Center for Puppetry Arts® is pleased to unveil its 2014-2015 performance season. The upcoming season will include an exciting new Center-produced work specifically for the very young, returning favorites, and performances by guest artists from across the globe. Along with this new season of performances, the Center is preparing to undergo a massive physical transformation and expansion of its Museum facilities.
This season’s Family Series features the highly anticipated return of Dr. Seuss’s The Cat in the Hat, perfect for ages four and up, as Cat takes youngsters on a zany adventure with Thing 1 and Thing 2. A brand new show for the little ones, Shake a Tale Feather with Mother Goose, is a Theatre for the Very Young show adapted and directed by Head Puppeteer Amy Sweeney. Young children (ages two and up) and adults alike will love participating in classic nursery rhymes to help the townspeople of Rhymeville find the missing Mother Goose. A celebrated Atlanta tradition, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer™ will return to once again light up the holiday season.
In the New Year, the Center is set to take audiences on an exotic expedition with Rainforest Adventures. From the tree tops to the forest floor, anacondas, howler monkeys, sloths and many more animals give a thrilling tour of the Amazon that will enthrall (and educate) children and parents alike. Adapted by Artistic Director Jon Ludwig, Paul Bunyan and the Tall Tale Medicine Show is a historical hoedown that features tales taller than a 10-gallon hat. Audiences will be delighted as classic American heroes Paul Bunyan, John Henry, Pecos Bill and Hekeke of the Miwok tribe take the stage for some good old-fashioned frontier fun.
Included in this season’s guest artist line-up are two fantastic international companies, Periferia Teatro de Títeres of Spain with their bilingual production of Guyi-Guyi: The Other Ugly Duckling and Canada’s Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia with their preschooler-friendly show, The Very Hungry Caterpillar And Other Eric Carle Favorites. Returning to the Center is the highly-lauded Dragon Art Studio, presenting The Old Man and the Monkeys & Other Chinese Tales.Cincinnati’s Frisch Marionettes will return with their audience-favorite The Wizard of Oz, which played to sold-out audiences during its first run at the Center last season. Winner of the “Best Performance” and “Audience Favorite” awards during the Puppeteers of America 2013 National Festival, The Joshua Show by Joshua Holden, combines the quirkiness of “PeeWee’s Playhouse” with the heart of “Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood,” empowering kids of all ages to celebrate their differences.
The Center’s New Directions Series for Adults and Teens proves that puppets aren’t just for kids. The 2014 National Puppet Slam, for ages 18 and up, is a collection of top notch short form pieces curated from the best puppet slam acts across the country. Anne Frank: Within and Without is a must-see performance that examines her hopes, dreams and inner strength while she and her family hid from Nazi oppression and persecution. Adapted by Bobby Box, directed by Mira Hirsch and presented in cooperation with the Georgia Commission on the Holocaust, this beautiful show acts as a meditation on hope as it traces Frank’s life. Vermont’s Sandglass Theater delves into the complex world of people living with dementia in D-Generation: An Exaltation of Larks. A piece about play, joy and communication, D-Generation delicately realizes the lyrical inner visions, fragmented memories and private terrors of dementia patients. The annual adults-only Xperimental Puppetry Theater (XPT) celebrates collaboration and experimentation as artists of all disciplines join forces to create bold, original work.
The Center has even more to celebrate this season! The venue is currently in the midst of a transformative expansion that will allow the organization to continue to give guests insight into the creative genius of Jim Henson, as well as a new appreciation for the global scope and universal power of the art form. As part of the project, the Center is protecting and preserving hundreds of international and Henson treasures for future generations to explore in its new Museum space. The project is slated to be completed in 2015; the Center will remain open during construction.
In addition to its diverse performances, the Center for Puppetry Arts offers many other programs. The Center’s Film Series showcases puppets on the big screen, featuring classic movies, hidden gems and contemporary productions. As part of its award-winning educational programming, the Center offers extensive learning opportunities for patrons of all ages, including Discovery Days during the fall, Puppet Camp for ages nine though 12 (this June), an Explore Puppetry Series of workshops and webinars accessible to aspiring puppeteers across the country and other Distance Learning online content that allows puppet lovers across the country to experience the fun of the Center at any location.
The 2014-2015 Family Series:
SQUIRREL STOLE MY UNDERPANTS May 27 – June 8, 2014
By Bonnie Duncan of Boston, MA
DR. SEUSS’S THE CAT IN THE HAT June 12 – July 20, 2014
Based on the book by Dr. Seuss
Play originally produced by the National Theatre of Great Britain
Center for Puppetry Arts production directed by Jon Ludwig
GUYI-GUYI: THE OTHER UGLY DUCKLING July 22 – August 3, 2014
By Periferia Teatro de Títeres of Murcia, Spain
THE VERY HUNGRY CATERPILLAR AND OTHER ERIC CARLE FAVORITES August 5 – 17, 2014
By Mermaid Theatre of Nova Scotia, Canada
SHAKE A TALE FEATHER WITH MOTHER GOOSE August 21 – September 21, 2014
Adapted and directed by Amy Sweeney
THE OLD MAN AND THE MONKEYS & OTHER CHINESE TALES September 24 – October 5, 2014
By Dragon Art Studio of Portland, OR
THE WIZARD OF OZ October 8 – 26, 2014
By Frisch Marionettes of Cincinnati, OH
THE HEADLESS HORSEMAN OF SLEEPY SILLY HOLLOW October 28 – November 9, 2014
By Frogtown Mountain Puppeteers of Bar Harbor, ME
RUDOLPH THE RED-NOSED REINDEER November 13 – December 28, 2014
Based on the classic television special
Adapted and directed by Jon Ludwig
THE STINKY CHEESE MAN December 30, 2014 – January 11, 2015
By Paul Mesner Puppets of Kansas City, MO
Based on the book by Jon Scieszka
THE BIG BAD, LITTLE RED, PIG SHOW January 14 – 25, 2015
By Lee Bryan, That Puppet Guy of Atlanta, GA
RAINFOREST ADVENTURES January 29 – March 15, 2015
Written by Jon Ludwig, Stephanie Kaskel Bogle, and Raylynn Hughes
Directed by Jon Ludwig
THE JOSHUA SHOW March 17 – 22, 2015
By Joshua Holden of New York, NY
STELLALUNA March 24 – April 4, 2015
By Tears of Joy Theatre of Portland, OR
Based on the book by Janell Cannon
PAUL BUNYAN AND THE TALL TALE MEDICINE SHOW April 9 – May 24, 2015
Adapted by Jon Ludwig
The 2013-2014 Performances for Adults & Teens:
2014 NATIONAL PUPPET SLAM (ages 18+ only) August 28 – 30, 2014
By Various Artists
ANNE FRANK: WITHIN AND WITHOUT (ages 12+) February 18 – March 8, 2015
Adapted by Bobby Box, Directed by Mira Hirsch
Presented in cooperation with the Georgia Commission on the Holocaust
D-GENERATION: AN EXALTATION OF LARKS (ages 12+) March 20 – March 22, 2015
By Sandglass Theater of Putney, VT
XPERIMENTAL PUPPETRY THEATER (XPT) (ages 18+ only) May 14 – 17, 2015
By Various Artists
MEMBERSHIP
The best way to experience the Center is by becoming a Member. Members receive up to 45 percent OFF tickets to performances and enjoy benefits like free museum entry, free films and priority seating. For more information, visit WWW.PUPPET.ORG or call the membership office at 404-881-5151.
TICKETING
Ticket prices vary for performances and other programs. See prices at WWW.PUPPET.ORG or call 404-873-3391.
