Puppetry Arts
Inspiring creativity, engineering, sustainability and mindfulness through the art of puppetry!
Inspiring creativity, engineering, sustainability and mindfulness through the art of puppetry!
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11:00 am • 2:00 pm
Follow the Stepping Stones Storytellers – Bird, Lucy, Lillie and BooZoo – on an unforgettable journey far north to witness the breathtaking aurora borealis. Guided by a trusty compass and their shared wit, they climb treacherous mountains, brave freezing temperatures, work together through every challenge and even come face-to-face with the legendary abominable snowman.
11:00 am • 2:00 pm
Shapes and Colors is an abstract expressionist puppetry performance designed to engage children in the principles of design, movement and artistic experimentation. Using bold, giant shapes, dynamic choreography, real-time video projection and jazz-infused soundscapes, this performance immerses children in a world of art in motion.
11:00 am • 2:00 pm
BLOOM! is an immersive sensory adventure where you’ll meet mystical creatures, discover the wonders of plants, listen to the sounds of the landscape and play alongside curious gnomes. Join Laurel the Fairy in this flowering forest and tune in to the magic of your senses.
*All puppet programs, shows and events are included with the price of museum admission.
TJ Jacobs
3 min read
February 25, 2026
Sometimes, new puppet shows present themselves in surprising ways. You may staple together cardboard and devise an unbelievably hilarious clown, or be given a new object or material that presents possibilities previously unknown.
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TJ Jacobs
4 min read
February 16, 2026
Cardboard Historical Society is an ever-shifting performance assembled from fabric scraps, corrugated cardboard, and broken sticks...
Continue ReadingTJ Jacobs
5 min read
February 5, 2026
The reader – one of our Visitor Experience team members – begins to don a cardboard helmet, shield, and hobby horse, a green polka-dot cape, and a spoon for a sword...
Continue Reading
TJ Jacobs
5 min read
January 12, 2026
Amid the excitement of dozens of children, a plump, fuzzy penguin learns about a superpower he always carries with him...
Continue ReadingTJ Jacobs
3 min read
February 25, 2026
Sometimes, new puppet shows present themselves in surprising ways. You may staple together cardboard and devise an unbelievably hilarious clown, or be given a new object or material that presents possibilities previously unknown.
Continue ReadingTJ Jacobs
4 min read
February 16, 2026
Cardboard Historical Society is an ever-shifting performance assembled from fabric scraps, corrugated cardboard, and broken sticks...
Continue ReadingTJ Jacobs
5 min read
February 5, 2026
The reader – one of our Visitor Experience team members – begins to don a cardboard helmet, shield, and hobby horse, a green polka-dot cape, and a spoon for a sword...
Continue Reading
Puppeteer
TJ Jacobs (he/him) is a professional puppeteer, director, teaching artist, and meditation instructor based in Connecticut. He studied Theatre, education, acting/directing, design/technology and musical theatre with honors at Rowan University.
He directs, designs and performs our puppet productions and Puppet Place programs. Along with managing the Out of A Box Puppetry team, TJ’s day-to-day includes coming up with new productions, workshops, exhibitions and interactive experiences.
Outside of Stepping Stones, TJ is the Vice President of Puppeteers of America, the newsletter editor for the Connecticut Puppetry Guild, and founder of Basically Good Puppet Theatre, which travels throughout the east coast, doing performances, making puppets, and offering meditation courses. TJ specializes in dharma art, mindfulness meditation [Certified by Dharma Moon + Tibet House], and cardboard butchery.
Fabricator
Kaz Grigg (he/him) builds puppets, sets and props for all the puppet shows at the museum. Kaz is most interested in the technical and engineering aspects of puppetry.
He likes to go down little rabbit holes and collect apparently random techniques to apply to our puppets in novel and interesting ways.
Performer
Riley Zappala (he/him/his) is a professional performer, puppeteer and is the mascot lead, bringing our Storytellers to life.
He grew up as a navy kid, traveling coast to coast with his family, gaining skills and knowledge to engineer in abstract, out of the box ways.
His favorite part of creating art is when people say “wow!”
Performer
Ava Sabloff (she/her) is a Museum Puppeteer at Stepping Stones Museum for Children. She works in both puppet making and puppet performance. Her favorite part of puppet making is painting; she loves adding little details that make her laugh. When performing, she likes meeting visitors in character after the show.
Outside of the museum, she is a student, studying the arts and psychology. She would like to be an art therapist someday.
At Out of a Box Puppetry here at Stepping Stones, we develop original productions, workshops, interactive experiences and exhibits – and we need your help! We’re seeking passionate volunteers from diverse backgrounds who love to design, experiment, build and bring stories to life through hands-on puppet-making and performance.
Out of a Box Puppetry is dedicated to the education and development of its staff and volunteers, in order to cultivate sustainable, ethical and mindful puppet artists who deliver exemplary service to museum visitors.
Participants gain hands-on experience with various puppetry forms (shadow, string, rod, hand), building confidence, adaptability and problem-solving skills for effective storytelling. Out of a Box Puppetry is responsible for the creation of unique deliverables each week for puppetry programs, pop-up experiences and main stage productions.
Through sculpting, sewing and patterning, participants develop fine motor skills, spatial awareness and creative expression while learning the full construction process of puppets.
Participants strengthen collaboration, time management and organizational abilities by working with a production team and supporting the preparation and performance of puppet shows.