Current Covid Policy: **For the safety of our artists, crew, staff and patrons, we strongly encourage properly worn masks when in Black Cherry's theater while not actively eating or drinking. Thank you!**
If you have accessibility needs or questions, please call 410-752-7272 or email info@blackcherry.org
If you have accessibility needs or questions, please call 410-752-7272 or email info@blackcherry.org
UPCOMING EVENTS
April 30th through May 28th, 2023 Our Roots Are Entangled--Parade Build

Our Roots Are Entangled
JOIN US FOR A PARADE BUILD AT BLACK CHERRY PUPPET THEATER
Help us build large puppets and prepare other puppets for the Sowebo Festival Parade on Sunday, May 28. On Sunday we will parade around Hollins Market at 1pm & 3pm. Gather outside Black Cherry 30 minutes before!
All are welcome to attend or march with us!
We will also be fixing and shining up last year's puppets!
Drop-ins welcome, Masks encouraged, no need to RSVP, just come by and lend a hand:
SUN 4/30 12-4pm
SAT 5/6 12-4pm
SUN 5/7 12-4pm
WED 5/10 5-9pm
SAT 5/13 12-3pm
WED 5/17 5-9pm
Parade Headdress Workshop SAT 5/27 12-4pm
1115 Hollins Street (south of the market), Baltimore, MD 21223
Email valeskapopuloh@yahoo.com for accessibility needs and info
June 14th, 2023 Spirit-Rider and Night-Heart

SPIRIT RIDER and NIGHT HEART
Georgia Beatty & Maisie O’Brien
with
CURVING TOOTH
Liz Downing & Greg Hatem
Wednesday June 14th 7:00pm
doors open @ 6:30pm
Tickets $12.50--$15
Click here to purchase tickets!
Fiddler Georgia Beatty and shadow puppeteer Maisie O’Brien bring you “Spirit-Rider and Night-Heart", a tale of the haunted horse rider who spends years following a mystical drum in search of her heartbeat.
This is a performance where shadow dreams play, and song weaves a story from the future about the tasks of being alive.
Bill to be shared with Curving Tooth--
Liz Downing & Greg Hatem
Georgia Beatty & Maisie O’Brien
with
CURVING TOOTH
Liz Downing & Greg Hatem
Wednesday June 14th 7:00pm
doors open @ 6:30pm
Tickets $12.50--$15
Click here to purchase tickets!
Fiddler Georgia Beatty and shadow puppeteer Maisie O’Brien bring you “Spirit-Rider and Night-Heart", a tale of the haunted horse rider who spends years following a mystical drum in search of her heartbeat.
This is a performance where shadow dreams play, and song weaves a story from the future about the tasks of being alive.
Bill to be shared with Curving Tooth--
Liz Downing & Greg Hatem
Maisie O’Brien is a Philadelphia-based shadow puppeteer simmering together everything from cut paper to overhead projector, crankie theater, animation, printmaking, and cello. She has performed and workshopped her shadows nationally at puppetslams, festivals, and classrooms from Camden to Chicago. They have also developed shadows, puppets, sets, and costumes for local and international collaborations with filmmakers, dancers, musicians, playwrights, and educators.
Georgia Beatty is a fiddler and songwriter focused on cycle, lineage and healing through cultural transmission. Georgia’s first full-length album, Apprentice to Transformation is a collection of original & traditional fiddle tunes honoring death as a moment in transformation. Their playing uses microtonality and subtle pulse to create cavernous, oceanic space while holding grounded, danceable beats. Georgia’s study as a fiddler is in Norwegian traditional music.
Liz Downing creates aural images as companions to visual symbols. She collects sounds from beloved environments as a blanket for words to rest upon. When these words are sung, vibrations activate the symbols. This is the magic of music. Liz's visual images arise from the landscapes, which she loves to manipulate into existing upon a flat surface. This is the magic of art.
Georgia Beatty is a fiddler and songwriter focused on cycle, lineage and healing through cultural transmission. Georgia’s first full-length album, Apprentice to Transformation is a collection of original & traditional fiddle tunes honoring death as a moment in transformation. Their playing uses microtonality and subtle pulse to create cavernous, oceanic space while holding grounded, danceable beats. Georgia’s study as a fiddler is in Norwegian traditional music.
Liz Downing creates aural images as companions to visual symbols. She collects sounds from beloved environments as a blanket for words to rest upon. When these words are sung, vibrations activate the symbols. This is the magic of music. Liz's visual images arise from the landscapes, which she loves to manipulate into existing upon a flat surface. This is the magic of art.
RECENTLY PAST EVENTS...
Saturday May 20th, 2023 Puppet Slamwich at Current Space!
We're taking the Puppet Slamwich back to the lovely outdoor courtyard of Current Space!
TICKETS AVAILABLE NOW via Current Space! CLICK HERE!
An evening of Puppetry & Performance for Grown-ups!
SATURDAY MAY 20th, 2023
TWO Shows @ 5:00pm (doors 4:30) & 8:00pm (doors 7:30)
Tickets: $12-15 Purchase online in advance HERE!
*or CASH ONLY at the door while they last*
Current's Garden Bar will be open for your drink desires--
& don't forget to bring extra cash for popcorn to support Black Cherry!
Hosted by Laure Drogoul
with Musical Guest: Ghost Modal
Performances by:
Peter Redgrave
Danny Joe's Treehouse
Marian McLaughlin
Lil Lamberta
Schroeder Cherry
-------
This outdoor event will be held in Current Space's rear courtyard. Enter through the alley at 421 Tyson Street. Baltimore, MD 21201
Accessibility and Parking Info: currentspace.com/contact
Events at Current Space are rain or shine. Tickets are non-refundable
Thanks Esie Cheng @esie_doodles for the poster!
