Chicagoans can now order puppetry and art instead of flowers to send to friends and loved ones during quarantine.
Like a singing telegram, live, Pop-Up Puppet-Grams can now be ordered via chicagopuppetfest.org, the website of the Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival.
Deliveries start Tuesday, July 7. Delivery days are Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays. Pick a time window – 10 a.m.-Noon, 1-3 p.m. or 5-8 p.m. – and your lucky recipient will get a live, personal, five-minute puppet show delivered right to their front door, porch, lobby or yard.
Pop-Up Puppet-Grams are a great gift to mark special occasions like birthdays, anniversaries, graduation celebrations and surprise parties. They also make particularly memorable gifts for anyone in your life that loves Chicago theater.
In July, the Pop-Up Puppet-Gram stars Chicago puppeteer Mark Blashford performing Doorstep Marionette, a delightful puppet show featuring a tiny, talented cowboy artist. As part of the show, Blashford’s puppet paints a little picture, which he gives to the recipient as a Puppet-Gram keepsake.
The Pop-Up Puppet-Gram delivery fee is $75. To allow for multiple deliveries each day, Puppet-Grams can be sent within the city of Chicago and to several nearby suburbs. Note: Blashford wears a mask and performs at least six feet away to allow for social distancing.
For delivery boundaries, more details and to schedule a Pop-Up Puppet-Gram, visit chicagopuppetfest.org.
Pop-Up Puppet-Grams are a new program from the Chicago International Puppet Theater Festival, a non-profit organization founded by Chicago master puppeteer Blair Thomas to establish Chicago as a prominent center for the art of puppetry and advance the form. It is a pilot project intended to keep local puppeteers active and working during Chicago’s COVID-19 reopening plans.
For the latest updates, visit chicagopuppetfest.org, follow the festival on Facebook at facebook.com/ChicagoInternationalPuppetTheaterFestival, on Instagram at instagram.com/chipuppetfest and on Twitter @ChiPuppetFest.
Follow Mark Blashford's work on Instagram: @rootstockpuppet.