Guild History

More than thirty puppeteers and enthusiasts from across the state met at the home of Page Wilson and established the Connecticut Puppetry Fellowship. A questionnaire circulated that day gathered each member’s interests to help shape the programs to come.

The first officers were elected, and The Learning Center Puppet Theater — Susan Strand, Will Noad, Sam Mink, and Ed Halloran — performed “The Genie and the Beans.”

Performances by Michael Graham and Van Crouse.

A workshop on puppet voices led by Don Wunderlee, with a performance by Nora Nocera.

Day of Puppetry at the Polka Dot Theater.

The Guild’s first birthday party, at the Holiday Inn in Hartford, featured two shadow presentations: Michael Michanczyk’s “Firebird” and scenes from “Kismet” by Frank Ballard and his UConn students.

The Guild was chartered by the Puppeteers of America at the national festival in St. Charles, Missouri, officially becoming the Connecticut Guild of Puppetry. Tom Fogarty and Genevieve Ciavarelli accepted the charter on the Guild’s behalf.

Membership meeting and potluck picnic at Susan Strand’s — the first of many summer picnics that would close out each Guild year.

Membership meeting at the Unitarian Church in Westport, followed by puppet demonstrations from several members. A planned program on toy theaters was cancelled by bad weather.

Membership meeting at the Unitarian Church in Westport. Page Wilson presented her one-woman work in progress, “Mr. Fox and His Funny Box,” followed by Susan Strand’s “Judy and Punch.”

Membership meeting at the Unitarian Church in Westport, with five-minute potpourri performances by Susan Strand, Page Wilson, Don Wunderlee, and Genevieve Ciavarelli.

Membership meeting at the Puppets and Other Things studio in Plantsville. Michael Michanczyk, Susan Strand, and Sam Mink performed a piece based on “Chicken Little.”

The Guild’s first workshop — “Puppet Acting and Voices,” led by Don Wunderlee.

Membership meeting and potluck supper at the Unitarian Church in Westport: Ray Mount on finding homes for puppet collections, Hal Lynch of the New Jersey Guild on puppet playwriting, Michael Graham performing “The Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing,” and a showcase by students of Don Wunderlee’s puppet-voices class.

Second Day of Puppetry at the Polka Dot Playhouse in Bridgeport, with Michael Graham, Page Wilson’s “The Indian Girl and the Cactus,” Don Wunderlee’s Trunk o’ Tales, Loretta Pond’s “Beauty and the Beast,” a battle of the Punch and Judys between Michael Michanczyk and Susan Strand, and an outdoor Punch and Judy from Don Wunderlee.

Regional puppetry festival in New London, where the Guild hosted a wine and cheese reception.

Membership meeting at Page Wilson’s home, followed by a performance by Katie Van Vlack and her son, John.

Membership meeting at Page Wilson’s home in Westport. Ginger Brearton presented a new show for adults, “The Remarkable Seed,” and Page Wilson screened “Ecological Excerpts,” a film by Trunk o’ Tales Puppets.

Membership meeting and a performance of “The Princess and the Silver Ball” by Sesquipedalia Puppet Productions.

Membership meeting at Page Wilson’s home. Chris Jeffries performed “Rumplestiltskin” and “The Princess and the Pea,” Genevieve Ciavarelli demonstrated simple puppet-making, Elmer Unrah gave his Punch and Judy show, and Michael Graham shared marionettes built during Albrecht Roser’s course in Storrs.

Opening reception for Albrecht Roser at the University of Connecticut.

Annual meeting and potluck dinner at Page Wilson’s home. Michael Graham and Fred Thompson performed “Carnival of the Animals,” Annette Dieli presented a variety show, and Susan Strand offered a non-sexist “Little Red Riding Hood.”

Northeast regional festival at Wesleyan, with workshops led by Guild members Don Wunderlee and Michael Michanczyk.

Membership meeting at Page Wilson’s home, followed by Tony Basilicato’s “Quasimodo.” Tom Fogarty screened a video of a performance by his fifth-grade students.

Membership meeting with a demonstration of foam-rubber puppets and a show and tell.

Membership meeting at Margo Rose’s house, with a tour led by Margo and Michael Graham performing “The Owl and the Flower.”

Membership meeting with a pinch-paper workshop by Susan Noad and two shows from Chris Jeffries — “Jack and the Beanstalk” and “The Three Wishes.”

Annual meeting and potluck dinner at the home of Penny, Jim, Jay, and Usha Pitts, with a program on the work of filmmaker Lotte Reiniger.

Membership meeting at Page Wilson’s house, followed by Susan Strand’s “Abra Cadabra and His Friend Barbara Ann.” Elmer Unrah performed one of his marionettes.

