What to Know
- World Puppetry Day is March 21
- The Bob Baker Marionette Theater in Highland Park is open for in-person weekend performances; $20 per guest
- Bob Baker Day will frolic at LA State Historic Park on Saturday, April 9; admission is free
So you share a home with a puppet person?
As in, the sort of bright-minded human who loves to make sandwiches speak, and the couch cushions sing, and finds a vibrant voice for every item displayed in the den?
You could say, with some serious confidence, that every single day of the year qualifies as World Puppetry Day under your roof, if you're among people who long to turn every object into a colorful character.
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But, according to official calendars, the actual occasion only arrives on one specific day, which is March 21.
That feels like an especially festive date for a holiday devoted to characters we wear on our hands or bring to life via strings (just to name a few routes to making puppets live). It does fall at the start of springtime, after all, and puppets are certainly some of the most fluttery and flittery and frolicsome figures you'll ever encounter.
If you're longing for a cute connection to the puppet realm before March 21 concludes, and draws an end to World Puppet Day, then dance over to your nearest calendar and circle April 9.
That's when Bob Baker Day, a free event celebrating the life and legacy of the esteemed puppeteer, as well as several local performers and artists, will caper at LA State Historic Park.
Beloved Disney Imagineer Bob Gurr (indeed, the legend behind the Haunted Mansion's Doom Buggies) will serve as the outdoor party's grand marshal.
Bozo the Clown, bubble magic, exquisite opera, a host of whimsical vendors, treats 'n eats available for purchase, and a plethora of playful puppets will add a sweet spirit to the spring Saturday.
A Saturday that prances just a couple of weeks after World Puppetry Day, which feels just right to us.
So did you find your calendar, to write down Bob Baker Day on April 9?
Did you make your calendar talk, too, by quickly flapping its cover up and down with your hands?
Puppet people are everywhere, adding life to all sorts of things, in order to raise the general state of ebullience in our everyday worlds.
If you're among those whimsical souls, be at Bob Baker Day, at LA State Historic Park, on April 9.
No strings attached: This really is free, and you don't need reservations.
But, of course, do show at the event with funds for food or any buyables you like.