Expert puppeteers coming to campus

Three nationally recognized puppeteers from the Puppet Kitchen in New York City will be in residency at Cornell College this spring. They will teach courses, work with students, and direct a play based on Russian composer Modest Mussorgsky’s 1874 “Pictures at an Exhibition.”

Emily DeCola, co-founder, co-director, and co-owner of Puppet Kitchen, was previously on campus in 2012 to teach students how to make puppets in advance of the Cornell College Theatre Department’s production of “Avenue Q.”

DeCola, the recipient of a Jim Henson Foundation grant, will guest direct “Pictures at an Exhibition,” a new, devised piece told through movement, music, and puppetry. Also known as collaborative creation, original work or ensemble-driven, this type of theatre-making requires an ensemble to work collectively in the process of writing, performing and designing every aspect of the production. DeCola will hold auditions for the show in January, and then be in residence at Cornell for blocks 6, 7, and 8.

Eric Wright will teach Puppetry Performance Block 5. He built puppets for “Animal Farm: The Musical,” “Seussical the Musical,” and many other shows.

Michael Schupbach will teach Puppetry Design Block 6. He is an alumnus of Jim Henson’s Muppet Workshop, and has designed and built puppets for both children’s television programs and Tony Award-winning theatrical productions. He has four Daytime Emmy Awards for his work on “Sesame Street.”

DeCola said the entire team is looking forward to the chance to work away from home, and especially to work at Cornell College. The focus provided by the college’s One Course At A Time curriculum, where students are only taking one class and can put all of their energy into the work, is a big draw, as is the commitment that DeCola saw when she was on campus in 2012.

“This opportunity is going to give us enough time and room to work,” DeCola said. “That’s satisfying as a teacher.”

Up to 12 Cornell students will have the chance to work with DeCola and Wright to devise the performance and build puppets for a world premiere. The story, based on “Pictures at an Exhibition,” will be about what happens to the lifelong friendship between a man and his shadow when the sun doesn’t come back up. This piece will use tabletop and shadow puppetry, mask, and acting, and the puppets will be primarily made out of paper.

“Pictures at an Exhibition” will run April 24 and 25 and May 1 and 2 at 7:30 p.m. and April 26 at 2 p.m. in Kimmel Theatre.