Local Limelight: Donovan Zimmerman of the Paperhand Puppet project
For more than two decades, the artists Donovan Zimmerman and Jan Burger have used fantastical puppetry to captivate audiences and promote environmentalism across North Carolina.
Why it matters: The Paperhand Puppet Project — which Zimmerman and Burger co-founded in 1998 — is now one of the Triangle's most iconic and unique artistic endeavors, mixing music and acting with intricate handmade masks, dreamlike sets and giant puppets.
Driving the news: The nonprofit arts organization will take over Chapel Hills' Forest Theatre this summer to unveil its 25th play, "The Gift," which explores the wisdom of grandmothers as well as how water influences the world.
It features a collaboration with Jaki Shelton Green, the state's poet laureate, and singer and songwriter Dawn Landes.
What they're saying: "I think the common thread [of our plays] is that Jan and I both share a real healthy sense of wonder when it comes to like looking at the phenomenon and the miracles of this earth," Zimmerman, 55, told Axios.
"I think we try to bring people back that sense of interconnectedness [with nature] because I think that there's a real tendency to feel disconnected in our busy modern lives."
What's next: " The Gift," will be shown at the Forest Theatre every weekend between Aug. 8 and Sept. 28. Tickets are now on sale.
We talked with Zimmerman for our latest Local Limelight conversation. The Q&A has been edited for Smart Brevity.
🚗 How did you end up in the Triangle? I fell in love with my wife-to-be and we are still together on the piece of land we bought. That was probably around 1991. I had been traveling around a lot, living in Oregon and in Connecticut.
One of those times coming through here I met Lea and I canceled my other plans and stayed here.
🍛 Favorite place to eat in the Triangle? Vimala's Curryblossom Cafe in Chapel Hill. She provides food for our whole cast every Saturday during our run of shows.
📖 What is the last great book you read? " Is a River Alive?" by Robert Macfarlane.
🗣️Why are the arts important to a city? I see it as a basic need, like people need food. I don't think we want to live in a society that doesn't have artists reflecting the world back to us in beautiful, interesting and compelling ways that enrich our existence here.
💸 What is the Triangle missing? Prioritizing funding artistic endeavors like we do sporting events.
🐶 How do you unplug? I hang out in my yard, pet my dog Koki and eat mulberries off the big old mulberry tree in my front yard. Or I go swimming in a pond that's just adjacent to our land.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hamilton Spectator
3 days ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Toronto Star bestsellers: Robert Macfarlane answers yes to ‘Is a River Alive?' and Robin Wall Kimmerer's ‘Braiding Sweetgrass' returns
Two years ago, British author Robert Macfarlane won the first Writers' Trust Weston International Award , a Canadian prize that honours a non-Canadian non-fiction author for their body of work. Macfarlane was honoured for exploring 'the relationship between humans and nature in new and illuminating ways.' His latest, 'Is a River Alive?' — which entered the original non-fiction list in late May at No. 4 and this week is at No. 3 — is described by Penguin Random House Canada as a 'perspective-shifting book' that answers yes to the question of whether these much abused bodies of water are indeed living things. One of the threatened rivers the book highlights is in northeastern Quebec, where Innu poet Rita Mestokosho is defending the Mutehekau or Magpie River against death by damming; another, in Ecuador, is at risk because of Canadian gold-mining. The book, Penguin says, is ' a literary work of art, a rallying cry and a catalyst for change … that will open hearts, spark debates and challenge perspectives.' Another book that parses the relationship between people and nature, 'Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants' by Indigenous botanist Robin Wall Kimmerer , is back on the original non-fiction list although, since the book has racked up 154 weeks in the rankings, last appearing in mid-April, it never really went away. And Kimmerer's 'The Serviceberry' just passed its 30th week on the same list. Yet another book by an Indigenous author that feels like it never went away returns this week. Bob Joseph 's '21 Things You May Not Know About the Indian Act' — in which the member of the Gwawaenuk Nation analyzes the shortcomings of the problematic Canadian law that has governed the lives of Indigenous Peoples since 1876 — has been a mainstay of the Canadian non-fiction list since April 2018 and reappears at No. 5 this week. ORIGINAL FICTION 1. Atmosphere , Taylor Jenkins Reid, Doubleday Canada (3)* 2. One Golden Summer , Carley Fortune, Viking (7) 3. My Friends, Fredrik Backman, Simon & Schuster (8) 4. Never Flinch , Stephen King, Scribner (4) 5. Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil , V.E. Schwab, Tor (2) 6. The Robin on the Oak Throne , K.A. Linde, Red Tower (1) 7. Problematic Summer Romance , Ali Hazelwood, Berkley (4) 8. Caught Up , Navessa Allen, Zando (2) 9. The Tenant , Freida McFadden, Poisoned Pen (6) 10. Broken Country , Clare Leslie Hall, Simon & Schuster (12) ORIGINAL NON-FICTION 1. Anatomy of a Cover-Up , Paul Palango, Random House Canada (2) 2. The Anxious Generation , Jonathan Haidt, Penguin (51) 3. Is a River Alive? , Robert Macfarlane, Random House Canada (4) 4. 52 Ways to Reconcile , David A. Robertson, McClelland & Stewart (6) 5. A Spy in the Family , Paul Henderson, David Gardiner, HarperCollins Canada (1) 6. Free Ride , Noraly Schoenmaker, Atria (3) 7. One Day, Everyone Will Always Have Been Against This, Omar El Akkad, McClelland & Stewart (16) 8. The Serviceberry, Robin Wall Kimmerer, Scribner (30) 9. Original Sin , Jake Tapper, Alex Thompson, Penguin (6) 10. Braiding Sweetgrass , Robin Wall Kimmerer, Milkweed (154) CANADIAN FICTION 1. One Golden Summer , Carley Fortune, Viking 2. Every Summer After , Carley Fortune, Viking 3. The Handmaid's Tale , Margaret Atwood, McClelland & Stewart 4. A Most Puzzling Murder , Bianca Marais, Mira 5. Finding Flora , Elinor Florence, Simon & Schuster 6. I Hope You Remember , Josie Balka, Simon & Schuster 7. The Retirement Plan , Sue Hincenbergs, Harper Avenue 8. Whistle , Linwood Barclay, William Morrow 9. The Maid's Secret, Nita Prose, Viking 10. Wild Love , Elsie Silver, Bloom CANADIAN NON-FICTION 1. Value(s), Mark Carney, Signal 2. Anatomy of a Cover-Up , Paul Palango, Random House Canada 3. 52 Ways to Reconcile , David A. Robertson, McClelland & Stewart 4. One Day, Everyone Will Always Have Been Against This, Omar El Akkad, McClelland & Stewart 5. 21 Things You May Not Know About the Indian Act , Bob Joseph, Indigenous Relations 6. The Mind Mappers , Eric Andrew-Gee, Random House Canada 7. Ally Is a Verb , Rose LeMay, Page Two 8. A History of Canada in Ten Maps , Adam Shoalts, Penguin Canada 9. Apple in China , Patrick McGee, Scribner 10. Outsider , Brett Popplewell, HarperCollins Canada CHILDREN AND YOUNG ADULT 1. Oh, the Places You'll Go!, Dr. Seuss, Random House Books for Young Readers 2. Sunrise on the Reaping, Suzanne Collins, Scholastic 3. Karen's Ghost (Baby-Sitters Little Sister #11) , D.K. Yingst, Ann M. Martin, Graphix 4. Binding 13 , Chloe Walsh, Bloom 5. Love You Forever , Robert Munsch, Sheila McGraw, Firefly 6. Big Jim Begins (Dog Man #13), Dav Pilkey, Graphix 7. The Very Hungry Caterpillar , Eric Carle, Penguin Young Readers 8. Fearless, Lauren Roberts, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers 9. Warriors Graphic Novel (The Prophecies Begin #2), Erin Hunter, Natalie Riess, Sara Goetter, HarperAlley 10. Powerless , Lauren Roberts, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers SELF-IMPROVEMENT 1. The Let Them Theory , Mel Robbins, Sawyer Robbins, Hay House 2. The 48 Laws of Power , Robert Greene, Joost Elffers, Penguin 3. The High 5 Habit , Mel Robbins, Hay House 4. The Mountain Is You , Brianna Wiest, Thought Catalog 5. Big Freakin' Change , Cara Moeller Poppitt, Page Two 6. The Body Keeps the Score , Bessel van der Kolk, Penguin 7. We Can Do Hard Things , Glennon Doyle, Abby Wambach, Amanda Doyle, Dial Press 8. 101 Essays That Will Change the Way You Think , Brianna Wiest, Thought Catalog 9. The Courage to Be Disliked , Ichiro Kishimi, Fumitake Koga, Simon & Schuster 10. The Four Agreements , Don Miguel Ruiz, Janet Mills, Tarcher * Weeks on list The bestseller lists are compiled by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited from information provided by BookNet Canada's national sales tracking service, BNC SalesData.