The Puppet Slamwich series is made possible by the generous support of the The HBH Fund and the Puppet Slam Network and in part by the Maryland State Arts Council and the Creative Baltimore Fund, a program of the Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts!
Wednesday April 26th, 2023 Charming Disaster

Charming Disaster returns to Black Cherry Puppet Theater for
TWO COMPLETELY DIFFERENT performances at 7pm and 9:30pm on
Wednesday April 26th
(aka the eve of Ellia's birthday)
Advance Tickets available: Click Here!
FB Event Page
Goth-folk musical duo Charming Disaster, based in Brooklyn, NY, perform playfully dark original songs inspired by death, crime, myth, magic, science, and the occult. Inspired by the macabre humor of Edward Gorey and Tim Burton, the murder ballads of the Americana tradition, and the dramatic flair of the cabaret, they write songs that tell stories about death, crime, myth, magic, folklore, science, and the occult.
Their latest album, Super Natural History, is a musical cabinet of curiosities inspired by the natural world and the metaphysical realm, uniting the worlds of magic and science with songs that explore subjects like witchcraft, monsters, and the underworld alongside bats, plants, poisons, and parasites.
Learn more about Charming Disaster HERE!
“What do you get when you combine everything cryptic, horror, weird, macabre, showmanship, and pure dedication? You get the duo Charming Disaster.” –VWMusic
“Charming Disaster sound like the music that Pugsley and Wednesday Addams might have made after listening to the Decemberists, Squeeze and some Chopin.” - Yes! Weekly
TWO COMPLETELY DIFFERENT performances at 7pm and 9:30pm on
Wednesday April 26th
(aka the eve of Ellia's birthday)
Advance Tickets available: Click Here!
FB Event Page
Goth-folk musical duo Charming Disaster, based in Brooklyn, NY, perform playfully dark original songs inspired by death, crime, myth, magic, science, and the occult. Inspired by the macabre humor of Edward Gorey and Tim Burton, the murder ballads of the Americana tradition, and the dramatic flair of the cabaret, they write songs that tell stories about death, crime, myth, magic, folklore, science, and the occult.
Their latest album, Super Natural History, is a musical cabinet of curiosities inspired by the natural world and the metaphysical realm, uniting the worlds of magic and science with songs that explore subjects like witchcraft, monsters, and the underworld alongside bats, plants, poisons, and parasites.
Learn more about Charming Disaster HERE!
“What do you get when you combine everything cryptic, horror, weird, macabre, showmanship, and pure dedication? You get the duo Charming Disaster.” –VWMusic
“Charming Disaster sound like the music that Pugsley and Wednesday Addams might have made after listening to the Decemberists, Squeeze and some Chopin.” - Yes! Weekly
Wednesday April 12th, 2023 Puppet Potluck
After our first successful gathering in February we are pleased to offer up a second Puppet Potluck! Come join the circle to share ideas and works in progress! These sessions aim to build a supportive community for those interested in developing and sharing puppet shows! Have an idea to pitch, a work in progress you want to get feedback on, or just seek creative community around puppetry? CLICK HERE TO REGISTER FOR THE POTLUCK! Wednesday, April 12th 6:30pm-8:30pm at Black Cherry Puppet Theater There will be no audience, just your peers! |
Sat March 25th & Sun March 26th 2023: Poncili Creación/Daxophone Consort
Black Cherry is thrilled to welcome back Poncili Creación from Puerto Rico, along with obscure composer collective The Daxophone Consort to perform their newest show
DEEPER CLOSER WARMER
TWO NEW SHOWTIMES JUST ADDED!
Saturday March 25th 8pm
Saturday March 25th 10:30pm (late night raunchy special!)
Sunday March 26th at 4pm (family friendly!)
Sunday March 26th at 8pm
Doors open 30 minutes before each showtime!!
Tickets available now: https://blackcherry.ticketspice.com/poncili-creacion
"Puppeteers Poncili Creación and experimental musicians The Daxophone Consort perform an ancient surgery that examines the crevices of flesh and consciousness. The operating theater is prepared for an unorthodox procedure, performed with instruments of bowed wood, foam, and circuitry. Inside the organism empires of bacteria will fall and new organic machines will be created while they search deep within the organisms for simple truths about existence"
To learn more about Poncili and see images of their mind bending creations follow them on Instagram
And check out this PBS interview with Poncili Creación creators--brothers Pablo and Efrain Del Hierro
And learn about the Daxophone Consort HERE
DEEPER CLOSER WARMER
TWO NEW SHOWTIMES JUST ADDED!
Saturday March 25th 8pm
Saturday March 25th 10:30pm (late night raunchy special!)
Sunday March 26th at 4pm (family friendly!)
Sunday March 26th at 8pm
Doors open 30 minutes before each showtime!!
Tickets available now: https://blackcherry.ticketspice.com/poncili-creacion
"Puppeteers Poncili Creación and experimental musicians The Daxophone Consort perform an ancient surgery that examines the crevices of flesh and consciousness. The operating theater is prepared for an unorthodox procedure, performed with instruments of bowed wood, foam, and circuitry. Inside the organism empires of bacteria will fall and new organic machines will be created while they search deep within the organisms for simple truths about existence"
To learn more about Poncili and see images of their mind bending creations follow them on Instagram
And check out this PBS interview with Poncili Creación creators--brothers Pablo and Efrain Del Hierro
And learn about the Daxophone Consort HERE
Thursday March 23rd, 2023 Trio Fadolín
Music at Black Cherry presents: Trio Fadolín
A cultural intersection through contemporary classical music
at Black Cherry Puppet Theater
Thursday March 23rd at 7pm
Tickets available now! Click Here to purchase!
