Puppetmobile Logo
About the PuppetMobile

New York City Parks and City Parks Foundation offers a traveling puppet show, CityParks PuppetMobile, the oldest continually operating company of its kind in the country, which presents free outdoor performances in neighborhood parks and recreation centers throughout New York City.


During the 2026 season, the PuppetMobile will present a fresh take on the classic fairytale Pinocchio written by Julia Darden and directed by Bruce Cannon.


In this new telling, Geppetto is a New York City kid with a talent for invention, going as far as creating a robot friend in the form of Pinocchio. The story follows the pair as they tour around classic locales, from the Swedish Cottage Marionette Theatre in Central Park to the Victorian Gardens Amusement Park, and the hijinks they get into along the way. 


The production features hand-made marionettes crafted by Swedish Cottage Marionette Theatre puppet builder Kevin White. In addition to the artistry of the production, viewers will be treated to original songs written and orchestrated by Daryl Kojak performed by the marionettes.


The season will run from May 2 through October 31. The PuppetMobile is now accepting applications for performances from May through August, with a deadline of Sunday, March 8th, 2026 to apply. Applications for September and October will open in May.


City Parks Foundation and the PuppetMobile are committed to serving neighborhoods in historically under-resourced areas and priority will be given to performance requests in these areas. Please note that PuppetMobile performances can only take place in neighborhood parks, recreation centers and schoolyards that operate as jointly operated playgrounds (JOPs). All performances must be open to the public. The PuppetMobile is not available for private functions. 
Performance Criteria
In order for a performance from the PuppetMobile to be provided, certain criteria must be met. Please review below to see if your park or school meets all of these requirements.
  1. A flat surface of 22 feet wide x 12 feet deep with height clearance of at least 20 feet is required for all events. Please see below for a photo of the stage. 
  2. The PuppetMobile van needs to be able to park next to the stage.
  3. The PuppetMobile and crew will arrive to location 60 minutes prior to showtime to allow for optimal set up time, the performance lasts for 45 minutes, and a 45 minute period of time is required after the performance for breakdown to occur.
The Puppetmobile stage with two puppeteers above it.

Step 1: Contact & Group Information












Step 2: Location Information











On Site Contact Information
Note that this contact must be on-site to sign for the show. If there is no contact present, the Puppetmobile reserves the right to cancel the performance. 




Step 3: Performance Date
Please share the preferred date that would work for the PuppetMobile performance. 

The PuppetMobile has limited availability, especially for weekend dates. To serve more applicants, please select a weekday as one of your preferences.








All approved applicants are responsible for outreach and promotion. We strongly encourage you to partner with other organizations/ camps/ schools for recruitment. 
Each PuppetMobile performance requests at least 100 participants in attendance.