Great Arizona Puppet Theater

Wonderful theater! The play was hilarious ! The kid in charge of checking stamps was a bit grouchy :(but other than that the it was awesome ! My toddler loved it.

Completely underwhelmed by the whole experience. We saw Goldilocks and the Three Bears today.
$ 17 for a 45 minute experience (15 mins of songs only good for the preschool set and rules — 30 minute show) was a bit pricey.
The seating was extremely uncomfortable.
There were no backgrounds or impressive props. Done on a black curtain backdrop and only 3 bowls, 3 chairs and 3 headboards.
Only 5 puppets used and it was obviously all done by a single person.
My child could have done this at home.
All in all there is no GREAT at The Great Arizona Puppet Theater in my opinion.

I have been going here since I was young. I always enjoyed it. However, the staff is completely RUDE. I bought a groupon for my family and it instructs you to make reservations in advance. So, I attempted to make reservations the night before, and I was snapped at and told to stop calling and not go make reservations, but to just show up. Let’s just say we’ll never be attending a show again.

I took my 4 year old son today to see Little Bunny’s Halloween and it was great. My son loved it and asked when we were coming back. He laughed so hard the entire show. We both agreed that the show is really short. For the price you pay I think you should at least get 45 min to an hour of a show. We are definitely coming back!

My kids had their birthday party at the Great Arizona Puppet Theater. I don’t think I have any negative things to say. It is pretty straight forward: the birthday room has a craft table so that the kids can make their own puppets. This is not exclusive to parties, there is another craft table outside the birthday room. There is also a wall of homemade puppets displayed which makes you realize how creative and crafty kids are. I made a puppet of my black and white cat and although I wish I had a better picture, I think I did good job capturing his resentful, spite-​filled eyes.
The kids watch the scheduled puppet show (and birthday kids get a moment on stage and a song) — for us, it was Old McDonald and it was very cute and age appropriate. All the kids were laughing and singing along and aside for a crying baby, I think everyone really enjoyed it.
The show was short, perhaps 40 minutes from start to finish, and there are options to sit in a seat, or on the floor. There is also a gift shop where you can purchase your own puppet, which are much more sophisticated than my cat, and books and other typical gift store stuff.
For birthday parties, the kids assemble back to the birthday room for food and cake. You have to bring your own but they have a fridge and freezer to keep everything cold. There is also a wagon that you can use to transport your food to and from the car, which was a nice and thoughtful touch.
The birthday room is small so it’s probably not the best idea for huge birthday parties.

I have not seen any of the performances for children, only the adult Puppet-​Slam. One puppet-​slam was «eh,» to painful, the others were very entertaining with great hosts. A guest performer, Scott Gesser (musical comedian) is consistently funny. The lady with the chicken puppet is consistently slow, and needs to either pick up the pace, or step aside and give someone else her slot. The venue is very pretty.

The staff is extremely Rude. The blonde older lady was Nasty to us and our kids. We finally had to snap back when she was mean to our kids. We drove 2 hrs with our family it cost us over $ 50.00 to get in. Caught the last show, it wasn’t a puppet show. Just old props and singing. My kids were disappointed. They are under 5 and also expected a puppet show. I will Never recommend this place. Is this what Pheonix has to offer? Horrible money grabbers! don’t talk to ppls kids diguisting «Ever» lady. Or the Parents. Save your money ppl and catch a movie.

So one hand, it’s a great thing for kids, and I’m totally happy that it exists for kids and in its own building! On the other hand, I think it’s aimed at the 7 – 8 year old crowd, and doesn’t really work for younger kids.
The prices are a little high ($ 10 for adults, $ 7 for kids), but I’m okay with that because it’s live entertainment that requires performances from actual people and because, like I said, they have their own building. The lobby area has an exhibit of old puppets and seems kind of like a history of storytelling/​puppetry, but I didn’t get much time to look around because I had the youngsters (2.5 years and 10 months old) with me.
The show we saw (Hansel & Gretel) was cute, and even though my 2.5 year old couldn’t follow everything, she got the gist of it.
Unfortunately, there was a super long ‘rules’ spiel before the show started. The interactive song was cute, but kids already have short attention spans, and considering we had to get there a little early to get seats, and then wait through 20 minutes of ‘please be quiet during the show,’ my daughter was already struggling before the show even started.
I might still take my girls to see a puppet show, but it’ll be more like once a year instead of once a month when I’m visiting Phoenix.

