The Magic City *

Manual Cinema

Photo by: Chuck Osgood

Chicago Children’s Theatre
100 S. Racine
Chicago, IL
chicagochildrenstheatre.org/event/manual-cinemas-the-magic-city/

Philomena and her big sister Helen love building miniature cities out of books, toys, and household objects. When Helen begins seeing a new boyfriend, Brandon, Philomena’s world falls apart. Even worse, she’s expected to make friends with Brandon’s son, Lucas: the most annoying boy in the world. Forced to share her perfect life with Helen, Philomena retreats into building the biggest tiny city ever: a magic city only for her. Then, one night, Philomena’s city of found objects comes to life, and she finds herself trapped inside. Will Philomena find her way out—and will she let her new family in? Brought to life through Manual Cinema's magical fusion of actors, puppets, miniatures, and live music, The Magic City encourages us to build bridges rather than walls.

* Recipient of a Jim Henson Foundation Production Grant (2017)

January 25 - February 16, 2025
See website for performance times
Additional Dates:
March 1 - Costa Mesa, CA

$35.25 - $45.25

MAROONED! A Space Comedy * - FAMILY

Alex and Olmsted

Center for Puppetry Arts
1404 Spring St NW at 18th
Atlanta, GA
puppet.org/programs/marooned/

MAROONED! A Space Comedy is an innovative sci-fi puppet show, featuring music from the Voyager Golden Record, that takes place at the outer reaches of space. An astronaut crashes on an uncharted planet. Will she be able to survive strange creatures, anomalous atmosphere, and isolation in order to find her way home? See for yourself… in MAROONED!

* Recipient of a Jim Henson Foundation Family Grant (2020)

March 6 - 16, 2025

$22.50 for non-members / $19.10 for members

Leonardo! A Wonderful Show About A Terrible Monster

Manual Cinema

Photo by: Rebecca J Michelson

Minneapolis Children's Theatre Company
2400 3rd Ave S
Minneapolis, MN
https://childrenstheatre.org/whats-on/leonardo/

Leonardo is a terrible monster. He tries so hard to be scary, but he just… isn’t. Then Leonardo finds Sam, the most scaredy-cat kid in the world. Will Leonardo finally get to scare the tuna salad out of someone? Or will it be the start of an unlikely friendship? The plot thickens when this pair meets Kerry and Frankenthaler, an even scaredier-cat and her monster friend. Kerry and Sam need to make a big decision: will they just be scaredy cats or can they become friends?

January 8 - March 9, 2025
See website for performance times

Starting from $15

Rainforest Adventures

Center For Puppetry Arts

Center For Puppetry Arts
1404 Spring Street NW at 18th St
Atlanta, GA
puppet.org/programs/rainforest-adventures/

Experience Rainforest Adventures at the Center For Puppetry Arts. Anacondas, howler monkeys, and sloths — oh my! It’s a jungle out there in this entertaining and enlightening peek at the amazing Amazonian rainforest

January 28 - March 2, 2025
Wed-Fri(10:00am & 11:30am), Sat(11:00am, 1:00pm) Sun(1:00pm & 3:00pm)

$22.75

Rainforest Adventures - FAMILY

Written by Jon Ludwig, Stephanie Kaskel Bogel, and Raylynn Hughes

Photo by: Clay Walker

Center for Puppetry Arts
1404 Spring Street NW
Atlanta, GA
puppet.org/programs/rainforest-adventures/

Anacondas, howler monkeys, and sloths — oh my! It’s a jungle out there in this entertaining and enlightening peek at the amazing Amazonian rainforest

January 29 - March 2, 2025
see website for dates and times

$22.75 for non-members / $20.50 for members

MOMENTUM

The Mariposa Collective

Photo by: Betsy Tobin

Dairy Arts Center
2590 Walnut Street
Boulder, CO
thedairy.org/event/the-mariposa-collective-presents-momentum/

The Mariposa Collective presents a unique blend of Dance, Aerial, Film, & Puppetry featuring new work from local Dance and Theater artists Lauren Beale, Caroline Butcher & Anna Pillot, Jaime Duggan & Lindsay Temple, Alli Jones, Jeny Jones & Ixeeya Lin, Kim Olson & Gwen Ritchie, Elizabeth Pond & Shreya Venkatesh, Bridget Ryan, Nancy Smith, and Betsy Tobin. “Momentum” will also showcase the talents of four exceptional Colorado musicians – James Hoskins, Jesse Manno, Victor Mestas, and Tober Schorr who have been commissioned to perform original live music for the performance.