Trio Fadolín members: Sabina Torosjan (violin), Ljova (fadolín), and Valeriya Sholokhova (cello)
More about Trio Fadolín in their own words....
Trio Fadolín is a new ensemble with a unique sonority — featuring Sabina Torosjan on violin, Valeriya Sholokhova on cello, and Ljova, performing on the fadolín – a new instrument that encompasses the range of the violin, viola, and most of the cello, finding its footing in an acoustic chamber music setting for the first time. We formed during the COVID-19 pandemic — our first performances were in the summer of 2021, on a makeshift stage at the Javits Convention Center mass vaccination site, operated by the US Army and sponsored by Sing for Hope. Since that time, we have made appearances at Bargemusic, Barbès, Symphony Space, and at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. We continue to perform outreach events for Sing For Hope’s stage at the new Moynihan Train Terminal at Penn Station, where we frequently perform with special guests. As our opportunities to play together grew, our repertoire evolved steadily — it now includes works by Ukrainian composers Vasily Barvinsky, Mykola Kolessa, and Miroslav Skoryk, Spanish-American composer Andrea Casarrubios, folk music from Denmark, Sweden and Romania, in addition to original works by our fadolínist, Ljova. All three of us are graduates of The Juilliard School.
Our focus is multifaceted — on the one hand, we are exploring the unique sonority of the acoustic fadolín (six-string violin, with low C and F strings) within a trio context, using it — for the first time in history — as an integral instrument in an acoustic chamber music setting.
On the other hand, we also share a deep personal connection — all three of us grew up in the former Soviet Union and arrived in New York as teens. Sabina was born in Estonia of Armenian-Jewish heritage; Valeriya was born in Ukraine of Ukrainian, Jewish, and Russian heritage; Ljova was born in Moscow, Russia, of Ukrainian-Jewish, German-Jewish, Polish and Romanian heritage. We share a common bond of immigration, Eastern European literature, humor, animation and music.
We are here to tell the complicated story, to tell the stories of immigrant composers, to collaborate with immigrant artists, to showcase places where cultures intersect.
CLICK HERE TO VISIT Trio Fadolín's Website to learn more--read performer bios and hear them play!
Facebook event page
A cultural intersection through contemporary classical music
at Black Cherry Puppet Theater
Thursday March 23rd at 7pm
Tickets available now! Click Here to purchase!
Trio Fadolín members: Sabina Torosjan (violin), Ljova (fadolín), and Valeriya Sholokhova (cello)
More about Trio Fadolín in their own words....
Trio Fadolín is a new ensemble with a unique sonority — featuring Sabina Torosjan on violin, Valeriya Sholokhova on cello, and Ljova, performing on the fadolín – a new instrument that encompasses the range of the violin, viola, and most of the cello, finding its footing in an acoustic chamber music setting for the first time. We formed during the COVID-19 pandemic — our first performances were in the summer of 2021, on a makeshift stage at the Javits Convention Center mass vaccination site, operated by the US Army and sponsored by Sing for Hope. Since that time, we have made appearances at Bargemusic, Barbès, Symphony Space, and at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. We continue to perform outreach events for Sing For Hope’s stage at the new Moynihan Train Terminal at Penn Station, where we frequently perform with special guests. As our opportunities to play together grew, our repertoire evolved steadily — it now includes works by Ukrainian composers Vasily Barvinsky, Mykola Kolessa, and Miroslav Skoryk, Spanish-American composer Andrea Casarrubios, folk music from Denmark, Sweden and Romania, in addition to original works by our fadolínist, Ljova. All three of us are graduates of The Juilliard School.
Our focus is multifaceted — on the one hand, we are exploring the unique sonority of the acoustic fadolín (six-string violin, with low C and F strings) within a trio context, using it — for the first time in history — as an integral instrument in an acoustic chamber music setting.
On the other hand, we also share a deep personal connection — all three of us grew up in the former Soviet Union and arrived in New York as teens. Sabina was born in Estonia of Armenian-Jewish heritage; Valeriya was born in Ukraine of Ukrainian, Jewish, and Russian heritage; Ljova was born in Moscow, Russia, of Ukrainian-Jewish, German-Jewish, Polish and Romanian heritage. We share a common bond of immigration, Eastern European literature, humor, animation and music.
We are here to tell the complicated story, to tell the stories of immigrant composers, to collaborate with immigrant artists, to showcase places where cultures intersect.
CLICK HERE TO VISIT Trio Fadolín's Website to learn more--read performer bios and hear them play!
Facebook event page
Saturday March 18th, 2023 Puppet Slamwich at Black Cherry
It's time once again for another evening of puppetry
and performance for grown-ups!
Join us on Saturday March 18th, 2023 for our kinda famous Puppet Slamwich series, a variety-like show of puppet acts and music at Black Cherry Puppet Theater! Support the arts and artists from in-town and beyond!
1115 Hollins Street, Baltimore, MD 21223
TWO showtimes at 6:30pm and 9:30pm
(doors open 30 minutes before each showtime)
BOTH SLAM SHOWTIMES ARE NOW SOLD OUT!! THANKS FOLKS!
Tickets are available NOW online
Click HERE!
Performers include:
Yates Godfrey
David Greenfieldboyce
Valeska Populoh & Marian McLaughlin
Floozy Charmichael & Yoru the Bunny Bear
and More!
