Cardboard might be a found object, but cardboard puppets & props dont need to look like "found object puppets". This workshop will introduce the properties of cardboard & methods for making it dance!
Description:
Making the simple complicated is commonplace. Making the complicated simple, awesomely simple, thats creativity. - Charles Mingus. Resources should never come between you and creativity. Cardboard is everywhere and you likely already have a bunch of it. Just because cardboard is a found object, does not mean cardboard puppets need to look like "found object puppets". We can create entire shows out of just this one material. This workshop will introduce the properties of cardboard and methods for making it dance! Resist the urge for overbuilt puppets. Keep them simple and cheap and still tell your story. These skills are also applicable to prop, costume, and set making. Learn to make mockups in cardboard for projects before you start spending money or using up the good materials!
Put your dancing shoes on your hands folks, cause its time for a PUPPET DANCE PARTY! Choreography is very important in puppetry, especially when it comes to musical numbers and group scenes.
Build a pro-quality puppet with Emmy-winner Michael Schupbach! Just come ready to make an amazing new fuzzy friend.
Description:
This might be the easiest puppet-making workshop youll ever takeand youll still walk away with a screen-ready puppet character you designed yourself. In this hands-on session led by Emmy-winning puppeteer and creature designer Michael Schupbach (Sesame Street, Imaginocean, Johnny and the Sprites), youll build your own custom, moving-mouth hand puppet using the same materials and techniques used in professional TV and film production. No experience requiredif you can thread a needle, great! If not, well show you how. Using simple hand-stitching, youll follow guided steps to create a fully finished, high-quality puppet. Michael will share insider tips on how features, fabric, and shape bring characters to life. All materials are providedjust come ready to have fun, get weird, and leave with a new skill and a fuzzy new friend.
From Good to Great: Building Unforgettable Puppet Characters
Summary:
Perfect for beginners & veterans, this hands-on workshop will help you push your characters beyond basics. Join puppeteer & creature designer Michael Schupbach & learn how to make characters great!
Description:
Take your puppet or gaming characters from good to great. Join veteran puppeteer and creature designer Michael Schupbach as he shares the same tools and tricks hes used on Sesame Street, The Very Hungry Caterpillar Show, Bear in the Big Blue House, and Avenue Q to bring foam and fleece to life with personality, heart, and humor.
You'll explore how voice, movement, focus, and intention can turn a simple puppet into a scene-stealing character. Learn how to avoid the puppet traps and instead build distinct, believable personas that audiences remember.
You'll also get his go-to techniques for developing a characters backstory, emotional range, and signature movesthose subtle but powerful details that separate a solid performance from a great one. Bring your puppet (or use one of ours), warm up your imagination, and get ready to dig deep, go big, and maybe get a little weird.
Would you like to get a start making puppets or other crafty things, but don't quite have a grasp on sewing by hand? Good news! This sewing for beginners workshop is perfect for you!
Description:
You'll learn 4-6 of different hand-stitches, & of course you'll get to practice them. We'll get through as many stitches as we can in our 2 hours. You'll even learn a couple of tricks for threading needles & tying knots. The instructor, Stacey Gordon, has been sewing by hand since she was much shorter than she currently stands, & she stopped growing a long, long, long time ago.
How to Win the Puppet Arms Race: Mastering Puppet Arm Rod Techniques
Summary:
Learn the basics of using puppet arm rods with Emmy-winning designer Michael Schupbach! Master smooth gestures, expressive movement, and the secrets behind lifelike puppet performance.
We will share intermediate techniques and styles of puppet performance on Video/Film.
Description:
You will learn intermediate level lip sync, focus, movement, character placement, vocal performance, styles of puppets and puppeteering, how to practice at home, audition techniques and more.
Learn the basics of marionette construction, from building to stringing! Participants will construct and customize a human marionette and learn how to string the puppet with an airplane controller.
Description:
Learn the basics of marionette construction, from building to stringing! Suitable for beginners wanting to learn more about marionettes; participants will construct and customize a simple 9-string human marionette from card and foam. This workshop will cover building and properly weighting an 18-inch figure, and simple stringing with a basic airplane controller. Participants will leave with instructions and patterns to build additional puppets, as well as resources for building more complex puppets and performance tips. Join us later for Marionette Manipulation Mayhem to practice manipulation techniques and character creation!
Make a moving-mouth sandwich puppet with puppeteer, Stacey Gordon. Seriously, this will be the greatest, no-calorie sandwich you will ever make. Gluten free.
Description:
Puppeteer, Stacey Gordon, will guide you through making a moving-mouth sandwich puppet. You'll learn skills that can take you into puppet building beyond sandwiches, but why not begin (or continue) your puppet building journey with a delightful lunchtime treat. Sandwiches are inedible & not sentient and are guaranteed to not murder or your money back. Glue gun skills required (use at own risk). No sewing required,
Make a simple tabletop theater with puppets and sets for a complete production.
Description:
Make a simple tabletop theater with puppets and sets for a complete production. Come make a charming fairytale theater with puppets and scenes to stage Cinderella. Your new theatre can collapse flat for easy storage and transport. Leave with tips and tricks for making your own productions at home!