Puppet Building Office Hours with James Ortiz, May 17, 2026
Live via Zoom
Puppet Building Office Hours is a monthly, community-centered space designed to support the builders and makers in our field—whether you’re just starting out, experimenting with new materials, or refining a long-standing practice.
Each session features a guest host who is a well-established, versatile puppet builder working in the industry today. These artists frequently join us directly from their home or professional studio spaces, offering a rare behind-the-scenes look at real-world puppet-building practices.
This is not a lecture or a polished demo—it’s an open, conversational office hour where you can:
- Ask questions about materials, tools, and techniques
- Get feedback on works-in-progress
- Learn how professional builders problem-solve in their own studios
- Connect with other puppet makers in a supportive environment
Our goal is to create access—to knowledge, to artists, and to the kind of practical insight that often only comes from years of hands-on experience.
Accessibility & Pricing
We believe this resource should be accessible to as many makers as possible.
- Sessions begin at $15
Participants are invited to pay what they can beyond that amount if they’re able
Your contribution helps us continue to fairly compensate guest artists and sustain this offering for the community.
Who it’s for
Puppet builders, makers, designers, and artists at all levels
Come as you are. Bring your questions, your curiosity, and your in-progress ideas. Puppet Building Office Hours is about learning together—and keeping the craft moving forward.
ABOUT THE INSTRUCTOR
James Ortiz is a director, performer and designer who has been lucky enough to create puppetry all over the world. His Milky White for the Broadway revival of Into the Woods as well as his dinosaurs from Lincoln Center’s The Skin of Our Teeth have become fan favorites and tattoos! Most recently: El Niño (Metropolitan Opera) Wrinkle in Time (Arena Stage) Three Houses (Signature Theatre), Disney’s Hercules (Papermill Playhouse, Neue Flora Hamburg), Poor Yella Rednecks (ACT SF), Candide (Skylight Music Theatre), Kiss my Aztec (Hartford Stage). Additional credits include: The Kennedy Center, The Public Theater, City Center, the MUNY, Carnegie Melon, Dallas Theatre Center, Yale Rep, Theatre for a New Audience, Shakespeare Theatre of DC, Ars Nova, and New World Stages. 2022 Drama Desk winner for his designs in Skin of our Teeth. 2016 OBIE winner for puppetry design for his off-Broadway creation, The Woodsman. American Theatre magazine of “Six Theatre Workers you Should Know” in 2020. 2022 Drama Desk winner for Skin of our Teeth. James’s original Milky White puppet can now be found on display at the Museum of Broadway. Upcoming: Lincoln in the Bardo (Met Opera) and the film Project Hail Mary starring Ryan Gosling (Amazon MGM Studios) www.jamesortiz.co