Summer is here!
Kick-off our Summer Outdoor Series with Party Animals at Uncommon Corner in the Boston Common. Follow five furry friends as they navigate the biggest social hurdle of their young lives — throwing their first party.
FREE — no tickets necessary!
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July 13 (Sun) 2025: 10:30 am
Word Play uses clowning, puppetry, and live original music to take audiences on an adventure through the alphabet!
All ages welcome, especially enjoyed by ages 3-7
Object puppetry, live actors, and original music
July 20 (Sun) 2025: 10:30 am
Encounter magnificent creatures from the wilds of your imagination as their quirky human caretaker tries to teach them new tricks in this colorful show from CactusHead Puppets!
All ages welcome, especially enjoyed by ages 3-7
Mixed puppetry styles, including table top and direct manipulation
July 27 (Sun) 2025: 10:30 am
Join an adventurous princess as she journeys to Mystery Mountain to visit the Great Green Dragon!
All ages welcome, especially enjoyed by ages 3 - 7
Hand puppets
Aug 3 (Sun) 2025: 10:30 am
Go on a pink and furry adventure with Bella and her friends through a beautiful garden to meet silly bugs, creepy-crawlers, and musical surprises!
All ages welcome, especially enjoyed by ages 2 - 5
Mixed puppetry styles: Muppet-style, table top, and rod puppets
Aug 10 (Sun) 2025: 10:30 am
Go on a pink and furry adventure with Bella and her friends through a beautiful garden to meet silly bugs, creepy-crawlers, and musical surprises!
All ages welcome, especially enjoyed by ages 2 - 5
Mixed puppetry styles: Muppet-style, table top, and rod puppets
Aug 17 (Sun) 2025: 10:30 am
Join puppeteer, ukulele rockstar, and all around funny guy Harry LaCoste for his family-friendly variety show!
All ages welcome, especially enjoyed by ages 2-7
Hand puppets, live music, and more
Aug 24 (Sun) 2025: 10:30 am
What can a donkey, a dog, a cat, and a rooster do when they have to leave their farm? Become world famous musicians, of course!
All ages welcome, especially enjoyed by ages 4 - 8
Shadow & rod puppetry
July 12 (Sat) 2025: 12:00 pm at Emerson College’s Stage at UnCommon Corner
Word Play uses clowning, puppetry, and live original music to take audiences on an adventure through the alphabet!
All ages welcome, especially enjoyed by ages 3-7
Object puppetry, live actors, and original music
July 19 (Sat) 2025: 12:00 pm at Emerson College’s Stage at UnCommon Corner
Encounter magnificent creatures from the wilds of your imagination as their quirky human caretaker tries to teach them new tricks in this colorful show from CactusHead Puppets!
All ages welcome, especially enjoyed by ages 3-7
Mixed puppetry styles, including table top and direct manipulation
July 25 (Fri): 8:00 pm at Allerton Overlook
Experience shadow puppetry by firelight! Masters of a traditional form of shadow puppetry from Kerala, India will perform scenes from the dramatic epic Ramayana, complete with scenes of battles, trickery, and the natural world.
Recommended for everyone age 4+
Shadow puppetry
July 26 (Sat) 2025: 12:00 pm at Emerson College’s Stage at UnCommon Corner
Join Cow and Mouse in planting their favorite foods, and learn about farming and healthy soil in this interactive tale.
All ages welcome, especially enjoyed by ages 3 - 8
Hand and rod puppets
Aug 2 (Sat) 2025: 12:00 pm at Emerson College’s Stage at UnCommon Corner
Go on a pink and furry adventure with Bella and her friends through a beautiful garden to meet silly bugs, creepy-crawlers, and musical surprises!
All ages welcome, especially enjoyed by ages 2 - 5
Mixed puppetry styles: Muppet-style, table top, and rod puppets
Aug 9 (Sat) 2025: 12:00 pm at Emerson College’s Stage at UnCommon Corner
Go on a pink and furry adventure with Bella and her friends through a beautiful garden to meet silly bugs, creepy-crawlers, and musical surprises!
All ages welcome, especially enjoyed by ages 2 - 5
Mixed puppetry styles: Muppet-style, table top, and rod puppets
Aug 16 (Sat) 2025: 12:00 pm at Emerson College’s Stage at UnCommon Corner
Join puppeteer, ukulele rockstar, and all around funny guy Harry LaCoste for his family-friendly variety show!
