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Kids’ & puppet theater / Midtown (Cass Corridor)

PuppetART Detroit Puppet Theater

We couldn’t confirm it’s still running in 2026. Call or check its official site before you go.

A Detroit puppet theater since 1995, founded by European-trained puppet artists: world folktales told with hand, rod, shadow and marionette puppets. These days it mostly tours schools, libraries and community spaces.

Two puppeteers in colourful tulle wigs with a fox puppet and a Kolobok puppet on an autumn forest set

PuppetART Detroit Puppet Theater · Photo from the venue’s official website

Quick facts

Opened
1995
Resident companies
PuppetART

What makes it special: Hand, rod, shadow, floor, tabletop and marionette puppetry; a repertoire of eleven productions based on world fairytales and folktales; school residencies and apprenticeships.

01 / Playbill

Now on stage

Nothing on our calendar from this venue right now. Its full, current lineup is on its own site.

Full lineup on the venue’s site ↗

02 / The story of this place

Make time for these

PuppetART goes back to a 1990 meeting in Southeast Michigan of three European-trained puppet artists: Luda Mikheyenko, Irina Baranovskaya and Igor Gozman. They founded the American Russian Theater in 1995 and renamed it PuppetART – the Detroit Puppet Theater in 1999. By September 2017 they had given 2,276 shows for more than 123,000 children and almost 70,000 adults, with titles like Kolobok, Firebird, Snow Queen and Sleeping Beauty. That last one is a marionette ballet that won the 2015 Wilde Award for best theatre for young audiences. Today the company mainly tours its productions to schools, libraries and community venues.

  • Eleven shows built on world fairytales and folktales
  • 2,276 performances by September 2017
  • Wilde Award-winning marionette ballet Sleeping Beauty

Plan your visit

We couldn't confirm that PuppetART is giving public performances in 2026, so call (313) 961-7777 or check puppetart.org before you go. These days the company mostly plays schools, libraries and community venues.

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