Puppeteers of America upcoming events

Mid-Atlantic/Northeast Regional Meet Up at Puppets in the Green Mountains (September 17, 2026)

Thu, 17 Sep 2026 14:00:00 GMT

The Mid Atlantic and Northeast Regions are teaming up to present a “Meet Up” at Sandglass theater’s Puppets in the Green Mountains International Puppet Festival September 17-20, 2026 in Brattleboro and Putney, Vermont.

Puppeteers of America members are eligible for a Festival Pass which allows entry for all of the performances, workshops, panel discussions and Festival Cabaret nights. Registration for the Meet Up is June 1 through July 15. After July 15, tickets will be released to the general public.

There are two Festival Passes, Group A & Group B. Please note that when you register, you will need to choose from the two. Please gather your friends and consider this when ordering your passes.

Carpooling is recommended as there is a 15-minute drive between Brattleboro and Putney.

If you are under the age of 30, please scroll to the bottom of this email to find information on the Carol Sterling Festival Scholarship for young adults. The deadline to apply is June 12, 2026.

Participants will be responsible for their own lodging. Please scroll down to find links to The Putney Inn & the Brattleboro Travelodge where we have reserved blocks of room under Puppeteers of America. Please call their phone numbers directly to book your rooms. The rooms will be held until August 1^st when they will be released to the public. Autumn is a busy and beautiful time in Vermont. Hotel rates can be expensive so please book your lodging early!

Here are the links to book your Festival Passes:

PASS TICKET LINKS:

You must be a current member of Puppeteers of America to be eligible for a Festival Pass

Festival Pass A: https://app.arts-people.com/index.php?show_special=340521

Festival Pass B: https://app.arts-people.com/index.php?show_special=340619

PASS A Schedule

Wednesday 9/16

Iniskim Film 9/16 7:30pm

Thursday 9/17

Puppet procession 9/17 6:45pm

About Ram 9/17 7:30pm

Festival Cabaret 9/17 8:30pm - late

Friday 9/18

Puppeteers of America Workshops 9/18 9am - 4pm

Access Through the Arts Forum 9/17 4:30pm

Lunch With Sonia 7:30pm

Festival Cabaret 8:30pm - late

Saturday 9/19

Access Through the Arts 12:30pm

Tomte 2pm

Puppet Crimes 4pm

The House 7:30pm

Festival Cabaret 8:30pm - late

Sunday 9/20

Animalia 11am

Access Through the Arts 12:30pm

HUMAN 4:30pm

PASS B Schedule:

Wednesday 9/16
Iniskim Film Showing 7:30pm

Thursday 9/17
Puppet Procession 6:45pm
Puppet Crimes 7:30pm
Festival Cabaret 8:30pm - late

Friday 9/18
Puppeteers of America Workshops 9am - 4pm
Access Through the Arts Forum 4:30pm
About Ram 7:30pm
Festival Cabaret 8:30pm - late

Saturday 9/19
Tomte 11am
Access Through the Arts Forum 12:30pm
The House 4pm
Lunch with Sonia 7:30pm
Festival Cabaret 8:30pm - late

Sunday 9/20
Access Through the Arts Forum 12:30pm
Animalia 2pm
HUMAN 4:30pm

Click here to go to the Festival Website:

Below, you will find an overview of the Workshops.

We will send all Festival Pass holders a form to sign up for Workshops on June 15.

If you register later, we will send as registrations are received.

Hobey Ford Carved Foam Puppets

Nehrpii Amenii- TBD

Anurupa Roy- TBD

Tom Lee Introduction to Japanese Traditional Puppetry-sanninzukat

Tanglewood Marionettes -Marionette Manipulation

Chuck Nesci- ds, and Practical Applications of Mold Making and Casting in Puppetry

Electric City Puppets-Improv for Puppeteers

David Lane- Explore the Dark with Illuminated Puppets.

Madison J Cripps- An Exploration in Marionettes

Nicole Wander- Needle Felt a Finger Puppet Head

Cheryl Capezutti- One Piece of Paper Puppets

Matt Sorenson- Collaborative Giant Puppet Explorations

Sarah Frechette- Cut, Fold, Perform!

Lunch & Parking Lot Trunk Show

On Friday from 12:15-2:30, we will have a lunch gathering. There will be a collaborative workshop with Matt Sorenson that all are encouraged to join. There will be an opportunity to sell your merchandise/puppet related items from the back of your vehicle in the parking lot. Sandwich wraps will be available for purchase. You will need to pre-order your lunch option when you register for Workshops and pay cash when picking them up. You will also be able to let us know if you would like to sell your merch on the Workshop form. We will send you an email with more detailed instructions soon after if you plan on being a vendor.

Lodging

We have discounted rooms reserved for you at The Putney Inn and the Brattleboro Travelodge. These rooms will be available to book directly through the hotels until August 1 when they will be released to the public. Keep your expectations in check as the rooms are not fancy. Please note that you are with the Puppeteers of America and would like to book one of our reserved rooms. Airbnb might be an option as well. There is additional lodging information on the Festival Website.

