Puppeteer To Present The Princess And The Pea

At Ventfort Hall During February School Vacation Week 

Lenox - The popular puppeteer Carl Sprague will return to Ventfort Hall Mansion and Gilded Age Museum in Lenox to charm all ages with the classic fairy tale The Princess and the Pea for two marionette performances.  The dates and times are Monday, February 20th and Thursday, February 23rd, both at 3:30 pm. The audiences will have the opportunity to meet this wizard, who knows how to pull strings. 

The Princess and the Pea is based on Hans Christian Anderson’s classic fairy tale. It’s the story of a young woman meeting an unusual test. Fun for all. 

Sprague, who appears annually at Ventfort Hall with his “behind the scenery” mastery, has been a puppeteer since childhood.  He has inherited a collection of 60 antique Czech marionettes each about eight inches tall that were assembled by his great-grandfather, Julius Hybler, with purchased heads and hand-made costumes.  Hybler’s legacy also includes two marionette theaters.  

Sprague has been a set designer for such motion pictures as The Royal Tenenbaums and Scorcese’s The Age of Innocence, as well as for theater productions including those of Shakespeare & Company.  

Admission to the show is $15 per person; $7 for children 4-17 and free for age 3 and under. Children must be accompanied by adults. Reservations are strongly recommend as seating is limited and can be made by calling (413) 637-3206. Walk-ins will be accommodated as space allows. Please note that all tickets are nonrefundable and non-exchangeable. Payment is required to make a reservation for an event. Masks are required. The historical mansion is located at 104 Walker Street in Lenox. 

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places and designated by the Massachusetts Cultural Council as an important partner of the Lenox Cultural District, one of the five such Berkshire County districts, Ventfort Hall Mansion and Gilded Age Museum was built in 1893 for George and Sarah Morgan, the sister of legendary financier J. Pierpont Morgan. 

Self-guided tours of the historic mansion are offered daily, as well as Tea & Talks, such exhibitions as the Bellefontaine Collection, concerts, theater and other programs. This elegant Jacobean-Revival Berkshire “cottage” is open to the public year-round and is available for private rental.  Ventfort Hall, also an Official Project of Save America’s Treasures program sponsored by The White House, has undergone substantial restoration, which continues.