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Past Endowment Recipients

2023 Recipients

EMERGING ARTISTS

Abigail Baird
Aerial Animation
Chaplin, CT
Nothing Really Matters

Kyra Miller
Charlotte Community Heart and Soul
Charlotte, VT
BlueBeardGasLight

ESTABLISHED ARTISTS

The Gottabees
Boston, MA
Don’t Make Me Get Dressed

millissa orzolek
abandoned ships
New Orleans, LA
how to read a storm

2021 Recipients

Steve Ackerman
In the Heart of the Beast Puppet & Mask Theatre
The Impact Theory of Mass Extinction

Shoshanna Bass
Sandglass Theater
Oma

Zach Bramel
Mary Shelley Electric Co.
Energy Is Neither

Amanda Card
I May Be Ugly But I'm Also Scared

Chris Griffith
Z Puppets Rosenschnoz
Say it! Sing it! Play it! In Cherokee Virtual Performance

Joshua Holden
The Joshua Show
The Joyfully Jolly Jamboree

2019 Recipients

Esther Fernández
Dragoncillo Puppet Troupe/Rice University

Lily Gershon
Lilypad Puppet Theatre

Christopher Heady
The Custer Wolf

Matthew McGee
MattaMagical

2017 Recipients

Jon Levin (Sinking Ship Productions), A Hunger Artist
Margarita Blush, The Rule of the World
Marcie Berg, The Neighborhood of Make-Believe
Frank Maugeri, Death is Not the End
James Mooney-Bullock, Brothers of Invention

2015 Recipients

Bonnie DuncanLollipops for Breakfast, Jamaica Plain, MA
Z Puppets Rosenschnoz, Cellula, Minneapolis, MN
Matt SandbankStill Life, Austin, TX
Ilana MarksVoyager Girl and the Spirit of Inquiry, Glendale, CA
Lindsay McCawGross Bliss, Dubuque, IA

2013 Recipients

Jeanette Oi-Suk Yew
Are They Edible?
New York, NY

Janaki Ranpura
An Ububu
Minneapolis, MN

Lisa Sturz
Red Herring Puppets

Little One Inch
Asheville, NC

Vit Horejs
Czechoslovak-American Marionette Theatre

The Republic (My Dinner with Socrates)
New York, NY

Sean Cawelti
Rogue Artists Ensemble

Fantasmagorico Mejico
Los Angeles, CA

2011 Recipients

Anne Sawyer-Aitch
Nalah and the Pink Tiger
Minneapolis, MN

Elizabeth Leary, Center for Puppetry Arts
Ruth and the Green Book
Atlanta, GA

Pamela Roberts, Imagination Stage
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
Bethesda, MD
Photo: Scott Suchman

Libby Marcus, Mayo Street Arts
Come and Go, by Samuel Beckett
Portland, ME

Tara Ahmadinejad, Piehole Productions
Two Stories that End in Suicide
Brooklyn, NY
Photo: Emily Friend Roberts

2009 Recipients

Virginia Mischen-Hays, Center for Puppetry Arts
Adventures of Little Noodle by Jon Ludwig
Atlanta, GA

Bonny Hall, Crabgrass Puppet Theatre
From Haiku to HipHop
W Brattleboro, VT

Vit Horejs, Czechoslovak-American Marionette Theatre
REVOLUT¿ON!
New York, NY

Monica Leo, Eulenspiegel Puppets
Snow Queen
West Liberty, IA

Nancy Smith, Great Arizona Puppet Theatre
Canyon Condor
Phoenix, AZ

Michael Haverty, Haverty Marionettes
The Colour of Her Dreams
Decatur, GA

Kevin Augustine, Lone Wolf Tribe
The Hobo Grunt Cycle
Brooklyn, NY

Annie Howe, Nana Projects Studio
How to Grow a Pickle
Baltimore, MD

David Powell, Puppetmongers Theatre
Hard Times
Toronto Ontario, CANADA
Photo Credit: Aviva Armour-Ostroff

Adrienne Mackey, Swim Pony Theater Company
Survived (formerly titled Another Way)
Philadelphia, PA

Bonnie Duncan, They Gotta Be Secret Agents
Poste Restante
Jamaica Plain, MA
Photo: Androo Sokol

