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2024 Object Movement Festival *
Curated by Rowan Magee, Marcella Murray, and Justin Perkins
The Center at West Park
165 West 86th St
New York, NY
centeratwestpark.org/object-movement-puppetry
Object Movement Puppetry festival is the culmination of The Center at West Park's annual residency program, featuring eight original works in a two week celebration of puppetry and object theater. This year's festival runs March 22th through 30th, featuring new work created by Cohlie Brocato, Duygu Bayar Ekren, Leah Levine, and Julia Chien the first weekend, and Marina 'Heron' Tsaplina, Brenna Ross, Emmy Brett, and Sienna Aczon the second. The curators for Object Movement are Rowan Magee, Marcella Murray, and Justin Perkins.
* Recipient of a Jim Henson Foundation Presenter's Grant
March 22 - 30, 2024
Fridays at 7:30pm
Saturdays at 2:00pm and 7:30pm
$28.52
The Four Lives *
Skysaver Productions, Created & Directed by Theodora Skipitares
La MaMa
66 East 4th St
New York, NY
lamama.org/shows/the-four-lives-2024
The ancient philosopher Pythagoras believed that each of us experiences four lives: as a mineral, a vegetable, an animal and a human. In this immersive multi-media spectacle, with live music, and several puppets, giant and tiny, the audience moves through different environments, encountering worlds where humans are not the main attraction......Do sheep dream?
* Recipient of a Jim Henson Foundation Workshop Grant (2024)
April 4 - 21, 2024
Thursdays through Saturdays at 7:00pm
Sundays at 2:00pm
$30 adult / $25 Students & Seniors
The Human Dream Project *
Admiral Grey
The Tank
312 W 36th St
New York, NY
thetanknyc.org/human-dream-project
The Human Dream Project is an irreverent, moving multimedia performance project that collects recordings of people candidly describing their dreams and illustrates these recordings onstage with vivid puppetry performance and live music. Admiral Grey's technicolor handmade puppets and costumes and Chad Raines' rich textural foley and music manifest these dreams onstage, alongside in the dextrous abilities of the puppeteers/performers of the Snake In The Boot Collective. Cross the liminal curtain and navigate the odd, sometimes hilarious, sometimes despairing world of dreams that all humans experience as they sleep. The dreams are recorded via The Human Dream Project Dream Hotline (1-845-750-8891), a 24 hour hotline run by artist Admiral Grey. The hotline is becoming an international archive of human dreams from our time.
* Recipient of a Jim Henson Foundation Presenter's Grant
April 5 - 28, 2024
April 5, 7, 11-13, 18-20, 22, 25-28 at 7:00pm
April 6, 14, 21 at 3:00pm
$35
Madama Butterfly
Anthony Minghella, Puppetry by Blind Summit Theatre
The Metropolitan Opera
30 Lincoln Center Plaza
New York, NY
metopera.org/season/2023-24-season/madama-butterfly/
The title character of Madama Butterfly—a young Japanese geisha who clings to the belief that her arrangement with a visiting American naval officer is a loving and permanent marriage—is one of the defining roles in opera. The story triggers ideas about cultural and sexual imperialism for people far removed from the opera house, and film, Broadway, and popular culture in general have riffed endlessly on it. The lyric beauty of Puccini’s score, especially the music for the thoroughly believable lead role, has made Butterfly timeless. Three extraordinary sopranos—Aleksandra Kurzak, Eleonora Buratto, and Asmik Grigorian (in her highly anticipated Met debut)—tackle the demanding role of Cio-Cio-San, the loyal geisha at the heart of Puccini’s devastating tragedy. Tenors Matthew Polenzani and Jonathan Tetelman co-star as the callous American naval officer Pinkerton, whose betrayal destroys her. Mezzo-sopranos Elizabeth DeShong and Eve Gigliotti share the role of the steadfast maid Suzuki, and baritone Davide Luciano and Lucas Meachem are the American consul Sharpless. Acclaimed maestro Xian Zhang makes her Met debut conducting Anthony Minghella’s vivid production.
January 11 - May 11, 2024
$40
Epidermis Circus
Ingrid Hansen
Soho Playhouse
15 Vandam St
New York, NY
sohoplayhouse.com/upcoming-events/epidermis-circus
A spicy puppet cabaret, hosted by a sassy grandma who keeps trying to steal the show. This beautifully twisted variety show is performed by Ingrid Hansen, who also puppeteers for Jim Henson Company’s Fraggle Rock. Watch behind-the-scenes as Hansen performs a live puppet film, animating cheeky vignettes in the palm of her hand and projecting them onto a huge screen. “Both live and magnified on screen, in cunningly angled cameras and mirrors, we see Hansen create characters from her own hands, fingers, tongue, in a saucy and jostling vaudeville of ‘stars’. NUTTY, INGENIOUS, MESMERIZING.” - 12th Night.
March 20 - 24, 2024
Wednesday through Saturday at 9:00pm
Sunday at 7:00pm
Family Friendly performances:
March 23-24 at 2:00pm
$40
Puppetry on Broadway: A Celebration of World Puppetry Day
Museum of Broadway
Museum of Broadway
145 W. 45th Street
New York, NY
events.humanitix.com/puppetry-on-broadway-a-celebration-of-world-puppetry-day
From Skid Row to the Benzini Brothers Circus, puppets have an incredible way of creating magic on and off Broadway. In celebration of World Puppetry Day, come meet and hear from the puppeteers who are bringing your favorite characters to life! Our panel features Julia Schemmer (Puppetry Nights on Broadway, Lempicka), Stephen Carlile ("Scar" in Disney's The Lion King on Broadway), James Ortiz (Puppet Designer for Into The Woods, Hercules), Joshua Holden (Puppet Director of Water for Elephants), and Weston Chandler Long (Audrey II Puppeteer in Little Shop of Horrors). Participate in the puppet joy by bringing your own puppets!
March 25, 2024
5:15pm - 6:15pm
FREE (RSVP Required)
John Adams' El Niño
Puppetry by James Ortiz
The Metropolitan Opera
metopera.org/season/2023-24-season/el-nino/
Eminent American composer John Adams returns to the Met after a decade-long hiatus for the company premiere of his acclaimed opera-oratorio, which incorporates sacred and secular texts in English, Spanish, and Latin, from biblical times to the present day, in an extraordinarily dramatic retelling of the Nativity. El Niño brings together three of contemporary opera’s fiercest champions, all of whom make highly anticipated company debuts: Marin Alsop, one of the great conductors of our time, who has led more than 200 new-music premieres; soprano Julia Bullock, a leading voice on and off stage; and pathbreaking bass-baritone Davóne Tines. Radiant mezzo-sopranos J’Nai Bridges and Daniela Mack take turns completing the principal trio. The moving, fully-staged new production also marks the Met debut of Lileana Blain-Cruz, resident director at Lincoln Center Theater, who received universal acclaim for her Tony-nominated 2022 production of The Skin of Our Teeth.
April 23 - May 17, 2024
See website for dates and times
Starting at $47
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