JEFFERSON TWP — Jenny Taylor has multiple personalities.

Aside from her own confident and cheerful demeanor, Jenny projects the thoughts of a young man named Doug; the shy but talented vocalist Lily; Susie, who dreams of being Miss America; and Ralph, a boisterous talking dog.

A ventriloquist, Jenny, 15, created each character as a new partner for performance.

Since age 8, Jenny has worked on her own ventriloquist act, rehearsing comedy and song without opening her mouth.

"Italk a lot and my parents said I needed to find something better to do," she joked.

To start her hobby, Jenny taught herself to speak without moving her mouth, following the help of an instructional video.

Reciting the alphabet was the first task to accomplish, omitting hard-to-pronounce letters such as B, P, F, M, W and Y.

As she improved her abilities with the basics, she learned many of the tricks of the trade, such as using a "GEH" sound to replace the sound made by the letter B.

Her first performance partner, a male dummy, introduced her to the dexterity needed to perform good ventriloquism.

The doll, since made over into the female character Susie, has a movable head and a moving mouth.

Since mastering work with her first doll, Jenny has acquired Doug, whose mouth, head and eyes move, and Lily, her most complex dummy, featuring moving eyes, eyebrows, mouth and head.

Through the hollowed back of each doll, a wooden rod descends from the neck.

The wooden rod serves to rotate and raise and lower the head. It's also the control center for the characters' other abilities.

Levers held taut with rubber bands control the movement of the mouth, eyes and eyebrows.

Despite their seemingly simple construction, maneuvering the dolls requires concentration and coordination, especially since the dolls are maneuvered while speaking or singing.

Now when performing, Jenny often uses two dummies at once, coordinating their motions while changing voices to accommodate three performers.

"I think there's been two, maybe three times when I've used the wrong voice,"she said.

For each performance, Jenny prepares a musical number and comedic script with the help of her family.

Jenny, her three sisters and her father, Ernie Taylor, usually work together to develop ideas for a script, which is catered to each venue.

Ernie then combines the ideas and fine tunes the script for performance.

Her sister, Beth Ackelson, a vocalist and teacher, has helped Jenny hone skills for projecting her voice capturing an audience.

"Everything that goes on around here is a joint effort,"said Ernie.

When the performance is over, her three dolls and Ralph, a large dog puppet, are stored carefully in suitcases, ready for travel to the next show.

Each figure represents a significant investment for the Taylor family; her current dolls range in price from $350 to nearly $600.

To keep her performers looking fresh, Jenny changes their costumes to suit each venue.

Their extensive wardrobe of toddler-size clothes is the work of Jenny's mother, Bobbie Taylor, the main clothes shopper.

"I'm like a grandmother to them," Bobbie joked.

"My mom spoils them," said Jenny. "She buys them new clothes all the time."

First used as a talent for pageants, Jenny has since used ventriloquism on the stages of talent shows, banquets, Girl Scout meetings and nursing homes.

She has also been called upon to entertain the customers of her mother's in-home beauty shop.

Recently, Jenny shared her talents with the congregation of her church, GraceWay Community Church.

Church pastor Dave West, who also saw her perform at a recent Karns City High School talent show, said her performances have been a hit.

"People just love what she does,"he said.

Though she has little fear when taking the stage, Jenny did note it can be unnerving to perform for her peers.

"Some people think its really cool, some people think I'm a freak,"she said.

According to Bobbie, Jenny's confidence when performing has always been a part of her personality.

"You never had to ask her twice to go on stage,"she said.

Along with her many vocal and instrumental performances and pageant experiences, Bobbie believes Jenny's career in entertainment will give her confidence in other areas of life.

"I imagine she'll be able to interview well for jobs," she noted.

Though she plans to pursue a career in elementary education and music, Jenny plans to continue ventriloquism on the side.

Whether or not she continues the hobby, her parents are proud of her patience and persistence in trying something new.

"I think its wonderful she does it,"said Ernie, "and she does it very well."