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| Allan Stevens - Puppet
Master/Founding Director/Board President |
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While
working with the Smithsonian Institution’s Division
of Performing Arts in the 1970’s, Mr. Stevens was
Director of the Children’s Theater on the Mall,
first Director of the Smithsonian touring puppet theater,
and was for four years director of the Smithsonian’s
resident puppet theater. His puppet figures have been
displayed in major galleries across the country, including
the Rapunzel exhibit at National Museum of Women in the
Arts in 2001. He has participated in more than 15,000
theatrical performances as producer, designer, director,
and/or actor, with special emphasis on family audiences.
He is co-founder of the Puppet Co. and was recently artistic
director of the Puppeteers of America Regional Festival
held in July 2002 in Bryn Mawr, PA. |
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| Christopher Piper - Puppet
Master/Founding Director/Board Vice President |
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A
born tinkerer, Christopher Piper has always worked with
the magic of animation and illusion. As a boy, he assisted
his parents not only with the creation and performance
of their puppet productions, but later with the building
of custom animated fun houses, “dark rides”
and displays. In co-founding the Puppet Co., he established
a showplace for his writing, musical, sculpting and mechanical
talents, and a laboratory in which to research new techniques
using computers and electronics in his craft. He has just
completed two terms as Mid-Atlantic Regional Director
of Puppeteers of America. In this capacity he was liaison
between the Board of Directors of Puppeteers of America
and the puppetry Guilds located in Maryland, the District
of Columbia, Virginia, New York City and Long Island,
Eastern Pennsylvania, and Delaware. He has received a
number of awards for his graphic design and computer generated
visuals. |
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MayField Piper -
Puppet Master/Founding Director/Board Treasurer/Business
Manager |
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As
proprietress of a successful costume and specialty sewing
business, her skills in training personnel were honed
on large and unusual projects such as fabricating hundreds
of giant release bags for the Hula Bowl half-time show
balloon release, and the assembly of nearly a thousand
Renaissance costumes for Hawaii’s Saint James Court
Heritage Faire. Joining the Puppet Co. as a costumer and
performer, she proved her knack for logistics; hiring
and supervising the right people for the job, and finding
the best sources for the often-bizarre materials required
in productions. MayField is a graduate of the University
of Hawaii, specializing in drama and theater. |
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| John McAnistan - Box Office
Manager |
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Puppetry
was not on John’s mind while he pursued his education
in theater arts at the University of Massachusetts at
Amherst and De Paul University in Chicago. It was only
after his stint in the military that he began his career
in puppetry. His widely varied professional experiences
range from the Suzari Marionettes in New York City, through
Sid and Marty Krofft in Las Vegas, and for 20 years with
Bob Brown Puppet Productions in Alexandria, Virginia.
He is a long time board member of the National Capital
Puppetry Guild and was co-director of the Mid-Atlantic/Northeastern
Regional Festival of Puppeteers of America at George Mason
University in 1998. |
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| Irene Valines - House Manager
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Irene joined us in late 2002,
just in time for all the moving around, first to the interim
theater, and soon to our brand new Playhouse. She is a
Girl Scout leader and a columnist for her local newspaper. |
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