A few years ago one of our Wallis Board Members, Steve Cochran, shared a remarkable story. As a young boy in Arkansas he remembers seeing a wonderful marionette show by Stevens Puppets. Stevens Puppets was founded in 1933 by the Peabody Award winning Martin Stevens, preeminent American puppeteer and founder of the Puppeteers of America. With his wife, Margi, Mr. Stevens created ground-breaking touring marionette shows which are featured in books, in museums, and on tour. Flash forward to 2017 and Cochran reconnects on Facebook with Zan Raynor. It turns out Steve and Zan had met at a summer camp many years earlier. The twist is that Zan, now an adult with kids of her own, and her husband Dan Raynor took over and now own Stevens Puppets where they carry forward this artistic legacy.
Upon hearing this story, The Wallis was inspired to bring Stevens Puppets to Beverly Hills in early 2018 for “Aladdin.” Thanks to generous support from Steve Cochran and Dan Clivner, we were able to bring them back to The Wallis in November, 2018 for “Beauty and the Beast” and then again in March, 2019 with their brand new show “Goldilocks and The Three Bears.” In addition to their free public performances at The Wallis, we were also able to bring these terrific shows to several Los Angeles area schools.
The story reminds us it is a very small world indeed. It underscores the importance of “playing it forward” and passing along to a new generation those artistic experiences that inspired us as kids. It is also a source of hope. In a world where kids are immersed in digital technologies, there is still something enthralling about seeing hand-carved wooden puppets come to life from the pull of a string.
For more information: https://www.stevenspuppets.com/about/