Membership meeting at Page Wilson’s house, with a performance by Ray Mount and members’ own interpretations of Shostakovich’s Ballet Suite No. 1.

Membership meeting at Page Wilson’s house, followed by Michael Graham’s “The White Spider’s Gift.”

Membership meeting at the Ponds’ house, followed by their marionette show “The Time Capsule.”

Day of Puppetry at the Lyman Auditorium, Southern Connecticut State College, with Susan Strand as master of ceremonies. The program included “The Time Capsule” by Henry and Laurette Pond, Michael Graham’s “The White Spider’s Gift,” “Peter Rabbit,” Punch and Judy, and “The Three Wishes,” with a puppet-making workshop from Genevieve Ciavarelli and Penny Pitts and Mary Mazzacane’s “No Elephant Circus” running throughout the day.

Membership meeting and potluck dinner at Page Wilson’s home, followed by Michael Graham’s “The Three Wishes.” The April 1979 Nutmeg Puppet News misattributed this performance to Fred Thompson.

Membership meeting at Page Wilson’s house, with members demonstrating simple puppet workshops for children and an impromptu hand-puppet workshop.

Informal gathering and tour of David Syrotiak’s studio in Hartford.

Membership meeting at Page Wilson’s house: a hand-puppet demonstration by Michael Graham and Ray Mount’s Christmas pageant show, “Good King Wenceslas.”

Membership meeting at the home of Jill Klein, followed by Glad Rags Puppet Theater’s “Hansel and Gretel.” Katie Van Vlack spoke on musical instruments for the puppet theater.

Membership meeting at the Pitts home, with a discussion on writing and producing good, entertaining, original puppet shows.

A visit with Margo Rose at her home in Waterford, where Guild members performed “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” with the Rose Marionettes.

Annual meeting and potluck picnic at the home of Lu Bria, followed by a clown workshop with Marge Wood and Ann-Marie Fleming.

Membership meeting at Page Wilson’s house, with lively discussion of the UNIMA world festival in Washington, D.C. and the northeast regional festival in New Jersey. Tom Fogarty presented on the puppetry exhibition at the world festival.

Membership meeting at Page Wilson’s home, followed by Betty Murray’s “Giggles.” Tom Fogarty led a workshop on styrofoam heads.

Membership meeting at the home of Woody Jakubson, with Michael Michanczyk performing “The Marriage of Betinette” and Ray Mount leading a workshop on scriptwriting for puppets.

Membership meeting at the home of Lu Bria, followed by a shadow-puppetry workshop with Jannibeth Johnson.

“A Visit with Margo” at the home of Margo Rose, including a hand-puppet manipulation workshop.

Membership meeting at Page Wilson’s home: Pandemonium Puppet Company performed “Elventide,” and Bart Roccoberton and Michael Graham led a workshop on Roser paper sculpture.

Membership meeting at Page Wilson’s house, with members sharing stories from the northeast regional festival in Vermont and the national festival in California. Michael Graham’s Spring Valley Puppet Theater performed “Jack and the Beanstalk.”

Membership meeting at David Syrotiak’s studio, followed by a scriptwriting workshop with Paul Vincent Davis.

Membership meeting at the home of Henry and Laurette Pond, with a costume-design workshop led by Kiki Smith.

Membership meeting at the home of Mary Mazzacane, who led a workshop on music education through puppetry for grades K–8 and performed.

Annual meeting and potluck picnic at Page Wilson’s home. Susan Linn spoke about her work as a puppet therapist, and Michael Graham’s Spring Valley Theater performed “A Christmas Fantasy.”

Membership meeting at the Puppets and Other Things studio, with performances by David Syrotiak and Michelle Orlando and Katie Van Vlack’s “The Lion and the Mouse.” Michael Graham led a workshop on casting heads in plastic wood.

Membership meeting at the Puppets and Other Things studio. Betty Murray’s Giggle Puppets performed “Tracy the Dinosaur,” and Don Wunderlee taught “Developing Character Through Improvisation,” a workshop on manipulation and improv.

Membership meeting at the home of Margo Rose, who led a workshop on sculpting the puppet head in clay. Don Wunderlee performed his Punch and Judy show.

Membership meeting at the home of Laurette and Henry Pond, with a “Costuming for the Puppet” workshop by Karen Larsen.

Annual meeting and potluck dinner at Page Wilson’s home. Paul Vincent Davis led a workshop on producing puppet voices; Michael Michanczyk performed “A Billy and Missy Show featuring Ambrose the Elephant,” and Mary Mazzacane and Iris Corriher gave a musical puppet program.

An informal visit to the Muppet studios in New York City, organized by Iris Corriher and hosted by Richard Termine.

