Puppet House’s Next Life: A Repertory Theater

The two main characters in the saga of the Stony Creek Puppet House couldn’t be more opposite, except for one thing — their passion for theater.

The late Jim Weil staged productions of the famed Sicilian puppets at the Puppet House for decades. The historic Branford building is being purchased by the newly-formed Legacy Theatre group with Keely Baisden Knudsen at the helm.

Weil, who died last year, was an eccentric character in the tiny seaside community known for the unique. He once told this reporter that he was a sailor, a fisherman in Key West, a lumberman, and a banjo player. ​“But I always come back here,” he said of the village of Stony Creek, to the place where he was known as the Puppet Man. He was an expert at wielding the metal rods of the 80-pound Sicilian puppets to re-enact scenes from the Crusades and medieval battles.

Knudsen, the founder and director of the Legacy Theatre, is the driving force behind the move to save the Puppet House and establish a repertory theater. She is an actress, director, teacher, wife and mother to four young daughters. Knudsen plans to renovate the dilapidated structure that is steeped in history and to recreate the days of live theater.

“The first time I walked in there, it was absolutely an overwhelming feeling of history and of promise. All the performances that have happened there, and all the audiences over the century…. just rooting on a future,” Baisden told the Eagle. ​“It’s a great responsibility and a welcome one.”

The Puppet House was born in 1903 as the Lyric Theatre, a popular venue for silent movies. Since then, it has undergone several transformations — from a community theater, to a stage for Orson Wells, to a parachute factory and later a girdle factory. Weil’s mother Grace Weil purchased the property in 1960 and turned it into a performing venue for the collection of puppets that she amassed from around the world. The building, which was shuttered in 2008 for safety violations, has fallen into disrepair but not disinterest. Several people have attempted to revive it in recent years, but none have succeeded.

Until now.

Knudsen (pictured) said it seems as if the Legacy group was destined to purchase the Puppet House. ​“It really has been such a magic experience every step of the way and a lot of hard, hard work and the right people at the right time. … I still can’t believe it.”

Contenders wishing to purchase the site went to probate court last July where a judge awarded the purchase rights to the Legacy Theatre, with the stipulation the sale be completed within one year. The group has raised the $475,000 asking price and expects to have the closing on the property at 128 Thimble Islands Road to sometime this week. They will continue fund-raising efforts to raise the estimated $1.4 million needed for renovations.

THE NEW GIRL IN TOWN

“I’ve always been a performing artist,” said Knudsen, 36, who was born and raised in Texas. ​“I have memories of creating shows and singing and dancing at our house when I was three years old.”

That youngster went on to earn a bachelor’s degree from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, and a master’s degree from The Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. She is a member of the Actors’ Equity Association, and has directed and performed in numerous theatrical productions. She was the director of education for the Elm Shakespeare Company, and has taught at Yale University, Fairfield University, Hartt School of Drama, Southern Connecticut State University, and Quinnipiac University.

Knudsen and her family moved to Guilford three years ago. Her husband Brian Knudsen is the president of the nine-member board of trustees of the Legacy Theatre, which was incorporated as a non-profit entity in July 2011. The group was co-founded by Keely Knudsen and Stephanie Stiefel Williams, an attorney and former Miss Connecticut. Their hope was to establish a repertory theatre along the shoreline. A feasibility study indicated the plan was viable, and a year later they discovered the Puppet House was up for sale.

“That seemed to be just the perfect fit” for the project,” she said. ​“We looked at the history of the Puppet House…we want to continue literally the legacy of everything that went on there.” Here is how the puppet theatre looks now. 

Since then, she has attended meetings of the Stony Creek Association and has been getting to know the Creekers. ​“I’ve met some fascinating people,” she said. ​“Everybody has generations worth of experience here and we want to be a vital, cultural part of this town.”

The Legacy Theatre group held a community forum last month to explain their plans and get input from the neighbors. The repertory company will consist of a core of actors, some of whom will also teach theatrical classes at the Puppet House. Knudsen talked about programming and tried to allay concerns about parking — always an issue in the small community. ​“There was a lot of good feedback,” she said.