Hosted by Sheila Strawberry Gaskins
with Musical Guest--Underworld Orchard
featuring Baltimore's own Elizabeth Downing,
Hanna Olivegren and Steve Strohmeier.
Poster Design by Annie Howe
Enjoy Puppets! Popcorn! Music! Drinks! Merch! and Community!
**For the safety of our artists, crew, staff and patrons, masks must be worn properly when not actively eating or drinking. Thank you!**
and performance for grown-ups!
Join us on Saturday March 18th, 2023 for our kinda famous Puppet Slamwich series, a variety-like show of puppet acts and music at Black Cherry Puppet Theater! Support the arts and artists from in-town and beyond!
1115 Hollins Street, Baltimore, MD 21223
TWO showtimes at 6:30pm and 9:30pm
(doors open 30 minutes before each showtime)
BOTH SLAM SHOWTIMES ARE NOW SOLD OUT!! THANKS FOLKS!
Tickets are available NOW online
Click HERE!
Performers include:
Yates Godfrey
David Greenfieldboyce
Valeska Populoh & Marian McLaughlin
Floozy Charmichael & Yoru the Bunny Bear
and More!
Hosted by Sheila Strawberry Gaskins
with Musical Guest--Underworld Orchard
featuring Baltimore's own Elizabeth Downing,
Hanna Olivegren and Steve Strohmeier.
Poster Design by Annie Howe
Enjoy Puppets! Popcorn! Music! Drinks! Merch! and Community!
**For the safety of our artists, crew, staff and patrons, masks must be worn properly when not actively eating or drinking. Thank you!**
The Puppet Slamwich Series is made possible by the generous support of the The HBH Fund and the Puppet Slam Network
and supported in part by the Maryland State Arts Council and the Creative Baltimore Fund, a program of the Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts!
and supported in part by the Maryland State Arts Council and the Creative Baltimore Fund, a program of the Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts!
Friday March 3rd, 2023 Long/Gone by Erik Ruin
***JUST ADDED A SECOND SHOWTIME AT 9:30pm***
Don't miss Erik Ruin's epic and immersive scrolling shadow show LONG/GONE
at Black Cherry Puppet Theater
Friday March 3rd
Shows at 7pm AND 9:30pm
**BOTH SHOWTIMES HAVE SOLD OUT! THANKS FOLKS!**
Doors open 30 minutes before each showtime!
TICKETS AVAILABLE NOW!
This show is limited capacity and expected to sell-out
Masks required when not eating/drinking
Over 100 feet in length, Long/Gone is a single intricately-cut piece of paper. The piece flows freely from image to image, while narratives and scenarios (often drawn from classic works of literature from Homer to Dante) emerge, collapse, and spill over and into each other. Philly Voice calls it “stark, intricate and wondrous – Ruin’s paper-cut art combines the enthralling fantasy of a storybook with the prismatic, fragmented beauty of a stained-glass window.”
In performance, Ruin scrolls the paper-cut continually across the surface of an overhead projector, creating an epic and immersive shadow-show, while musicians provide a live soundtrack. For this performance, he'll be joined by Jesse Sparhawk on harp and pedal steel guitar with special guest Will Yager on double bass.
Opening act by the musical wonder, singer, improviser Bonnie Lander!
Click here for the FB Event Page
Learn more about Erik Ruin HERE
Don't miss Erik Ruin's epic and immersive scrolling shadow show LONG/GONE
at Black Cherry Puppet Theater
Friday March 3rd
Shows at 7pm AND 9:30pm
**BOTH SHOWTIMES HAVE SOLD OUT! THANKS FOLKS!**
Doors open 30 minutes before each showtime!
TICKETS AVAILABLE NOW!
This show is limited capacity and expected to sell-out
Masks required when not eating/drinking
Over 100 feet in length, Long/Gone is a single intricately-cut piece of paper. The piece flows freely from image to image, while narratives and scenarios (often drawn from classic works of literature from Homer to Dante) emerge, collapse, and spill over and into each other. Philly Voice calls it “stark, intricate and wondrous – Ruin’s paper-cut art combines the enthralling fantasy of a storybook with the prismatic, fragmented beauty of a stained-glass window.”
In performance, Ruin scrolls the paper-cut continually across the surface of an overhead projector, creating an epic and immersive shadow-show, while musicians provide a live soundtrack. For this performance, he'll be joined by Jesse Sparhawk on harp and pedal steel guitar with special guest Will Yager on double bass.
Opening act by the musical wonder, singer, improviser Bonnie Lander!
Click here for the FB Event Page
Learn more about Erik Ruin HERE
Monday February 20th, 2023 Sixteen Tons: Limberjacks and American Folk Puppetry Workshop
This 3 hour workshop can accommodate up to 15 participants,
Open to all...adults, teens and kids ages 6 and up
**Children under 12 must be accompanied by an adult**
To register visit: https://16TonsLimberjacks.eventbrite.com
Workshop is free, but space is very limited so please only register if you are sure you are able to make it! Thank you!
Black Cherry Puppet Theater, along with local performers and puppeteers including Sheila Gaskins and Valeska Populoh, are thrilled to host independent scholar and puppeteer Dr. Paulette Richards from Atlanta for a free limberjack workshop and look at the complex history of this folkart form. Dr. Richards co-curated the exhibition "Living Objects: African American Puppetry" at the Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry in 2018-19. Her book "Object Performance in the Black Atlantic" is coming out this year!
