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Puppetry and Object Theatre

This section is full of content about the art and craft of puppetry and object theatre—performances created primarily using puppets and objects, rather than the full bodies of actors. A great introduction to the topic is our 2015 Puppetry series curated by Jean Marie Keevins.

The Latest

Dark & Delicious
Video
Dark & Delicious
A Safe Havens Freedom Talk
Thursday 28 March 2024
The Ellen Van Volkenburg Puppetry Symposium
Video
The Ellen Van Volkenburg Puppetry Symposium
Bringing together practicing festival artists with scholars to consider the intersection of puppetry with other disciplines and ideas.
Sunday 28 January 2024
United States
Global Puppetry in the United States
Video
Global Puppetry in the United States
A Presentation of Excerpts from Chinese Theatre Works (New York) and US Karagöz Theatre Company (Washington)
Monday 30 October 2023
New York City
two actors' shadows onstage
Art as a Force for Good
Essay

Art as a Force for Good

A Conversation with Malaysian Theatre Artist Sabera Shaik

17 November 2020

Jennifer Rodrigo sits down in conversation with Sabera Shaik, the artistic director of Malaysia’s Masakini Theatre Company, about the country’s fragmented arts community, shadow theatre, and more.

Arturo O’Farrill playing piano.
BronX BandA featuring Arturo O’Farrill
Video

BronX BandA featuring Arturo O’Farrill

Bronx based jazz ensemble collaborates with large scale puppet theater amplifying the sounds and stories of our community

Friday 12 June 2020
Bronx NY, USA

Livestreamed BronX BandA featuring Arturo O’Farrill on the global, commons-based, peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Friday 12 June 2020 at at 11 a.m. HST (Honolulu, UTC-10) / 1 p.m. AKDT (Juneau, UTC-8) / 2 p.m. PDT (San Francisco, UTC-7) / 4 p.m. CDT (Chicago, UTC-5) / 5 p.m. EDT.

Daylight lighting. The puppeteer, dressed in black, is sitting on a short black cube on a grey stage in front of bookshelves. The puppet, with white body and light blue costume, is sitting on the puppeteers knee. The puppet head, bald and painted off-white, is blocking the puppeteers face. The puppet's right leg is separate from the rest of its body, connected to the right leg and toes of the puppeteer. There is a large space between the two puppet legs. The gesture of the right hand of the puppet is raised
Puppetry and Disability Aesthetics
Essay

Puppetry and Disability Aesthetics

4 May 2020

Marina Tsaplina examines the complexity of the word “disability,” how puppetry can push forward disability justice, and disability aesthetics, offering what she deems a “grammar of animacy” for artists working with disability.

an actor performing outdoors
The National Theater Project (NTP) Appalachia Regional Convening
Video

The National Theater Project (NTP) Appalachia Regional Convening

presented by New England Foundation for the Arts (NEFA) and Carpetbag Theatre

Sunday 1 December 2019
Knoxville, Tennessee

New England Foundation for the Arts (NEFA) and Carpetbag Theatre presented the National Theater Project (NTP) Appalachia Regional Convening livestreamed from Knoxville, Tenessee on the commons-based peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv on Sunday 1 December 2019.

an actress with a styrofoam cup
How Object Puppetry Confronts Climate Change
Essay

How Object Puppetry Confronts Climate Change

3 October 2019

Caroline Reck, artistic director of Glass Half Full Theatre in Austin, Texas, talks about how her company uses clown and object theatre to engage people in the battle against climate change.

colorful illustrations of folk tale characters with performance information
A performance of :HUMPTY
Video

A performance of :HUMPTY

at The VORTEX in Austin, Texas

Friday 27 September 2019
Austin, Texas

Ethos and The VORTEX presented a performance of :HUMPTY livestreamed on the global, commons-based peer-produced HowlRound TV network on Friday 27 September 2019 at 9 p.m. EDT (New York) / 8 p.m. CDT (Chicago) / 6 p.m. PDT (Los Angeles).

two puppets
Creating a Feminist Punch and Judy Show
Essay

Creating a Feminist Punch and Judy Show

16 June 2019

Roxanna Myhrum looks at the history of the iconic puppet show Punch and Judy and Sarah Nolen’s feminist adaptation of it, Judy Save the Day.

hyper-realistic human-like puppets
Ashes and the Serious, Eerie Art of Puppetry
Essay

Ashes and the Serious, Eerie Art of Puppetry

3 April 2019

Jonathan Mandell discusses the Plexus Polaire puppetry show Ashes, recently on at HERE in New York City.

a puppeteer maneuvers two skeleton puppets
Theatre for Children in a Mexico Before It Was Mexico / Representaciones para niños en el México antes de México
Essay

Theatre for Children in a Mexico Before It Was Mexico / Representaciones para niños en el México antes de México

7 January 2019

Marco Novelo explores the little-known history of theatre for young audiences in Mexico. / Marco Novelo explora una historia poco conocida del teatro para niños en México.

a set piece
The Charmed Life of Rezo Gabriadze
Essay

The Charmed Life of Rezo Gabriadze

Tbilisi’s Hottest Ticket

23 September 2018

Dominick DeGaetano takes us to Tbilisi, Georgia’s beloved marionette theatre, the Gabriadze, which was built and runs on the vision of single man, eighty-two-year-old Rezo Gabriadze.