January 31 - February 2, 2025
January 31 7:30 PM
February 1 7:30 PM
February 2 2 PM

$15-25

The Snowflake Man - Puppet Kabob/Sarah Frechette

Sandglass Theater's Winter Sunshine Series

Photo by: Sarah Frechette

Sandglass Theater
17 Kimball Hill
Putney, VT
https://sandglasstheater.org/special-events//winter-sunshine-series

The 18th season of Southern Vermont’s favorite winter puppet program is back in February 2025! Dedicated to serving children, families and teachers through the art of puppetry, Sandglass presents a different live puppetry performance every Saturday throughout the month. The story of The Snowflake Man is inspired by Wilson "Snowflake" Bentley, the self-educated farmer and scientist who attracted world attention when he became the first person to photograph a single snow crystal. The Snowflake Man swings audiences into the historic 1920s through creative storytelling, intricately designed Czech-style marionettes, and a striking pop-up book of water color scenery.

February 1, 2025
Saturday February 1st, 2025 at 11am & 2pm

$8 - $12

Lisa The Wise - Puppet Motion/Sarah Nolen

Sandglass Theater's Winter Sunshine Series

Photo by: Sarah Nolen

Sandglass Theater
17 Kimball Hill
Putney, VT
https://sandglasstheater.org/special-events//winter-sunshine-series

The 18th season of Southern Vermont’s favorite winter puppet program is back in February 2025! Dedicated to serving children, families and teachers through the art of puppetry, Sandglass presents a different live puppetry performance every Saturday throughout the month. When Lisa, a brave young girl with a heart of gold, meets Baba Yaga, the most famous witch in the woods, an epic battle of wits ensues. Dancing houses, enchanted dolls, and hilarious "ghost servants" bring this classic Russian fairy tale to life with a contemporary twist. Imaginative shadow puppetry lights the way in this hilariously spooky story about the experiences that make us wise.

February 8, 2025
11am & 2pm

$8 - $12

Punschi - Sandglass Theater

Sandglass Theater's Winter Sunshine Series

Photo by: Sandglass Theater

Sandglass Theater
17 Kimball Hill
Putney, VT
https://sandglasstheater.org/special-events//winter-sunshine-series

The 18th season of Southern Vermont’s favorite winter puppet program is back in February 2025! Dedicated to serving children, families and teachers through the art of puppetry, Sandglass presents a different live puppetry performance every Saturday throughout the month. Originally created by Sandglass’ Co-Founder, Ines Zeller Bass, now performed by her daughter, Jana Zeller, Punschi offers a double feature hand puppet show with a special guest appearance of a classic Sandglass character. Meet Kasper, an iconic German children’s hero, and his friend Augustin as they go on adventures together in Kasper and the Cow and The Surprise. Follow them in their journeys with a suitcase and tiny airplanes in this call-and-response adventure!

February 22, 2025
11am & 2pm

$8 - $12

Galapagos George, The Little Tortoise that Could - FAMILY

Barefoot Puppets of Richmond, VA

Center For Puppetry Arts
1404 Spring St NW at 18th
Atlanta, GA
puppet.org/programs/galapagos-george-the-little-tortoise-that-could/

Discover the Uplifting tale of 'Lonesome George,' the Last of his Kind. Journey to the far-off Galapagos Islands to meet George, the last tortoise of his kind. This uplifting eco-fable tells the true story of the famous, not-so-little tortoise and the island he calls home. Puppetry Style: Rod, Tabletop, Shadow. Create-A-Puppet Workshop™: Terrific Tortoise Rod Puppet

March 5 - 16, 2025
Wed-Fri(10:00am, 11:30am), Sat(11:00am, 1:00pm, 3:00pm), Sun(1:00pm, 3:00pm)

$20.50 - $22.75

STAND BY — an allegory

Corningworks in collaboration with puppeteer TOM LEE

Photo by: Frank Walsh

Carnegie Stage
25 West Main Street
Carnegie, PA
corningworks.org

STAND BY — an allegory,
a multidisciplinary dancetheater production created in collaboration with renowned puppeteer TOM LEE and CORNINGWORKS, a critically acclaimed dance theater company. Offering a whimsical glimpse into human’s inability to recognize our own mortality — not so much about death or grief or even loss, as about the mysterious and magical continuity of life.

