Everyone is welcome from professional performers to teachers,
therapists, hobbyists, librarians, and puppet aficionados.
In a monthly meeting members share their skills, ideas,
performances and know-how to advance the art of puppetry.
A Brief Guild History
For the more detailed version of our guild history, please
refer to Lettie Connell Schubert's An
Incomplete History of The San Francisco Bay Area Puppeteers
Guild.
In 1954 SFBAPG was founded with seven original members
meeting at the Oakland Public Library. It was one of the
earliest chartered member Guilds of the Puppeteers of America
and has become one of the largest and most active Guilds
in the nation. Year chartered 1960.
SFBAPG has provided P of A with two past presidents and
others have served on its Board of Directors as well as
on the Board of UNIMA, the international association of
puppeteers. Two Guild members had the honor of representing
the USA at the 1976 international festival in Moscow.
At the moment, the Guild counts among its members seven
authors of puppetry books and manuals. Many full-time puppet
entertainers and distinguished artists have contributed
their talents to promote the art of puppetry within the
Guild. The membership has included artists of both local
and world renown, operating in the fields of teaching, writing,
television and performance.
Guild Activities:
- Workshops: Everything from foam puppet construction,
scene design, scripting and manipulation to tax and business
practices.
- Performances: Both professional and amateur puppeteers
perform at Guild meetings: everything from traditional fairy
tales to jazz inspired object manipulation pieces.
- Business Meeting: Time is set aside during Guild meetings
to share puppet news and concerns and to plan activities
as well as to discuss topics of individual interest.
- Guild Projects: In the past, SFBAPG has participated in
city fairs and performed with the Oakland Symphony and at
puppetry festivals, colleges and community centers.
- Community Events:SFBAPG sponsors public performances,
Days of Puppetry, workshops and puppet fairs so that the
general community can learn more about the Guild and the
art of puppetry.
- Regional Festivals: Every two years, SFBAPG joins with
other Pacific Southwest Regional Guilds for a conference
which covers every aspect of puppetry with intensive workshops,
demonstrations, lectures and shows.
Membership Activities
- Monthly Newsletter: Featuring articles, reviews, news
of events and opportunities and meeting reports.
- Guild Library: Over one hundred titles may be borrowed
containing material on the subject of puppetry.
- Membership Card and Pin: Members receive a card indentifing
them as members in good standing and may purchase an official
Guild pin.
- Monthly Meeting: Usually held at Fort Mason in San Francisco,
Guild meetings focus on workshops, performances and planning.
Meetings also include special activities such as viewing
puppet films, Guild Auctions, video taped performance workshop,
Pot-Pourri (when everyone may perform a short piece), and
field trips.
- Group Receptions: The Guild hosts get-togethers with visiting
and touring puppet performers from around the USA and the
world.
- Resource Lists: Resources include a membership directory,
media resources and consultants.
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