A baby strides determinedly across stage, the actors moving it in plain sight.

The tentacles of a giant squid grab a sailor, its huge eye gazing through the submarine’s porthole.

A terrified pig tells a graphic tale of terror, simultaneously ridiculous and bloody – all in silhouette.

Why do these moments work? How can inanimate objects evoke as much emotion, whether hilarity or sorrow, as their human counterparts? Why has this ancient form maintained a grip on the human imagination?

Lookingglass is one of many Chicago theaters that uses puppetry as part of our storytelling vocabulary. A conversation with masters of the form: