SoCal’s Top Puppeteers Will Perform Alongside Live Music, DIY Puppet-Making
The Skirball Cultural Center is set to transform into a whimsical world of puppets on Sunday, April 27, as it hosts its annual Puppet Festival from noon to 5 p.m., featuring a diverse array of performances, workshops, and hands-on activities for visitors of all ages.
The festival, a popular family-oriented event, will feature puppets of all shapes and sizes brought to life by some of Southern California’s most celebrated puppetry acts. Attendees can expect to explore “pockets of fun” across the museum’s grounds, moving between stages with both large-scale and intimate performances.
Admission to the festival is $20 for adults, $15 for seniors and full-time students, and $13 for children aged 2-17. Entry is free for Skirball members and children under 2 years of age. Doors to the festival open at noon, although the museum itself will be open from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Noah’s Ark, the museum’s hands-on, child-friendly exhibit, will be open with timed entries starting at 11:00 a.m. and closing at 4:00 p.m. The last entry will be at 3:00 p.m., and the Archaeology Dig will remain closed for the day due to the festivities.
You can purchase tickets here.
Featured performances include sets from One Grain of Sand Puppet Theater, The Gottabees, East Wind Lion Dancers, Rescue Rue, and Leslie Gray. In addition to scheduled acts, visitors will encounter pop-up micro-performances and roaming puppets, including towering dragons and imaginative creatures designed by artists such as Robin Walsh and Sherry Layne.
Festivalgoers can also take part in puppet-making workshops, where they’ll design their own characters using creative materials, and go “behind the curtain” with a puppetry crash course led by the Rogue Artists Ensemble.
Adding to the celebratory spirit are two interactive puppet dance parties, each set to live reggae music performed by local band Upstream, offering a lively atmosphere where puppets and people share the spotlight.
