(Tom) This week on Arizona Illustrated learn about an ancient artistic practice with Red Herring Puppets.

(Lisa Sturz) - Do the characters need to fly?

Do they transform?

Do they become giants?

And that will determine what style of puppet to use.

(Tom) How one local school district is attracting teachers with tiny homes.

(Kevin Carney) - It is a teachers market.

They can go anywhere and teach because of the shortage and get a job.

What are some different things that we can bring to make it more attractive?

(Tom) A story from our favorite places series won a Murrow Award for excellence in video.

(Jesus Robles) - I can start to imagine the peoples and wildlife for ages moving with the soft grade of the land towards water.

(Tom) And our collaboration with the Poetry Center continues with a poem by Tucson poet laureate, TC Tolbert.

(TC) Do you miss this, Melissa?

Every part of our body is ash, aching to be reminded it is ash.

(punishing rock and roll guitar solo by XIXA) (Tom) Hello and welcome to another new episode of Arizona Illustrated.

I'm Tom McNamara.

All summer long, we're taking you to unique places around town where you can go to escape the heat during these hot summer months.

And today, we're joining you from the Ignite Sign Art Museum near Broadway in Campbell in Tucson.

It's a place where neon and nostalgia come flowing out of you every single day.

Here's a good example.

The small animal hospital sign.

This one went up in Tucson over 70 years ago.

This museum came out of its founder, Jude Cook's lifelong obsession with signs of all kinds.

His business Cook and Company Signmakers, has been open for over 40 years.

They went from making signs to restoring many historic neons you see around town to eventually collecting them.

When the back yard of his office was filled with these signs, he decided to start a museum in 2018.

So that's when the Ignite Sign Art Museum open to the public.

The mission is to, quote, “preserve historically significant signs, educate the community on the value signage plays in our everyday lives and entertain visitors.

” We're joined now by the man behind the signs, the owner of the Ignite Sign Art Museum, Jude Cook.

Jude, thanks for having us in.

People love these signs.

They bring a lot of nostalgia out as you're walking through here, you've embraced this business or these signs.

What got you started?

(Jude) You know, I was graduated high school, went to commercial art school, didn't like it.

And I kind of stumbled into the sign business, started out as a sign painter back in 1972.

(Tom) Back in Iowa.

In Iowa, Yeah, exactly.

(Jude) In Iowa.

Exactly.

(Tom) And then you came here and you've been in the business a long time now.

(Jude) Officially 47 years.

(Tom) Yeah.

Seen a lot of neon.

(Jude) Ive seen a lot of neon, lot here.

(Tom) You've got some special things happening this summer.

Tell us about that.

(Jude) So we'll be doing live neon bending most Fridays and Saturdays through the rest of the summer.

Just depends on when our volunteers available.

But once a month, we do a neon project class, and what that entails is we have a bunch of salvaged neon or little oddball pieces that we've made.

You come in, you pick one out, we provide you the panels, and the transformers.

Well help you put it together and you get to take it home with you.

(Tom) Jude, when we were here to do a story on you in 2019, this sign was in much different shape.

(Jude) When the sign was taken down, the SPCA is what it said, but the neon holes don't make any correlation to the letters at all.

So I kept sanding and I picked up the “T ” and now I can see it goes to the “U ” “C ” “S ” “O ” “N ”.

I knew that it had been Tucson Small Animal, Desert Small Animal, but what the configuration was, I had no idea until we started getting into it.

And you've got to be careful that you don't go too far because you can completely lose it by sanding all the way through.

(Tom) You can see our 2019 profile on Jude Cook called “The Art of the Sign ”, along with our entire archive of stories on our web site, azpm.org/arizonaillustrated.

If you're a fan of puppets or films with puppets, you've likely seen the work of puppeteer Lisa Sturz.

Her resume includes films like Howard The Duck, Gremlins: 2, Muppets in Space, and many more.

In this next story, she discusses her journey into the craft and how she's now inspiring the next generation of puppeteers through her company, The Red Herring Puppets.

[♪ Soft piano music ] (Lisa) Puppetry as an art form grew out of religious ritual and folklore and has 4000 year history that we even know of.

And I feel part of that historic, ancient tradition.

[Music continues] I'm Lisa Sturz, with Red Herring Puppets.

I really became interested in puppetry at an early age.

My grandma was a travel agent.

She would bring back dolls from all different countries Thailand, Japan.

I remember the elaborate costuming.

I started copying that and my trolls were very well dressed.

I was shy and I took a class after school at a community center in puppetry, and it kind of brought out a lot of things for me.

In college, I was a theater major, but I also majored in comparative mythology and religion.

So I did my whole thesis as a puppet show.

I was sent to the National Theater Institute for a semester.

I met Rufus and Marco Rose.