Membership meeting at the West Haven Community House: Michael Graham’s Spring Valley Puppet Theater performed “The Three Wishes,” and Linda Boyce led a workshop on storytelling.

Membership meeting at the Wadsworth Atheneum for the opening of “Puppets, Puppets, Puppets,” an exhibition organized by Bart Roccoberton featuring work from across New England — Margo Rose, Brad Williams, David Syrotiak, Michael Graham, Bil Baird, Paul Vincent Davis, Mary Churchill, and others. Pandemonium Puppet Theater performed “Fabula.”

Membership meeting at the Puppets and Other Things studio. Mary Churchill led “Folktales and Feminism,” a workshop on why puppeteers are drawn to folklore and how to handle its stereotypes. Susan Strand performed her Punch and Judy show.

Membership meeting at the home of Margo Rose, devoted to Margo’s life and experiences in the world of puppetry.

Annual meeting and potluck picnic at the home of Margot Allison, whose Strings n’ Things performed “Fur, Feathers, and Fins” and an excerpt from “Harry Gray as a Puppet.”

Membership meeting at the West Haven Community Center, followed by a Guild share day and show and tell.

Membership meeting at Jim Grevas’s home in Naugatuck. Jim performed a birthday-party version of “The Little Red Hen” and led a workshop on building and performing shows for birthday parties.

Membership meeting at Margo Rose’s home in Waterford, with a variety performance by Dick Smith and a workshop on poly-foam puppets from Mary Mazzacane.

Membership meeting at Michael Graham’s home in New Haven, where Michael led a hand-puppet manipulation workshop.

Guildfest! — a Day of Puppetry at the Miller Library complex in Hamden. Performances included Spring Valley Puppet Theater’s “Jack and the Beanstalk,” Katie Van Vlack’s “Three Wishes and Two Monkeys,” Wunderlee Puppets’ Punch and Judy, Giggle Puppets’ “Tracy and the Trash Monster,” a musical story review by Grevas Puppets, and M&M Puppets’ “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice.”

Annual meeting and picnic at Page Wilson’s home in Westport, with a performance and workshop from Mugsy the Clown (Margie Wood). Michael Graham brought the cake.

Membership meeting at the Stony Creek Puppet House Theater in Branford, with a demonstration of the Sicilian marionettes.

Membership meeting at Jim Grevas’s home in Naugatuck, where Jim led a workshop on video.

Membership meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center and a visit with the Institute of Professional Puppetry Arts, hosted by Bart Roccoberton. The day included talks by John and Carol Farrell of Figures of Speech Theater and by Paul Zaloom.

Membership meeting at the West Haven Community House, with a workshop on puppetry for young children by Katie Van Vlack and Betty Baisden.

Workshop day at the West Haven Community House to prepare for the May Day of Puppetry — members made signs, assembled workshop kits, and built a puppet exhibit.

Day of Puppetry at the Thornton Wilder Auditorium in Hamden, with a puppet-making workshop, an exhibit, and performances by Michael Graham, Jim Grevas, and Betty Baisden.

Annual meeting and potluck picnic at Margo Rose’s house in Waterford, followed by Michael Graham’s “Puss in Boots.”

Membership meeting at the West Haven Community Center, devoted to puppet stages. Susan Strand, Michael Graham, Betty Baisden, Mary Mazzacane, and Iris Corriher each demonstrated their stage setups and performed short vignettes.

Membership meeting at the West Haven Community Center, followed by Tom Tucker’s “Cirkus.”

Mary Churchill’s Cranberry Puppets performed “The Three Little Pigs & Little Red Riding Hood” at the Thornton Wilder Auditorium in Hamden — a Guild fundraiser co-sponsored by the library.

Membership meeting at the Institute of Professional Puppetry Arts at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, with Paul Vincent Davis performing “The Leprechaun of Donegal.” Members stayed on for Larry Reed’s “The Tempest” and gathered afterward at the home of Margo Rose.

Membership meeting at Deb Wilson’s house in Vernon. Susan Strand performed both her Punch and Judy show and its updated counterpart, “Judy and Punch”; Elaine Woodall performed two marionette pieces.

Membership meeting at the West Haven Community Center, followed by a performance from Pady Blackwood and his Dreamstuff Puppets.

Membership meeting at the Institute of Professional Puppetry Arts in Waterford. The Puppet Theater Under the Umbrella performed “Punschi Kaspar’s Circus,” and members stayed for Pady Blackwood’s “Marionette Magic.”

Membership meeting at the home of Carrie Falk in Middlebury. Carrie demonstrated “Animated Overheads,” a fresh approach to shadow puppetry, followed by two mini-shows — “Will the Wolf Survive” and “How to Think.”

