What to Know
- Skirball Puppet Festival at the Skirball Cultural Center
- Sunday, April 16 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- $18 general; walk-ups only (no advance reservations remaining)
Once upon a time, not so long ago, P-22, the legendary large cat that once roamed Griffith Park while regally ruling our collective imagination, was but a tiny, mewling, roly-poly cub.
We'll never know exactly what the mountain lion looked like when he was just a wee and whiskery whippersnapper. But for those locals who are missing the local icon following his recent passing, meeting a P-22 marionette may be the sort of uplifting interaction they seek.
Not every wild animal receives such an adorable ode, but the Natural History Museum's Performing Arts Team wanted to salute the celebrity, bringing him to "life" in a whimsical but respectful way.
Get Southern California news, weather forecasts and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC LA newsletters.
You can see the P-22 marionette, and an array of other incredible creatures, at the Skirball Cultural Center's popular Puppet Festival on Sunday, April 16.
The annual event is always a huge draw for families, art fans, and lovers of the offbeat, as any puppet-loving person might expect. Advance tickets are now sold out but walk-ups will be open that day.
Beyond saying "hello" to the little string-rocking cub, there will be plentiful puppet-based interactions, including a show-and-tell session with the LA Puppetry Guild, an appearance by Rasputin's Marionettes, and a thrilling performance by UCLA's ACA Lion Dancers.
The Scene
Want to find new things to do in Los Angeles? The Scene's lifestyle stories have you covered. Here's your go-to source on where the fun is across SoCal and for the weekend.
Roaming puppets, places to make your own magical puppets, and a spotlight on shadow puppetry are also on the vibrant schedule.
And participating in a puppet-led procession? Keep an eye out for strange beasties atop stilts and the other wondrous sights of the "Animal Cracker Conspiracy: Transmythical."
The full and festive schedule is live on the Skirball Cultural Center site.
And speaking of "live" things? You'd be correct in saying that a ready-to-be-animated figure, the sort that sits on a hand or is operated by strings, isn't truly alive.
But such artworks are imbued with a fanciful life force by their talented human operators, at least for a few moments.
Watching a puppet come to life is an inspirational and slightly otherworldly act that has spanned the centuries and continues to delight us, kids and adults alike.
