New York

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Dead as a Dodo *

Wakka Wakka

Photo by: Richard Termine

Baruch Performing Arts Center
55 Lexington Avenue (25th Street between Lexington and Third)
New York, NY
https://www.wakkawakka.org

Deep within the underworld, two skeleton friends, a Dodo and a boy, tirelessly dig for fresh bones. Their ancient skeletal forms are deteriorating and without them they will disappear completely. One day something peculiar happens: The Dodo miraculously sprouts feathers! A wave of transformation begins, shattering the established order of the dead. As the Dodo continues to grow flesh, fear and chaos erupt The two friends must flee, fighting to stay together as they are drawn into the heart of an epic battle between life and death. Infused with puppetry, humor, and stunning visual effects, Dead as a Dodo is a mesmerizing musical odyssey about survival, transformation, and the power of true friendship.

* Recipient of a Jim Henson Foundation Presenter's Grant

January 8 - February 9, 2025
January 8-January 12: Wed/Thur/Friday at 7 pm, Saturday at 3 and 7 pm; Sunday at 2 & 5 pm
January 14-February 8 : Tue/Wed/Thur/Friday at 7 pm; Saturday at 3 & 7 pm; Sunday at 3 pm

Tickets January 8-19 (UTR Festival): $40; January 20-February 8: $55

Anywhere *

Théâtre de l’Entrouvert and Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival

HERE Arts Center
145 6th Ave
New York, NY
https://here.org/shows/anywhere-2/

Anywhere is a wandering in the footsteps of Oedipus on the road of Henry Bauchau, a visual poem that invites the viewer to live through the different states of the element Water, the inner metamorphosis of a mythical character. The fallen Oedipus appears in the form of an ice puppet that gradually turns into water then into mist and disappears in the Erynian Forest, the place of clairvoyance. His daughter, Antigone, accompanies him, supports him and attends, confident, to his disappearance. The inner evolution of this mystical character is in the image of the metamorphosis of water. The spectator is invited to live an experience: to be one with the transformed material.

* Recipient of a Jim Henson Foundation Presenter's Grant (2020)

February 6 - March 2, 2025
Tuesday - Saturday at 7PM
Sundays at 4PM

$30

Ernie's Secret Life *

Concrete Temple Theatre

14th Street Y
344 E 14th St
New York, NY
https://ci.ovationtix.com/36649/production/1225810?performanceId=11577064

Ernie’s Secret Life is an episodic odyssey, fusing ever-changing puppetry stagecraft with humor, music, and a raw understanding of our profound collective reality. Sparked by the isolation & turmoil of our time, this is a story of discovery. Fearing something has happened to his son, a man builds a canoe & secretly sets off to find him. What he finds – is himself. Powered by a wondrous landscape-in-motion, Ernie’s Secret Life is a play about escaping & then finding your way; a celebration of how we become who we want to be.

* Recipient of a Jim Henson Foundation Presenter's Grant

February 14 - 16, 2025
Accessible Performances
Friday at 3pm
Saturday at 2pm and 7pm
Sunday at 2pm

$25

Song of the North *

Hamid Rahmanian, Fictionville Studio with support from Two Chairs

The New Victory Theater
209 W 42nd Street
New York, NY
newvictory.org/tickets-and-events/2425-live-performance-song-of-the-north/

During a time of fragile peace between rival kingdoms, the princess Manijeh must summon all her strength and skills to rescue her beloved, Bijan, from a perilous predicament of her own making. Can their love quiet the drumbeat of war? Shadows from 9 performers and 483 handmade puppets play against stunning animated projections in a cinematic performance as epic as the story that inspired it. Pulled from the pages of the Shahnameh—the thousand-year-old Persian Book of Kings—Song of the North trumpets unity, compassion and the beauty of Iranian culture. Created, designed and directed by Hamid Rahmanian.

* Recipient of a Jim Henson Foundation Production Grant (2021)

March 14 - 23, 2025
Fridays at 7:00pm
Saturdays at 2:00pm and 7:00pm
Sundays at 12:00pm and 4:00pm

$24

Crankies Take New York!

