Story Update: Seton Hill's Finding Nemo puppets shipped to a middle school in Florida who didn't receive their puppets in time for their show.  Read the Trib story here.

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In Spring 2024, Seton Hill University students in Special Topics in Theatre & Design: Puppetry created puppets for a local “Finding Nemo Jr.” performance at nearby Trafford Middle School. With the instruction of Lisa Leibering, assistant professor for costume design and technology and costume shop supervisor, and Elaine Montgomery, costume shop manager, the class designed 25 puppets for the production overall.

The collaboration between Seton Hill and Trafford Middle School came to be after a post uploaded to a Facebook regional high school theatre group. The post asked for help with the creation of puppets for the Trafford drama club’s production. Karen Glass, resident scenic designer, passed the information on to Liebering. From there, the creative collaboration commenced.

"...you wrestle with physics, geometry, and gravity, and then try to make creative choices on top of it all. The students really pushed themselves, worked together, and remained resilient throughout the process.”

The puppets contained open and closed cell foams and a variety of fabrics containing sequins, iridescent colors, and holographic foil to create an underwater illusion under the stage lights. The students employed their artistic skills and design choices to decide on several features, such as eye placement or tail shape. These decisions gave each of the puppets their own unique charm. The students utilized their technical skills and material knowledge to create ancillary movement, bringing energy to the puppets in performance.

“Puppets are inherently full of failure, as you wrestle with physics, geometry, and gravity, and then try to make creative choices on top of it all. The students really pushed themselves, worked together, and remained resilient throughout the process,” said Lisa Leibering.

After the production of “Finding Nemo Jr.” ended, the puppets returned to Seton Hill’s Department of Theatre and Dance. The puppets joined their growing stock, which is made available to schools in the area to rent for very low prices.

“We hope we can continue to grow as a resource for schools throughout the region,” said Leibering.