Southern Agenda

Strings Theory


From fuzzy finger puppets to larger-than-life marionettes, puppets come in myriad shapes, sizes, and hues. Atlanta’s Center for Puppetry Arts celebrates them in all their iterations, as well as their talented makers. Through March 16, the Puppetry NOW exhibition, for instance, raises the curtain on living legend puppeteer Raymond Carr’s multifaceted skills. “Carr’s a Center alum, working here as a teen, and stands out as a builder and performer,” explains museum director Kelsey Fritz. “Not all puppeteers do both.” Carr’s commercial projects include working with massive animatronic reptiles in the Walking with Dinosaurs arena show, and training actor Benedict Cumberbatch to be a puppeteer on Netflix’s hit series Eric. He also pulls the strings on creatures born of his imagination in films he directs and with his company, Ninja Puppet Productions. And while puppetry’s pretend worlds delight kids, Carr’s work for Comedy Central’s Crank Yankers and his age-eighteen-plus live show coming this summer to the Center prove it’s not all child’s play. “We’re family friendly, but not a children’s museum,” Fritz says. “Carr shows how puppetry can explore adult themes, too.”

puppet.org