"Limberjack puppets have constituted some of the most egregious examples of blackface material characters - a legacy that weighs on
American object performance like the proverbial sixteen tons of number nine coal. Yet limberjacks are a folk art form that incorporates elements of object performance traditions from European immigrant groups such as the Scotch and Irish. along with African American and indigenous peoples. In this workshop we will therefore review the history of limberjack puppets in the U.S .. build a simple. cardboard limberjack. and celebrate the bonds of solidarity workers of all ethnicities formed in the United Mine Workers of America union while performing to "Sixteen Tons,"originally composed by Merle Travis in 1946.
Paulette Richards is a puppet artist and independent researcher. She holds a Ph.D. in French Civilization from the University of Virginia and has taught at Georgetown University, Tulane University, and Georgia Tech. Richards has taught animatronic puppetry workshops at Friends School of Atlanta. Decatur Makers. the Dekalb County Public Library, the Center for Puppetry Arts. and the Puppeteers of America 2017 National Festival. She co-curated the Living Objects: African American Puppetry exhibit that ran at the University of Connecticut's Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry and co-edited the anthology of essays from the Living Objects Symposium. Her book. Object Performance in the Black Atlantic is forthcoming from Routledge in 2023.
16 Tons FaceBook Event Page
Open to all...adults, teens and kids ages 6 and up
**Children under 12 must be accompanied by an adult**
To register visit: https://16TonsLimberjacks.eventbrite.com
Workshop is free, but space is very limited so please only register if you are sure you are able to make it! Thank you!
Black Cherry Puppet Theater, along with local performers and puppeteers including Sheila Gaskins and Valeska Populoh, are thrilled to host independent scholar and puppeteer Dr. Paulette Richards from Atlanta for a free limberjack workshop and look at the complex history of this folkart form. Dr. Richards co-curated the exhibition "Living Objects: African American Puppetry" at the Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry in 2018-19. Her book "Object Performance in the Black Atlantic" is coming out this year!
"Limberjack puppets have constituted some of the most egregious examples of blackface material characters - a legacy that weighs on
American object performance like the proverbial sixteen tons of number nine coal. Yet limberjacks are a folk art form that incorporates elements of object performance traditions from European immigrant groups such as the Scotch and Irish. along with African American and indigenous peoples. In this workshop we will therefore review the history of limberjack puppets in the U.S .. build a simple. cardboard limberjack. and celebrate the bonds of solidarity workers of all ethnicities formed in the United Mine Workers of America union while performing to "Sixteen Tons,"originally composed by Merle Travis in 1946.
Paulette Richards is a puppet artist and independent researcher. She holds a Ph.D. in French Civilization from the University of Virginia and has taught at Georgetown University, Tulane University, and Georgia Tech. Richards has taught animatronic puppetry workshops at Friends School of Atlanta. Decatur Makers. the Dekalb County Public Library, the Center for Puppetry Arts. and the Puppeteers of America 2017 National Festival. She co-curated the Living Objects: African American Puppetry exhibit that ran at the University of Connecticut's Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry and co-edited the anthology of essays from the Living Objects Symposium. Her book. Object Performance in the Black Atlantic is forthcoming from Routledge in 2023.
16 Tons FaceBook Event Page
Wednesday February 15th, 2023 Puppet Potluck

Puppet Potluck
After years of dreaming and scheming, Black Cherry is finally launching our inaugural Puppet Potluck!
Come join the circle to share ideas and works in progress! These sessions aim to build a supportive community for those interested in developing and sharing puppet shows! Have an idea to pitch, a work in progress you want to get feedback on, or just seek creative community around puppetry?
Wednesday, February 15 6:30pm-8:30pm
There will be no audience, just your peers!
Bring food to share and SIGN UP HERE if you want to attend!
Friday January 27th, 2023 Trucker Talk
Trucker Talk presents: Dreams & Nightmares EP Release Party With performances by: Sam Grossman with a brand new crankie, accompanied by Trucker Talk Lady Ro Liz Downing & Hanna Olivegren Doors 7:30, Show 8pm Tickets $15 UPDATE: SHOW IS NOW SOLD OUT!! Available Now Online! Click HERE ---------------- FB Event Page **For the safety of our artists, crew, staff and patrons, masks must be worn properly when not actively eating or drinking. Thank you!** |
Saturday January 14th, 2023 Puppet Slamwich

It's time once again for another evening of puppetry and performance for grown-ups!
Join us on Saturday January 14th, 2023 for our kinda famous Puppet Slamwich series, a variety-like show of puppet acts and music at Black Cherry Puppet Theater! Support the arts and artists from in-town and beyond!
1115 Hollins Street, Baltimore, MD 21223
TWO showtimes at 6:30pm and 9:30pm
(doors open 30 minutes before each showtime)
Tickets are available NOW online:
https://blackcherry.ticketspice.com/slamwich220114
Both shows have S0LD 0UT!
(Mark your calendars for the next Slam March 18th!)
Performers include:
Matt Muirhead
Eva Lansberry
David Higgins
Danny Joe's Tree House
Dirk Joseph
Ursula Populoh
Hosted by Toybox Theatre of Asheville!
with Musical Guest--Bandits of the Animal Kingdom
Poster Design by Devin Martin
Bring a friend, or enemy, or come solo!
Enjoy Puppets! Popcorn! Music! Drinks! Merch! Community!
**For the safety of our artists, crew, staff and patrons, masks must be worn properly when not actively eating or drinking. Thank you!**
The Puppet Slamwich Series is made possible by the generous support of the The HBH Fund and the Puppet Slam Network
and supported in part by the Maryland State Arts Council and the Creative Baltimore Fund, a program of the Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts!
Need accommodations? email puppetslamwich@gmail.com
Join us on Saturday January 14th, 2023 for our kinda famous Puppet Slamwich series, a variety-like show of puppet acts and music at Black Cherry Puppet Theater! Support the arts and artists from in-town and beyond!
