To our friends, puppetry fans, and supporters!
It has been an unpredictable year full of firsts, but also joyful returns and heartwarming familiarities. We returned to the main stage in late October, held our breath, and hoped that people would join us—and join us you did! We have presented outdoor and indoor performances, artist-led workshops, puppetry classes for kids and adults, festive parades, and visits to schools and community centers all over Greater Boston. It has been a pleasure to meet many of you at the theater over the past few months, and to lead Puppet Showplace alongside my Artistic Director, Leslie Burton, and our fantastic team.
Each week since we launched our Spring into Summer appeal we’ve been sharing how your support goes directly towards supporting family friendly programming, community events and puppetry workshops, opportunities for artists, and performances and classes for grownups. Since June 1, we have raised $23,050 towards our $25,000 goal.
Puppet Showplace Theaters’ budget is just over $500,000 annually. Less than half of that amount comes from ticket sales. We need your help to make sure that we can continue to provide skillfully crafted, enjoyable, and meaningful programming. Donations of all amounts are transformative. Here are a few examples of what contributions of all sizes support:
$10 Provides a complimentary field trip ticket for one student
$20 Pays for materials for one workshop participant to build a puppet
$50 Covers payment for one artist's participation in a puppetry slam
$150 Pays for the tech services needed to run a virtual performance
$300 Pays for ASL-Interpretation Services for a day of public shows
$500 Funds a touring performance to a library or community center
$1000 Underwrites one recipient of the Creative Residency for Black Puppeteers
$2500 Supports the development of new work through our incubator residency program
$5000 Sponsors a season of outdoor shows
$25,000 pays for one month of Puppet Showplace’s overhead costs
I want to share with you some of the voices that we overheard from children and their grownups as they discovered—or rediscovered—the magic of puppetry:
"Monkey, you should try being nice!" —said one kid to the Monkey King.
"Trudy Sad!" —from a very small and empathetic audience member to her pigtailed friend.
"Who is the puppeteer?! I couldn't take my eyes off him. I think I enjoyed it more than some of the kids." —said one Grandpa about puppeteer Brad Shur.
"I was here 40 years ago and now I am bringing my grandchildren. You can never be too old for puppetry!" —remarked a nostalgic returnee.
If you’ve ever experienced the wonder of puppetry like this, please consider making a donation to Puppet Showplace today.
We have two more days to meet—or even surpass—our $25,000 goal!
If you believe that art and puppetry make people happier, more expressive, and more open-minded, and if you want to see artists and arts administrators compensated for their hard work, please consider making a donation to Puppet Showplace Theater today so that we can continue to present outstanding works of puppetry to audiences of all ages.
With gratitude and hope for the future,
Hannah Swartz
Managing Director
