“There is no other place on Earth that makes it as accessible to discover, view, or experience the art of puppetry,” says Paul Robinson, the executive director of Puppeteers of America.Ĭheryl Henson, daughter of Muppet inventor Jim Henson and president of her late father’s foundation, says, “There is only one Center for Puppetry Arts in the United States. Serving as a museum, performance space, and education center all rolled into one makes the Center stand out on the world stage. headquarters for UNIMA, the world’s largest puppetry organization. The Center also houses a museum with a 4,000-piece collection, provides more than 1,600 hours of educational programming annually, hosts well over 100,000 visitors each season, and acts as the U.S. The others are presented by puppeteers from across the United States and around the globe. It hosts around 17 shows each season on its two stages, about half a dozen of which are original productions. That was when Newsweek decreed the ensemble “ one of the most exciting companies in American theater.” Founded by Vincent Anthony 40 years ago this month, it is the largest nonprofit dedicated to puppetry in the nation and one of only a few such international organizations. “They would call us and ask, ‘Is anybody coming there?’ because they were like crickets. “I felt bad for the other venues,” Rhodes says. Some area attractions actually lost business during the Games, she says, but the Center was overwhelmed, adding midnight performances to accommodate demand. In fact, during the 1996 Olympics, international visitors flocked to the Center because, as administrative director Lisa Rhodes explains, it wasn’t something they could experience back home. Think about it: Pretty much every major city has universities, professional sports teams, art museums, zoos, ballets, and historic sites, but only Atlanta claims a world-renowned puppetry institution-or Adult Swim. “It looks like Aqua Teen Hunger Force,” someone murmurs.Īnimated junk food isn’t the only thing that the Center for Puppetry Arts has in common with Cartoon Network. He draws a squiggly oval, then adds facial features suggested by the kids, who are sitting around the room on carpet squares. “Okay, a chicken nugget person,” Zwartjes plays along. “Draw a chicken nugget person!” exclaims camper Emerson. Square faces are stronger and brawnier the puppet might be a bully-or a robot. On a whiteboard easel, he sketches different examples, explaining how the shape of a head can convey personality. Half hipster, half camp counselor, he sports thick-rimmed glasses and a thicker beard, a newsboy hat, and a pair of calf-high, striped tube socks that look straight out of Stranger Things. On this Tuesday afternoon, puppeteer Jeffrey Zwartjes is talking to a roomful of curious tweens about how to invent a character.
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