They did one of the first full length puppet films.

Rufus taught me how to carve marionettes at the time, he'd never worked with a woman, but I was working with all the power tools.

So he called me “Henry ”.

Couldn't quite handle me being a girl.

He was one of the founders of an organization, the Puppeteers of America.

One of his last words to me was.

You need to be active with the puppeteers of America.

And I have been ever since then.

[Speaking Spanish] “And so it is my pleasure to introduce a story from Cuba ” (Maria) I was able to have the opportunity to work with Lisa to create this bilingual show.

She had this idea three years ago.

She asked if I would be willing to help translate and be part of it, even create the set, making puppets.

And it's something that I was able to experience with my son, (Caleb) I found out that I'm going to be in the show.

At the time, I knew barely anything about puppeteering.

But Miss Lisa taught me a lot.

It's important to me as a puppeteer to teach the next generation.

The tree, I think, went up a lot smoother this time too.

So which is really good.

These are?

Who was this guy?

Kyle.

Kyle and Deedledum.

He could introduce himself.

I am Mobo.

Mobo is made out of foam pipe cleaners, pom pom and buttons.

I started making puppets after school.

It brought so much joy to my life, so it's really important for me to give that back.

And then I think you guys should stay and you two do this solo.

We're just going to try.

It and we'll see what happens [Upbeat music] [Upbeat music] Ive done hundreds of residencies in schools working with curriculum, working with arts and education.

(Maria) One of the wonderful things about this program with Puppet Camp was that the kids were able to use their creativity.

They would come up with a personality and come up with a storyline and they would learn to work together on creating this story that they could perform for their families.

♪ With fun family picnics ♪ you're never alone!

[Continues in Spanish] ♪ We pack our basket with fruit ♪ (Lisa) When I approach a puppet show, it's usually the story that drives me.

“So it's kind of before the conducting.

” “Okay, okay.

That could work.

” And it's... do the characters need to fly.

Do they transform?

Do they become giants?

And that will determine what style of puppet to use.

Is it a marionette?

Is it on strings?

♪ Right foot first, left foot then, ♪ ♪ roundabout and back again ♪ Then I'll come up with the design concept, but I usually do some drawings.

A puppet I'm working on now.

I want the sheeps eyes to pop out of his head.

That determines a lot of things.

And I'll make the mechanism first.

Mechanisms determine a lot of how I joint it with marionettes.

I often say it's like a musical instrument, a stringed instrument where you place the string and how taut the string is will affect the movements of the character.

This is winding the strings so that they don't get tangled in transit.

I'm here with red herring puppets and I'm just about to start setting up our set for “Hansel and Gretel ”.

The idea that puppets are for children exclusively is wrong.

I'm starting to learn all about.

Especially if you're operating something like a marionette.

The technique that can go into that and you can really have an expansive and sort of complicated approach working with Lisa.

Watching her work, just copying her movements.

That's been most of what it is so far.

[Witch] And Hansel, I lock in my wooden cage.

[♪ Descending harp notes ] (Lisa) I absolutely love collaborating.

Music has always been a part of performing for me.

At one point, one of the puppets I was responsible for was a 40 foot dragon.

[Dramatic strings playing] [Lisa] I had 17 manipulators and I had to direct and choreographed it with the actors and when we did our dress rehearsal.

Zubin Mehta was conducting.

The first time we did it.

Zubin was clapping and jumping up and down and that was one of the most exciting moments of my life.

One of the biggest challenges of puppet making in the modern era is it's really an endangered species getting funding.

Part of it is also the idea that anybody can do it.

I guess that would be just the outside image of what puppetry is compared to what it's really like to run a puppet theater.

I formed a partnership with the Scoundrel and Scamp Theater in the historic Y downtown.

Brian Falcon welcomed me.

It's a marriage made in heaven.

(Bryan) I do remember in grade school about how once a year this marionette theater that would come to this small town in northern Indiana.

And I think that's where my love of puppets comes from.

That way that can just transform life.

It brings a shine to living.

I love the storytelling.

I love how it is uncanny expression of the real can convey stories in ways that otherwise cannot be communicated.

When we found out that Red Herring was interested in possibly working with us, my heart sang and I said yes.

(Betsy) We knew that this was a space where we could not only just bring more joy, more performances to our stage.

“Ribbit.

Ribbit.

” ♪ Now that I've shared the Gods secret with you.

♪ Also to launch some of these educational initiatives and make sure that we are engaging with really young audiences through a medium that is just delightful and that does grow that love of the arts and that brings lessons and sometimes big questions to children in a way that is not preachy but is fun and accessible.

(Mouse) “That's right.

” “A hungry cat lives by that fence.

” “ ¡Un gato!

Si ” “Be careful.

” “Okay, Momma ” (Maria) I love that you could really make them do anything.

