institute of the Arts, and puppet theatre at the Institute International de la Marionette in France. He formed his own puppet company, Sogolon Puppet Troupe, in 1980 and has since become the leading custodian of the Bambara puppetry tradition, the oldest and richest of Africa’s surviving puppetry traditions. Coulibaly is the custodian of a vast collection of puppets, many of which have come down to him through his family. A selection of this collection is currently (2006) being exhibited at the Gold of Africa Museum in Cape Town
Cape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
.
Coulibaly has created a new and dynamic puppet theatre that draws from the ancient traditions of puppetry in West Africa
West Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of the African continent. Geopolitically, the UN definition of Western Africa includes the following 16 countries and an area of approximately 5 million square km:-Flags of West Africa:...
. His performances incorporate traditional folk tales and legends and episodes from Mali’s great epics, as well as colonial history and commentary on contemporary life in Mali. The techniques in his performances include hand puppets, rod puppets, marionettes, masks and live music. He has performed widely in Europe and the USA. One of Sogolon's recent works, Tall Horse, is in collaboration with the Handspring Puppet Company
Handspring Puppet Company
The Handspring Puppet Company is a puppetry performance and design company established in 1981 by Adrian Kohler and Basil Jones, situated in Cape Town, South Africa. Thys Stander is the company's chief puppet maker.-History:...
and is touring in 2006.