Convocation and an Introduction to Puppets of America

Upon arrival at Swarthmore College, I picked up my registration materials and trudged back to the dorm with all my gear.. Having under-packed for the Fringe Festival in Toronto, I over-packed for this event.  Big mistake that I shared with several other attendees.  The age spread of the attendees here is huge >> 10 - 95!  The oldsters were really sweating the  walk from one end of campus to another with suitcases, and we had a hilarious time finding the venue for the convocation because both a building and a theatre in another building are named "Pearson"!
The emphasis at Convocation was on getting to know each other.  As a non-member, I wear a red name tag holder so that all the 'blue tags' can find me and sell me on membership! There's a BINGO game to find  people, and everyone sits with strangers and introduces themselves.  I have already met some great folks from OR, NC, MD, OH, and Ontario.  I also helped a kid win BINGO

The performances following dinner gave us a taste of what was to come.  There were muppet type puppets you'd find in a children's TV show, a terrific bunch of kids who improvised a story with suggestions from the audience and making puppets on the spot, and a very impressive Vegas-style magic show with marionettes that produced other marionettes "out of thin air" and ultimately turned into a dragon!