Lisa Aimee Sturz (born February 2, 1955) is an American puppeteer, arts educator, and founder of Red Herring Puppets, a national touring company established in 1988. Sturz's puppeteering career has spanned more than five decades. She puppeteered in Howard the Duck, RoboCop 2, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III. She was puppet master for The Ring Cycle at the Lyric Opera of Chicago and The Magic Flute at the Jacobs School of Music and the Atlanta Opera. Her production of My Grandfather's Prayers received a Telly award, and her touring show Aesop's Fables received an UNIMA Citation.
Early life and education Sturz was born in Bayonne, New Jersey, the youngest of two daughters.Peiken, Matt. "Puppet Theater for Adults: Lisa Sturz Brings Dimension to Her Grandfather's Story", Blue Ridge Public Radio, August 27, 2018. Accessed December 23, 2025. "Sturz grew up in Bayonne, N.J., and came of age in the spirit of protest during the Vietnam War." Her parents were Helaine (née Glickstein), a teacher, and Melvin Sturz, an insurance broker. They were both of Ashkenazi Jewish descent. Sturz's maternal grandfather was Izso Glickstein and the subject of Sturz's TV show My Grandfather's Prayers. Sturz's paternal uncle was Herb Sturz.
Sturz attended Bayonne High School where she graduated in 1972. She proceeded to Grinnell College and obtained a BA in Theater and Religious Studies in 1976. After her sophomore year, she had a summer internship in props and scenery at the Guthrie Theater, and later became prop master at Grinnell. For the first semester of her junior year, she was selected for a joint program with the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center for acting, directing, and puppetry. At the Center she apprenticed with puppeteers Rufus Rose and his wife Margo who made and performed many of the puppets on The Howdy Doody Show. Sturz graduated from the University of Connecticut in 1978 with an MA in Experimental Theater. She went to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), where she received an MFA in Puppetry in 1985.
Early career
After graduating from UConn in 1978, Sturz toured as a puppeteer with Pickwick Puppets, founded by Larry Berthelson.https://www.nytimes.com/1993/04/15/obituaries/larry-berthelson-60-a-master-of-puppetry.html In 1980, Sturz was recommended by Bil Baird and staff at the Guthrie Theatre to serve as director of puppetry at the Haya Cultural Center in Amman, Jordan, which was under the patronage of Queen Noor. During her tenure, Sturz co-directed the production of Uncle Za'rour in 1981.
While a graduate student at UCLA, Sturz worked for Bruce Schwartz as an assistant puppet builder and performer. Schwartz had three UNIMA citations before Sturz started working with him. In 1984, Sturz worked as a Teaching Assistant at UCLA and on The Muppets Take Manhattan as an uncredited additional muppet performer.
Early in her career, Sturz also worked with or was mentored by Jim Gamble, Bil Baird, Burr Tillstrom, and Margo Rose.
Works Hollywood film and television After graduating from UCLA in 1985, Sturz worked in Hollywood. Her first project was Captain EO where she puppeteered the characters Hooter and Geex. The film starred Michael Jackson, was directed by Francis Ford Coppola, and its executive producer was George Lucas.
Lucas recommended Sturz for Howard the Duck. She manipulated Howard's hands in segments where puppets were used rather than a costumed actor. A list of Sturz's film and television credits is provided below.
+YearProjectRoleHiring studio1984The Muppets Take ManhattanMuppet crowd scenesJim Henson Productions1985Captain EOHooter, GeexLucasfilm1986Howard the DuckHoward's handsIndustrial Light and Magic1987D.C. FolliesPuppeteer, puppet builderSid & Marty Krofft59th Annual Academy AwardsAudrey II for Little Shop of HorrorsThe Samuel Goldwyn Company1988The Absent-Minded ProfessorFood marionettesWalt Disney TelevisionWho Framed Roger RabbitBrooms motion captureTouchstone, Amblin1989Gremlins 2: The New BatchBackground movementRick Baker EffectsRoboCop 2Cain robot monster movementPhil Tippett Studio1990Muppet*Vision 3DBackground, additional muppet performerJim Henson ProductionsTeenage Mutant Ninja Turtles IIISplinter's hands animatronicsGolden Harvest, All Effects1987-1990Animal Crack-UpsReggie the Hedgie performerABC Prod., Vin Di Bona Prod.1991Puppet Master III: Toulon's RevengeStop motion puppet effectsDavid Allen Productions1992Batman ReturnsPenguin puppet performerStan Winston EffectsLand of IGabriel puppet performerTLC is Creative, Images in Motion1993Fire in the SkyPuppet riggingIndustrial Light and MagicMurphy Brown: "It's Not Easy Being Brown". Sutrz performance starts at 15:50Murphy Brown Bear puppet voice and movement. 1992 Emmy for Outstanding Comedy Series.Warner Bros., CBS1994The FlintstonesBrontosaurus puppeteerUniversal PicturesThe Puzzle PlaceAssistant puppeteerKCETPigasso's PlacePuppet designer and builder, Snail, Gabby, Tommy puppeteerThe Kushner-Locke Company1995Geo KidsPrincipal puppeteerNational Geographic, Lost KittyU to U: On the RoadShoe puppeteerNickelodeon1996ShrekMotion capture film test puppeteerDreamWorks AnimationWee Singdom: The Land of Music and FunPuppet builder, Rose Cello puppeteerMCA/Universal Home Video1998The Adventures of Elmo in GrouchlandAdditional muppet performer: Oscar's left handJim Henson Productions1999Muppets from SpaceAdditional muppet performerJim Henson Productions2007Trading Spouses: Cramer/Manavit-SturzReality TV episode where Sturz swaps with wife from a Chicago family for a week.Rocket Science Laboratories
Opera Sturz was puppet masterIn opera and theater, Puppetmaster or Puppet Master refers to a member of the artistic team who choreographs and directs puppeteers, singers, actors or visual performers (like aerialists, acrobats) on how to perform puppet sequences. They may also design or build the puppets, which can be noted through additional production credits. for two opera productions: The Ring Cycle and The Magic Flute.
