Mesner Puppet Theater

Mesner Puppet Theater, celebrating its 30th performance season in 2017-2018, is a globally known professional puppet theatre company based in Kansas City, Missouri. The company performs a local season of plays as well as tours nationally and internationally to more than 30,000 audiences annually.

A nonprofit 501 (c)(3) corporation, Mesner Puppet Theater operates on an annual half million dollar budget with over 50 percent of income from ticket sales and performance fees. It is funded by the Theater League, the Missouri Arts Council, the ArtsKC Fund, the Neighborhood Tourism Fund of Kansas City and many more generous individuals and organizations.

Other major Linwood entrance photofunders have included the Hall Family Foundation, Muriel McBrien Kauffman Foundation, the John and Effie Speas Charitable Trust, the Francis Family Foundations, and the Flarsheim Charitable Foundation, among many others.

The company operates in a rehabilitated 6,000 square feet former hardware store in KC's Hyde Park neighborhood south of the KC Plaza. Here, the company performs in a studio space seating 200, and builds all of the puppets and scenery for every show. A display room of Mr. Mesner's extensive puppet collection doubles as a childrens workshop for making paper puppets after every show. Administrative offices are also located at this official address, 1006 E. Linwood Blvd, Kansas City, MO.

Mesner Puppet Theater is a member of the Theatre Communications Group (the national association of professional theatres), and a touring partner with the Mid-American Arts Alliance and the Missouri Arts Council.