1115 Hollins Street, Baltimore, MD 21223
TWO showtimes at 6:30pm and 9:30pm
(doors open 30 minutes before each showtime)
Tickets are available NOW online:
https://blackcherry.ticketspice.com/slamwich220114
Both shows have S0LD 0UT!
(Mark your calendars for the next Slam March 18th!)
Performers include:
Matt Muirhead
Eva Lansberry
David Higgins
Danny Joe's Tree House
Dirk Joseph
Ursula Populoh
Hosted by Toybox Theatre of Asheville!
with Musical Guest--Bandits of the Animal Kingdom
Poster Design by Devin Martin
Bring a friend, or enemy, or come solo!
Enjoy Puppets! Popcorn! Music! Drinks! Merch! Community!
**For the safety of our artists, crew, staff and patrons, masks must be worn properly when not actively eating or drinking. Thank you!**
The Puppet Slamwich Series is made possible by the generous support of the The HBH Fund and the Puppet Slam Network
and supported in part by the Maryland State Arts Council and the Creative Baltimore Fund, a program of the Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts!
Need accommodations? email puppetslamwich@gmail.com
Saturday December 3rd, 2022 Cookie Tongue
Cookie Tongue versus Turtle Grenade The Battle Over The Magic Egg Tour with sidekicks Glitches in the Night Sky & Nathan Repasz One show only Saturday, December 3 at 7:00pm doors open at 6:30 Tickets available now online or at the door! Masks required when not actively eating or drinking! Cookie Tongue is a theatrical freak folk musical menagerie with puppetry, animation, butoh-inspired dance, and ritual magic, featuring original songs and whimsical interludes inspired by Cookie Tongue's surreal mythology, fairytales, childhood, ghost stories, and a sprinkle of the occult. Performed with guitar, singing saw, glockenspiel, organ, bells, drums, experimental percussion, and orphaned toys to send you tumbling down the Cookie hole, through sugar ash and rolling sleeves of starlight, "spellbound, tasting of a world just beyond." |
Saturday November 19th, 2022 Puppet Slamwich
November Puppet Slamwich!
Our crowd-pleasing series for grown-ups returns! Back inside Black Cherry Puppet Theater 1115 Hollins St. Baltimore, MD 21223 Saturday November 19th shows at 6:30pm & 9:30pm (Both Shows have Sold Out!) Doors open 30 minutes before each showtime Tickets $15/$12 Available NOW! Click here to purchase! Audience size will be limited. A variety of puppet acts! A musical guest! Popcorn! Performers: Alex & Olmsted Kevin Sherry Naomi Weintraub Puppet Pro Wrestling Sam Green MC: Talbolt Johnson Musical Guest: Petite Fleur (Christi MacDonald, Sami Arefin, Tomas Drgon & Zach Serlét) Slam Curator/Wrangler: Sam Grossman Poster Design by Valeska Populoh For the safety of our artists, crew, staff and patrons, masks must be worn properly while inside Black Cherry Puppet Theater--except while actively eating or drinking. Thank You! Need accommodations? email puppetslamwich@gmail.com |
The Puppet Slamwich Series is made possible by the generous support of the The HBH Fund and the Puppet Slam Network
and supported in part by the Maryland State Arts Council and the Creative Baltimore Fund, a program of the Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts!
and supported in part by the Maryland State Arts Council and the Creative Baltimore Fund, a program of the Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts!
Sundays October 16th & 23rd, 2022 Puppets in the Parking Lot!

A FREE FALL BALTIMORE EVENT
Puppets in the Parking Lot
Family friendly performances!
Sunday October 16th
and Sunday October 23rd
with two showtimes each day
at 1pm & again at 3pm
Drop by to make your own puppet
after the first show or before the second show
(anytime between 1:30-3pm)
OUTSIDE
at the Hollins Street Parkette
1128 Hollins St. Baltimore MD 21223
(dress warmly!)
ITS FREE!! NO TICKETS NEEDED!
Sunday Oct 16th performers will be String Theory Theater and Black Cherry Theater
Sunday Oct 23rd performers will be Kevin Sherry & String Theory Theater
Thanks to the FREE FALL BALTIMORE PROGRAM made possible by The Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts (BOPA)
Thursday October 27th, 2022 Jeremy Lyons--Classical Guitar
Music at Black Cherry presents:
Classical Guitarist Jeremy Lyons Accompanied by light and shadow projections by Black Cherry Thursday October 27th 8pm doors open 7:30pm Click here for tickets! Classical Guitarist Jeremy Lyons will be performing the Baltimore premier of Two Virginian Ballads On Themes Of Human Sedulity by Lewis Krauthamer A composition inspired by folklore, the piece contains haunting imagery perfect for the days leading up to Halloween! Along with the pieces People are on the Streets by Igor Silva and Equinox by Toru Takemitsu. Learn more about Jeremy https://jeremylyonsguitar.com/about/ **masks required** |
Saturday September 24th, 2022 Puppet Slamwich
Save the date for our next Puppet Slamwich! Saturday September 24th Two shows at 5pm and 8pm This event will be held outside in the beautiful rear courtyard of Current Space 421 N Howard St, Baltimore, MD 21201 (Must enter through the alley: 421 Tyson Street) Tickets $12-15 Available to purchase from Current Space CLICK HERE! An evening of Puppetry & Performance for Grown-ups! Performers: Schroeder Cherry Miranda E-R with Nettle Shirts Puppet Works Marie Claire Macadar Emily Kobert Mabel Windsor-Buchanan Chuck Nesci Hosted by Emily Schubert Musical Guest: Rolling Chrome Poster by Valeska Populoh ----- Click here for Current Space's Accessibility and Parking info ----- Facebook Event Page |
The Puppet Slamwich Series is made possible by the generous support of the The HBH Fund and the Puppet Slam Network
and supported in part by the Maryland State Arts Council and the Creative Baltimore Fund, a program of the Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts!