You can make them do anything.

Yeah, It's like you could be silly with them.

You could be serious.

You could be.

It's like you could take on a whole different personality with them.

Puppeteering has so much you you could do with it.

Yes.

What am.

I?

I've wondered that myself many times.

I'm.

I'm a puppet and I'm an alien.

And I'm a lovable friend.

(Lisa) Puppets kind of inhabit that inner world between God and man.

They're not real, but they're animate.

And I love exploring that kind of in-between state.

“Have you ever wondered where chocolate came from?

” (Lisa) And for me, puppets are perfect mediators between the conscious and unconscious.

(Rowby) It's been really fun for visiting Planet Earth because I get to see so many different cultures and people from all kinds of places.

And you know what?

I learned that all people have a really nice heart.

There's love everywhere on this planet.

[Music fades up] [Blows a kiss] [Music fades out] (Tom) In order to help close the widening economic gap, organizations are finding creative ways to provide affordable housing for their community.

The Vail School District is focusing on building a tiny home community to retain and provide resources for their teachers and employees.

In this ongoing series, producer John DeSoto introduces us to various tiny home communities and how they're providing a unique solution for those in need.

(Kevin) Our employees struggle to find affordable housing, especially out in the Vail area.

(Michael) A lot of people have moved here in recent years and so real estate prices have gone up.

So that makes it really tough for a young teacher.

You know, we need to have teachers to teach all those people that are you know, moving here.

So that made it more difficult for them to actually live in the community.

It is a teachers market.

They can go anywhere and teach because of a shortage and get a job.

You got to be able to say, what are some different things that we can bring to make it more attractive to teachers to want to be here?

We knew that tiny homes across the nation was something that sparked a lot of interest.

[Door unlocking] (Mikayla) My name is Mikayla Edris and I'm a kindergarten teacher at Sycamore Elementary School.

So I was born and raised in Vail, went to the school district from the time I was in kindergarten through high school, and then went off to college.

But I knew that I loved the Vail School district, so I wanted to come back and teach back at home.

Luckily, this tiny home was being finished right as I was needing a home.

So, I saw it as it was being finished and I moved in here in March of ‘22.

So they provided all appliances.

So the fridge, the stove, the microwave, the bathroom was all done and the washer and dryer, the rest I got to pick out, which was a lot of fun.

I really enjoyed getting to make the house my own.

Oh, I love all of it.

It's the perfect size for me, for what I need right now.

It's a lot more affordable than some of the other options to rent around town.

And we thought, gosh, what what if we could create a tiny home situation where not only would be affordable housing for our staff, but also give our building's trades kids an opportunity to create and design those.

[scraping] (Michael) We're putting the wraps on tiny house number three This is a house that the students had a hand in designing.

Students are involved and, you know, all the sheetrock, they're doing, all the siding.

They're installing every door and window they're putting on the roof.

So they know all the aspects which, you know, if this is something they want to pursue.

They've got some skills.

I can use them later in life when I have problems in a house or if someone else is having problems in a house and I can help them fix it.

With this class, I had an opportunity to grow and help and show leadership and kind of, you know, learn new things.

(Maddison) If I want to go into a career based on construction like architecture, I can use this to my advantage.

They gave me a place to, you know, release and kind of come out here and not think about school, just come out here and work and be with your buddies.

It was nice.

(Michael) You know they see from start to finish, you know, the construction of this tiny house and then it gets moved over to the tiny house complex.

(Kevin) Our tiny home isnt just a place where someone can get reduced rent, right?

It's a place where they can connect with others.

You can see around here we have four tiny homes in close proximity to each other.

As we look to grow it to 24 tiny homes eventually.

We're trying to also establish not only an alternate form of cheaper living, but a place where people can connect with each other.

I think we all take pride in being a Vail School District employee, so it's fun to chat with them.

Being a teacher, you have those days where like, Oh my, it's been a crazy day.

So getting to see them outside and being like, Oh man, were your kids crazy today too?

And I think the more we add, the more neighbors and more of a community well build.

(Kevin) And so the truth is we can't build them fast enough for the need.

And so the idea that they can potentially live within the district, that helps us, I have no doubt that's going to help us to retain some folks.

(Michael) Being able to, you know, build for the community, It's just a win win, win win every time you turn around.

(Tom) Earlier this season, our show teamed up with the Southern Arizona Chapter of the American Institute of Architects for our Favorite Places series.

Now, this personal essay from architect Jesus Robles about his appreciation for the San Rafael Valley, recently won a regional Edward R. Murrow Award for Excellence in Video.

Congratulations to David Fenster and Jandro Davalos for doing an award winning job at visualizing this essay.

There is a place in Baja Arizona the rests in my memory and daydreams more as a passage than an arrival to a specified destination.

