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Bu Dai Xi Shows with Galapagos Puppets and Jimmy Zhao Chinese Music Ensemble

Temple Master, buns, Monster

The Monster King thinks he is about to eat delicious buns filled with all the food in the village. But Monkey King and the mighty Pig Ju Ba-jie are trying to trick him so he can’t take the villagers’ food. Madeleine Beresford and I will perform this suspenseful episode of the Chinese epic Journey to the West with the Jimmy Zhao Chinese Music Ensemble on January 11 at Temple Emmanuel of Wakefield. Hope you’ll join us!

“The Ice River”: A Journey to the West Puppet Show,  January 11, 2pm, Temple Emmanuel of Wakefield, 120 Chestnut St., Wakefield, MA. Tickets: $15.  More information: https://wakefieldtemple.org/

In February our group– me, Madeleine Beresford and the Jimmy Zhao Chinese Music Ensemble — will celebrate the Year of the Horse with another episode of Journey to the West:

“The Fiery Mountain and Its Princess”: A Monkey King Tale at Puppet Showplace Theater, 32 Station St., Brookline, MA, February 14 to 17. For times and tickets: https://www.puppetshowplace.org/calendar/2026/02/14/the-fiery-mountain-and-its-princess-a-monkey-king-tale-by-galapagos-puppets

Iron Fan Princess
Monkey battles a blazing fire

 

 

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You’re INvited. . .

Please join me for a puppet show this fall! These shows are open to everyone:

October 25, 2 pm: “Alice, or the Red King’s Dream,” performed by Dream Tale Puppets Freedom Hall, 976 Main St., Cotuit, MA. Free admission. More information: https://dreamtalepuppets.org/

  • Pam Shanley, me, and Peter Lehman in “Growing Things”
  • “Alice, or the Red King’s Dream”

November 8, Arlington Open Studios, Arlington Center for the Arts, 20 Academy St., 3rd floor.                                                                                                      Morning, time TBD: “Growing Things,” a tale of planting hay and cheese! Performed with Pam Shanley  and musician Peter Lehman.        Afternoon, time TBD: “Badger Meets the Fairies,” a gentle tale of a badger who wants to learn to fly. Both shows are free, best for ages 3 to 10.

Skimpa the troll makes toast

December 6-7, Puppet Showplace Theater, 32 Station St., Brookline, MA., 10:30am & 1pm                                                                                                             “The Trolls and the Tree,” an environmental fable for ages 4 to 12. Performed with Ann Wynne as Squirrel and musician Peter Lehman. Tickets available at puppetshowplace.org

December 13, 3:30pm , Arlington Heights “Holiday Stroll”      Performance at Kumon Math & Reading Center, 1343 Mass Ave., Arlington. “Taking Turns,” featuring Doggie and Mathilda, free.

 

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What the Puppets Did on Summer Vacation

Pam Shanley, me, and Peter Lehman in “Growing Things”
The Trolls and the Tree at Somerville Community Growing Center
“Alice” with Dream Tale Puppets

The puppets went to the Somerville Growing Center,  Lesley Ellis School, Woods Hole Community Hall, and lots of day care centers and preschool camps. Meeting all the children and teachers was joyous!

We made a lot of puppets together, starting at Kwong Kou Chinese School camp, and ending at Arlington Center for the Arts Vacation Arts Camp.

Making puppets at Kwong Kou Chinese language camp
A lizard at sunrise, ACA camp
Flying creatures, ACA camp

I miss summer already!

Those trolls on the move

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The Trolls at the Growing Center

Time to rehearse! Trolls Skimpa and Blompa will  present “The Trolls and the Tree” at Somerville Community Growing Center on June 2nd. Looking back at the first photos of Ann Wynne, Peter Lehman and I  working on this green-themed show, we’re wearing masks.  We developed the show during the pandemic and only performed outside — at Arlington EcoFest, at Lexington Community Farm, at Old Schwamb Mill. Rehearsing is easier when you’re not afraid of getting sick.

“The Trolls and the Tree” — making toast

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Doggie and Mathilda at Mystic Open Studio

the bouncy house!
Taking Turns
neighbors

I hope you’ll join me and Marina Strauss this Saturday at 10 am for a fun puppet show, hands-on puppet play — and the joy of creating a puppet with Marina!