Critically acclaimed Puppeteer TOM LEE brings his practice and expertise of the centuries old Japanese style of Kuruma Ningyo (Cart Puppetry), rarely seen in the US, where the puppeteer sits on a small moveable “cart” singularly manipulating a large puppet attached to one’s body. Lee will create and perform with a 4-foot tall puppet specifically designed for this production, along with 5 nationally & internationally renowned dancers. Combined with Corning’s cache of stunning, critically acclaimed choreography, this new work promises audiences a fresh and provocative theatrical experience.

March 28 - April 6, 2025
MARCH
Fri 28, Sat. 29 @8pm
Sun 30 @ 2pm PAY-WHAT-YOU-CAN admission Available ONLY at DOOR
regular reserved tickets available online / or at BOX OFFICE
APRIL
Wed. 2, Thu 3, Fri 4, Sat 5 @8pm
Sun 6 @2pm

$35 - $40

Cat in the Hat - FAMILY

Based on the book by Dr. Seuss

Center For Puppetry Arts
1404 Spring Street at 18th Street
Atlanta, GA
puppet.org/programs/cat-in-the-hat/

See Cat in the Hat like you haven't before! Play originally produced by the National Theater of Great Britain. Adapted and originally directed by Katie Mitchell. “It’s fun to have fun, but you have to know how!” says the Cat in the tall red and white hat. See all your favorite moments from this literary classic come to life on stage! Dr. Seuss’s The Cat in the Hat is presented through a special arrangement with Music Theater International (MTI). All authorized performance materials are also supplied by MTI

April 8 - May 25, 2025
April: Tues-Fri(10:00am, 12:00pm), Sat(11:00am & 1:00pm), Sun(1:00pm, 3:00pm)
May: Wed-Fri(10:00am, 11:30am), Sat(11:00am & 1:00pm) Sun(1:00pm, 3:00pm)

$20.50 - $25.75

XPT: Xperimental Puppetry Theater

Center for Puppetry Arts, Various Artists

Center for Puppetry Arts
1404 Spring St NW
Atlanta, GA
puppet.org/programs/xpt-xperimental-puppet-theater/

What happens when artists join forces to create original puppetry works for adult audiences? XPT! Celebrating close to 40 years of experimentation, come find out what this year holds! From traditional forms of puppetry to films and installation pieces, artists of all disciplines employ puppetry in startling new ways. XPT offers an array of stories, puppetry styles, and sensibilities in a single evening. Guaranteed to inspire, surprise, amuse and provoke. Inspired? – see the XPT application to find out how to get involved in the process!

April 30 - May 4, 2025

$18

Frankenstein

Manual Cinema

Photo by: Manual Cinema

Montclair State University, Alexander Kasser Theater
1 Normal Ave Hall, Suite 171
Montclair, NJ
https://www.tix.com/ticket-sales/Kasser/1631/event/1385764?eventidlist=1385764

Love, loss, and creation merge in unexpected ways as Manual Cinema presents its thrilling version of the classic Gothic tale Frankenstein. The Chicago-based performance collective imaginatively combines shadow puppetry, cinematic techniques, sound effects, and live music in haunting shows like nothing else you’ve ever seen.

May 3, 2025
8:00pm

Starting at $35

Symphonie Fantastique * - Film

Basil Twist

Photo by: Richard Termine

HERE - URHERE, online
here.org/shows/symphonie-fantastique-urhere/

Twenty years ago in 1998, Basil Twist debuted his boundary-breaking response to Berlioz’s 1830 “Symphonie Fantastique” to universal acclaim. In this revival, accompanied live by virtuosic pianist, Christopher O’Riley, the exquisite Liszt transcription, Symphonie floats and swirls in a 1,000-gallon water tank neatly disguised as a puppet stage. For the many who never saw it, and for those who relish seeing it again and again, the return of this tour de force to HERE is the event of the season. Watch on-demand on URHERE.

