The eleventh annual New Orleans Giant Puppet Fest is back with more puppets than ever. After ten successful gatherings, the time has come again for a five day celebration of the ancient, innovative and diverse art form of puppetry. From April 3-7,   the New Orleans Giant Puppet Fest will host local, nationa and international artists with kid friendly and adult only performances from daytime until late night across sevent venues in the area. It will also feature two giant puppet parages at noon Saturday, April 5 and Sunday, April 6 lining up at Plessy Park. 

Performers at this year’s Giant Puppet Fest include, but are not limited to, Harry Mayronne, Miss Pussycat and Quintron, The Mudlark Puppeteers, String and Shadow and Poose the Puppet. Venues include, but are not limited to, The Allways Lounge, Mudlark Public Theatre and New Marigny Theatre.

All performance festival passes start at $130 for a pass presale which includes access to all shows.

Last year, local puppeteer and polymath Harry Mayronne spoke to OffBeat about his connection to puppets and the Mudlark Theatre. He stated, “I met Pandora Gastelum (founder of the Puppet Fest and the Mudlark) during a production of Brecht/Weill/s The Threepenny Opera at the Allways Lounge and Cabaret. I was co-musical director and Pandora was playing the role of Polly Peachum. But we really connected as puppeteers. Not too long afterwards, she invited me to be part of the first Giant Puppet Festival. I had, at that time, one professionally built marionette, Miss Viola. On accepting Pandora’s invitation I realized that I needed more than one marionette. And so I began creating new ones. Which led not only to some international performing adventures (the most thrilling being part of German ‘Mother of Punk’ Nina Hagen’s Brecht concerts at Berliner Ensemble), but also to being invited to show and sell my work at Creason’s Fine Art Gallery in the French Quarter. And so I am eternally grateful to Pandora for continuing to host the Giant Puppet Festival, and for having me back this year!”  (Since then, Mayronne has performed in various capacities including at the World War II Museum in Wit & Wrath: The Life and Times of Dorothy Parker.) 

For more information and for the full line up and tickets, visit the festival website here.