Axios
16-06-2025
- Axios
Local Limelight: Donovan Zimmerman of the Paperhand Puppet project
For more than two decades, the artists Donovan Zimmerman and Jan Burger have used fantastical puppetry to captivate audiences and promote environmentalism across North Carolina. Why it matters: The Paperhand Puppet Project — which Zimmerman and Burger co-founded in 1998 — is now one of the Triangle's most iconic and unique artistic endeavors, mixing music and acting with intricate handmade masks, dreamlike sets and giant puppets. Driving the news: The nonprofit arts organization will take over Chapel Hills' Forest Theatre this summer to unveil its 25th play, "The Gift," which explores the wisdom of grandmothers as well as how water influences the world. It features a collaboration with Jaki Shelton Green, the state's poet laureate, and singer and songwriter Dawn Landes. What they're saying: "I think the common thread [of our plays] is that Jan and I both share a real healthy sense of wonder when it comes to like looking at the phenomenon and the miracles of this earth," Zimmerman, 55, told Axios. "I think we try to bring people back that sense of interconnectedness [with nature] because I think that there's a real tendency to feel disconnected in our busy modern lives." What's next: " The Gift," will be shown at the Forest Theatre every weekend between Aug. 8 and Sept. 28. Tickets are now on sale. We talked with Zimmerman for our latest Local Limelight conversation. The Q&A has been edited for Smart Brevity. 🚗 How did you end up in the Triangle? I fell in love with my wife-to-be and we are still together on the piece of land we bought. That was probably around 1991. I had been traveling around a lot, living in Oregon and in Connecticut. One of those times coming through here I met Lea and I canceled my other plans and stayed here. 🍛 Favorite place to eat in the Triangle? Vimala's Curryblossom Cafe in Chapel Hill. She provides food for our whole cast every Saturday during our run of shows. 📖 What is the last great book you read? " Is a River Alive?" by Robert Macfarlane. 🗣️Why are the arts important to a city? I see it as a basic need, like people need food. I don't think we want to live in a society that doesn't have artists reflecting the world back to us in beautiful, interesting and compelling ways that enrich our existence here. 💸 What is the Triangle missing? Prioritizing funding artistic endeavors like we do sporting events. 🐶 How do you unplug? I hang out in my yard, pet my dog Koki and eat mulberries off the big old mulberry tree in my front yard. Or I go swimming in a pond that's just adjacent to our land.
Newsweek
06-06-2025
- Newsweek
Bride Loves McDonald's, so She Knew Just What To Do on Her Wedding Day
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. A couple has gone viral for adding a McDonalds-themed twist to their recent wedding—and their guest loved it. Emily Zimmerman, from Chicago, recently married her now-husband, DJ, in Green Lake, Wisconsin. Near the end of the night, they wanted to give their guests an energy boost after hours of dancing and socializing. And Zimmerman, who works in marketing for McDonald's corporate, knew exactly what food would do the job. "Because I work for McDonald's corporate I always knew I wanted to have it as a late night snack," she told Newsweek, adding that "all of our friends encouraged us, too." Emily Zimmerman and her husband, DJ, celebrate their wedding with a McDonald's buffet at the end of the night. Emily Zimmerman and her husband, DJ, celebrate their wedding with a McDonald's buffet at the end of the night. TikTok @emilyayay17 Zimmerman shared a snippet of her big day to her TikTok account @emilyayay17 on May 31, showing the McDonald's buffet set-up, with a sign declaring Mr and Mrs—in the iconic golden arches typeset. On offer were cheeseburgers, nuggets and fries, complete with sachets of sauce—and all available to be packed into specially designed Happy Meal boxes. Late-night snacks, after the dinner and cutting of the cake, is an option some couples choose to start winding down the night. Wedding websiteThe Knot suggest doling out sweet treats or fried snacks, or even hiring a food truck to cater to guests. In the video, Zimmerman tucked into a burger while wearing her sparkling white wedding gown. And, adding to the theme, the couple posed outside a local restaurant which had set up a sign declaring "Congratulations Emily and DJ." "I worked with the local franchisee and he surprised us the weekend of our wedding by putting our names on the McDonald's road signs," she told Newsweek. "So we stopped there after the church to take a picture with the sign. So kind of him!" While it's unclear how much the spread cost, Zimmerman said it was a huge hit with her guests, adding they "loved it." "It was by far one of the most complimented things at our wedding. We actually had a fireworks display on the lake, and when our guests went back inside, McDonald's was waiting for them!" Zimmerman said. The couple pose by the food with their unique Happy Meal boxes, and right, the sign on the buffet. The couple pose by the food with their unique Happy Meal boxes, and right, the sign on the buffet. TikTok @emilyayay17 TikTok users, too, had a big reaction to the video, viewing it more than 4.2 million times and awarding it 700,000 likes, as one commenter joked: "Congrats on your McMarriage." "Are you McKidding me?," another asked, as one asked about the Happy Meals "What toy did you get?" And another commenter admitted: "I don't love working at any job this much." Zimmerman said she's noticed "a huge trend" in weddings to "do a late-night snack of some sort. "I've been to weddings that serve pizza, or tacos, etc and for us, we felt it was only right to do McDonald's," she said, adding: "Because who doesn't love some McDonald's after a late night out?" Do you have funny and adorable videos or pictures you want to share? Send them to life@ with some extra details, and they could appear on our website.