* Recipient of a Jim Henson Foundation Production Grant (1998) and Workshop Grant (1996)

Available on-demand on URHERE

9000 Paper Balloons * - Film

Maiko Kikuchi & Spencer Lott

Photo by: Richard Termine

HERE - URHERE, online
here.org/shows/9000-paper-balloons-urhere/

Inspired by the stranger-than-fiction secret weapons that floated over America during World War II, 9000 Paper Balloons is a poetic and eerie performance that examines distance – the distance between two friends, between two enemies, two cultures and two generations. Japanese artist Maiko Kikuchi and American puppeteer Spencer Lott blend puppetry, animation and mask as they weave their own family histories into a surreal and visually stunning collage that speaks to the past and the future. 9000 Paper Balloons is available on demand on URHERE, a one-of-a-kind, rigorously curated virtual platform for outdoor and digital premieres. URHERE aims to occupy an important part of the art ecosystem which nurtures experimentation, sparks dialogue, and creates engagement with the local community.

* Recipient of a Jim Henson Foundation Production Grant (2020) and Workshop Grant (2019)

Available on-demand on URHERE

The Fortune Teller * - Film

by Phantom Limb Company | Jessica Grindstaff and Erik Sanko With Music by Danny Elfman

HERE - URHERE, online
https://here.org/shows/urhere/

Seven strangers’ twisted tales are brought to life in this marionette play and woven with haunting music to tell an eerily comic story of fate and fortune. On a dark night, the strangers are invited to the mansion of a deceased millionaire, and learn that their inheritances will be based not on a will, but on the readings of a fortune teller. Each soon meets a gruesome end in this production developed through HERE’s Dream Music puppetry program. The Fortune Teller played at HERE November 28 - December 4, 2010. The Fortune Teller is available on demand on URHERE, a one-of-a-kind, rigorously curated virtual platform for outdoor and digital premieres. URHERE aims to occupy an important part of the art ecosystem which nurtures experimentation, sparks dialogue, and creates engagement with the local community.

* Recipient of a Jim Henson Foundation Production Grant (2006)

Available on-demand on URHERE

The Scarlet Ibis - Film

Beth Morrison Projects

HERE - URHERE, online
urhere.art/archive/ibis

The Scarlet Ibis is an opera about family, illness, and the power of the imagination to soar above what’s considered “normal.” This world premiere by composer Stefan Weisman (Darkling) and librettist David Cote (Blind Injustice) fuses singers, puppetry, and multimedia stagecraft to tell the story of a remarkable disabled boy nicknamed “Doodle,” whose older brother pushes him to be like other kids. Set in rural North Carolina a century ago, The Scarlet Ibis contrasts notions of physical wholeness with mystical otherness The narrative (inspired by the short story by James Hurst) draws on elements of Southern Gothic, boy’s adventure, and domestic tragedy. Mallory Catlett directs; Steven Osgood (Dead Man Walking, Metropolitan Opera) conducts the American Modern Ensemble. For audiences 10 and up. The Scarlet Ibis was a part of the 2015 PROTOTYPE Festival, co-produced with Beth Morrison Projects

Available on-demand on URHERE

Spirited Away (Live on Stage) - Film

Based on the animated feature film by Hayao Miyazaki

On Demand
gkids.com/films/spirited-away-live-on-stage/#watch-now

Hayao Miyazaki’s Academy Award®-winning animated feature film comes to life in this first-ever stage adaptation, full of dazzling sets, captivating musical numbers, and wondrous puppets of beloved characters. Adapted and directed by Tony Award®-winner John Caird (Les Misérables), two unique casts and performances were filmed during the show’s acclaimed 2022 run at Tokyo’s historic Imperial Theatre, featuring Kanna Hashimoto and Mone Kamishiraishi as Chihiro.

Send for the Million Men * - Film

Joseph Silovsky

HERE - URHERE, online
urhere.art/archive/sftmm

The “crime of the century” of the 1920s jolts to life in modern-day New York City in Joseph Silovsky’s micro-history multimedia tale, Send for the Million Men. With a compelling command of animatronics, robotics, puppetry, and handmade projectors, Silovsky examines the controversial executions of notorious anarchists Sacco and Vanzetti. Their bleak fates intertwine with Silovsky’s own micro-tragic biography in a humorous and captivating history-rethink.

* Recipient of a Jim Henson Foundation Production Grant (2010) and Workshop Grant (2009)

Available on-demand on URHERE