"I'm glad to see performers who understand the need for
quality educational entertainment."
Roye-Williams Elementary
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Michael Cotter founded Blue Sky Puppet Theatre in 1974,
dedicating every performance to excellence in theatre, art, music, and
fun. A graduate of Gonzaga High School and The University of
Scranton, he served in the Peace Corps and Caritas poverty programs
in the early seventies. He is married to artist/teacher Judith Cayo, and
they are the proud parents of three grown children, all gainfully employed! He taught an
interrelated arts program in the Montgomery County School system, was a faculty
member of the award winning Fillmore Arts Center in the District of Columbia and
for 8 years was adjunct professor of Theatre at the
University
of Maryland. He is on the board of directors of
Dance 4 Peace. Michael is currently
our artistic director and producer overseeing the company's 1000+ shows a year and an independent visual artist.
Click here to
view Michael's art! Michael is also a featured area storyteller.
Click here to hear a story of Michael's first
day of teaching first grade. Click here to hear
another story: "The Bishop's Boat".
Click here to hear another story: "Pick on
Someone Your Own Size".
Click here to hear a story about a raccoon!
Click onto the following links for the most recent YouTube artistic productions:
https://youtu.be/WbjLJ44FEaA
https://youtu.be/SrneEMb0sTs
https://youtu.be/Q1sOc9yAgAo
https://youtu.be/4ic55WdYvpw |
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Judith Cayo Cotter
is a cofounder of Blue Sky Puppet Theatre. She acts as a
producer, adviser, visual artist, performer and musician with the company. She
graduated from Buffalo State University with a degree in Art Education, taught
at the award winning Fillmore Arts Center in the District where she and Michael
met and has been teaching art for 1-3 grades since 1996 at
The Beauvoir School at the National
Cathedral. She and Michael are the proud parents of three grown children and two
dogs. Besides her artistic prowess, she is a talented jazz vocalist, character
voice artist and is legendary for her desserts (particularly cheesecakes). |
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Puppeteers
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Michael is one of Blue Sky Puppet Theatre's lead
puppeteers performing in person and virtually! |
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Steve has been with Blue Sky Puppet Theatre since 1995 and is not only our most experienced full time performer but is also the company's chief puppet builder and shop master. Steve was a studio art major at the University of Maryland before joining the company. He has been a Tai Kwon Do instructor and is a BIG fan of comic books and the
Washington Commanders. He
is the proud father of Austin.
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Kate is a graduate of the Theatre program at
Middlebury College, toured with the
National Players for two years and is a
company member of Chesapeake Shakespeare Company. She has been the Director of Operations and a part-time puppeteer since 2004. She is married and has two
children, Olivia and Henry. |
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Erika is a native of the College Park area. When she joined Blue Sky, having just graduated from University of Maryland with a BA in family studies in 1994, she assumed the responsibilities of bookkeeping, general accounting, direct mail, administrative assistance, and she and her husband Ken are the company computer whizzes. They are also the proud parents of two daughters. Her favorite spot for dining out is Pasta Plus in Laurel.
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Puppeteers Emeritus
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Gina has been with the company since 2004.
She is a graduate of the Theatre program at West Virginia University. She is a
veteran of the Carnegie Institute Players and the Pittsburgh Pirates where she
shot t-shirts into the crowd. She likes country music, short walks on the beach
and her kittens, Pillow and Blanket.
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Joe Pipik is a native of the Cleveland area (Go you Browns! Rock on Tribe!). Joe joined the company in 1976 and for 15 years he and Michael Cotter were legendary performing partners, logging thousands of shows, hundreds of thousands of miles, and a million happy children. While on sabbatical from Blue Sky Joe has been a featured cast member of the critically acclaimed national touring company of Dinorock Productions and can be seen daily around town with one of his two theatre companies, Joe's Shows and The Good Life Theatre Company.
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Penny, our Director of Performers, has been with Blue Sky Puppet Theatre since 1994. In addition to being in charge of rehearsing performers (a first year performer will learn 8 shows) she is also our senior performer, script collaborator, sensitivity barometer, and Jill of all trades. Before joining the company she taught nursery school for eight years, attended the University of Maryland, and acted regularly with the Washington DC theatre community. In addition to her Blue Sky roles, she can also be heard in the Washington/Baltimore area as a jazz vocalist with a big band swing orchestra.
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Jason: Jason is "Albanian" (From Albany, NY). He attended the Savannah College of Art and Design, and has a degree in theatre from Schenectady County Community College. Jason was with Blue Sky for two years and he designed the webpage that you're looking at right now, (Thanks Jason!) Likes: Raw Cookie Dough Dislikes: Salmonella poisoning. Favorite Movie: Ferris Bueller's Day Off
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Jeremy Young is co-artistic director of Blue Sky Puppet Theatre. Composer/arranger/musician/teacher Jeremy is a Renaissance artist whose art talents and prodigious word play abilities have caused more than one to say.. "it's just not fair". Jeremy has over 200 works of spiritual music published and recorded by GIA and Augsburg Publishing. Previously he was Music Director at Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church and at Georgetown University. He is currently Director of Choral Music at his alma mater Gonzaga High School, however his greatest claim to fame may ultimately be as the father of folk/rock sensation Gina Young.
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Jeff Andrews is a sculptor and educator and is responsible for the look of many of our puppets. After a tenure as a Navy submarine navigator, he received a BA in Studio Art from George Washington University and an MFA in Sculpture from Catholic University. Known primarily as a fine art potter and ceramic sculptor he has also shown his paintings and drawings at local galleries. Since l980 he has also been a high school art teacher, first with DeMatha High School and currently at Northwestern High School in Hyattsville.
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Cheri Fulton was Blue Sky Puppet Theatre's
Business Manager from 1988-2014. A graduate of the University of Maryland with a degree in Art History
and Philosophy, she is the proud parent of two grown children and proud
grandmother of two grandchildren. She is married to historian/musician Steven Miller.
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