About the Event

Take a peek behind the curtain and inside the creative process! Hear from five talented artists about the works-in-progress they’ve been building during Puppet Showplace’s Creative Residency for Black Puppeteers, a six-month Zoom-based residency that connects creators from across the country to build community and support during the development of new works!

The 2025 cohort will discuss their work, process, challenges, and discoveries at this midpoint sharing on Zoom, hosted by the program’s Community Curator, Tanya Nixon-Silberg and Project Mentor, Charlotte Lily Gaspard.

Plus, stay tuned for details about a final sharing at the end of the Creative Residency in June!

Recommended for adults and teens

Meet the Cohort

William PK Carter
Central Valley, NY
Project: “Something Must Give — And It Will Not Be Me”

As an interdisciplinary artist with intersectional identities, William PK Carter creates work that exists between mediums and social norms. They use the wonder and whimsy of fibers and puppetry to connect with other queer people of color who choose to let their imagination run wild. Working with assorted fabrics, yarn, paint, paper mache, and other craft supplies that were native to their childhood school desk, they weave all aspects of their identity into their work. At its core, their art is a collection of love letters to their younger self. With every piece that they make, they allow little William to express himself authentically.

Follow William on Instagram.

ChelseaDee Harrison
Washington, DC
Project: “Sheela and the Amazons”

ChelseaDee Harrison is a theater-maker, “artivist”, teaching artist, and public arts engagement specialist. She has developed and facilitated community-based arts workshops with a variety of institutions. She is a 2024 TYA/USA Emerging Leader Fellow as well as a 2024 Arts and Humanities Fellow with the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities. She is also the executive producer, writer, and host of the warrior queen podcast, Vanguard of the Viragoes. Her inspiration is crafting multi-platform public engagement experiences that highlight history, challenge dominant narratives and ensure that art is a tool in the hands of the people.

Follow ChelseaDee on Instagram.

Fatima Seck
Boston, MA
Project: “My Name is Harriet”'

Fatima Seck is an artist, writer & teacher creating books and arts-based community experiences on Black women & children's history; and the intersection of art and health. Her women & children centered work has been supported by various organizations including Mount Auburn Cemetery, INCITE, City of Cambridge's Art for Social Justice and more. She's creating a children's book on the childhood of Harriet Jacobs' using natural inks, which she'll be animating through the Creative Residency for Black Puppeteers.

Brett Swinney
Chicago, IL
Project: “Black Guy AI”

Brett Swinney is an artist and arts administrator with a rich history in Chicago's cultural scene. He currently serves as the Cultural Affairs Coordinator for the Public Art Department at the City of Chicago's Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE). Brett holds an M.A. in Arts Administration & Policy from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and a B.A. in Photography from Columbia College Chicago. He continues to expand his artistic practice as a 2023-24 Chicago Puppet Lab Cohort Member and a Lead artist for Rough House Theatre's "House of the Exquisite Corpse IV: Superstition" in 2024.

Follow Brett on Instagram.

Khaleshia Thorpe-Price
Maryland
Project: “Imagine and Play Storytime: The Spider and the Crocodile”

Khaleshia Thorpe-Price is the owner and lead teaching artist at Dramatic Play LLC. She is an Imagination Cultivator, Creative Collaborator, and Community Builder. Khaleshia is a versatile creator, educator, and administrator who aims to dazzle participants with the art of play, creative exploration, and ensemble building. She has worked in arts education for over twenty years. Khaleshia is a roster artist for the Maryland State Arts Council, Virginia Commission of the Arts, and Lifetime Arts. Khaleshia holds a BA in Theater Arts from Morgan State University and an MA in Arts Management from the University of Central Florida.

Follow Khaleshia on her website, Instagram, and Facebook.

About the Program

Since its launch in 2020, Puppet Showplace's Creative Residency for Black Puppeteers has supported 20 Black artists, investing in the earliest stages of production development — and now we’ve added 5 more to that count! This year’s program has been expanded from two months to six months, to better support the artists and to allow more time for a supportive, creative environment to develop.

This residency program is an opportunity to center the creation of new narratives and amplify diverse voices in the puppetry arts — and it remains the only program of its kind in the United States. At Puppet Showplace Theater, we believe it is vital for all children and adults to have access to the arts, especially art made by artists who reflect their communities. This residency is about representation, storytelling, and creating space for voices that aren’t always heard.

Past fellows in Puppet Showplace’s Creative Residency for Black Puppeteers have gone on to premiere works at the Atlanta Center for Puppetry Arts (Nehprii Amenii, CRBP 2020, HUMAN), ArtsEmerson (Dey Hernández, CRBP 2021, On the Eve of Abolition with Papel Machete), La MaMa Puppetry Festival (Anthony Michael Stokes, CRBP 2020, The Scarecrow), and at Dixon Place in NYC (Ash Winkfield, CRBP 2023, The Harlem Doll Palace), and more.

Learn more about the program →

Work-in-Progress Presentations & Artist Talk | Creative Residency for Black Puppeteers

By Puppet Showplace Inc.

Work-in-Progress Presentations & Artist Talk | Creative Residency for Black Puppeteers

Take a peek behind the curtain and inside the creative process of the Creative Residency for Black Puppeteers!!