This message comes from Debbie Lutzky Allen, one of the coordinators for the PuppetFest MidWest:

Every year, for one week in July, a group of puppeteers get together to share their expertise and their passion for live puppet theatre. PuppetFest MidWest (July 12 - 17, 2005 in Trenton, Missouri) is an independent annual puppetry festival that is presented, organized and financially supported by puppeteers as a gift to other puppeteers in the hope that it will inspire, strengthen and renew our commitment to Puppet Theatre. Wouldn't you like to join us? We have workshops every day and performances every night. Everyone spends a total of twenty hours (during the week) studying one aspect of live puppet theatre. At the end of the week, we have a "show and tell" recital where everyone performs or displays what they have created during these intensive sessions. This year's workshops include:

"POLYFOAM PUPPETS THE FOAM BOOK WAY" with Drew Allison of Grey Seal Puppets, North Carolina
Design, build and learn to manipulate your own polyfoam hand and rod puppet.

"THE PLOT THICKENS" with Luman Coad of Coad Canada Puppets, British Columbia, Canada
Learn the basics of dramatic structure as you write and revise your own script.

"NEEDLE FELTED HAND PUPPETS" with Pam Corcoran, Wisconsin
Create your own needle felted hand puppet and work in a group to present a number of short vignettes by the end of the week using your newly constructed hand puppets.

"MARIONETTE DESIGN ON PAPER" with Phillip Huber of The Huber Marionettes, Tennessee
Cover the basics of marionette design including body structure, jointing and stringing. Take your concept for your marionette character from initial idea and mental visualization to a complete drafted drawing with patterns.

"TABLETOP BUNRAKU" with Lynne Jennings, California
Make a simple tabletop puppet and create a series of short performance pieces, ready to perform by the end of the week.

"ROD PUPPETRY" with Paul Mesner of Paul Mesner Puppets, Missouri
Build your own rod puppets, learn to manipulate them and create a short performance piece, ready to perform by the end of the week.

"SHADOW PUPPETRY" with Jim Napolitano of Nappy's Puppets, Connecticut
Construct your own shadow screen, shadow puppets and short performance pieces that will be ready to perform by the end of the week.

Contact information:
PuppetFest MidWest Directors, Peter Allen & Debbie Lutzky Allen
PO Box 14, Jamesport, MO 64648
Phone (66O) 684-6825
www.puppetfestival.org