Branford designer and illustrator Vladimir Shpitalnik did an artistic rendering of what the building could look like when renovations are complete. (See top sketch)

Knudsen said a decision hasn’t been made yet about the name of the venue. They are considering calling it the Legacy Theatre at the Stony Creek Puppet House. However, she said the naming rights are for sale for anyone wishing to make a $1 million donation. For far lesser amounts, there are also naming rights for the box office, seats and the stage.

THE PUPPET MAN

Knudsen never met Weil but has learned much about him. ​“I feel like I know him really well. …I’ve heard so much and studied so much about the type of theater they did….It’s a remarkable genre of art. Sicilian puppetry is very rare and specific.” (Here is Weil with his puppets.)

This reporter did an in-depth interview with Weil in 2006 for an article in the now defunct Branford Review. Weil’s colorful character, his love of performing and his fondness for the puppets were readily apparent. ​“How much of it is the puppet and how much is me — - that’s a good question. A lot of my spirit is in them,” he said.

The dialogue for Sicilian puppetry is not scripted, but is based on epic poems and battles from the Crusades. Weil talked about the difficulty of manipulating the Sicilian puppets and creating the dialogue at the same time. ​“You have to become the person,” he said. When we re-enacted the Crusades, you try to figure out, ​‘How did Charlemagne feel?’ It’s a struggle.”

After demonstrating how to manipulate the puppets from a platform above the stage and talking about dialogue, Weil got out his banjo and played a song. ​“You’re getting my whole act now,” he said with a smile. ​“That’s what I live for.”

When Weil’s mother brought the Sicilian puppets to Stony Creek in 1963, she also hired Salvatore Macri, a third-generation puppeteer from Sicily. He taught Weil the art of manipulating the 40- to 80-pound puppets and staging performances, a process that took two years. The two formed the Macri-Weil Sicilian Puppet Theater touring company and performed at the Puppet House and across the country. Macri retired in 1999, and passed away last year.

After Macri’s retirement, Weil tried to find someone to teach the art of Sicilian puppetry to carry on the tradition. That didn’t happen. He was worried about the future of the Puppet House. ​“What should I do with the Puppet House?” he asked. ​“What do people want it to be?”

There were no easy answers.

Problems arose when the Puppet House was used for teen-age rock concerts with the ensuing noise, rowdiness and rumors of drugs. The building has been idle since the town shut it down in 2008 for safety code violations. 

In 2010, Branford teen-age entrepreneur Greg Nobile launched a campaign to lease the Puppet House and turn it into an art, music and theatrical venue for all ages. His plans never materialized. Click here to read about that.

In February 2012, Stony Creek resident Francine Farkas Sears, an internationally known businesswoman and entrepreneur, announced she made an offer to purchase the building and turn it into a design studio. Click here to read that story. At the same time, a theatrical trio headed by Branford resident Susan F. Clark announced they hoped to raise money to purchase the building and use it for a community theater. Neither of those proposals came to fruition.

Then came the Legacy Theatre group with Knudsen’s dreams of reviving the building. She said after both Weil and Macri passed away last year, it seemed as if the time was right for a new owner. ​“It really does feel that this is the legacy that they are giving and I now need to make sure I respect it in all ways… to keep the integrity of the wonderful positive things that happened in that building alive.”

The puppets are not included in the sale of the property.. At one point the collection numbered about 200 puppets, with the 52 Sicilian puppets being the most rare. The steel and wood puppets were handcrafted by Sebastiano Zappala more than 100 years ago.

The Legacy Theatre group is holding a fund-raising gala April 6 at the Pine Orchard Club in Branford. The red-carpet event includes dinner, auctions and entertainment. All proceeds will be matched up to $50,000. Knudsen said an anonymous benefactor provided matching funds of $100,000 toward the purchase of the building and the same benefactor is providing matching funds for the gala.

Knudsen said a mutual friend has arranged for four Russian puppeteers to attend the gala and talk about the Novokuznetsk Puppet Theater in Moscow and the ​“puppet healing” therapy program they have in partnership with children’s hospitals.

For additional information, to purchase tickets for the gala, or to make a donation, see the Legacy Theatre website.

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