“For the past 10 years, everyone you asked would’ve said, ‘Bob Baker Marionette Theater? They’re closed, they’re shut down.’ There was a bad narrative about town,” says Alex Evans, the puppet theater’s creative director.
But things have changed recently as the half-century-old venue has aligned itself with L.A.’s alt-comedy community. Maria Bamford lent her voice as Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer in a reading of the Christmas classic. Dana Gould and Patton Oswalt led a live read of the so-bad-it’s-good film Plan 9 from Outer Space. And since Bob Baker, the theater’s namesake and founding puppeteer, passed away in 2014, there’s been an annual celebration on his birthday that has included the likes of Ron Lynch and Reggie Watts.
Photograph: Courtesy Bob Baker Marionette Theater
“It was a slow snowball,” says Evans. “[Comedian] Charlyne Yi, we had a bunch of events with her. She came down, then got her friends involved, and that was all simultaneous with the revitalization efforts to keep this place open.”
The theater faced an uncertain fate postrecession, but its 2009 designation as a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument has secured its future as part of a mixed-use development that’s set to begin construction as early as next year. The courtyard and party room—where guests are treated to free postshow ice cream—will remain as they are now, but the theater will be rebuilt according to Baker’s original intent.
“Every nook and cranny in this place has history,” says Evans as he squeezes into a storage space tucked above the theater. The walls are lined with cassettes and records, with A/V equipment stacked in the center and bits of Bob Baker history scattered throughout: drawings of Baker’s Bedknobs and Broomsticks display at Disneyland as well as his original renderings of the outside of the theater.
Photograph: Michael Juliano
Photograph: Michael Juliano
To fund those plans, the theater is hosting a gala performance in December to kick off its In L.A. to Stay campaign. Hosted by Charles Phoenix, the evening features the vaudeville antics of Lindsay Benner and the soulful sounds of Lynda Kay, plus food from Jon Shook and Vinny Dotolo and local favorite Masa of Echo Park.
“What’s so fun about the variety shows here is that you do have these very recognizable L.A. stars,” says Winona Bechtle, director of development. “But you also have puppet numbers and these peculiar and lovely variety acts. It’s not just the lineup you see at a big-ticket comedy show. It’s very particular to the space and the message we have.”
Photograph: Michael Juliano
Photograph: Michael Juliano
Much of the theater’s programming, whether strictly puppets or aided by comedians, is indebted to vaudeville—perhaps none more so than Lindsay Benner’s monthly Women in Vaudeville variety show. She fell in love with the theater when she first set foot inside, and she’s found that affection to be contagious.
“Most people who perform in Women in Vaudeville have heard of the theater for years, but [have] never been in,” says Benner. “The show is a great opportunity for adults to be exposed to the theater who otherwise would not have had a reason to go.”
Photograph: Courtesy Jon Alloway
The comedy nights aren’t the only reason to check out the venue. There’s a universal sense of humor to the daytime repertoire, with tried-and- true gags that date back to the Renaissance.
“Bob would always [say that] it’s not a kids show, it’s for the kid at heart in everybody,” says Evans. “People come out here and ask, ‘Oh, you ever think about doing an adult show?’ Thinking like we’re going to do some nudie thing. But you don’t need to do that. We do evening shows and it’s the same puppet numbers we’re doing for kids, but the adults find the same charm in it.”
The Bob Baker Marionette Theater is located at 1345 West 1st Street.