Ventriloquist

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Ventriloquism, is an act of stagecraft in which a person (a ventriloquist) creates the illusion that their voice is coming from elsewhere, usually a puppeteered prop, known as a “dummy”. A ventriloquist is a performer who makes it seem like their voice is coming from a different place, usually a puppet. They use voice techniques and manipulation to create the illusion of a talking puppet

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Ventriloquism or ventriloquy is an act of stagecraft in which a person (a ventriloquist) speaks in such a way that it looks like their voice is coming from a different location, usually through a puppet known as a “dummy”. The act of ventriloquism is ventriloquizing, and in English it is commonly called the ability to “throw” one’s voice.

Originally, ventriloquism was a religious practice.^[1] The name comes from the Latin for ‘to speak from the stomach: Venter (belly) and loqui (speak).^[2] The Greeks called this engastromythia (Ancient Greek: εγγαστριμυθία).^{[citation needed]} The noises produced by the stomach were thought to be the voices of the unliving, who took up residence in the stomach of the ventriloquist. The ventriloquist would then interpret the sounds, as they were thought to be able to speak to the dead, as well as foretell the future. One of the earliest recorded group of prophets to use this technique was the Pythia, the priestess at the temple of Apollo in Delphi, who acted as the conduit for the Delphic Oracle.

One of the most successful early gastromancers was Eurykles, a prophet at Athens; gastromancers came to be referred to as Euryklides in his honour.^[3] Other parts of the world also have a tradition of ventriloquism for ritual or religious purposes; historically there have been adepts of this practice among the Zulu, Inuit, and Māori peoples.^[3]

The shift from ventriloquism as manifestation of spiritual forces toward ventriloquism as entertainment happened in the eighteenth century at travelling funfairs and market towns. An early depiction of a ventriloquist dates to 1754 in England, where Sir John Parnell is depicted in the painting An Election Entertainment by William Hogarth as speaking via his hand.^[4] In 1757, the Austrian Baron de Mengen performed with a small doll.^[5]

By the late 18th century, ventriloquist performances were an established form of entertainment in England, although most performers “threw their voice” to make it appear that it emanated from far away (known as distant ventriloquism), rather than the modern method of using a puppet (near ventriloquism).^[a] A well-known ventriloquist of the period, Joseph Askins, who performed at the Sadler’s Wells Theatre in London in the 1790s advertised his act as “curious ad libitum Dialogues between himself and his invisible familiar, Little Tommy”.^[6] However, other performers were beginning to incorporate dolls or puppets into their performance, notably the Irishman James Burne who “carries in his pocket, an ill-shaped doll, with a broad face, which he exhibits … as giving utterance to his own childish jargon,” and Thomas Garbutt.