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How to Customize a Ventriloquist Dummy

Ventriloquist dummies share some features that can make it difficult for yours to stand out. Many have a wide-eyed stare, and the limbs tend to hang loose, giving an unnatural apprearance. One of the purposes of the dummy is to distract the audience from looking at you, the ventriloquist. The more you customize the dummy, the more likely you are to hold the audience's attention, and to give the impression of lifelike movements and personality as you manipulate the puppet.

Things You'll Need

Dowel rod
Eye screws
Cup hook
Acrylic paint
Faux fur
Scissors
Glue
Child's hat
Bobbie pins
Child's shoes
Needle
Thread

Instructions

- 1
  Connect a rod to the dummy's arm. You can create arm movement with a simple device made from a dowel rod. Screw a small cup hook into the end of the dowel rod. Screw an eye screw into the wrist or hand of the dummy. Hook the cup hook through the eye screw, and you can now control the hand and arm of the dummy. You can paint the dowel rod gray or blue so it won't stand out too much. The audience will see you manipulating the movements with the dowel rod, but the lifelike movements will more than make up for the transparency of the manipulation technique.
- 2
  Add eyebrows. You can counter the doll-like stare that so many ventriloquiest dummies have by adding eyebrows. Purchase faux fur at a craft store. Choose a realistic color, not the flourescent colors. Cut oversized eyebrow shapes and glue them on to the dummy's face. Place them lower than they would be on a human face, so that they shade the eyes and keep your dummy form looking so wide-eyed. Make the eyebrows large enough to cover up the generic ones that come on the dummy.
- 3
  Add a hat. A child's hat will fit your dummy nicely. You can add personality by choosing a hat that fits the character of your dummy. From stocking caps to baseball caps, to fedoras, berets, and even cowboy hats, you can choose from a wide variety of hats that can make your dummy unique. Attach the hat with bobbie pins by placing one side of the pin through the hat and clipping the pin to the hair.
- 4
  Change the shoes. Find some children's size cowboy boots, rain boots, or other fashionable footwear that will add to your dummy's personality. The shoes that come with dummies tend to look generic, so add some flavor with something more noticeable, such as high heels for female dummies and fishing waders for your outdoorsman dummy.
- 5
  Pose your dummy. The legs and arms do not have to hang loose. Cross one leg over the other so the dummy looks like it is sitting casually. Where the legs cross, sew the legs together with a few stitches. You can do the same for one arm. Give a hand-on-the-hip look by sewing one hand to the hip area of the dummy.

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