Workshop choices

• Design your own workshop. Select the topic, type of puppet, story, time allowed and expected outcomes. This may include a 1 1⁄2 hour to 3 hour workshop or a school residency.

• Post performance workshop. This type of workshop is designed to augment a performance and give the children a hands-on opportunity to use puppets similar to those in the show or construct puppets in the style of the show.

Bring stories from Greek Mythology alive through puppet drama. Students, read and and then retell stories from Mythology with either shadow puppets or Toy Theater. Students internalize the plot and theme as they contruct, plan and act out the stories.

• Toy Theater- Make a small rod puppet, scenery and create a story to tell in a small table top Toy Theater. Learn how to develop an improvised script from a production chart and act out the story. Stories can come from literature, life, the news, TV, your imagination. Theater will be provided. Theaters are available to purchase for the school.

• “Puppets- Reflections Through a Child’s Eye”- for pre school, and Kindergarten groups. From “a Bag of Puppets” come a variety of curious and delightful characters that the children get to use and make come to life. Together we tell the story “The Little Red Hen” and “ The Gingerbread Boy”. Everyone has a part and everyone gets an opportunity to be a puppeteer in the story. Children have an opportunity to make the puppet come to life by moving, singing, talking and working cooperatively. This workshop is usually 45 minutes to 1 hour.

There are three Colors in your Eye;" simple puppet Construction using Visual Literacy- This workshop teaches children to use their senses, to look at their features and think in shapes, sizes and dimension. The materials are inexpensive, but the puppets are rich in color, texture and character. All puppets come to life in a sharing at the end.

Talkers and quikie pupppets. These puppets can
be made in a short time and they are ready to bring to life in
fun activities such as "The Quiz show".

•From Script to Puppet Play: Using a well known story, children make a production chart and as a group, to build a dramatic script using group planning and improvisation. Students learn basic puppet manipulation techniques, dramatic staging, positive critiquing, skills in rehearsing and polishing for performance.

• Shadow Puppet Construction and Dramatic expression: This workshop begins with a demonstration of Shadow Puppets from China, Indonesia, India, Greece and Turkey. Students then have an opportunity to construct a shadow puppet with moveable parts and use it in a shadow screen theater. If there are several consecutive workshops, students can construct the puppets and act out a story, add sound, lights scenery, special effects with an overhead projector, and an audience.

• Hand puppet Construct and Drama-Construct a simple hand puppet using a choice of materials: Felt, Tissue Paper Lamination, Instant Paper Mache... The type of head and costume are determined before the workshop. Once the puppets are made; they can come alive in a variety of ways from telling stories from literature, original stories, recreating TV shows, improvising scenes, etc.

• Rod Puppets Construction and Drama- construct a large or small rod and discover the magic of working with puppets are moved by a center rod (dowel) and rods on each arm. This type of puppetry can also include flat rod puppets similar to shadow puppets, but used in front of a curtain
or stage.

• Marionettes: Construct and manipulate a puppet moved by strings. These puppets will easy to construct and move and provide a beginning for exploring marionette theater.

• From Jabberwocky to Puppets:Construct and Animate a Group Puppet – using the poem “Jabberwocky”, Nursery Rhymes or other poem or story, groups of 3-4 students construct a puppet using simple materials and make it come to life with sound and action. This workshop can bring literature to life quickly, and it can
provide an opportunity for discussion. It is an excellent workshop for upper elementary-high school.

• Improvisation with Puppets- Learn techniques for hand puppet manipulation and explore ways to express feelings, action, and story line through improvisation. The workshop teaches basic puppet movements, and puppet “bits” such as “the chase scene”, “the fight scene”, using props, adding dialogue, negotiating back stage space, using 2 or more stage levels, blocking a scene and scripting.

• Improvisation workshops for Middle School and High School Students -Hands-on exploration of hand puppet manipulation to improvise scenes that include Conflicts and Conflict resolution. This workshop can include topic such as smoking, peer pressure, drugs, abuse etc. Students create their own situations, and develop characters that come from their own experiences.

WORKSHOP CHOICES