At Pelham Puppets Online we are always very interested in anyone who still uses Pelham Puppets in a professional show, this is the story of one such company.

Rediscovering a Childhood Hobby

by Elizabeth Cooper, Ontario, Canada

While folding laundry in my basement this past fall, I looked up and saw an old cardboard box perched in solitude on a high shelf. Marked on the side was the word "Marionettes". I began to fondly reminisce about the times in the mid 70's when my father would take my family to Toronto on a holiday. I couldn't wait to get there, for on the third floor of the Simpsons store was the toy department - more importantly, the marionette puppet display of Pelham puppets. I always loved hand puppets and had performed many shows to politely obliging family members through a cut-out hole in a cardboard box. But I could have stood for hours at that store watching a balding, old man demonstrate the Britain-made marvels on strings. The first year I bought a small boy and named him Willy. The next year I saved a little more money and bought a giant named Gronk. The year after I bought a bottle-toting Scotsman named MacBoozle; and, after some persuasion (and probably a little whining), my mother chipped in for the beautiful black French poodle I named Gidget.

I was only 10 years old but had quickly become known for my marionette puppet shows in school. I could always be seen toting those bright yellow boxes made in Marlborough. Yet, after a few years, I reached my early teens and the puppets seemed no longer important. After saying goodbye, I carefully packed them up in a box and got on with more "grown up" things.

Now, here I am about 20 years and two children later. I had never wanted to get my puppets out of their safe cardboard home for fear that my two small boys would want to play with them and tangle their strings. Now it was time. I wanted to get them out and reintroduce myself to them. I wanted to play with them. I wanted to put on a play with them.

My debut was in November 1999 at my church's Christmas bazaar. I borrowed a lovely hand-made theatre from a friend, purchased a "mother" marionette from a local toy shop (not nearly the high quality of a Pelham) and put on "Jack and the Beanstalk." During rehearsals, my husband kept my one-year-old son at bay and my four-year-old provided enthusiastic direction. The show was a smashing success - although you don't get much criticism from Sunday School students!

Today I am performing with a great theatre my husband made for me and operate under the name 'Pea Pod Productions".

I have increased my repertoire, consisting mainly of classic fairy tales, and put on shows for children at my local library and schools. I also have done a workshop at a museum about storytelling with marionettes.

My family of Pelhams has also grown - although not near as big as some collectors! When feeling abundant with cash, I visit ebay. But I get the best deals as a member of the Pelham Puppet Collectors Club. I am not particular about having the signature yellow box, nor do my stringed actors need to be in mint condition. I have also become a member of Ontario Puppetry Association, and am now the group's newsletter editor.

Puppetry isn't just for professionals. It is also for people like me - people who love to make a little bit of wood, cloth, and strings come to life.

The photo above shows me (in the middle) after doing "The Selfish Giant" in March 2002. The picture was taken at the Wyoming Public Library in Wyoming, Ontario, Canada. - a very small town in southern Ontario. The crowd was only about 40 people. That day I had my 6-year-old son help me do the show, but I usually have two other young girls help me (13 years old).

I had done a show the night before here in Stratford at the Public Library to an audience of 120! After the show I stand out front of my theatre and give a talk about the history of Pelham Puppets and how the puppets are made, etc. Both kids and parents find it very interesting. Then I get two or three volunteers from the audience to come up front and I show them how to manipulate them. I always get great feedback from the shows.