All ages welcome, especially enjoyed by ages 2 - 7
Hand puppets, live music, and more
August 21 (Thu) 2025: 10:30 am at TADPole10, at the Tadpole Playground in the Boston Common
Encounter magnificent creatures from the wilds of your imagination as their quirky human caretaker tries to teach them new tricks in this colorful show from CactusHead Puppets!
All ages welcome, especially enjoyed by ages 3-7
Mixed puppetry styles, including table top and direct manipulation
Aug 23 (Sat) 2025: 12:00 pm at Emerson College’s Stage at UnCommon Corner
Encounter magnificent creatures from the wilds of your imagination as their quirky human caretaker tries to teach them new tricks in this colorful show from CactusHead Puppets!
All ages welcome, especially enjoyed by ages 3-7
Mixed puppetry styles, including table top and direct manipulation
Aug 30 (Sat) 2025: 12:00 pm at Emerson College’s Stage at UnCommon Corner
Join puppeteer, ukulele rockstar, and all around funny guy Harry LaCoste for his family-friendly variety show!
All ages welcome, especially enjoyed by ages 2 - 7
Hand puppets, live music, and more
July 26 (Sat) 2025 | 10:00 am - 3:00 pm
Try your hand at Tholpavakoothu, the traditional shadow puppetry technique from Kerala, India! Learn from 12th-generation master of the form, Rahul Koonathara, in this four-hour step-by-step workshop.
Minors must be accompanied by an adult also taking the workshop.
Aug 18 (Mon) - Aug 22 (Fri) 2025 | 9:00 am - 3:00 pm
Aftercare available!
In Marionette Maestro, kids will dive into the exciting world of string marionettes, designing their very own puppet and learning to control it with precision and musical flair!
Rising 2nd - 8th Graders
Aug 25 (Mon) - Aug 29 (Fri) 2025 | 9:00 am - 3:00 pm
Aftercare available!
Blast off into an out-of-this-world adventure with Puppets in Space! Young creators will design, build, and control their own cosmic puppets, preparing them for a journey across the stars.
Rising 2nd - 8th Graders
July 25 (Fri): 8:00 pm at Allerton Overlook
Experience shadow puppetry by firelight! Masters of a traditional form of shadow puppetry from Kerala, India will perform scenes from the dramatic epic Ramayana, complete with scenes of battles, trickery, and the natural world.
Recommended for everyone age 4+
Shadow puppetry
July 26 (Sat) 2025 | 10:00 am - 3:00 pm
Try your hand at Tholpavakoothu, the traditional shadow puppetry technique from Kerala, India! Learn from 12th-generation master of the form, Rahul Koonathara, in this four-hour step-by-step workshop.
Minors must be accompanied by an adult also taking the workshop.
“Being able to connect with other puppeteers and their perspectives on how to tell stories empowered me to tell my own, and stretch the limits of my imagination…” says Fatima.
“Everyone has different talents, strengths, and interests. We make a well-rounded collective,” says Khaleshia.
“As someone who is relatively new to the puppet world, it's incredible to have one of my first cohorts be composed of people that reflect my identities,” says William.
“The Creative Residency for Black Puppeteers has cracked open my artistry into a whole new world of storytelling,” ChelseaDee says.
The world premiere of the underwater version of Little Big Eye by Works with Water was a splashing success, with two sold-out weekends,!
In January, we celebrated the many languages of our community and audience with two special shows.
Over the past few months, we’ve welcomed a handful of talented folks to the Puppet Showplace team.
We are thrilled to announce the recipients of Puppet Showplace Theater’s 2025 Creative Residency for Black Puppeteers!
As a supporter of Puppet Showplace, you know that theater brings us together. But for some families, even an $18 ticket is a barrier to joining in.
It’s a summer afternoon and Natsumi, age 10, is here to express herself. She doesn’t want to act in a play — “I don't like it when eyes are on me,” — but she loves designing her own puppets and creating shows in our vacation week programs.
Puppet Showplace Theater is dedicated to presenting outstanding puppetry to diverse audiences through performances, workshops, and community outreach activities.
Puppet Showplace Theater is supported by...
Puppet Showplace Theater is supported by the New England Foundation for the Arts through the New England Arts Resilience Fund, part of the United States Regional Arts Resilience Fund, an initiative of the U.S. Regional Arts Organizations and the Mellon Foundation, with major funding from the federal CARES Act and the American Rescue Plan from the National Endowment for the Arts.
“Even across time zones, every meeting feels like we share the same space…” says Brett.