Membership meeting at the home of Brownie Zervas in East Hartford, followed by Rolande Duprey’s “Where Are We Now?”

Kathy Piper performed “Peter and the Wolf” at the Thornton Wilder Auditorium in Hamden — a Guild fundraiser co-sponsored by the library.

Annual meeting and potluck picnic at Margo Rose’s house in Waterford, with a mold-making demonstration by Iver Johnson.

Membership meeting at the West Haven Community Center: a screening of Martin Stevens’s film “The Toymaker” and a workshop on simple hand puppets by Mary Mazzacane and Tom Fogarty.

Membership meeting at the home of Lu Bria in Redding. Danny Burge spoke about his puppetry tour of China and Japan, followed by a membership show and tell.

Membership meeting at the West Haven Community House, with a potpourri of mini-performances from Michael Graham, Mary Mazzacane, Katie Van Vlack, Betty Baisden, and others.

Paul Vincent Davis performed “Rumplestiltskin” at the Thornton Wilder Auditorium in Hamden — a Guild fundraiser co-sponsored by the library.

Membership meeting at the Golden Hill United Methodist Church in Bridgeport, with a presentation by Mr. Huggy (Paul Thomas) and a show and tell from Michael Michanczyk.

Annual meeting at the Institute of Professional Puppetry Arts in Waterford. Students performed “Haluk Yucel” using the Rufus and Margo Rose puppets, and members stayed for the National Marionette Theater’s “In Concert,” led by David Syrotiak, with dinner in between.

Membership meeting following a performance by Albrecht Roser at the Garde Theater in New London — his only New England appearance on his U.S. tour.

Membership meeting at the Golden Hill Methodist Church in Bridgeport, recapping the national festival at MIT. The meeting also launched a letter-writing campaign in support of the UConn Puppet Arts program.

Membership meeting at Margo Rose’s house in Waterford, with a brief show and tell. Members then attended Haluk Yuce’s performance of Beckett’s “Act Without Words II.”

Guild-sponsored performance of “Jack and the Beanstalk” by Michael Graham’s Spring Valley Theater at the Thornton Wilder Auditorium in Hamden.

Membership meeting at the UConn Puppet Lab in Storrs. Students Rolande Duprey and Sandy Bellock presented their current work — Rolande’s staging of the fifteenth-century French farce “Pierre Pathelin” with masked actors, and Sandy’s “Exegesis,” which combined four styles of puppetry using black-theater technique.

Guild-sponsored performance of “Aladdin” by Kathy Piper at the Thornton Wilder Auditorium in Hamden.

Annual meeting and potluck picnic at the Unitarian Church in Westport, with a member share day.

Membership meeting at the Elihu Burritt Library at Central Connecticut State University in New Britain, with short presentations from Glenn Williams, Tom Fogarty, Rolande Duprey, and others.

Membership meeting at the University of Connecticut, with presentations by Roger DuPen, Rolande Duprey, and Tom Fogarty.

Membership meeting at Mary Mazzacane’s house in New Haven, followed by her “Pinocchio.”

Membership meeting at the Norwich Arts Gallery, timed to the opening of a UConn puppet exhibit featuring work from Frank Ballard’s “Kismet” and “Pinafore.”

A Connecticut Guild of Puppetry exhibit at the Elihu Burritt Library in New Britain.

Annual meeting and potluck picnic at Margo Rose’s house in Waterford, with a marionette-manipulation demonstration by Margo and a member show and tell.

Membership meeting at the Southington Historical Society, with a demonstration and performance of “Stories in the Air” — basic mime and puppetry.

Membership meeting at the Puppet Lab in Storrs, following Susan Doyle’s “The Faerie Ring” at the Studio Theater.

Membership meeting at the Southington Arts Council. Tom Fogarty demonstrated shadow puppetry on the overhead projector, and Brownie Zervas performed “The Legend of the Keeper of the Three Stones.”

Guild-sponsored performances of “Peter Rabbit” and “Three Billy Goats Gruff” by John McDonough at the Thornton Wilder Auditorium in Hamden.

Membership meeting at the Puppet Lab in Storrs, following Rolande Duprey’s “Well Wishes.”

Annual meeting and potluck picnic at the Cheshire Grange.

Membership meeting at the Southington Arts Space, followed by “Jack and the Beanstalk” from Michael Graham’s Spring Valley Puppet Theater.

Membership meeting at the UConn Puppet Lab in Storrs, following Connecticut Repertory Theatre’s “A Christmas Carol,” which featured work by the UConn Puppet Arts students.

Guild meeting at the Golden Hill United Methodist Church in Bridgeport, with Jim Napolitano’s “Shadows ’n Light” workshop and show.

