Marsha MacDonald. Puppetmaker/Costumer
Marsha began to learn to sew, draw, and do basic crafts, with her mother at a very early age. Her teen years were filled with extracurricular classes at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts and the Massachusetts college of Art. She also volunteered her summers to work backstage at Brandeis' Forum Theater and the Loeb Drama Center. Her habit of volunteering continued during her first year of college and landed her a job on the studio crew at WGBH TV at the years end.
After three years she switched gears and went to work making one of a kind dresses for a trendy boutique. That led to a business with a coworker. The girls did everything from couture dressmaking to leather couture and costumes. Marsha's first puppet was a wolf that was part of a Little Red riding hood strippers outfit.
During this time Marsha costumed a few shows for The Theater Company of Boston. It was there that she humped Al Pacino. That is to say, he played Richard the Third, and she built the hump as part of his costume.
When she moved to Houston, Marsha continued couture dressmaking and had two fashion shows at the Junior League, and one at Rockefeller's nightclub. She also worked as a patternmaker for other local designers, and occasionally assisted with costumes for Theater under the Stars. A part time job in the auditorium at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston allowed her the luxury of absorbing countless lectures and films on art, architecture, and decorative arts, over a three-year period.
As of 2010, she has been with Greg at Puppet Pizzazz for 16 years of happy collaboration. Puppet making has afforded her the pleasure of incorporating all of the arts and crafts disciplines and theater experience she has accumulated over the years. Each project brings new challenges and life at Puppet Pizzazz is never dull!