The puppet was built for FusionFest, the annual celebration of Central Florida’s cultural diversity. MicheLee Puppets designed an Aslan lion puppet for a Central Florida Community Arts youth production of “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe,” created large-scale human puppets representing different cultures for Orlando’s annual FusionFest, and devised the animal puppets for Opera Orlando’s world-premiere production of “The Secret River.” Terry Olson, Orange County’s director of arts and cultural affairs, and Denise Lucich, now serving as interim executive director at MicheLee Puppets, stand with a puppet of a Jamaican man at MicheLee Puppets in Orlando on Nov. The Orlando-based nonprofit’s reach extended beyond schools, though, into collaborations with other cultural organizations, including the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra and the Albin Polasek Museum and Sculpture Garden. (Courtesy MicheLee Puppets/Orlando Sentinel file) The nonprofit’s name came from their middle names, Michelle and Lee. Tracey Conner and Michael Prazniak are pictured in the early days of MicheLee Puppets. It was the genesis of MicheLee Puppets, which was named by combining Conner’s middle name Michelle with that of her puppetry partner at the time, Michael Lee Prazniak. (Orlando Sentinel file)Ĭonner was just 22 in 1985 when she brought a puppet show that taught children about disabilities to Central Florida. “I count myself lucky to have known her and to have been influenced by her wonderful role model of service, artistry, passion for education and youth, and passion for her community.” Tracey Conner, founder and executive director of MicheLee Puppets, has died. It will be hard to envision our community without her,” said Opera Orlando general director Gabriel Preisser. “She was a beacon of positivity and collaboration. The founder and executive director of MicheLee Puppets, Conner died June 4 after an extended illness. For more than three decades, Tracey Conner used the art of puppetry to help countless children learn about nutrition, pursue fitness, cope with traumatic experiences and prevent bullying.
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