Youth Puppetry Troupes

Youth Troupes Spring Session

Puppet Parade School: A MayDay Immersion

Parade School
A hands-on, intensive course in learning how to make a parade at HOBT and in the streets. Join the MayDay Staff Artists to envision, build and rehearse the MayDay Parade. We will learn how to build and perform large puppets and masks, stilt (for those who are interested), play parade music, and engage playfully with a parade audience. This is a unique chance to be a young apprentice to professional artists who are some of the top parade artists in the country.
Also, FUN guaranteed!
Schedule:
  • Saturdays, 1-3 pm, April 3-24
  • Wednesdays, 4-6:30pm, April 7-28
  • MayDay Parade and Ceremony, May 2, 12-5pm
Optional public workshops troupe members are encouraged to attend:
  • Tuesdays 7-9 pm, April 6-27 or
  • Thursdays 7-9pm, April 8-29 or
  • Saturdays, 9-11, April 3-24 or
  • May Day Ceremony Rehearsals, Saturdays, 3:30 - 5pm, April 3-24
Details
  • Ages 9-18
  • Fee: $135
  • Scholarships available
For more information, contact instructor Bart Buch:
bbuch@hobt.org or 612-377-3698
To register, contact Brie at 612-721-2535.
Registration

We accept payment by check, cash, credit card, or money order. Full payment of tuition is required upon registration. Please register early to ensure space is available. You can register by phone (612-721-2535), mail, fax, in person, or online: register online here.

Withdrawals

If you cancel your registration 2 weeks or more in advance of the first session, you will receive a full refund minus a nonrefundable $10 processing charge that is included in the registration fee. If a cancellation occurs within the 2 weeks prior to the beginning of the troupe, you will receive a 50% refund minus the $10 processing charge. No refunds will be issued on or after the start date of the troupe, unless there is a waiting list and a student to fill your spot.

HOBT Cancellations

Each troupe has a minimum registration and HOBT reserves the right to cancel a troupe if that minimum is not met. In the event of a cancellation, you will receive a full refund and will not be charged for processing.

Picking Up and Dropping Off Youth

Please make sure you drop off and pick up youth on time. If you have a concern about drop-off/pick-up times, please contact us. For any time that exceeds ten minutes prior to or after a session, you will be charged $1 per minute for extended care.

register online here
About HOBT Youth Puppetry Troupes

HOBT’s puppetry troupes are a stable yet dynamic learning environment to grow artistically and personally with mentorship, freedom of expression, and responsibility for our community. From September–June, involved youth will learn the steps of design, construction, movement, rehearsal and performance of puppet shows, puppet movies, parades, and large spectacle theatre. Several kinds of puppetry (toy theatre, masks, rod puppets, shadow puppets, bunraku puppets) will be explored through this process.

The Young Puppeteers’ Troupe is designed for young artists 9-12 years old. This troupe is for the very beginning puppeteer who is ready to imagine, investigate, invent, pretend and play.

The Puppeteers’ Apprentice Troupe is designed for young artists 13-18 years old. This troupe is for youth to explore and express their identity, opinions, and experiences through puppetry arts. In a safe and open environment, youth are mentored in an array of artistic skills as well as tools for fostering self-esteem, leadership, and building an active community.

Guiding Principles
  • We believe in the transformative power of art to heal and grow individuals, communities, societies, and the world.
  • We provide a positive, creative learning environment to encourage confidence, self-esteem, and “finding your voice” through puppetry arts.
  • We listen to our youth community, respond to their needs, and involve them as decision-makers and leaders.
  • We practice, preach, and provide art that is accessible and inclusive of people of all incomes, ages, races, orientations, abilities, and cultures.
  • We honor the deep cultural, spiritual, and ritual roots of puppetry that provide youth with reflections of deep community values, personal meaning and individual identity.
  • We excel at providing opportunities for people to create and expand community through the act of making puppet theatre.
  • We empower youth to take leadership in telling their innately valuable stories through puppetry and masks.
  • We believe youth are capable of professional standards of excellence in puppet theatre and strive to create high quality processes and productions with youth.
  • We create opportunities for youth to present their creative work and educate the community about their perspectives.
  • We recognize the folk-arts apprenticeship tradition of learning that puppetry stems from, and honor the commitment to train new generations in the craft of puppetry.
  • We facilitate the creation of meaningful peer community to reduce isolation of youth from each other and their communities.
Support for this program has been provided by the General Mills Foundation