Membership meeting at the First Congregational Church in Branford, with a workshop on hand-and-mouth puppet construction and manipulation led by Heather Asch.

Guild visit to the Muppet studio in New York City.

Annual meeting at Margo Rose’s home in Waterford, with a scarf-marionette workshop by Rolande Duprey.

A joint picnic with the Boston Area Guild of Puppetry at the home of Caroll and Deb Spinney in Woodstock.

Jim Gamble performed “Peter and the Wolf” at the Quick Center in Fairfield, followed by a buffet dinner welcoming Jim at the home of Lu and Bob Bria in West Redding.

Membership meeting at the Harriet S. Jorgensen Theatre in Storrs, following Connecticut Repertory Theatre’s “Into the Woods,” featuring work by the UConn Puppet Arts students.

Membership meeting at the First Congregational Church in Branford, with a ventriloquism performance and workshop from Debbie Jones and “Dodi.”

Membership meeting at the home of Brownie Zervas in East Hartford, with a marionette-construction workshop led by David Syrotiak Jr.

Membership meeting at the UConn Puppet Lab in Storrs, with Paul Vincent Davis teaching “Creating Voices for Puppet Theater.”

Annual meeting and potluck at Margo Rose’s house in Waterford, with a potpourri performance by Guild members.

Northeast/Mid-Atlantic regional festival at UConn, Storrs.

Membership meeting following Jim Gamble’s “The Greatest Little Show on Earth” at the Quick Center for the Arts at Fairfield University, with a reception for Jim and a workshop on trick marionettes.

Membership meeting at the Newington Public Library, following The Golden Thread Puppets’ “The Selfish Giant.”

Rebecca McNulty’s MFA thesis project, “The Vanishing Point,” at the Studio Theater, UConn, Storrs.

Membership meeting at the New Haven Library, with a hand-mime performance workshop from Bernd Ogrodnik’s Alchemilia Puppetworks.

Membership meeting at the Branford Congregational Church, with a shadow workshop led by Rolande Duprey and Tom Fogarty.

Guild outing to David Regan’s UConn MFA thesis production, “A Servant of Two Masters,” at the Studio Theater in Storrs.

Annual meeting at the home of Margo Rose in Waterford, with a seminar on the Rose collection led by Fred Thompson.

Membership meeting at the Hartford Public Library, following “Jack and the Beanstalk” by Michael Graham’s Spring Valley Puppet Theater.

Membership meeting at the Russell Library in Middletown, with a performance by Deb Jones.

Membership meeting at the New London Public Library, with a performance by Richard Smith.

Membership meeting and Guild event at the Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry in Storrs.

Membership meeting at the Windsor Locks Public Library, following “Rumplestiltskin” by Mary Mazzacane’s M&M Puppets.

The Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry opened on UConn’s Depot Campus. Several members of the Guild’s board served on the museum’s inaugural board of directors as well.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference.

Membership meeting and a performance by Genevieve Ciavarelli.

Membership meeting at the UConn Fine Arts Building in Storrs, following Pat Ahearn’s MFA thesis production, “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.”

Membership meeting and a “Happy Birthday, Dear Margo” celebration at Margo Rose’s house in Waterford.

Day of Puppetry at the Miller Library in Hamden.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

The Guild mourned the loss of charter member, puppeteer, and friend Margo Rose. Beyond her work in film, television, and theater, Margo was a driving force behind the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

Membership meeting at Oddfellows Playhouse, with Rolande Duprey discussing the puppets she built for the National Theatre of the Deaf’s “Peer Gynt.”

Membership meeting at the First Congregational Church in Cheshire, with a hands-on shadow workshop led by Jim Napolitano.

Membership meeting and a memorial birthday celebration for Margo Rose at her house in Waterford, followed by Crabgrass Puppet Theatre’s “The Frog Prince.”

A Guild-sponsored mini Day of Puppetry at the Fairfield Historical Society: “Jack and the Beanstalk” from Michael Graham’s Spring Valley Puppet Theater and a family shadow-puppet workshop with Bart Roccoberton.

Membership meeting at the Tolland Arts Center, with a presentation on Chinese puppetry by Bart Roccoberton and Zhuang Hua (Hua Hua).

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

Membership meeting at the Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry in Storrs.

Membership meeting following Mabou Mines’ “Peter & Wendy” at Yale University.

Puppet slam at the Science Center of Eastern Connecticut.

Membership meeting at the home of Brownie Zervas, following the Day of Puppetry.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

Membership meeting at the Studio Theater at UConn, followed by a puppet slam and a symposium on international expression and common language.

