Puppetry Instruction
Teaching the
craft.
Fifty years of performance distilled into technique — passing on what the Henson tradition built, one puppeteer at a time.
Fifty years of performance distilled into technique — passing on what the Henson tradition built, one puppeteer at a time.
Allan has been a puppetry technique instructor for The Jim Henson Company since 1994, teaching what might best be described as the official Henson method — a distinctive approach that integrates precise physical technique with improvisation and acting to create characters that feel fully alive on camera.
He works with both new and established puppeteers in professional development settings, typically by invitation or audition only. These sessions focus on the specific demands of performance puppetry: eye focus, lip sync, character voice, working with a monitor, movement across the space and more.
Allan also leads the Henson Puppetry Boot Camp, a four-day intensive open to members of the public. The Boot Camp distills the essentials of the Henson technique into an immersive experience — challenging, practical, and built for performers who want to work at the professional level as well as those who just want to ‘know how the sausage is made.’
As an adjunct faculty member in the Theater Department at College of the Canyons, Allan taught courses in improvisation, acting, and Understanding Theater — bringing the same commitment to honest, embodied performance that has shaped his work as a puppeteer and stage actor.
His time at COC gave him the opportunity to work with students at the beginning of their performance journeys, connecting the principles of good acting — presence, listening, specificity — to theatrical forms ranging from classical text to contemporary improv.
The technique I teach is not just about physical manipulation, but a comprehensive approach to performance.