Fresh Ideas in Puppetry 2024 - Online and In person!

This annual mini-conference-and-festival showcases artists taking new and ground-breaking directions in puppetry. Fresh Ideas in Puppetry is a stimulating event for everyone interested in current developments in puppetry!

Full of exciting innovations and explorations, presentations and performances, demonstrations and discussions, this year’s Fresh Ideas will be held online and in person!

Saturday, June 1 - Online - Starting at 1:30pm ET - tickets $15

Sunday, June 2 - In person at the Puppetmongers Studio (Dundas St. & Carlaw Ave, Toronto) - Starting at 1:30pm - tickets $30

Full Festival - June 1 & 2 - Tickets $40

*For a Full Festival ticket, click on either June 1 or June 2 in Eventbrite!

*We have received reports of patrons experiencing difficulties booking tickets via Eventbrite. If that's the case, please reach out to info@puppetmongers.com or to Victoria Laberge, Marketing Manager, at victoria.laberge@gmail.com or 819-329-3247 - we will make sure to book you in!

SATURDAY, JUNE 1 - ONLINE - FEATURING:

Sphoorthi Theatre for Educational Puppetry, Art, and Craft (STEPARC) - (India)

“Raitatma”- Puppetry in action: Life, Struggle and Challenge faced by Indian Farmers. A presentation about using puppets to show farmers' suffering to farmers, non-farmers, groups, individuals, institutions, and government.

Swallow's Wings Puppetry (London, UK)

Allons Enfants! A grassroots UK arts organisation experience. A collective of UK Black Creatives who strive to instill in children a love for African-Caribbean culture and history; they are committed to working with children, neurodiverse communities and elders.

The Holy Gasp (Toronto)

Out of the Hands of the Wicked (and into the hands of the competent). An exclusive preview of The Holy Gasp’s newest music video, followed by a presentation on the new work by writer Benjamin Hackman and director Luke Sargent, who will discuss their first foray into producing puppet cinema, and provide practical advice for other first-time producers.

Ricky Chavez (Los Angeles, US)

Making a Point: Turning Lyrics into Laughter

Los Angeles-based puppeteer Ricky Chavez talks through his process of creating a short-form puppetry piece from a song, and breaks down the creation process of the puppet and production for his most recent slam piece, “Cacti’m a Fool to Want You.”

Panther Aquila Teatro (Mexico)

Princess Wanted

A puppet play from independent Mexican-Venezuelan theatre company Panther Aquila, created in 2015. Directed by Hebert Poll Gutiérrez and Adriel Luna; performed by Carlos Asand and Marian Navlag.

FRAU TRAPP (Spain/Switzerland)

Five Lines

A multidisciplinary show where miniature models, words, music, acting, and audio-visuals create the story of a couple in the future.

Little Onion Puppet Co. (Vancouver)

Puppet Lab: An Exploration of Ideas and Questions

Craving some low-pressure space to experiment with form, investigate persistent questions, and deepen our understanding of puppetry, Randi Edmundson and Stephanie Elgersma devised this strange little question: what would happen if we got a handful of puppet nerds together in a room, each bringing a burning curiosity, and attempted to find some answers with one another?

Puppetry Panel

Moderated by Robin Polfuss; with Puppetmongers Theatre, Frank Meschkuleit, John Nolan & Kathy McLellan (Ottawa’s Rag & Bone Puppet Theatre), Mike Harding (Applefun Puppetry), and Jim Morrow (Nova Scotia's Mermaid Theatre)

SUNDAY, JUNE 2 - IN PERSON - FEATURING:

Pied Piper Puppets (Brooklyn, NY)

Homing

A segment from the original play “Homing,” which honors the life of heroic carrier pigeon, Cher Ami.

Puppetry eXploratory Laboratory 2024

A performance and talkback with this year's Puppetry eXploratory Laboratory cohort.

Ocean Shadows

Off-Piste (Excerpt from The Run)

Join Michelle and Meredith, intrepid adventurers in shadow form, as they ascend a mountain with stoke in their hearts. Will they go down in history for their grace on the slopes or will they just go down? With Keatonesque visual humour, they tread the fine lines skiing The Canadian Rockies.

Puppets & Shadow Theatre

The Shadow Book

A giant storybook with a shadow puppet screen that magically changes scenes as pages turn. While we've tested a basic version, we're now crafting a new show to enhance its storytelling capabilities. Arlene Thomas will present our latest puppet tale and innovative storytelling approach.

Sequoia Erickson & Robin Kadirgamar

Moondance

A transportable do-it-anywhere shadow puppet show about a young girl dealing with grief, finding magic and going on an adventure.

Honeyball Puppetry

Chloe and Meraki

From receiving an OAC Recommender grant to developing a full show for the Toronto Fringe Festival KidsFringe, Honeyball Puppetry will share some of the evolving and changing process of story development, puppet building, and world creation! Best of all, they'll bring their adorable dancing otters!