Membership meeting at the Charter Oak Cultural Center in Hartford, following Rolande Duprey’s “Puppet Panorama.”

The first annual Margo Rose Scholarship fundraiser, featuring a performance by Jim Napolitano.

Membership meeting at the Russell Library in Middletown, following Bobby Nidzgorski’s “Earth Peace.”

Membership meeting at the Meriden Arts Center, followed by a puppet slam.

Day of Puppetry at the Charter Oak Cultural Center in Hartford: an exhibit from John Miller’s collection, Don Wunderlee’s “Punch,” a performance by Rolande Duprey and Rob Laughlin, and workshops from Rolande Duprey, Jim Napolitano, Derron Wood, Carl Weiting, Marilyn O’Connor-Miller, and Dawn Metcalf.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

Guild event at the Puppet House Theater in Stony Creek, with a performance and a backstage tour.

Membership meeting at the Fairfield Public Library, following a cabaret performance by Saltamontes Puppet Theater.

Membership meeting at Willington Pizza, after a visit to Integrity Designs in Ashford with Joyce and Bob Ritz and Susan Doyle-Tollis.

The second annual Margo Rose Scholarship fundraiser, with a visit from Pam Arciero (“Grundgetta”) and Marty Robinson (“Telly Monster”).

Membership meeting at the First Congregational Church in Cheshire, with a Chinese hand-puppetry workshop led by Ed Sheehy.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

Richard Bradshaw performed as part of the International Festival of Puppet Arts at UConn in Storrs.

The third annual Margo Rose Scholarship fundraiser, featuring Tim Lagasse and Jim Napolitano of “Between the Lions.”

A workshop with Kathy Piper.

Celebration day at the Millers’ home in Canton — the build of Violet, the Guild’s dragon puppet and future mascot.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

Membership meeting at the Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry in Storrs, for the grand opening of “The Puppetry of Rufus and Margo Rose.”

Membership meeting at the Milford Arts Center, following Nappy’s Puppets’ “Father Goose’s Tales.”

The fourth annual Margo Rose Scholarship fundraiser, with Marc Weiner and cabaret performances by Jim Napolitano, Tim Lagasse, Ceili Clemens, and Liz Joyce.

The first annual Litchfield Hills Puppet Festival at the Warner Theatre in Torrington — a two-day event held with the National Day of Puppetry, with workshops for children and adults and performances by Spring Valley Puppets, The Lyon Puppets, Tanglewood Marionettes, and Figures of Speech.

Membership meeting at Fappiano Studios in Roxbury, with a tour led by Bob Fappiano and Lisa Buckley.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

Membership meeting at the UConn Puppet Arts complex, for the opening of the “Opera & Puppetry” exhibit at the Ballard Institute and a book signing with Caroll Spinney.

Membership meeting at UConn in Storrs, following “A Christmas Carol” at the Harriet S. Jorgensen Theatre.

The fifth annual Margo Rose Scholarship fundraiser at the Whitney Arts Center in New Haven, with Paul Zaloom’s “The Punch and Jimmy Show” and scholarship recipient Chris “CJ” McLaughlin.

Day of Puppetry at ArtWell in Torrington, with Rolande Duprey’s “A Puppet Vaudeville” and a workshop from Sharon Murphy-Boski.

The second annual Litchfield Hills Puppet Festival at the Warner Theatre in Torrington, with workshops for children and adults and performances by Masque Theater, Hobey Ford, Tanglewood Marionettes, Ellie Toy, and Nikki Tilroe.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

Workshop at the home of Jim Napolitano to build banquet centerpieces for the summer’s regional festival.

The Puppeteers of America Northeast/Mid-Atlantic regional festival came to Storrs. Guild vice-president Tom Fogarty directed the festival, with Donna Mark as treasurer and Bart Roccoberton handling artistic selection. Performers included Michael Graham’s Spring Valley Puppets with “Jack and the Beanstalk.”

Membership meeting at the Ballard Institute in Storrs, with a screening of the documentary “Museum Insider.” Meetings this year also included helping UConn students build puppets for the museum’s hands-on room.

The sixth annual Margo Rose Scholarship fundraiser at the Whitney Arts Center, with Frogtown Mountain’s “The Adventures of the Banana Kid” and scholarship recipient Honey Goodenough.

Membership meeting at the home of Robin McCahill in Thomaston, where Robin led a workshop on needle felting.

Day of Puppetry at the ArtWell Gallery in Torrington: a toy-theater exhibit from John Miller’s collection, a performance by Marilyn O’Connor-Miller, and a workshop by Sharon Murphy-Boski.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

A thirtieth-anniversary celebration and dinner at the Augusta Curtis Cultural Center in Meriden, with the unveiling of the Jim Henson commemorative stamp, a screening of Heather Henson’s “Handmade Puppet Dreams,” and a puppet slam.