Ring Cycle for Lyric Opera of Chicago (1995, 1996, 2003, 2005, 2006)
Wagner's Ring Cycle has four parts: Das Rheingold, Die Walküre, Siegfried, and Götterdämmerung. The Lyric Opera of Chicago mounted Das Rheingold in January and February of 1993 with Lyric debut appearances for conductor Zubin Mehta and choreographer Debra Brown. In 1994, Brown saw an opportunity to add enhanced puppet sequences for the upcoming Siegfried production in January and February of 1995. Brown knew Sturz from prior joint projects, and recommended that Sturz consult with John Conklin (set and costume design) on the mock-up of the Siegfried dragon. Her concepts were accepted and she was credited for her Lyric debut in 1995 as puppet master.
The Lyric Opera of Chicago began full performances (all four parts, 15 hours across multiple days) of The Ring Cycle on March 11, 1996 (its 41st season). Sturz continued to be retained as puppet master. It was the first time a full Cycle was presented within a year in Chicago since before WWII. All three 1996 Cycles (a total of 12 performances) were sold out months in advance.
As puppet master, Sturz staged all puppet performances in Das Rheingold and Siegfried. She also built some of the puppets and worked closely with Conklin in puppet design and with Brown in staging the woodbirds. Sturz introduced the blacklight approach for the Siegfried dragon in 2003 and 2005.
As told by Fred Putz: "Lisa's appointment as Puppetmaster came as a result of her previous association with Debra Brown (the choreographer from Cirque du Soleil), who had already created the Rhinemaidens swimming through the air on bungee cords and Valkyries leaping through the clouds with the help of trampolines. Debra recommended that Lisa consult with John Conklin (set and costume designer) on the mock-up of the dragon for "Seigfried." The Lyric was so pleased with her contributions that she was asked to stage the scene and was designated Puppetmaster."
In total, Sturz was the Lyric's puppet master for three Das Rheingold (1996, 2005, 2006) and four Siegfried (1995, 1996, 2003, 2005) productions. Her Ring contributions were reviewed in nine articles.
"Fafner the dragon is the most obvious design dilemma in Siegfried. The challenge is the same as the Ride of the Valkyries scene in Die Walküre and the swimming Rhine maidens who open Das Rheingold. Lyric's stage director, August Everding, and set designer John Conklin, along with lighting designer Duane Schuler, have to create visual images to match some of the world's most evocative music. They will be doing it with a puppet, a massive but lightweight aluminum skeleton that will fill Lyric's 50-foot-wide stage. Lisa Aimee Sturz is the puppet master in charge of the five-minute scene in which Siegfried slays Fafner and seizes the magic ring the dragon is guarding." "Like the anvil scene, Siegfried's battle with Fafner is one of those places in which Wagner's dramatic music can overpower the stage action. Conklin and puppet master Lisa Aimee Sturz solved the problem superbly with a massive figure resembling a dinosaur skeleton. Manipulated by 16 black-clad handlers, Fafner was truly terrifying, with claws that loomed over Siegfried like the prehistoric beasts in Jurassic Park. The battle was exciting, with Siegfried being squeezed by the dragon's tail. "Small wonder that much of the curiosity about the current production of Siegfried, seen in its fourth performance on Wednesday evening, was focused on the representation of the giant Fafner as dragon. And the contraption devised for the purpose by John Conklin, the set and costume designer, must have satisfied even the wildest expectations: a huge skeletal puppet consisting of segmented skull and tail, manipulated from below by 16 people. If the dragon did not steal the scene entirely, it was only because the dancer appended to the origami Forest Bird took a Peter Pan flight over the stage to close the second act." "Lyric's Fafner, the creation of puppet master Lisa Aimee Sturz, is a gigantic reptilian skeleton requiring some 16 black-clad acrobats to manipulate its vertebrae and massive fanged jaws and head. The Woodbird is a simple origami bird held by a dancer who flies magically off like Peter Pan with Siegfried in pursuit. In Act 1, the furnishings of Mime's hut include a rocking-horse dragon which Siegfried rides from time to time. The bear episode is handled deftly, economically, and effectively." "If the audience remembers anything about the visual design, it will be the bungee-jumping Rhinemaidens and trampoline-bounding Valkyries as choreographed by Debra Brown, also the oversized dragon and giant puppets by Lisa Aimee Sturz, striking creations all". "Puppet master Lisa Aimee Sturz brings back her nifty dragon, a large skeletal Fafner with snapping steel jaws and mean-looking claws operated by black-clad supers". "The success of Lyric's production of The Ring was due to the combination of Wagner's well-played music, imaginative set design, creative lighting, sophisticated choreography, and the magic of puppetry". "One notable visual improvement is the Fafner scene. The Lyric's skeletal dragon created quite a stir when it debuted in the 1993-1994 season. Now, Fafner is more fearsome than ever, thanks to creative 'black' lighting and phosphorescent makeup, which helps to obscure the 15 black-costumed puppeteers (choreographed by Lisa Aimee Sturz) that bring the monster to life. It's a wonderful solution to one of the more problematic scenes to pull off convincingly in the Ring cycle." "The theatrical puppeteer Lisa Aimee Sturz created the huge skull, the skeletal segmented tail, and giant talons, expertly manipulated in time to Wagner's music by sixteen people hidden underneath. I regret not having seen the actual performance but have studied the photographs and corresponded with Lisa."
The Magic Flute (2009-10, 2017-2018, 2024)