Details & Registration
Tuesdays Nov 5 - Dec 3 | 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm
$180, sliding scale $140 & $220
$20 materials fee (required)
Location: Puppet Showplace Theater
Puppets at Night members receive 15% off
Learn more →
Registration Deadline: Oct 22
Deadline Extended: Nov 4
About the Class
What do translucent buffalo hide and overhead projectors have in common? Shadow puppetry is a centuries-old art form that is constantly evolving to incorporate new materials and technologies. In Shadow Puppetry 101, learn the basics of this multifaceted art-form with Resident Artist Sarah Nolen.
In this supportive and introductory level class, we’ll begin with hands-on exploration of different shadow styles & light sources. Then, we’ll craft jointed puppets from durable materials. We will learn how to bring each rodded shadow character to life with movement, sound, and various materials. Focused on the design and animation of a fully realized puppet character, we’ll create short vignettes around these flat figures to add a dimension of drama!
This is a beginner level class: no puppetry or material building experience is necessary, but certainly welcome! Participants will complete all work within the class timeframe. Cutting tools, light instruments, practice screens, card stock, and all necessary materials will be provided by the instructor (a materials fee is included).
Check out these Instagram reels from first day and last day of class!
Adults & teens 16+
About the Instructor
Sarah Nolen is a puppeteer and filmmaker originally from Austin, Texas. As Puppet Showplace Theater’s resident artist, she performs regularly for youth and family audiences and teaches puppetry in camps, workshops, residencies, and evening adult classes. Her three original productions, The Fairy Tailor, Judy Saves the Day, and Lisa the Wise, are all available to tour. Sarah recently designed puppets for Wee the People's My Night in the Planetarium, Metropolitan Chorale's The Unicorn, the Gorgon, and the Manticore, and for Suffolk University's Loss of Breath: The Death and Life of Edgar Allan Poe. She is currently directing a production for UNIMA-USA featuring puppeteers from across the North American continent that will be performed in Bali this spring at the World Puppetry Festival.
In addition to her work in puppetry, Sarah is an experienced filmmaker. In 2015, she received the Mister Rogers Memorial Scholarship in support of her television pilot Treeples, a show geared towards empowering girls, which screened at film festivals across the U.S.
Sarah earned her BFA in film from Southern Methodist University, and an MFA in Puppet Arts from the University of Connecticut.