Crabgrass Puppet Theatre performed “Mr. Punch’s Christmas Carol” at Thornton Wilder Hall in Hamden.

The seventh annual Margo Rose Scholarship fundraiser at the Whitney Arts Center, with Preston Foerder’s “Slovenly Peter” and past recipient Rolande Duprey.

Day of Puppetry at the ArtWell Gallery in Torrington: Nappy’s Puppets performed “Father Goose’s Tales,” with a workshop by Sharon Murphy-Boski.

Guild mascot Violet the Dragon flew at the storytelling festival in New London.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

A visit to the Puppet House Theater in Stony Creek.

A visit to the Ballard Institute and Kate Katz’s UConn MFA thesis production, “It Can’t Happen Here.”

The eighth annual Margo Rose Scholarship fundraiser, featuring Punch and Judy.

Day of Puppetry at the Ballard Institute in Storrs.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

A sing-along with Nappy’s Puppets at the Wilder Auditorium of the Miller Library in Hamden.

The ninth annual Margo Rose Scholarship fundraiser, with Sesame Street’s Fran Brill and scholarship recipient Marta Mozelle-McRostie.

Day of Puppetry performance of “The Emperor’s New Clothes” by Matthew Leonard’s Lionheart Puppet Company.

Saltamontes Puppet Theater performed “Babui” at the Deep River Public Library.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

The Cashore Marionettes performed at the Quick Center in Fairfield.

The tenth annual Margo Rose Scholarship fundraiser, “Who Wants to Be a Puppeteer,” hosted by Jim Napolitano, with Martin P. Robinson and Telly, Pam Arciero and Grundgetta, and Leslie Carrara-Rudolph with Lolly Lardpop. Performers included Robin McCahill, Marta Mozelle-McRostie, Arthur Poore, Jon Little, Elizabeth Hara, and Honey Goodenough.

Tanglewood Marionettes performed “Sleeping Beauty” at the Danbury Library.

Day of Puppetry performance of “Rapunzel” by Rolande Duprey’s Purple Rock Productions at the Canterbury Library.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

Rolande Duprey’s Purple Rock Productions performed “The Basket Case” at the Simsbury Public Library.

The eleventh annual Margo Rose Scholarship fundraiser, “Who Wants to Be a Puppeteer II,” hosted by Matthew Leonard, with Martin P. Robinson and Telly Monster, Pam Arciero and Grundgetta, and Jennifer Barnhart and Mrs. T.

A screening of three MFA puppet films at UConn and the Ballard Institute in Storrs.

Felting workshop with Robin McCahill at Donna Mark’s studio in Cheshire.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

The Guild mourned the loss of Professor Frank Ballard, founder of the UConn Puppet Arts program — an inspiration and friend to many members, whose influence reached far beyond Connecticut.

Marilyn O’Connor-Miller and friends performed at the Wallingford Library.

“Mr. Punch’s Christmas Carol” at the Wilder Auditorium of the Miller Library in Hamden.

The twelfth annual Margo Rose Scholarship fundraiser, “Who Wants to Be a Puppeteer III,” hosted by Matthew Leonard, with Martin P. Robinson and Telly Monster, Jennifer Barnhart and Mrs. T, and Tim Lagasse with Basil Sprite.

Day of Puppetry at the Colchester Library.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

Membership picnic at Lu Bria’s house.

A screening of “The Muppets” at Rave Cinemas, with a meeting at Starbucks afterward.

The thirteenth annual Margo Rose fundraiser, “Puppet Boomerang” — an evening with past scholarship recipients Honey Goodenough, Deb Hertzberg, Marta Mozelle-McRostie, and Fergus Walsh, plus films by recipient Ken Berman.

The National Marionette Theatre performed “Pinocchio” in Storrs, followed by a panel discussion and a membership forum on the future of the Guild.

Show and tell at UConn, Storrs.

Day of Puppetry at Artsplace in Cheshire: “Jack Tuesday, Fairy Tale Investigator” from Matthew Leonard’s Lionheart Puppet Company, with workshops by Robin McCahill, Rolande Duprey, and Sharon Murphy-Boski.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

Build day for the Trail of Terror and membership meeting at Donna Mark’s home in Cheshire.

Show and tell at the Puppet Arts complex in Storrs.

The fourteenth annual Margo Rose Scholarship fundraiser, “An Evening with Friends and Puppets,” hosted by Pam Arciero and Grundgetta, with Anna Fitzgerald, Gavin Cummins, Matthew Leonard and Topher Polack’s “Boys in the Bag,” Nappy’s Puppets, Dana Samborski, and scholarship recipient Seth Schaeffer.

