Toronto School of Puppetry

Dedicated to building and strengthening puppetry culture through sharing skills and techniques.  Supporting the development of new work by emerging and established artists. For people from all walks of the arts who are interested in learning about and integrating puppetry into their artistic practice. 

 Our studio is wheelchair accessible – please call for assistance.

PROGRAM FOR ADULT LEARNERS

The PUPPETRY FOR CAMERA animation and construction workshop mini-intensive with Mike Petersen and Kanja Chen last fall was very successful. Congratulations to the participants for great work.

WINTER & SPRING 2025 – N.B. All fees are in Canadian $

PXL (Puppetry eXploratory Laboratory)  If you have a puppetry project you’d like to explore with other artists, or if you would like to explore a puppetry project with others, this is a production program that pairs people-with-an-idea-for-a-puppetry-project with people-who-want-to-work-on-a-puppetry-project.  These works are mentored by the Puppetmongers Ann and David from February through late May, with each team setting their own work schedule.  The program starts in mid-February, and runs until the Fresh Ideas in Puppetry Festival in late May.  Click here for more details and application forms  Please apply by January 31st, 2025. 

Live Video Puppetry & Moving Illustrations with Tim Gosley and Sophie Fuldaure – online and in person in Victoria B.C. – More information here. – 2 days: Sunday February 16th and Sunday February 23rd,  Time in BC 10 – 11:30 am, in Ontario 1 to 2:30 pm Fee: $200

 

Flat Plane Puppet Carving with David Lane of The Old Trout Puppet Workshop – in person in Toronto – More information here – 3 days – Friday February 28th through to Sunday March 2nd, 10:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Fee: $375 plus materials

Shadow Puppetry Mini-Intensive with David Powell of Puppetmongers Theatre – in person in Toronto –More information here – 5 evenings: Monday March 17th through to Friday March 21st, 5:30 to 9:00 p.m. Fee: $375 (materials included)

Intermediate Marionette Mini-intensive with Puppetmongers – in person in Toronto – More information here – 5 evenings: Monday April 14th through to Friday April 18th, 5:30 to 9:00 p.m. Fee: $400 (materials included)

Making faces: mask & puppet face construction with stiff felt with John Nolan & Kathy MacLellan of Ottawa’s Rag & Bone Puppet Theatre.  In-person at Puppetmongers Studio, Toronto – More information here – April 26th, 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. Fee: $60 (materials included)

Model Theatre/Paper Theatre/Toy-Theatre with Ann Powell of Puppetmongers Theatre – in person in Toronto  – More information here -– 2 days: Saturday May 3rd and Sunday May 4th, 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Fee: $200 (materials included) 

Table-Top Puppetry Exploration Mini-intensive with Puppetmongers – in person in Toronto – More information here – 5 evenings: Monday May 12th through to Friday May 16th, 5:30 to 9:00 p.m. Fee: $375 (materials included)

 

TBA – There will also be classes with Robin Pulfuss

AND THEN THE WONDERFUL AND INSPIRING

Fresh Ideas in Puppetry 2025  This event will be held May 30th online and June 1st in-person, at a location TBA.  This two-day international conference and festival, with one day online and one day in-person, features both presentations of works-in-progress and new-works by people experimenting with puppetry.  We invite pitches for short presentations online and in-person at this event. The proposal deadline is March 24th.

Puppetry Intensive Course 2025  The two-week Puppetry Intensive Course will be June 16th through 27th.  This is an overall introduction to many aspects of puppet theatre production, for people interested in learning, experimenting and practicing puppetry.  There is no formal application process to register, so please send us a bit about yourself and your interest in puppetry. Fee: $1,000 on acceptance into program.

***********************************

Contact us at school@puppetmongers.com   416538-6210

With the support of

Ontario Trillium Foundation logo - Portage   And our many generous private donors

In the spirit of reconciliation, respect and truth, we acknowledge and honour that Puppetmongers Theatre is located on the traditional territory of many nations including the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishnabeg, the Chippewa, the Haudenosaunee and the Wendat people, and is now home to many diverse First Nations, Inuit and Metis peoples.  We also acknowledge that Toronto is covered by Treaty 13 with the Mississaugas of the Credit.  We are deeply grateful to the original caretakers of this land, recorded and unrecorded.  We recognize our settler privilege, and acknowledge our shared history, and continue to work to understand our role and responsibilities as Treaty People.

Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Accessibility. We are committed to policies and practices that support the purposeful inclusion of all people. We work to ensure our programming is relevant, sensitive and reflective of the populations we serve.