Sunday September 18th, 2022 Resonant Rogues

Resonant Rogues
at Black Cherry Puppet Theater
1115 Hollins Street, Baltimore, MD 21223
Sunday, September 18, 2022
Show at 6:30pm
Doors open at 6pm!
**Please note we had to cancel the 9pm show--so there is now only ONE SHOWTIME!**
TICKETS AVAILABLE NOW! CLICK HERE!
(masks & vaccination proof or negative test required)
"The Resonant Rogues’ dark Appalachian folk paints a picture of their lives in the mountains of Western North Carolina and on the road. Anchored by the songwriting duo of Sparrow (banjo, accordion) and Keith Smith (guitar), the duo has traveled the byways and highways of America and crossed the oceans with instruments in tow. From riding freight trains to building their own homestead, the pair are no strangers to blazing unconventional trails. At once rooted and adventurous, each song tells a story of real experiences, friendships, and challenges."
Click here to learn more about the Resonant Rogues and hear their music!
Saturday August 6th, 2022 Broken Box Mime Theater

Broken Box Mime Theater
at Black Cherry Puppet Theater
1115 Hollins Street, Baltimore, MD 21223
One show only
Saturday August 6th at 6:30pm
(Doors open at 6pm)
Tickets available now--CLICK HERE!
(masks & vaccination proof or negative test required)
This show is for adults/teens 12+
NYC's favorite silent storytellers make their Baltimore debut at Black Cherry on their way home from a week-long tour in DC. Join these redefiners-of-mime on an epic journey from bus stop to solar system, weaving together an expansive range of original short plays over the course of an hour. Set to a heart-thumping soundtrack and performed without a single spoken word, the pop-up will be comprised of BKBX favorites from their decade-plus years of physical theater-making.
Broken Box Mime Theater (BKBX) is an NYC-based collaborative physical theater whose mission is to activate the imaginations of their audiences, contemporize the art of mime, and remind us all of the power of simple storytelling. Learn about their art-making, community, values, and DC tour at www.brokenboxmime.com
Want to connect while they're in town?
Email the mimes at brokenboxmime@gmail.com
at Black Cherry Puppet Theater
1115 Hollins Street, Baltimore, MD 21223
One show only
Saturday August 6th at 6:30pm
(Doors open at 6pm)
Tickets available now--CLICK HERE!
(masks & vaccination proof or negative test required)
This show is for adults/teens 12+
NYC's favorite silent storytellers make their Baltimore debut at Black Cherry on their way home from a week-long tour in DC. Join these redefiners-of-mime on an epic journey from bus stop to solar system, weaving together an expansive range of original short plays over the course of an hour. Set to a heart-thumping soundtrack and performed without a single spoken word, the pop-up will be comprised of BKBX favorites from their decade-plus years of physical theater-making.
Broken Box Mime Theater (BKBX) is an NYC-based collaborative physical theater whose mission is to activate the imaginations of their audiences, contemporize the art of mime, and remind us all of the power of simple storytelling. Learn about their art-making, community, values, and DC tour at www.brokenboxmime.com
Want to connect while they're in town?
Email the mimes at brokenboxmime@gmail.com
Wednesday July 6th, 2022 Spellbinders' Salon

Spellbinders' Salon features song, storytelling, divination, dance, and performance art!
Doors at 7:30, performances at 8.
$10 / 15, masks and proof of vaccination or negative covid test required.
Tickets: https://blackcherry.ticketspice.com/spellbinders-salon
With work by...
Valeska Populoh (https://www.valeskapopuloh.net/)
Talbolt Johnson (https://www.instagram.com/talboltemmanueljohnson/)
Jake Bee (https://bakerartist.org/portfolios/jacob-budenz)
Forgetter (https://forgettermusic.bandcamp.com/)
...and special guests from New Orleans, The Lyre Leaves!
If you are interested in getting involved in future iterations of this event series (all mediums of performance welcome), please get in touch with Jake Bee at jabudenz@gmail.com
FB EVENT PAGE
Monday June 27th, 2022 Rushad Eggleston

RUSHADICUS returns to Black Cherry!
One show only!
Monday June 27th at 8pm
(doors open at 7:30pm)
TICKETS AVAILABLE NOW! CLICK HERE!
*Masks and proof of covid vaccination or negative test required*
Rushad Eggleston, a.k.a. Rushadicus, is a mystical realm-hopping jester of infinite glee, whose unprecedented extremely fast bouncy cello style blows minds of all kinds. A charming entertainer with unbridled passion, his joy is so contagious that many showgoers complain of sore facial muscles afterwards (the name Rushad means “joyful soul”).
Check out Rushad's music here!
April - May 2022 UNDER OUR FEET: HELP US BUILD A COMMUNITY PARADE
UNDER OUR FEET: HELP US BUILD A COMMUNITY PARADE
Under Our Feet is a series of parade puppet making sessions at Black Cherry Puppet Theater that will culminate in a parade at the Sowebo Arts Festival on Sunday, May 29, 2022! The parade takes inspiration from the living systems that exist, out of sight, under layers of concrete in the city. Ancient rivers and creeks flow, diverted through sewers and culverts. A diversity of organisms thrive in layers of earth, doing their age-old work of building soil. Dirk Joseph, Valeska Populoh and Michael Lamason are the three artists leading the build and are supported with a small faculty grant from MICA. All work sessions will take place at Black Cherry Puppet Theater at 1115 Hollins Street in Baltimore!
