April 19 (Sun) 2026 | 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm
Location: Virtual (on Zoom)
RSVP below for free to receive a Zoom link — it will be emailed to you prior to the event.
About the Event
Take a peek behind the curtain and inside the creative process! Hear from five talented artists about the works-in-progress they’ve been building during Puppet Showplace’s Creative Residency for Black Puppeteers, a six-month Zoom-based residency that connects creators from across the country to build community and support during the development of new works!
The 2026 cohort will discuss their work, process, challenges, and discoveries at this midpoint sharing on Zoom, hosted by the program’s Community Curator Tanya Nixon-Silberg, Project Mentor, Marcella Murray, and Residency Coordinator Ash Winkfield.
Recommended for adults and teens
About the Artists
Beyonce Armstrong
Brooklyn, NY
Project: “The Hood Babies' Tapes: Volume 2”
Beyonce Armstrong, or A Buba Creation, is a multimedia artist who fuses pop culture and fine art, using puppetry and set design to explore Black consciousness and community progression. The Hood Babies series are 30-inch art toys featuring mechanical engineering and messages designed to heal one's inner child through mental reprogramming. Coined Hood-Surrealism, her work combines uncanny dreamscapes with lived Black experiences, drawing parallels between robots, toys, and puppets akin to the lack of self-autonomy often experienced in lower economic communities. Through sculpture, performance, and presentation, Buba makes visual arts and nontraditional storytelling accessible to new audiences.
Follow Beyonce on her Instagram and the Hood Babies website.
Majeedah Johnson
Parkville, MD
Project: “Under the Microscope”
Majeedah Johnson is a versatile storyteller who has dedicated over two decades to producing works across various mediums that highlight the resilience of the human spirit and the power of overcoming obstacles. Her creative endeavors span puppet building, improv performance, songwriting, short films, music curation, novel writing, and storytelling. Majeedah founded Such-n-Such Experiment®, an educational initiative that teaches STEAM-based concepts through original tunes, storytelling, skits, and puppetry. She draws from her background in biology, chemistry, and passion for music to spark curiosity in complex topics for youth, and those young-at-heart.
Follow Majeedah on her Instagram.
Sarah Kenerson
Boston, MA
Project: “Acorn Rock”
Sarah Kenerson is a Boston-based artist whose work explores the intersections of media, childhood development, community-centered artmaking, and folk tradition. Working across felt, performance, video, and illustration, her work centers on play as a shared, connective practice while examining how media shapes collective imagination. She investigates how traditions are preserved and transformed in a globalized world and how modern media generates new forms of storytelling. Through a playful, research-based process, Sarah explores how children and adults build understanding and community through collaboration, hands-on making, and play.
Follow Sarah on her Instagram.
Samuel J. Lewis, II
Chicago, IL
Project: Black Episcopalian
Samuel J. Lewis, II, or Sam, is a puppeteer, teaching artist, and arts administrator whose work bridges tradition, innovation, and community. With a background in theater, Sam discovered puppetry by accident as a performer but quickly realized that it is a powerful medium for storytelling—one that merges craft, performance, and imagination in ways that engage audiences of all ages.
Sam’s artistry spans multiple puppetry forms in ways that explore themes of identity, history, and resilience. His performances have been featured in festivals, cabarets, and community events, where he brings a bold visual style and a deep sense of play to the stage. Beyond performance, Sam is dedicated to creating spaces where puppeteers can connect, collaborate, and grow.
As an arts administrator, he has worked to grow and develop programs that support emerging artists, expand access to puppetry education, and celebrate the diversity of voices within the field. He has been closely involved with Rough House Puppet Arts and the Chicago International Puppet Theatre Festival—organizations that nurture new works and showcase the breadth of contemporary puppetry. Sam’s puppetry practice is grounded in collaboration. He frequently partners with artists in a variety of disciplines. His vision of puppetry is expansive: one that honors the form’s deep history while pushing into new realms of artistic possibility. Through his performances, leadership, and advocacy, Sam continues to help shape puppetry as an evolving art form and a vital tool for connection.
Danyett Tucker
Baltimore, MD
Project: “A Fly Girl's Travel Journal”
Danyett Tucker’s creative practice merges mixed media sculpture, and narrative performance to externalize her personal healing journey. Through her work, she seeks to transform stories of adversity into imaginative pathways toward self-discovery and wholeness. Her characters embody emotional truths — joy, grief, strength, and spiritual renewal — while illuminating the complexity of the human experience. Tucker views puppetry as both a vessel of ancestral memory and a tool for liberation. She is deeply committed to using this art form to reclaim cultural narratives, challenge social taboos, and celebrate the beauty, resilience, and spirituality of Black identity.
Follow Danyett on her Instagram, Facebook and website.
About the Program
The Creative Residency for Black Puppeteers (CRBP) is a national initiative of Brookline’s Puppet Showplace Theater that supports the development of original works by Black artists. It amplifies diverse voices in puppetry arts and centers the creation of new narratives by supporting artists at the earliest stages of development. The residency provides fellows with mentorship, skill-building opportunities, community connection, and a $1000 grant. This program is about representation, storytelling, and creating space for voices that aren’t always heard.
Learn more about the Creative Residency for Black Puppeteers →
The Creative Residency will culminate with Amplify, a showcase of new works by the fellows on June 13th, 2026 at the Joan & Edgar Booth Theatre at Boston University. Get tickets for Amplify today!
