Far North Crankies

What is a Crankie?

Crankies are a folk tradition and artform of visual storytelling, often accompanied by live music or narration and sometimes puppetry.

The Crankie apparatus is a box construction, often wooden, with cranking mechanisms that turn a story scroll. The stories can take many forms from traditional Appalachian ballads to contemporary music, poetry, or oral history. Crankies are based on the mid-nineteenth century moving panorama and myriorama performances popular in Europe and America up through the 1920s but also can be related to puppet productions from the 1700s in Europe and in the Far East even further. The best way to begin your Crankie learning journey is to start with a visit to the links and examples provided here.