I love this place on a day when my toddler is home from school. It’s a great activity for me to attend with him, and he LOVES it!

I was not sure I would enjoy an adult puppet show but I have to say the evening was a blast. The skits were laugh out loud funny. The building is an historic Morman Church. Very cool. You can enjoy an adult beverage, a glass of wine or beer as you watch the puppet show. Treat yourself to this venue.

I enjoyed everything about my evening here. It was the Adult Puppet Slam — and have nothing but great things to say about the level of talent and artistry it takes to successfully pull off a naughty puppet show. This was my first one, but it seems as if they have a core of artists — but welcome other puppeteers to showcase their talent. Scott Gesser performed a few songs, and his musical humor is always welcome regardless of the venue. This particular audience had a couple of hecklers, and it’s always nice to see how different artists handle that.
Aside from the show itself, the venue is spectacular. If you go, find an employee (look for Franc) and ask for a quick tour either before the show or during intermission. The history is amazing and the architecture and woodwork are beautiful. They offer adult beverages too — which is especially nice whenever you’re bombarded with dick jokes. For those that are feeling froggy, you can actually make your own sock puppet which I thought was a nice touch. My only negative, is that the chairs are extremely uncomfortable. If your booty is sensitive to this kind of thing, maybe bring a stadium seat or blanket. Other than that, it’s a great time & well worth the price of admission!

Adult Slam Puppet show for 18+ was a surprisingly fun evening. I was a little apprehensive about a «puppet show,» i mean i haven’t seen one since i was in grade school. The evenings show was funny and full of dirty humor, and i have to say i really enjoyed the laughs. Great value too, $ 10 if you call and book or $ 12 at the door.
The venue was an architectural delight, it was an old LDS church that was built in 1929. The high round ceilings and the decorative beams and trim is beautiful. If you go to this building you should definitely take the time to look around and admire it’s glory.
Side note: At the adult puppet show they do offer «adult beverages» to those of us that are 21 and older. So grab a beer and come laugh at the naughty puppets.

The staff is not nice. They were rude and acted disgusted that my friend and I had our toddlers with us. I got frequent crusty looks from the woman guarding the entrance to the theater. I felt like that was her job – to just stand there and hand out dirty looks. I will not go back. We only watched part of the show and it was just ok. Save your money for something else. For 10 per adult and 7 for a child you’re better off just seeing a movie.

I am extremely disappointed. I planned my whole Sunday around this area, since we wanted to see the puppet show. The twins were talking about it all morning long. We went to lunch, and then the twins said «puppet?», it was still a little early so we stopped by to get to sweets to take home. We got there at 1:15p.m. They told us to be there by 1:30 since then is when they open the doors and it is first come first serve. There were two families before us. The place seemed a little cleaner than last time we were there. We got in and sat in the carpet (which is the closest for the kids). The seats are now a little farther away, so I had to sit also on the floor to the side by my twins. I don’t like to leave them unsupervised yet (yes, I am a little bit of a helicopter, they are 4 after all). The show was supposed to start at 2:00p.m. The cute little brothers in front of us were asking us the time every five minutes. When it was 2 they got all excited, but nothing. 10 minutes went by and nothing. 20, nothing, I had to whip out my iPhone and give it to my little girl to have her watch some netflix to keep her calm, my hubby did the same with our little boy, for a while we had a crowd surrounding our kids around the phones. Finally at 2:30, after sitting in the hard floor for an hour they tell us they are going to start, so they begin with their schtick and «rules», this started to go on and on, it seems like they are frustrated comedians trying their material on this audience. After 15 minutes I had to leave, because my kids could not take it any more. I cannot blame them. They were very good for one hour and 15 minutes of doing nothing but sitting on a hard floor. I am glad it was a Groupon and not full price, I didn’t even ask for a refund, because I am never, ever, ever coming back.

For the adult puppet slam:
We were excited to go… and we wanted this to be a riotous and fun night… but…Just. Not. Good.
Seriously bush league, a hodge-​podge of barely talented people claiming artistry or humor. Only mildly entertaining for a few (very) brief moments.
That was pretty much the consensus amongst the four of us.

