OPEN EYE MAINSTAGE: Puppetry & Music

Open Eye Theatre presents

SWEET SONGS AND FLYING OBJECTS

July 11 – 25, 2025

Featuring TriLingua Cinema, Happy Accident, Steve Ackerman, and The Puppet Union

A lively mix of puppetry and live music takes center stage in this free outdoor festival, uniting beloved Twin Cities artists and regional talent for four unforgettable nights of creativity, connection, and summertime magic.

A celebration of summer featuring eclectic puppetry!

Join us for puppetry and musical acts that will delight audiences of all ages. Gather your friends, bring a chair or blanket, and enjoy art in motion—all for free!

  • TICKETS

    FREE!

    No reservation required.

    Shows will be outside in the green space across the street from Open Eye Theatre.

    Bring a blanket or folding chair.

    Restrooms will be available in the theater.

    In the event of rain, performances will move inside the theater.

    AGE RECOMMENDATION: All ages with some PG13 content.

  • PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE

    Friday 7/11, 8:30 – 10:00pm
    Friday 7/18, 7:30 – 9:00pm
    Saturday 7/19, 7:30 – 9:00pm
    Friday 7/25, 7:30 – 9:00pm

    RUN TIME: Roughly 90 min.

  • ACCESSIBILITY

    Contact us at 612-874-6338 or boxoffice@openeyetheatre.org for accessibility information and requests. Learn more.

    COVID PRECAUTIONS: Mask wearing is optional for all performances.

    View our COVID-19 Policy

Weekend 1: Friday, July 11th, 8:30 – 10:00pm

Open Eye Theatre in partnership w/ TriLingua Cinema presents:
The Twilight Magic Lantern Hour: An evening of stop-motion animation and cinematic puppetry

With films by:

  • Oanh Vu, Andrew Young, and Charlie McCarron

  • Olli Johnson

  • Heidi Arneson (Why Baby Why?, Under The Table, What Will Baby Be?)

  • Luca Trujillo

  • Erica Warren

  • Ritchie Hemphill and Ryan Haché (TINY)

With live music by: 

  • Angela Maria Lara Cabrera (vibraphone)

TriLingua Cinema is a non-profit traveling movie theater on a mission to bring communal multilingual and multicultural film experiences to the Twin Cities. Their ultimate goal is to open a permanent cinema space that reflects the rich cultural and linguistic diversity of our communities.

LIMBS
By Ches Cipriano

LIMBS is a cinematic, multidimensional puppet show featuring shadowy memories and masked creatures. Inspired by the "Bride of Frankenstein," LIMBS explores memories of a three-faced Creation as they are disassembled and discarded by their Creator. The dismembered limbs recount moments from their lives – together and separate – in a swirl of interactive shadows. The performance features an 8 foot tall marionette,  fleeting thoughts, and a vehement soundscape as the Creation's lives flash before your eyes.


Ches Cipriano (they/them) is a Filipino, Queer, first-generation American based in Minneapolis. They operate as a community cultivator, producer/organizer, radical joy seeker and mixed-media collaborator. They received their B.A in Theater & Dance with a minor in Performance Design and Technologies from Macalester College in 2020. Their artistic practice is rooted in puppetry, laughter, animation, and tickling curiosities. Since 2017, they have shared their work on- and off- stage with theater and opera companies throughout Minnesota, and on-screen with small film festivals in the Midwest and New England. They treasure community-based art. Connect with them on Instagram @chesarthey.

Wabaduska Love: When Things Are Too Good To Be True
By Graci Horne

In a gripping tale that turns every woman's deepest fears into a haunting reality, we meet Renee, a Dakota woman from Minneapolis, MN. On the surface, Renee has it all: a house, a car, and a thriving career. But beneath the success, societal pressure still leaves her longing for a husband and child. Then comes Jacob, a mysteriously beautiful man who seems almost too perfect to be real. After a passionate one-night stand, Jacob leaves Renee with more than just his number. A month later, her life takes a terrifying turn, and the only person who might be able to help is Kunsi Sue, the community's wise grandmother. With time running out, the two women must unravel the dark trap Jacob has set. Immerse yourself in this electrifying Native feminist horror saga that will leave you on the edge of your seat, constantly questioning the boundaries of reality and the sinister secrets lurking in the dark waters.

Graci Horne, a multidisciplinary artist, hails from Mnisota (Minnesota), where she was born and raised. Currently, she resides in Minneapolis alongside her children and partner. Her people are the Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate and the Standing Rock Nation. Horne's diverse body of work encompasses various mediums, including painting, printmaking, paper cut-outs, puppetry, film, installation, and poetry, reflecting a rich engagement with cultural narratives and artistic expression.

Horne’s artistic pursuits thoughtfully intertwine aspects of pop culture, Dakota feminism, Indigenous futurism, environmental justice, and various social and political themes. As a full-time community artist, she leads workshops for a diverse audience ranging from ages five to one hundred. In addition, Horne works as an educator, independent curator, and performer.

Always Too Much and Never Enough
By Nicole Oltmanns-Rojas

Always Too Much and Never Enough is a story about one family’s struggle with childhood mental illness. The child, Luna, is easily dysregulated, aggressive, and temperamental. When she pushes her grown-ups too far, they try recommended cures with some questionable side effects. Will they discover a way to heal together to find peace within their family?


Nicole Oltmanns-Rojas is a queer writer, artist, and educator of Scandinavian descent whose work seeks to make the invisible, visible and is based on their experiences, memories, and curiosities. Nicole enjoys cavorting with insects, eating fibrous fruit, and collecting misplaced postal rubber bands. Nicole lives with wife, niece, and nephew in a cozy and colorful home in Minneapolis, MN.


This program is made possible by generous support from the Jerome Foundation with additional funding from the Henson Foundation & the Minnesota State Arts Board.

This activity is made possible in part by a grant provided by the Minnesota State Arts Board through an appropriation by the Minnesota State Legislature from the State’s general fund and its arts and cultural heritage fund with money from the vote of the people of Minnesota on November 4, 2008.

 

Visit Open Eye Theatre

506 E. 24th Street
Minneapolis, MN

Free parking is available in the lot on the southeast corner of 24th Street and Portland Avenue, courtesy of Lutheran Social Services.