The Nashville Public Library Presents the 2013 Nashville International Puppet Festival, Beginning 6/21

This summer, renowned puppeteers and performers from all over the world will make their way to the Nashville Public Library for the 2013 Nashville International Puppet Festival, underwritten by the Nashville Public Library Foundation and the Nashville Public Library.

The festival - free and open to the public - will run from Friday, June 21, through Sunday, June 23, and will transform the library and surrounding area into a vibrant, family-friendly carnival featuring puppet performances, live music and an outdoor street fair.

"We have a top-tier library system, and this festival will be like no other happening anywhere else in the country this summer," said Nashville Mayor Karl Dean. "This one-of-a-kind festival will showcase our library and our city to 25,000 visitors from around the country and the world."

The library hosTed Nashville's first international puppet festival in 2008, which attracted more than 18,000 people. New this year for the second International Puppet Festival is the Puppet Festival Parade. The parade will wind down Church Street through the Arts District and feature performers with stilts, unicycles, floats, vintage cars and puppets.

"Whether you are 45 years old or 5 years old, you will enjoy the International Puppet Festival," said library director Kent Oliver. "Between puppet shows, workshops, food, music, the parade and evening performances, you will connect with something. And that is what we are all about - offering services that connect everyone to reading."

The marionette tradition began at the Nashville Public Library in 1938 when Tom Tichenor performed a rendition of "Puss in Boots." Seventy-five years later, marionette shows are still performed at the downtown library on Friday and Saturday mornings by Wishing Chair Productions, the library's very own puppet troupe.

Tickets for the International Puppet Festival are free, but limited. Beginning May 9, attendees may reserve tickets online in advance atwww.nashvillepuppetfestival.com for a convenience fee of $2.50 per ticket. The Nashville Public Library is located at 615 Church Street in downtown Nashville.

In addition to the festival, the library will hold two special events in collaboration with the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum and Tennessee Performing Arts Center. String City: Nashville's Tradition of Music and Puppetry, a colorful telling of the history of country music in Nashville, will take place Thursday, June 20 at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. A pre-show reception will take place at 7:00 p.m. followed by the show at 8:00 p.m.

String City tickets are available now for a $30 per person donation online at nashvillepuppetfestival.com, by calling 888-516-5554, or at the door.

On Saturday June 22, TPAC will present a performance by world renowned puppeteer Phillip Huber. Known for his work with marionettes in "Being John Malkovich" and in Disney's "Oz, The Great and Powerful," Huber will perform "Suspended Animation." A pre-show reception will take place at 7:00 p.m. followed by the show at 8:00 p.m.

Tickets for Suspended Animation are available now for a $30 in advance online at nashvillepuppetfestival.com, by calling 888-516-5554, or for $40 at the door. Recommended for ages 16 and up.

To post a comment, you must register and login.