We attended a birthday party here and it was a lot of fun! The kids loved it! Our daughter is only 14 months so she was engaged for about 15 minutes of it and then lost interest. My only advice is you probably don’t want to bring a child that can’t sit down for the whole show. They have rules like «no eating/​drinking», «no walking around in front of the stage»,“no crying/​talking” so if your little one is rambunctious or difficult and you have multiple kids, you will have to tag team it and leave the theatre with the one that isn’t cooperating! You can always come back though.
The show itself was simple but fun. I loved the puppets. You’re not going to get any grand sets or special effects but if you bring a good imagination, you won’t be disappointed!

It’s hard to be a Debby Downer because after all, it’s a puppet show for kids. Having said that there’s something about the shows that falls flat, almost like they are adults without kids who are trying to relate to kids. For example, the first 20 minutes of all the shows is all about the «rules» which involves keeping your kids in check. I get it, but they’re kids, they’re going to blurt things out and jump up and down.
Ive seen 3 shows now amd the best one is the 3 little pigs which includes some audience participation. Up until then it’s been kids watching a show and encouraged to be quiet. Refreshingly, the wolf puppeteer seems to be more experienced, he engages the kids and annunciates so you can hear him clearly unlike the squeaky Puppet Director that uses the same voice for every character. Maybe it’s me but her range is totally annoying and actually distracts, especially when she’s constantly humming while other characters are talking,
Room for improvement:
Better writing. It currently reminds me of bad improv. Some scenes are totally awkward leaving the kids and parents totally quiet when the curtains close.
I’d like to say better audio but the equipment I’m sitting near is actually pretty good but most people (aside from the wolf) seem muffled or distant and as mentioned lady’s voice is hard on the ears.
Continue working with the kids and not fighting them. The more audience
participation the better. The kids were loving it when the wolf asked them which way the pig went.
Maybe some pre recorded background announcements with different voices? There’s like 6 to 8 individual characters in a show, all sharing 2 voices.
I appreciate their efforts and would love to see it be way more kid friendly and entertaining so I wouldn’t have to burn in hell for bashing a children’s puppet show done on a shoestring budget
If you are thinking of going, give it a shot, maybe I’m wrong..

FANTASTIC!
FYI This review only concerns the Puppet Slam for adults
Skip spending more money for a Harkins ticket and come see the hilariously entertaining and offbeat puppet show! $ 8 dollars if you reserve them in advance!
Acts are all great… some raunchy and dirty… some a bit more indie with a social commentary vibe. Overall, all really intricate and you can see the work and dedication put into the puppets and staging. Beautiful.
Best part of all… the puppet theatre is inside an old MORMON CHURCH… so please drink a beer (or five) and watch frisky puppets telling vulgar jokes. That being said, the facility is gorgeous… lovely exterior and huge wooden castle-​like doors opening into the theatre room.
I love that a place like this exists and is a great way to spend a spontaneous Friday night!

I have gone to the adult puppet slam a few times and it is always a good time! Sure some of the acts can be hit or miss but overall they put on a really good show.
If you want a fun and random night out, I would highly recommend it!

Adult Puppet Slam = My favorite thing to do in Phoenix.
«Quirky, edgy puppet shows by Arizona’s leading quirky, edgy puppeteers.»
I’ve been to the last three Adult Puppet Slams, and they just keep getting better and better. The writing is intelligent, and the puppetry is as creative as puppetry can get. Personally, I’m not a big fan of stand-​up comedy, especially of the ‘dirty just for the sake of being dirty’ variety, and these Adult Puppet Slams are right up my alley. Before my first visit, I expected rude and crude humor (since the shows are 21 and over) and I couldn’t have have been more surprised.
The shows are ‘Late Night with Conan O’Brien’ quality, and the theater itself — an old Mormon church — is worthy of a visit just for its architectural wonderfulness. They serve cheap drinks, the shows are full-​feature length, and the lobby doubles as the country’s premier puppet museum.
Two notes:
A) The shows are growing in popularity. Buy your tickets in advance.
B) The Adult Puppet Slams seem to pop up unexpectedly on the theater’s schedule. Visit their website monthly, or else you’ll miss the show announcement.