Leslie K. Gray, Triumvirate Pi Theatre
Maudit
Los Angeles, CA

Heidi Rugg, Barefoot Puppet Theatre, Little by Little - Richmond, VA
Larry Hunt, Masque Theatre, King Fear - Bethlehem, CT
Kathleen Conroy Mukwashi, Teddy Bear Tales - Milford, MA
Art Grueneberger, Puppet Art Theatre Co. Riley the Wily Rabbit Sacramento, CA

2007 Recipients

MaRia Elena, Bodman, Bali & Beyond
Alice in the Shadows-episode 2
Mission Hills, CA

Center for Puppetry Arts
Duke Ellington's Cat
Atlanta, GA

Kevin Menegus, The Fratello Marionettes
The Frog Prince - Danville, CA

Michael Haverty, Haverty Marionettes
As I Lay Dying
Atlanta, GA

Lisa Sturz, Red Herring Puppets
Big Dipper - Fairview, NC

Patrick Johnson, Swazzle
Workshop
Glendale, CA

Gabrielle Brechner, Wakka Wakka Productions, Inc.
Fabrik
Long Island City, NY

Chris Griffith, Z Puppets Rosenschnoz
(formerly: Circus Minimus Puppetry)
The Puggles, a Platypus Adventure
Minneapolis, MN

Seabat Studios - Fayetteville, AR

2005 Recipients

Anne Sawyer-Aitch
Ala Dean and the Marvelous Lamp
Minneapolis, MN

Vincent Anthony, Center for Puppetry Arts
Anne Frank Within and Without
Atlanta, GA

Kevin Augustine, Lone Wolf Tribe
Bride
Brooklyn, NY

Colette Searls
Basura
Baltimore, MD

Andrew Kim, Thingumajig Theatre
The Vertigo of Sheep
WA
Photo: Bruce Silcox

2003 Recipients

Greg Carter
This Land
Seattle, WA - $500

Mindy Donner, Spinning Wheel Players
West of Snow, a Story of the Donner Party
San Diego, CA - $1,000

Jamie Keithline, Crabgrass Puppet Theatre
The Brementown Musicians
West Brattleboro, VT - $850

Lynn Jeffries
Octaclaus
part of Erik Ehn's Mary Shelley's Santa Claus
Los Angeles, CA - $500

Bonnie Schock, 3 Legged Race New Theater & Performance
Quick Silver
Minneapolis, MN - $500
Photo: Jeff Austin

Connie Galeener, 24 Hours Old - Cave Creek, AZ  - $500
Pamella O’Connor, Pamella O’Connor Puppets, The Anatomy of Melancholy - Asheville, NC - $850
Douglas Paasch, Infinite Noir - Seattle, WA - $500

2001 Recipients

Bonnie Berkowitz
Workshop
Bloomsbury, NJ - $400

Ken Berman
The Painter
Storrs, CT - $600

MaRia Elena Bodman, Bali & Beyond
Alice in the Underground 
Mission Hills, CA - $600

Heidi Rugg, Barefoot Puppets
Galapagos George
Richmond, VA - $1,000

Carter Marionettes
Burning House, Opera
Seattle, WA - $1,000

Cathy McCullough, Glass Wings Puppetry
Facets - 
South Windham, CT - $600

Deborah Hertzberg
Nosferatu
Glastonbury, CT - $600

Dassia Posner
Kalimanku (Formerly Ptchka)
Somerville, MA - $1,000
Photo: Luna Theatre

Nancy Bloom, Parade - Baltimore, MD - $800
Nilda L. Garces, Eastern European Folk Tale - Bronx, NY - $600
Samuel K. Hale, Insomnia Dentata - Hayward, CA - $500
Paul Mesner, Paul Mesner Puppets, Stinky Cheese Man - Kansas City, MO - $500

1999 Recipients

Bobby Box, Center for Puppetry Arts
Don Quixote
Atlanta, GA - $450

Liz Joyce, A Couple of Puppets
Song of Sixpence Humorous Cantata (1914)
Brooklyn, NY - $600

Art Grueneberger, Puppet Art Theatre Co.
Uniai's Son
Sacramento, CA - $750

Laura Heit
Succubus (film)
Chicago, IL - $450

Frank Maugeri
A Small m
Chicago, IL - $700

Kenneth Schellin
Some Puppet to Watch Over Me (video)
Milwaukee, WI - $450

Lisa Sturz
Red Herring Puppets
Still Life
Fairview, NC - $600



1997 Recipients

MaRia Bodman, Bali & Beyond
Alice in the Shadows
Aleta, CA - $525

Stephen & Chris Carter, Carter Family Marionettes
Mrs. Twig and the Stupid Machines
Seattle, WA - $525

Mike Artelle, Elephant Productions, Fuzzy Fables, Ottawa, Canada - $525
Preston Foerder, Interesting Times, Jersey City, NJ - $525
Joannie Levrone, Glass Heart Puppet Theatre, Canterbury Tales, Alexandria, VA - $525
Moe Pomerantz, Puppetranz!, Wings & Walls by Laura Gans - story boarding, Mansfield Center, CT - $525
Robert Bresnick, Puppetsweat, Poe Shadow Play Project, New Haven, CT - $525

1995 Recipients

Vince Anthony, Center for Puppetry Arts
Space
Atlanta, GA

Nancy Aldrich, Polaris
Tell Tale Heart
Milwaukee, WI

Bernd Ogrodnik, Alchemilla, for a microphone, Spencer, NY
Michael Baroto, The Art of Polyeurethane, Tuckerton, NJ
Kim Snider, Heard Instinct, Harpoun and the Sea of Stories, New Brunswick, Canada
Rosemary Tyrell & Mark Robertson, Icarus, The Crane Daughter, San Diego, CA
Sophie Parker, Next Stage, Son Corazon Heart Strung, Jamaica Plain, MA
Chris Burnley, Puppeteria, The Fabulous Life of Alice Maple, New York, NY

1993 Recipients

Begin giving grants every other year

Janet Bradley, Tears of Joy Puppet Theater
Rumplestilskin
Vancouver, WA


Mindy Donner, Spinning Wheel
Demeter & Persephone
San Diego, CA

Preston Foerder, The Toy Box, NJ
Rebecca McNulty, The Vanishing Point, CT
Lisa Sturz, Puppets Artista Collaborative, Icons Revisited, Los Angeles, CA
Nathan Scott, Wayang Kanchil, Indonesian Trickster Tales, Seattle, WA
Kim Snider, The Great Cow Show, New Brunswick, Canada

1992 Recipients


Donald Devet & Drew Allison, Grey Seal Puppets
Nevermore, The Last Days of E.A. Poe
Charlotte, NC - $350

Greg Carter, Heart of the Beast, This Land, Minneapolis, MN - $800
Kevin Hedgepeth, The Tower, Phoenix, AZ - $500
Rosemary Tyrell, Icarus & Co., The Perfect Gift, San Diego, CA - $500
James Huston, Temple Knights Productions, The Little Master, Toronto, Canada - $800
Rod Young, Tango Slaves, New York, NY - $350

1991 Recipients

Joe Cashore
video
Conshohocken, PA - $1,000
Photo: Matt Cashore

Bonnie Hall & Jamie Keithline, Crabgrass Puppet Theatre
The Reluctant Dragon
Harpton, CT - $1,000

Vit Horejes, Goh Theatre, Czechoslovak-American Marionette Theater
Faust in NY (film)
New York, NY - $300

Scott Swenson, Chi town Puppet Theatre, Ecology Show, Chicao, IL - $200
Peter Allen, Parasol Puppets, The Goodalls at the Opera, Hawaii - $500
Paul Mesner, Paul Mesner Puppets, The True hree Little Pigs, Kansas City, MO - $200
Joan Mickelson, World Tree, Wings, Minneapolis, MN - $1,000

1990 Recipients

Genevieve Engman
Gen’s Positive Puppet Program
San Diego, CA - $150

Sherry Johns
Montana’s Puppet Lady: Blanche Harding (film)
Kalispell, MT - $200

William Lorenzen, University of South Florida
David (robotic & bunraku controls)
Tampa, FL - $1,000

Clay Martin
Penny Dreadful
Seattle, WA - $1,000

Bruce Chesse & Susan Barthel, Oregon Puppet Theatre
Raymond & The Whales
Portland, OR - $400

Andrew Periale
Really Really Terrible Very Old Stories
Strafford, NH - $800

Tom Tucker
The Bookaneers
Abington, PA - $400

Sandy Spieler, Suitcase Puppet Theatre, Minneapolis, MN - $150
Janet Bradley, Tears of Joy Puppet Theater, Aladdin & His Magic Lamp, Vancouver, WA - $150
Debra Wise, Underground Railway, Rediscovering America, Arlington, MA - $150

1989 Recipients


Stephen Carter, Carter Family Marionettes
Jacob Two Two Meets the Hooded Frog
Seattle, WA - $1,000

Jean Mattson, Seattle Puppetory Theatre, Tales of Old Seattle, Seattle, WA - $1,000
Sue Ackley, Starbird, The Enchanted Doll - A Russian Cinderella, Tamworth, NH - $500

1988 Recipients

Stephen Carter, Carter Family Marionettes
Q'welti - Tales of the Makah
Seattle, WA - $500

Ollie DePriest, DePriest Puppets
Abraham Lincoln from New Salem to Springfield
Springfield, IL - $200

Robert Smythe, Mum Puppettheatre, Icarus, Philadelphia, PA - $500
David Wheeler, Grand Opera Contemporary, New Orleans, LA - $500
Marge Williams, Space Camp, San Franciso, CA - $500

1987 Recipients


Michael Nelson, Magical Moonshine Theater
Orpheus Descending
CA - $750

Nancy Laverick, House of Nanimal, Sleeping Beauty, MA - $750
Bart Roccoberton, Institute of Professional Puppetry Arts, Margo Rose - Snow White Revival, Waterford, CT - $300
Mike Schuster, Stories My Father Told Me - $250

1986 - incomplete information

1985 Recipients

John & Carol Farrell, Figures of Speech
Anerca
Portland, ME
Photo: Christopher Dierdorff

Penny Jones
Peppi and the Pop-Up Dragon
New York, NY

Robert Rogers, Puppets Unlimited, Wilton, CT
Sipple School, Davison, MI
Sue Ackley Starbird, S Tamworth, NH

1984 Recipients


John & Carol Farrell
Figures of Speech

Anerca
Portland, ME
Photo: Katie Fagan

Lyanne T. Richards
Strings & Things

The Yoo Whoo Safety Crew
UT

Lisa Sturz
Eros and Psyche
Los Angeles, CA
Photo: Mel Helstien

Nancy Henk, Atlantis Expedition, Detroit, MI
Cedric Flowers, Bennington Marionettes, Bennington, VT
Diane Mortier, Bristol, VT
Sandra Piechocki, Out of Hand, Belfast, ME
Virginia Conover, Please Touch Museum, Philadelphia, PA

1983 - incomplete information

Barbara Pollitt, NY

1982 Recipients


Eric Bass, Sandglass Theater
Autumn Portraits
New York, NY - $500

Janie Geiser, Atlanta, GA - $500
Stephen Kaplin, Brooklyn, NY - $500
Ralph Lee, New York, NY - $500
Joan Mickelson, Minneapolis, MN - $500
Stephen Stoia, Amherst, MA - $500

1981 Recipients


Wes Saunders, Underground Railway
Firebird
Boston, MA - $800

Stephen Carter, Carter Family Marionettes, Miro Show, Seattle, WA - $600
Betty Polus Hart, Picaro, San Francisco, CA - $400
Sandy Spieler, In the Heart of the Beast, Oh River, Minneapolis, MN - $500
Christine Crane & Alan Krulick, Starry Night Puppet Theatre, The Griffin & the Minor Canon, Vestal, NY - $500

Fund began in 1976, first grants awarded 1981.

Thanks to the selection committee and the committee chairs, from 1976-present: Allelu Kurten, Doris McBride, Steve Schutt, Judy Pankratz, Bev London, David Smith, Nick Coppola, Len Gerwick, Margo Rose, Jim Henson, Nancy Staub, Doris McBride, Jane Henson, Johan Vandergun, Nancy Frazier, Lettie Schubert, Nancy A. Cole


Puppeteers of America
310 East 38th St, Suite 127
Minneapolis, MN 55409

612-821-2382
office@puppeteers.org