Puppets Go International!

There are many performances throughout the year that we look forward to, and the International Festival at UNC Charlotte is one of the top ones on that list. We have had the privilege of performing at the International Festival for many years, and every year there is something new to see and do. There's great food, great entertainment, and a slew of great arts and crafts from around the world. It's fun for the whole family!

Come out to see us perform at the International Festival this Saturday, September 26th! We'll be at the Barnhardt Student Activity Center performing Tangle of Tales at 1:00 and 3:00. Visit their website to see a full schedule of events. Admission is free! We'd love to see you there!

Getting our Friends at the NBA Ready for the New Season!

Fall is always a busy time around the Grey Seal workshop, as we help our NBA clients get ready for their new season. Right now we are hard at work getting our friend Hugo from the New Orleans Hornets in top shape so that he can greet his fans! (Um, Hugo? Do you always greet your fans by hanging them upside down?)

By the way, have you seen the new team color that the Hornets debuted last year? You can check it out on their official website. Hugo is now looking good in Creole Blue!

We're also getting our hometown hero Rufus Lynx of the Charlotte Bobcats ready for his debut.

Rufus is one of the coolest cats we know, and he's got some cool surprises up his sleeve for his fans this Fall! Keep an eye out here and we might be able to give you a little glimpse of what you might see at one of the Bobcats games!

Interested in having a character designed for your organization? Contact us today at workshop@greysealpuppets.com or give us a call at 704-521-2878. Let us show you that our characters mean business!

Fall Schedule is Filling Up!

Fall is in the air! School is back is session, and it's the perfect time to book Grey Seal for an appearance!

Grey Seal Puppets performs over 250 shows a year in schools, theatres, and libraries. Our repertoire includes everything from familiar stories to original works—each uniquely staged and presented. Interested in having us come to your school? We have teachers’ study guides available for all our productions.

Grey Seal Puppets performs nationwide at such prestigious theatres as The Smithsonian Institution, The Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Center for Puppetry Arts in Atlanta. We've also been honored with the N.C. Theatre Arts Award, the Puppeteers of America President’s Award, and three UNIMA-USA Citations of Excellence in Puppetry.

You can find a list of all our current touring shows on our website. Why wait another minute? Contact us today at info@greysealpuppets.com or give us a call at 704-521-2878!

Summer Ends With A Bang!

Whew! It was a busy summer for Grey Seal!

The workshop was hopping all summer finishing a big project for Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines. RCCL is launching a brand new ship this Fall called Oasis of the Seas. There will be several parades on board ship, and Grey Seal had the opportunity to help construct props for one of those parades. Stay tuned to our blog to see some photos!

Drew spent the first week of July at PuppetFest Midwest in Trenton, MO. PuppetFest Midwest is an independent puppet festival in an intimate setting, where puppeteers can study in-depth techniques such as performance and puppet building, as well as see performances by some of the best puppeteers around.

Drew performed The Emperor's New Clothes and led a workshop called "Advanced Adventures In Polyfoam Puppet Construction!" Participants built their own "Nip and Tuck" puppet heads, as well as learned how to make moving eyes and other moving puppet features. It was a great way to start off the month!

The following week found us tucked into the charming Downstairs Theatre at Atlanta’s phenomenal Center for Puppetry Arts for a week-long run (17 performances!) of our adaptation of the Andersen classic, The Emperor’s New Clothes.

Grey Seal’s Drew Allison did three performances a day and hoped his voice and arms and shoulders would survive the run. Survive they did as we enjoyed sold-out audiences throughout the week. Everyone on the Center Staff was simply amazing to work with and Drew was particularly thankful for his great stage manager for the run, Gillian, who was always so upbeat and wonderful and made the shows a pleasure to perform.

The National Puppet Festival was also taking place in Atlanta, at nearby Georgia Tech. Drew took advantage of this awesome opportunity and made his way over to the Festival each evening in time for dinner after the final performance of the day at the Center. Drew saw an amazing array of wonderful performances throughout the week. He also caught up with longtime puppeteer friends and made some new ones as well.

July wrapped up with a week of performances in Fairfax County, Virginia. Drew performed Salsa Cinderella 13 times in four days at libraries all over the county! Whew! Drew said it was a challenge to do three performances with three different setups and strikes each day, but the performances were well-spaced out and all went well and it was a lot of fun. He had great audiences who were very multi-cultural and savvy. It was a great week!

But there's no rest for the weary at Grey Seal! This Fall promises to be a busy one. Keep up with all our latest news by subscribing to our news feed. It's easy-- just click on subscribe in the column on the right. You'll be glad you did!

Tangle of Tales Earns Three MTA Nominations!

We're so honored that Tangle of Tales has been nominated for three Metrolina Theatre Awards! The categories are Special Event: Outstanding Original Play, Special Event: Outstanding Production, and Special Event: Other Exemplary Performance/Element for Drew Allison (Puppeteer). You can see a full list of nominees at the Metrolina Theatre Association's website.

The Metrolina Theatre Association, representing more than 50 organizations, along with hundreds of theatrical artists, directors, and producers in the Charlotte region, will hold the sixth annual Metrolina Theatre Awards, recognizing excellence in theatre.

The show will be presented on Sunday evening, September 20, in the McGlohon Theatre in Spirit Square. More than 350 people attended the 2008 awards event. This year’s awards ceremony will feature scenes from some of the top-rated shows of the past theatre season.

The Metrolina Theatre Awards recognize outstanding performances and creative elements in 7 categories (Drama, Comedy, Musical, Regional–North, Regional–South, College/University, and Special Event). This year, there will be around 90 recipients. MTA organizes more than 80 peer nominators; this year, MTA nominators attended 105 adjudicated shows, submitting thousands of nominations. They then complete a preliminary ballot to select the award nominees. The final vote is certified by an independent accountant, and winners are announced at the awards ceremony.