A Ballard Institute exhibit and Seth Schaeffer’s MFA thesis — a remounting of a Dick Myers performance.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

The Gerwick Puppets performed “Midwinter Magic” at the Wilder Auditorium of the Miller Library in Hamden.

Penny Benson’s MFA thesis, “Goblin Market,” in Storrs.

Build day at Donna Mark’s home in Cheshire for the 2015 chair auction.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

The fifteenth annual Margo Rose Scholarship fundraiser, “It’s a W.R.A.P.” — a wine tasting and raffle at White Silo Winery in Newtown, where members shared their work and debuted the chairs for the 2015 auction.

Crabgrass Puppets performed “The Princess, the Pirate and the Pea” at Artsplace in Cheshire, with a shadow-puppet workshop from Matthew Leonard and Karen Bruce.

The sixteenth annual Margo Rose Scholarship fundraiser, “The Chair Project” — an auction of chairs designed and built by Connecticut artists, including Pam Arciero, Jennifer Barnhart, Michael Graham, Robin McCahill, Marilyn O’Connor-Miller, David Regan, Martin Robinson, Fred Thompson, the UConn Puppet Arts students, and the Guild itself.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

The Puppeteers of America national festival came to Storrs. The Guild handed out numbered “Welcome to Connecticut” buttons — one drawn at week’s end for a gift basket — and Violet the Dragon flew in the festival parade.

A screening of the film “Kooky” at Flanders Nature Center in Woodbury.

Dana Samborski’s thesis project, “Fernweh,” at the Ballard Institute.

The Puppet Arts MFA thesis festival at the Studio Theater at UConn, Storrs.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

A remembrance of Larry Hunt and a mask-performance workshop with Adelka Polak at the UConn Puppet Arts complex in Storrs.

Share day at the Connecticut Academy for the Arts (CAFTA) in Torrington.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

Membership meeting at New Pond Farm in Redding, with a mask-making workshop led by Robin McCahill.

A masquerade gala honoring Larry Hunt at the White Memorial Conservation Center in Litchfield, with performances by Adelka Polak and Steve Long and an exhibit of Larry’s masks.

Membership meeting at Artsplace in Cheshire, following “The Reluctant Dragon” from Matthew Leonard’s Lionheart Puppet Company.

Membership meeting at the UConn Puppet Arts complex in Storrs, followed by a show and tell.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

Build day for “Lion King Jr.” at Artsplace in Cheshire.

Needle-felting workshop with Robin McCahill at New Pond Farm in Redding.

Social gathering and work day at the home of Robin McCahill in Thomaston.

Membership meeting following Matt Sorenson’s MFA thesis, “The Snow Queen,” at the Studio Theater at UConn, Storrs.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

Social gathering and hot-air balloon workshop at the Smith family residence in Enfield.

The Guild promoted its work at the Greenwoods Mountain Festival at the Norfolk Public Library.

Workshops, walk-around characters, and Guild promotion at Nature Day at the White Memorial Conservation Center in Litchfield.

Membership meeting and independent build day at Chris Grande’s house in Meriden.

The Covid-19 pandemic closed nearly everything, and much of the Guild’s programming was cancelled. Meetings moved to Zoom, where they stayed for many months until it was safe to gather again.

Annual membership meeting and show and tell, held over Zoom.

Membership meeting over Zoom, with a character-voice workshop led by Jennifer Barnhart.

Virtual gathering and origami-puppet workshop with Karen Bruce.

Virtual holiday party and share day over Zoom.

Membership meeting and a screening of “Animal Behavior” with Jon Bristol and friends at Elmwood Productions, over Zoom.

Virtual gathering and cardstock mask-making workshop with Adelka Polak.

Virtual gathering and share day.

Membership meeting and silicone-foam workshop with Eric Weiss of Homeslice Puppets, over Zoom.

Pinecone-puppet workshop and wine tasting at Aquila’s Nest Vineyards in Newtown.

Membership meeting at Studio 550 in Bethlehem, with a screening of “Handmade Puppet Dreams” alongside Heather Henson.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

A book talk with Craig Shemin, author of “Sam and Friends,” over Zoom.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

The Green Mountain Puppet Festival and parade in Norfolk.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

A tour of the latest Ballard Institute exhibit and a performance by Marilyn O’Connor-Miller.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.

A screening of handmade puppet films at Flanders Nature Center in Woodbury.

A screening of “Animal Behavior 2” with Jon Bristol and members of Elmwood Productions, over Zoom.

Share day and a tour of the UConn Puppet Arts complex in Storrs.

Annual meeting at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, held alongside the National Puppetry Conference in Waterford.