For more information, please email valeskapopuloh@yahoo.com or contact us through social media!
Parade Puppet Making Sessions:
Saturday, April 30, 12-4pm
Monday, May 2, 6-9pm
Wednesday, May 11, 6-9pm
Saturday, May 21, 12-4pm
Friday, May 27, 11am-5pm
Saturday, May 28, 12-4pm--Come make a HEADDRESS or CROWN to wear at the parade!
Parade Day:
Sunday May 29th-- Parades planned for 1pm and 3pm
Starting at Black Cherry and weaving through the SOWEBO Arts and Music Festival
Under Our Feet is a series of parade puppet making sessions at Black Cherry Puppet Theater that will culminate in a parade at the Sowebo Arts Festival on Sunday, May 29, 2022! The parade takes inspiration from the living systems that exist, out of sight, under layers of concrete in the city. Ancient rivers and creeks flow, diverted through sewers and culverts. A diversity of organisms thrive in layers of earth, doing their age-old work of building soil. Dirk Joseph, Valeska Populoh and Michael Lamason are the three artists leading the build and are supported with a small faculty grant from MICA. All work sessions will take place at Black Cherry Puppet Theater at 1115 Hollins Street in Baltimore!
For more information, please email valeskapopuloh@yahoo.com or contact us through social media!
Parade Puppet Making Sessions:
Saturday, April 30, 12-4pm
Monday, May 2, 6-9pm
Wednesday, May 11, 6-9pm
Saturday, May 21, 12-4pm
Friday, May 27, 11am-5pm
Saturday, May 28, 12-4pm--Come make a HEADDRESS or CROWN to wear at the parade!
Parade Day:
Sunday May 29th-- Parades planned for 1pm and 3pm
Starting at Black Cherry and weaving through the SOWEBO Arts and Music Festival
Sunday June 12, 2022 Underworld Orchard

Under World Orchard
Hanna Olivegren, Liz Downing and Steve Strohmeier
Listen HERE on bandcamp!
with favorite absurdist miserablist poet
RUPERT WONDOLOWSKI and JARRETT GILGORE
at Black Cherry for two (limited capacity) shows!
Sunday June 12, 6:30 and 8:30pm
Tickets $10 to $15
AVAILABLE NOW! CLICK HERE!
We, Underworld Orchard, have gathered works of writers whose words we sing in our folk trance way.. Gertrude Stein's repetitions, Moon Dog's couplets, James Agees personified gardens, Homer's watery descriptions.
We began to sing together some years ago, just after meeting. We would talk and talk and sing and sing, no structure, no words in our singing and though we were cultures apart, generations apart, we had an ancient vocal connection. Steve now makes a sparkling sonic world where we wind our voices among his bell like tones.
A description of our 2020 recording, from Steve Johnson of 20/20 records, "crepuscular, waxing/waning, magic hour old-weird-America, the edge of folklore as modernism began to creep in, fables from before they laid down the grid.."
**Doors open 1/2 hour before each showtime!
(mask & vaccination or negative test required)**
At Black Cherry Puppet Theater 1115 Hollins Street, Baltimore, MD 21223
FB EVENT PAGE
Hanna Olivegren, Liz Downing and Steve Strohmeier
Listen HERE on bandcamp!
with favorite absurdist miserablist poet
RUPERT WONDOLOWSKI and JARRETT GILGORE
at Black Cherry for two (limited capacity) shows!
Sunday June 12, 6:30 and 8:30pm
Tickets $10 to $15
AVAILABLE NOW! CLICK HERE!
We, Underworld Orchard, have gathered works of writers whose words we sing in our folk trance way.. Gertrude Stein's repetitions, Moon Dog's couplets, James Agees personified gardens, Homer's watery descriptions.
We began to sing together some years ago, just after meeting. We would talk and talk and sing and sing, no structure, no words in our singing and though we were cultures apart, generations apart, we had an ancient vocal connection. Steve now makes a sparkling sonic world where we wind our voices among his bell like tones.
A description of our 2020 recording, from Steve Johnson of 20/20 records, "crepuscular, waxing/waning, magic hour old-weird-America, the edge of folklore as modernism began to creep in, fables from before they laid down the grid.."
**Doors open 1/2 hour before each showtime!
(mask & vaccination or negative test required)**
At Black Cherry Puppet Theater 1115 Hollins Street, Baltimore, MD 21223
FB EVENT PAGE
Saturday June 18th & Sunday June 19th, 2022 Puppet Slamwich

Puppet Slamwich
An evening and afternoon of puppetry
performance for grown-ups!
At Black Cherry Puppet Theater 1115 Hollins Street, Baltimore, MD 21223
Saturday June 18th at 6:30pm and 9:30pm
AND Sunday June 19th matinee at 1pm
Doors open 1/2 hour before each showtime with limited seating!
TICKETS AVAILABLE NOW!! CLICK HERE!
Properly worn masks & vaccine or negative COVID test within 72 hours required
Performers:
Dirk Joseph
Cabot Parsons
Talbolt Johnson
Content Clown
Emily Schubert
Pepito
Lantern Sisters (Katherine Fahey & Dan VanAllen)
Michael Lamason
Music by Kemetic Lullaby (Bashi Rose and Michele Blu) featuring David Diongue
The Puppet Slamwich Series is made possible by the generous support
of the The HBH Fund and the Puppet Slam Network
and supported in part by the Maryland State Arts Council
and the Creative Baltimore Fund, a program of the Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts!