During these unprecedented and financially difficult times for arts organizations, the Center for Puppetry Arts is proud to announce it has received $750,000 in financial support through a grant from the Lettie Pate Evans Foundation.  The Center also received sizeable donations from the Jim Henson Family, and the David, Helen, and Marian Woodward Fund, as well as a matching grant for Georgia Gives Day from Atlanta arts lover and former Board member, the late Martha “Mot” Dinos. This funding enables the Center to continue its mission to inspire imagination, education, and community through the global art of puppetry with performances, one-of-a-kind exhibitions in its Worlds of Puppetry Museum, and its robust slate of educational programs.

Thanks to this infusion of financial support, the Center will help develop new programming; update the Mainstage Theater and tackle some emergency needs to the Center’s more than 100-year-old building.  These investments will help ensure the safety of the Center’s priceless collection of artifacts in the museum, including the 500+ Jim Henson puppets, props, and costumes that were donated the Center by the Jim Henson Family in 2015. 

When school field trips were canceled this year due to the pandemic, the Center lost 70 percent of its funding and needed to pivot its programming quickly. Having been in the field of distance learning for more the 20 years, the Center found opportunity in the challenge and expanded its Digital Learning offerings to a wider audience that now includes more than 80 countries around the world.

The Center is a unique cultural treasure and has been a cornerstone of the Atlanta arts scene for 42 years. The financial support it has received reflects the value the Center for Puppetry Arts brings to Atlanta and underscores the importance of a thriving arts scene to the success and growth of any metropolitan city.

Since the ribbon cutting ceremony at the Center in 1978 by Kermit the Frog and Jim Henson, the Jane and Jim Henson Family has offered steadfast and generous support to the Center. The Center thanks Cheryl Henson, President of the Jim Henson Foundation and active Board Member of the Center for Puppetry Arts since 2015; director, producer, and performer Brian Henson, Chairman of Board of The Jim Henson Company; Heather Henson, contemporary puppet artist and founder of IBEX Puppetry and Handmade Puppet Dreams and Lisa Henson, CEO and President of the Jim Henson Company. Each of these extraordinary, award-winning artists and leaders has continued to expand and evolve the art of puppetry through their work, their support for the Center and for puppeteers around the world. The Center would also like to thank the Jane Henson Foundation and the Jim Henson Foundation. 

“The Center is deeply grateful to the Hensons, the Lettie Pate Evans Foundation , the David, Helen, and Marian Woodward Fund, the Dinos family and to everyone who has offered support to the Center during this difficult and uncertain time. We believe the Center will emerge from this better and stronger than ever” said Beth Schiavo, Executive Director of the Center for Puppetry Arts. 

In addition to its Digital Learning offerings, the Center is open for business with Very Merry Holiday Celebration that includes live on-site performances of Stan the Lovesick Snowman, Create-A-Puppet Workshops™, and a holiday special exhibit in the Museum featuring characters from iconic holiday films includingRudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer™, Emmet Otter’s Jug Band Christmas and more. The Center has updated safety measures and processes in accordance with CDC guidelines in order to minimize safety concerns for patrons and employees alike. This special holiday programming runs through January 3^rd, 2021.