OUR STORY
Parading up to its 10th year of existence, Cattywampus Puppet Council is a living, breathing, dancing, shouting, honking, banging, transformative, people-powered party.
Currently, the giant puppets rest in the 1400 Building on 6th Avenue in Knoxville, Tennessee, after a whirlwind year-and-a-half-long partnership with the Big Ears Music Festival and a spring collaboration with Yo-Yo Ma and his project entitled Our Common Nature: An Appalachian Celebration.
Cattywampus began in the summer of 2014 when two friends decided to make a couple of puppet heads together in hopes of bringing some unexpected magic, play, and celebration to public spaces in Knoxville. On a warm fall evening in the Old City, these first puppets, Grandma and Grandpa, casually made their debut—unannounced and arm-in-arm. As Grandma and Grandpa strolled among clusters of First Friday visitors, some people took a pause and giggled, while others took the opportunity to dance with the larger-than-life characters.
Captivated onlookers found a surreal joy and life-giving excitement in these tender and absurd characters. They were funny. They were relatable. They were feeble yet vital, silly, and unexpected. Grandma and Grandpa soon became regulars in Knoxville’s downtown. As more attention was drawn to their spectacle, invitations arrived to bring giant puppet magic to other community events and soon more friends and community members were recruited into The Council to make and play alongside us—leading to the emergence of characters like Possum, Raven, Bear, and a sixteen-foot-tall Big Dolly Parton.
Thus, the Cattywampus Puppet Council was born.
Over the 9 years to follow, our collective and its programs have continued to grow, deepen, and innovate. We remain committed to creating containers for exploration, belonging, collaboration, imagination and joymaking for everyone and we want you to join us.
Cattywampus Puppet Council creates tools for resilience through play, celebration arts, and storytelling to transform individuals and communities.
OUR MISSION
Our success lies in nurturing communities of care where everyone feels seen, represented, and actively involved in shaping a collaborative vision. We dream of a society transformed by radical creativity and organizing, where all are empowered to build strong, equitable communities. Through our unique intergenerational approach to art making, we aim to make the world a place of justice, pleasure, and inspired action.
OUR VISION
Inclusivity: We foster a culture where everyone is welcome.
Collaboration: We enrich communities through meaningful partnerships and shared artistic endeavors.
Imagination: We celebrate creative discovery and cultivate spaces of whimsy.
Respect: We value and embrace diverse perspectives.
Joy: We facilitate connection and healing by infusing all that we do with exuberance and love.
OUR VALUES
OUR STRATEGIES
Celebration arts: We engage communities through vibrant, colorful, immersive arts experiences that encourage collective play. We pursue pleasure wherever it leads us and create contagions of joy through the infectiousness of our own.
Youth empowerment: Our interactive programs support and nurture the next generation of artists and leaders, creating spaces where youth voices can be valued and heard.
Community collaboration: All are welcome to be part of our initiatives, strengthening connections through a sense of shared purpose. We inspire collective power through the safekeeping of diverse, intergenerational, inclusive spaces in which everyone feels valued.
Artistic exploration: We are innovators committed to exploring new mediums, techniques and ideas. This curiosity and open mindedness keeps our work fresh, relevant and attuned to the ever-evolving dynamics of our community and beyond.
MEET THE TEAM
Rachel is a Knoxville-based artist and organizer and brings with her over twenty years of experience in visual art, theater, storytelling, community organizing, and youth education. She’s worked as a teaching and performing artist with organizations throughout the region, including the Knoxville Museum of Art, Community School of the Arts, Knox County Schools, Alternate Roots, Johnson City Public Art, and the Highlander Research and Education Center. Most recently she served as Community Arts Director for the Big Ears Festival.
Rachel Milford, Founder
Executive Director & Art Director
Our Stewardship Council
Our Stewardship Council serves as our working Board of Directors and is composed of representatives from various aspects of Cattywampus’s work, including our teaching artists, performers, and volunteers.
Current Stewardship Council members include:
✴︎ Andreas Bastias
✴︎ Allie Cohn
✴︎ Jill Frere
✴︎ Willow McLeod
✴︎ Rachel Milford
✴︎ Leslie Wylie-Bateman