“Taking Turns” features two neighbors who don’t want to take turns, and a lot of gentle humor. It’s best for families with children ages 3 to 8. Registration for the show + puppetmaking package is $15: https://www.mysticopenstudio.com/service-page/puppet-play-and-make-your-own-2-8-10?referral=service_list_widget

Mystic Open Studio, 785 Massachusetts Avenue, Arlington MA

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“The Ice River: A Monkey King Story” with Bu Dai Xi and Chinese Folk Music

 

Temple Master and Monk Tang

Temple Master and Monk Tang
Buns offered to the Monster King
Monkey King and Monster

 

A wily river monster is causing  a lot of trouble. He demands that villagers put all their food into two giant buns for his delight, and he won’t let the Monk Tang and disciples cross his river.  Can the Monkey King and fellow disciples banish the monster and continue their journey? I hope you’ll join me for this action-packed episode of Journey to the West performed with acrobatic Bu Dai Xi puppetry. I’ll be performing with Galapagos Puppets and the Jimmy Zhao Chinese Folk Music Ensemble.

February 1 at 10 am, Acton Memorial Library, free performance : https://actonmemoriallibrary.assabetinteractive.com/calendar/journey-to-the-west-puppet-show-hold/

This performance was made possible with the generous support of Acton-Boxborough Cultural Council, a local agency of Massachusetts Cultural Council.

January 25 – 26, Puppet Showplace Theater, Brookline, MA: https://www.puppetshowplace.org/calendar/2025/01/25/the-ice-river-a-monkey-king-tale-by-galapagos-puppets

 

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Winter, Winter

Badger Meets the Fairies on Saturday, December 14 at 3:45 pm, Wonder Yoga, 1305  Massachusetts Avenue, Arlington

There’s a lot of holiday cheer at the Arlington Heights Holiday Stroll. Come join me for a gentle tale of Mr. Badger, who helps the fairies with a building project. Then it’s complicated: the fairies won’t use cement and Mr. Badger wants to learn to fly. A 35-minute show, so you can get to the tree lighting on time!  Admission free, best for ages 4 and up. 

MORE SHOWS COMING UP:
The Ice River, a Monkey King story with Jimmy Zhao Music Ensemble, Puppet Showplace Theater, January 25 & 26,

 

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“Growing Things” at LexFarm

Growing things takes a lot of sunshine, rain — and time. Puppet shows grow best with support, helpful ideas — and time. Over the past year I’ve been an Artist-in-Residence at Lexington Community Farm, working with Education Director Rachel Curtin to create “Growing Things,” a Cow and Mouse fable about sustainable growing. Rachel patiently shared her work teaching children about how plants grow. And her daughter contributed a plot twist that kept the show interesting: Cow plants hay, while his friend Mouse plants cheese.

At our first programs in May at LexFarm and at Fox Library,  I presented the first 3 scenes. Children planted seeds with Rachel. In summer, I performed the second section, where the cheese still hasn’t sprouted, at LexFarm.  Children picked cucumbers and tomatoes with Rachel. At each program I got to hear a lot from the audience about what was funny, what was interesting, and what needed to be trimmed.

The children’s reactions helped build the show we were happy to present in full in the LexFarm garden on October 19th. Thanks to Peter Lehman for  lively mandolin accompaniment, to Pam Shanley for performing a wicked funny Cousin Rat, and to EVERYONE at LexFarm.

This puppet show was created with generous support from Arlington Commission on Arts & Culture Grants Committee, and the Massachusetts Cultural Council, and we are grateful.

 

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Summer Shows

Please join me and my performing partners for these summer shows:

Alice, or the Red King’s Dream based on “Alice in Wonderland” and “Through the Looking Glass, performed by Dream Tale Puppets on: July 12 at 5pm, Woods Hole Community Hall ($10); July 16 at 1pm, Chatham Public LIbrary, free.  More: https://dreamtalepuppets.org/shows/alice/

The Trolls and the Tree: An Environmental Fable, featuring Ann Wynne as Squirrel, me playing trolls and fairies, and Peter Lehman on lute. July 18 at 3pm, Medford Public Library, free. More: https://medfordlibrary.org/event/the-trolls-and-the-tree-ages-4/

The Ice River: a Journey to the West story performed by Madeleine Beresford and me with Bu Dai Xi puppetry, and live music by the Jimmy Zhao Chinese Music Ensemble. July 29 at 7pm, Puppet Showplace Theater, free.

Planting Time: Cow and Mouse in the Garden, August 14 at 5:30, Lexington Community Farm. Join me and LexFarm Education Director Rachel Curtin to find out if the cheese has grown in Mouse’s garden, and for a fun hands-on garden activity.

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Puppets and Planting, April 27 at Arlington Ecofest

Puppets and Planting on Saturday, April 27, 3:30 pm at Fox Library

Join me and Rachel Curtin, Lexington Community Farm Education (LexFarm) Director for a free Ecofest program where puppets plant new seeds — and so can you. As this year’s resident artist at LexFarm, I’m working on a new show featuring Cow — who wants to plant hay — and Mouse, who plants her favorite food. I will perform a part of the new show, Rachel will lead planting, and we’ll have time for children to try out puppets.

little journeys

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