We are thrilled about the future of Heart of the Beast (HOBT) and are eager to share with you the reasons why:
- HOBT Board & Staff have just completed a 3-year Strategic Plan that will serve as a blueprint for the future direction of the organization.
- The Avalon Theatre is being refreshed with a major clean-up of spaces to serve artists and administrative staff after two years of remote work and virtual-only programming
- We will launch a one of a kind Puppet and Mask Library to be housed at the Avalon this winter
- Artists will be commissioned for participation in a Puppet Fashion Show to take place on the Avalon Stage in early Spring
- The public will have the chance to learn and participate in puppet arts through upcoming workshops and classes. More opportunities for teaching artists will occur in collaboration with community partners.
Your gift is vital. Can you contribute today? Ask your employers to match your gift to HOBT and double your impact!
Your donation ensures that the work of HOBT will continue to advance in light of our newly restated mission:
To nurture creative empowerment through the joy and magic of puppetry performance and education.
Image Description: Malia Araki Burkhart, Nurture, 2022. This painting displays two people with hands outstretched towards each other. In between them is soil and green plants growing, a cloud with a heart at the center rains down on the plants. The painting is framed with black and reads "Nurture."
A Look Back: More JOY in 2022
Image Description: A slideshow of five photos. Photo #1 shows three bee puppets running in the Walker Sculpture Garden taken by Carina Lofgren, courtesy of the Walker Art Center. Photo #2 shows 4 high school students paper mache-ing a dragon head inside Henry High's auditorium. Photo #3 shows puppeteers in The Impact Theory of Mass Extinction engaged in a chase scene using colorful table top puppetry. Photo #4 shows Impact Theory puppeteers on stage carrying purple and green leaves on sticks, lunging forward (both by Uche Iroegbu). Photo #5 depicts HOBT giant yellow bird puppets inside the rotunda of the capitol at a rally. Photo #6 shows the Medicine Woman puppet Mojiganga in the 2022 mayday crowd made by Kalpulli Ketzal Coatlicue, El Colegio students, and Gustavo Boada.
- The 2022 MayDay Festival artfully transitioned into local community celebrations fusing HOBT values of deep listening, access, inclusion, and self-determination—over 4,000 community members participated
- Our full production of Junauda Petrus-Nasah’s The Impact Theory of Mass Extinction drew nearly 1,000 delighted patrons to the Avalon, and employed 16 established and emerging artists of diverse identities
- Artist collaborations with the Minnesota Orchestra, Walker Art Center, and MIA and residencies at schools and community partners.
YOU are an important part of this work. Help sustain us moving forward with a donation.