The Three Bears Put On a Show!

City-Kid Review:

What did you think of the show, City-Kid?
I liked Santa, the bears, the mice, the cats and Goldilocks.
Was Goldilocks in the show?
No. But I like her.

If you are looking for a perfectly pint-sized mini-theatre for youngsters, look no further than the Swedish Cottage Marionette Theatre in Central Park. Some of the Marionettes are about the same size as their audience members.

Puppeteers have been entertaining children (and quite a few adults) since 1947. I have always wondered why it was, particularly, a Swedish Cottage in New York City. Well, the cottage was originally the Swedish entry in the Centennial expo in Philadelphia in 1847 – wouldn’t it be fun if we still had those? Then Frederick Olmsted, one of the designers of Central Park, chose it for the park. Before becoming a theatre it was, amongst other things, an entomological lab, which would have pleased City Kid. However, a marionette theatre is even more pleasing.

 The 3 Bears Holiday Bash is a variety show, with several different acts and Holiday stories, with a through-line of ‘will Santa get to the marionette theatre in time?’ It is tremendously fun, varied and informative. The puppeteers come out at the end and give a brief and energized explanation of how marionettes work, and they seem giant-sized on the tiny stage.

This Holiday show is tremendous fun and has special lighting effects which fill the theatre with light-reflecting stars.

Children sit in the middle and front while bigger folks sit at the side and back.

Need to Knows:

The marionette theatre is great.
Adults: $12, children $8.
Closed on Mondays.
They have different show times and some days have two shows a day.

Location: Inside the park, near to 81st or 79th street entrance. Walk east until you hit the roadway inside the park, and it is on the other side of that. Here are walking directions provided by the theatre.

They do not have any cafeteria or food provision.  There are plenty of places to eat on the Upper West or East sides of the park. The theatre is closest to the Upper West Side.

Kids sit in the front rows and adults sit at the sides and at the back. Beware parents who try to get their kids onto the already-full front bench! There is usually plenty of room and it is pretty easy to see, as long as smaller kids are not behind bigger kids. You can usually switch around, so everyone can see.

The Three Bears Holiday Bash runs until the end of December.

Top-Tip:

Wear layers! The door to the outside opens close to the door of the theatre, so it can get a bit chilly on cold days.

If you can, book in advance and get there early, so your City Kid can get a seat at the front. Sometimes parents who come later, try to force their child into the front row, even if’s full, so you need to watch out for that.

What has been your experience at the Marionette theatre? Can you recommend anything similar?

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