International Puppet Festival Returns to Portland ME

We just received this notice today and thought some of you might want to head up to Maine for what promises to be a wonderful event!  Notice that ticket bundle prices are only available through Sept 15th – two days from now.  

If you go, take some photos and we’ll use them in the next newsletter 🙂

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As many of you will remember, Figures of Speech Theatre and Portland’s Downtown District produced World Puppets Portland events in 1999, 2001, 2003, and 2004.

Now, as Executive Director of Mayo Street Arts, Ian Bannon—FST’s Director of Education for 15 years—has picked up the baton and launched Puppets in Portland, a weeklong celebration of puppet theater.

From September 20-25, Puppets in Portland will host four companies from Czech Republic/Jordan, Kenya/Germany, and the U.S.

The festival kicks-off with PiP PiP Parade!, a free puppet parade in Portland’s East Bayside neighborhood with Shoestring Theater in the spirit the of Old Port Fest parades of yesteryear.

Performances and workshops with the visiting artists will take place in venues across the city: Children’s Museum & Theatre of Maine, First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church, and Mayo Street Arts.

Tickets are on sale now at puppetsinportland.org. Ticket bundles to all four shows for just $67 are available through Thursday, September 15.

Carol and I look forward to experiencing Puppets in Portland from the dark side of the stage lights, and invite all FST supporters to join us in embracing this wonderful festival.

See you at the show,

John Farrell
Artistic Director