The Putney Inn

(833) 320-5093

https://www.guestreservations.com/the-putney-inn/booking?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=16967391756&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=16967391756&gclid=Cj0KCQjw2_TQBhCnARIsAF3-Xhz224JFG07z2ZfkRTfwnsvtsqSl4Q26HiYtndftGC5Uw2RzXqBI7_IaAtDgEALw_wcB&ctTriggered=true

The Brattleboro Travelodge

https://www.wyndhamhotels.com/travelodge/brattleboro-vermont/travelodge-brattleboro-vt/overview

(802) 490-5384

Announcing the 2026 Carol Sterling Festival Scholarship for Young Adults

The Carol Sterling Festival Scholarship for Young Adults was established to assist young people interested in the puppetry arts in attending a Puppeteers of America (PofA) Regional Festival. The goal of this scholarship is to make attending a Regional Festival more accessible to those looking to broaden their knowledge of the puppetry world. Thank you to Carol Sterling for making the generous donation that made this scholarship possible!

The 2026 scholarship is open to applicants under the age of 30. The scholarship will cover the registration fee to attend one PofA Regional Festival. The dates and locations for the 2026 festivals are:

Great Plains Regional Puppet Festival

September 10-13, 2026

West Liberty, IA

Northeast/Mid-Atlantic Regional Festival

September 18-20, 2026

Brattleboro, VT

Southwest Regional Festival

October 2-3, 2026

Houston, TX

The deadline to apply is 11:59pm on Friday, June 12, 2026.

For complete information and to apply, follow this link to the scholarship application form:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSczWakSST2vawV74NWq7E6fVu2PMNGFhelT1uPuoJj7OT644Q/viewform?usp=sharing&ouid=117370134089423157849

https://puppetsinthegreenmountains.net/

Adelka Polak and Liz Joyce are your Meet Up coordinators.

Please email liz@goatonaboat.org or sovatheater@gmail.com with questions or concerns

We hope to see you in the Green Mountains!

Southwest Regional HOT (Heart of Texas) Puppet Festival (October 02, 2026)

Fri, 02 Oct 2026 05:00:00 GMT

HOT (Heart of Texas) Puppet Festival

October 2-3, 2026

You are invited to The Heart of Texas HOT Puppet Festival

Please join this artistically enriching and memorable experience for everyone with an interest in puppetry. Perfect for educators, librarians, artists, therapists, actors, clowns, ventriloquists, families, students, seniors, and all puppetry enthusiasts.

Performances • Workshops • Parties • Puppet Store • Raffle • Exhibits

See festival details and updates at www.hotpuppets.org.

Educators, teachers, librarians can earn a certificate for continued educational hours. 8 hours are offered for Saturday daytime-only registration. 10 hours are offered for full festival registration.

HOT Puppet Festival Schedule:

Friday, October 2

5:30 pm – 6:45 pm – Welcome reception with drinks and appetizers @ Puppet Pizzazz House

6:45 pm – Guests led by Giant puppets to Sabine Street Studios, located one block from Puppet Pizzazz House.

7:00 pm –7:45 pm- Puppet Show @ Sabine Street Studios – “Word Play” presented by Good Hearted Entertainment, Honey Goodenough and Bethany Harbaugh

7:45 pm –10:00 pm @ Puppet Pizzazz House- Party including food, puppetry entertainment, and puppet show- Cardboard Penny Arcade performed by lo-fi Puppets + stuff, Greg Cote and Alli Villines, and party animation provided by Greg Ruhe, Puppet Pizzazz

Saturday, October 3

Easy parking, morning coffee, light Breakfast, a box lunch, all day water supply, three workshop sessions, two puppet shows, puppetry store, puppet exhibit and a rocking puppet party at the Puppet Pizzazz House.

(All workshops and daytime puppet shows are to be held in Sabine Street Studios.)

9:00 am –10:00 am - Registration, Light Breakfast, First Workshops Set up and Shopping (Puppet Store open 9:00 am to 5:30 pm)

10:00 am – 11:00 am - First Workshop Session (Select one of the following three workshops)

Puppetry in the Classroom with Edna Bland, Puppeteers of America President
No newspaper rod puppet make and take with Sarah Nolen, Puppet in Motion
Amazing Sock Puppets with Jean Pirtle, Pirtle’s Puppets

11:15 am - 12:15 am -Puppet Show Bumper Crop presented by Hand to Mouth, Ellen Scott and Robbie Leuth

12:15 pm – 1:15 pm – Lunch and Shopping

1:15 pm -2:15 pm – Second workshop session (Select one of the three workshops.)

Finding your puppet Voice with Devona Carpenter, Carpenter Creatives
Cardboard puppets make and take with Greg Cote and Alli Villines, lo-fi puppets + stuff
Capture the imagination with Puppetry with Jean Kuecher, Marionette Playhouse

2:30 pm – 3:30 pm – Third Workshop Session (Select one of the three workshops.)

Puppetry in the Classroom with Edna Bland, Puppeteers of America President
Dollar Store Tube Puppets make and take with Jean Pirtle, Pirtle’s Puppets
Jumping Jacks make and take with Honey Goodenough, Good Hearted Entertainment

3:45 pm – 4:45 pm – “Judy Saves the Day” presented by Puppet Motion, Sarah Nolen

Raffle drawling following the performance. Prizes are assorted puppetry treasures.

4:45 pm – 5:30 pm- Puppet Store, Exhibit @ Puppet Pizzazz House

5:30 pm – 7:00 pm- Participant free time, all are welcome to tour Sawyer yards, walk through the Houston historic first ward, stroll a trail with a panoramic view of Houston Downtown, or relax at the Puppet Pizzazz House

7:00 pm – 11:00 pm- Party @ Puppet Pizzazz House, with super, drinks, back yard puppetry performances, and a performer talk-back.