A confluence of history, cultures, landscapes, biomes and folklore.

It is as much defined by the roads, trails and stories that lead you from the Tucson basin into the valleys and high desert grasslands of the Madrean archipelago.

As you traverse the 80 plus miles, you wind through a two lane road in the valley between Santa Rita and the Whetstone Mountains on your way to Sonoita The twists and turns unfold, views that still inspire as much as the first time one lays eyes upon them.

The subtle gain in elevation and changing landscape, evoking memories and emotions untethered to this place.

Once at the Sonoita stop sign turn right towards the town of Patagonia, from the running waters of Sonoita Creek one can slow time under the giggling of the cottonwoods.

Visiting local favorites like the trails at Nature Conservancy's, Patagonia Sonoita Creek Preserve, or the sanctuary at Tucson, Audubon's Patton Center for Hummingbirds.

It is worth a stop for a bite and drink at the Wagon Wheel Saloon, the local bar where the likes of Jim Harrison and Charles Bowden may have traded stories of the border and modern folklore.

From town, you head another 15 miles east, slowly moving through the mineral rich Patagonia mountains whose canyons and ancient sycamores can speak to the layers of a cultural past that has spanned a millennium.

As you move through this cultural and geologic time written in the landscape, the road rises out of a canyon and breaks the ridge at the western edge of the San Rafael Valley.

I am immediately taken by the beauty and expanse of the grass flowing over the horizons as time and the place seem to merge under the sky into a familiar yet evolving frontier.

The grasses tell the story of the seasons from greens of summer to velvety golden hues of fall to a shimmering silver through winter.

For most of the year, a warm golden hue blankets the land against the crisp blue of the desert sky.

The valley is held by the Canelo Hills to the north and northeast, Patagonia mountains to the west and the Huachuca mountains in the east.

The road drops into the bowl that feeds the headwaters of the Santa Cruz River flowing directly south into Sonora, Mexico, about ten miles as the crow flies, before it meanders and turns back north, down the next valley to Tucson.

As you head back north towards Sonoita leaving the San Rafael Valley, you come to the climax of this journey.

The view from Canelo Pass gives you a prospect South into Mexico and the entire valley.

I can start to imagine the peoples and wildlife for ages moving with the soft grade of the land towards water.

(Tom) Next, we bring you something a little bit different for our show.

This summer, Arizona Illustrated is teaming up with the Poetry Center to bring you a series of poems all written by local poets and visualized by our team of producers.

This next poem, it's called This Is What You Are, is written and performed by Tucson Poet Laureate, TC Tolbert.

[sound of vinyl record crackling] This is what you are missing Melissa - [vaguely melodic drone sound track throughout] dust turned to waves in the desert - [sound of dry desert wind] okra coming up [sound of okra growing] two months too late - a forward breaking gate [sound of gate creaking open] opening into someone else's field - I walk by a window and I don't understand how little I see you but so clearly the wasp [sound of buzzing] backing out of a hole inside a long dead tree - [sound of wood being pulled from itself and breaking] when we were children we lived with our grandparents and I remember without sadness mostly [distant sound of tires] the sound of tires screeching into the street - the porch light welcomes whatever intercepts it - I praise insistence - I kiss my love because our best friend died when we were five years old - a brain tumor - and then again at 7, 11, 17...43 - [blowing sound] bodies killing themselves by growing beyond their own capacity - [sound of wood-working] I am building a bed for our visitors - it is infuriating [sound of foosteps on gravel] how little I understand about re-joining wood already broken piece by piece- [sound of wood on gravel] anticipate everything I hear God saying to no one - [sound of footsteps on gravel] I am still listening when you stop, for a moment, breathing in your sleep - [sound of sleepy breaths] I am recognizable now as a part of the man who made me - every man is a suspect - inside my own mouth I am annoyed by who I cannot seem to be - do you miss this, Melissa - every part of our body is ash aching to be reminded it is ash [sound of a forest on fire] unlike fire reaching through the face of every forest In order to be incited by wind or offered some relief - I've learned to flinch [sound of gasp] by standing absolutely still - [sound of deep breath] it isn't death exactly living without you - the purpose of a rope is to borrow someone else's strength - that's why I'm calling you - when I pray I hear nothing so clearly as our new voice singe-scoured and full [sound of singed thread] of disbelief - [sound of vinyl record crackling over fading droney melody] (Tom) Please stay tuned to Arizona Illustrated to see more of these poems in the coming weeks.

And we'll be screening the entire series of poems in collaboration with the Poetry Center at the Loft Cinema on Tuesday, July 18th at 5 p.m..

The event is free.

It's open to the public and we hope to see you there.

Thank you for joining us here on Arizona Illustrated.

I'm Tom McNamara.

We'll see you next week for another all new show.