BoxCutter Collective, Emily Schubert, The Binoculars, Nasaria Suckoo Chollette and Randy Chollette, Josh Kohn, Charming Disaster, The Lantern Sisters

Flushing Town Hall
137-35 Northern Blvd
Flushing,, NY
https://www.flushingtownhall.org/crankies

Watch the world’s greatest stories unroll before your eyes! Flushing Town Hall is thrilled to produce this festival of scrolled panoramas, known as “crankies,” for CRANKIES TAKE NEW YORK!
A crankie is basic in concept: it is a scroll that provides the visual narration to a story or song. Versions of the crankie have been around for hundreds of years, if not longer; their most recent iteration is directly linked to moving panoramas popular in the 19th Century. In recent years, artists have begun to embrace the intimacy of the format, creating multi-layered, immersive experiences for audiences that create a sort of fireside wonder. It's mesmerizing and the perfect respite from our digital world.
Both evening shows will feature the same lineup of artists and musicians. While the performances will not have anything explicit, we recommend these shows for adult audiences and mature youth.
Join us for a youth matinee on Saturday that will feature a smaller cast for a tailored kids and family program. Come early to make your own crankie!

February 28 - March 2, 2025
Friday- 7:30PM
Saturday- 1pm, 7:30pm
Sunday- 2pm Workshop

$15-$30

Creatures of Yes - Come On Back!

Jacob Graham, Stoph Scheer

Carriage House Annex
225 E 67th St
New York, NY
https://www.greenfeather.org/event-details/creatures-of-yes-come-on-back

Come On Back! The Movie is the Creatures of Yes’ first feature length film and is the culmination of a story line that has been years in the making; a beloved character was put to death by the censors of film and television for living openly as a homosexual in 1975 and now the inhabitants of The Village of Yesterday’s Promise and attempting to bring him back with science, sorcery, or by any means necessary.

February 28, 2025
7pm - 10pm

Name your price

The Magic of Light

Yara Arts Group

The Downstairs at La MaMa
66 E 4th St
New York, NY
lamama.org/the-magic-of-light/

The Magic of Light interweaves puppetry, language, music and poetry to illustrate the cultural and spiritual awakening of an artist in the 1870s in Ukraine. Performed with an intimate, transforming puppet stage by bandura master Julian Kytasty and puppeteer Tom Lee. Yara Arts Group creates visually stunning original theatre pieces that explore overlooked cultures of the East, especially Ukraine, through our diverse perspectives.

March 7 - 16, 2025
Fridays & Saturdays at 8pm
Sundays at 4pm

$30

Little Shop of Horrors

Off-Broadway

Westside Theatre Upstairs
407 West 43rd St
New York, NY
littleshopnyc.com

The world's most ravenous plant has returned to its acclaimed, sold-out run at the Westside Theatre! Winner of the 2020 Drama League, Outer Critics Circle and Drama Desk Awards for BEST MUSICAL REVIVAL, LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS is “wildly exuberant” (The Hollywood Reporter), and a New York Times Critic's Pick. Get tickets now and enjoy a taste of what we’ve all been craving: live theater!

Tuesdays & Thursdays - 7:00pm
Fridays - 8:00pm
Saturdays - 2:00pm & 8:00pm
Sundays - 2:00pm & 7:30pm

Starting at $59

Water for Elephants

Broadway

Imperial Theatre
249 45th St
New York, NY
waterforelephantsthemusical.com/

The critically acclaimed bestselling novel comes to “thrilling, dazzling” life (Time Out New York) in a unique, spectacle-filled new musical with “one of the more remarkable ensembles ever seen on Broadway” (New York Daily News)! Hailed as a Critic’s Pick, The New York Times calls it “stunning, emotional and gorgeously imaginative.” After losing what matters most, a young man jumps a moving train unsure of where the road will take him and finds a new home with the remarkable crew of a traveling circus, and a life—and love—beyond his wildest dreams. Seen through the eyes of his older self, his adventure becomes a poignant reminder that if you choose the ride, life can begin again at any age.

Ongoing, tickets on sale through December 30, 2024
Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays at 7:00pm
Wednesdays and Saturdays at 2:00pm and 8:00pm
Sundays at 3:00pm

Starting at $84