Livestreaming events from the Puppets in the Green Mountains Festival
Video

Livestreaming events from the Puppets in the Green Mountains Festival

Sandglass Theater in Vermont

Friday 21 September 2018
Vermont, United States

Sandglass Theater presents events from the Puppets in the Green Mountains Festival in Vermont livestreaming on the global, commons-based peer produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv from Friday 21 September to Sunday 23 September.

a person and a puppet on stage
This Sentence
Essay

This Sentence

How Do We Comprehend the Effects of Climate Change?

17 September 2018

Kendra Fanconi explains why it might take us eighty-eight minutes to digest one simple sentence about climate change.

A performance of Atlantis: A Puppet Opera
Video

A performance of Atlantis: A Puppet Opera

The VORTEX in Austin, Texas

Friday 14 September 2018
Austin, TX, 2019

The VORTEX and Ethos in Austin, Texas presented Atlantis: A Puppet Opera—a new production of Chad Salvata’s epic story of the final days of Atlantis, livestreamed on the global, commons-based peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv Friday 14 September at 9 p.m. EDT (New York) / 8 p.m. CDT(Chicago) / 6 p.m. PDT (Los Angeles).

several large puppets
Breaking Away from the Institution
Essay

Breaking Away from the Institution

How to Take Control of Your Education

5 September 2018

Theatre student Abigail Warhus talks about feeling stuck at university and taking her education into her own hands.

The Orphan in Me
Essay

The Orphan in Me

Generational Trauma in Hyung Seok Jeon’s A Held Posture

6 May 2018

Dominick DeGaetano reflects on Hyung Seok Jeon’s A Held Posture, which last performed at Theaterlab in New York City in January 2018.

Symphonie Fantastique and the Triumph and Trap of Puppetry
Essay

Symphonie Fantastique and the Triumph and Trap of Puppetry

5 April 2018

Jonathan Mandell reflects on the twentieth anniversary production of Basil Twist's Symphonie Fastastique at HERE Arts Center in New York City.

Theatre History Podcast #57
Podcast

Theatre History Podcast #57

Dr. Claudia Orenstein on the Evolving Art of Tolpavakoothu

20 February 2018

Dr. Claudia Orenstein of Hunter College introduces us to the art of tolpavakoothu, a shadow puppet tradition from Kerala, in southern India.

Theatre History Podcast #52
Podcast

Theatre History Podcast #52

Remembering Argentina’s Traumatic Past Through Theatre with Dr. Noe Montez

12 December 2017

Dr. Noe Montez of Tufts University joins us to talk about how Argentina's theatre have dealt with the legacy of the country's period of military dictatorship.

The Third Language in Montreal’s Theatres
Essay

The Third Language in Montreal’s Theatres

9 June 2017

Zach Fraser reveals the puppet theatre community of Montreal.

The Smallest Theatre in the World
Essay

The Smallest Theatre in the World

An Interview with Caja lambe-lambe artist Gabriela Céspedes / El Teatro Más Pequeño del Mundo: Una entrevista con la artista de caja lambe-lambe Gabriela Céspedes

29 April 2017

Puppeteer Cecilia Cackley interviews Gabriela Céspedes, a leading caja lambe-lambe puppet artist based in Argentina.

The Story Behind Puppets in Kenya
Essay

The Story Behind Puppets in Kenya

9 April 2017

Puppeteer Fedelis Kyalo shares his puppet background, and discusses how puppetry intersects with popular entertainment and street protests in Kenya.

Master Classes on Puppetry Skills
Video

Master Classes on Puppetry Skills

Saturday 1 April and Sunday 2 April / Friday 31 March 2017
Nairobi, Kenya

Project HAND UP in Nairobi presented Master Classes on Puppetry Skills and Industry Application livestreamed on the global, commons-based peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv Saturday 1 April and Sunday 2 April. 

Master Classes on Puppetry Skills by Project HAND UP
Video

Master Classes on Puppetry Skills by Project HAND UP

Saturday 18 February and Sunday 19 February 2017
Nairobi, Kenya

Project HAND UP in Nairobi presented Master Classes on Puppetry Skills and Industry Application livestreamed on the global, commons-based peer-produced HowlRound TV network at howlround.tv Saturday 18 February and Sunday 19 February.

China on Stage
Essay

China on Stage

3 February 2017

Jonathan Mandell digs into three recent productions in New York City—Made in ChinaConfucius, and Caught—that explore US-China relations.

Howard Barker on Puppetry, the Actor, and Process
Essay

Howard Barker on Puppetry, the Actor, and Process

5 November 2016

David Dudley interviews playwright Howard Barker about writing for live actors versus marionettes.