Steve Petra trained at the National Theatre of Puppet Arts and at Jim Henson Productions in Manhattan. He is a full-time professional ventriloquist and puppeteer performing his own scripts, songs and music. Previously, he worked as a professional musician. He now specializes in curriculum-based assembly programs for elementary schools.
Steve also performs for family audiences at libraries and some other venues. These shows are like being at a Comedy Club for families. With zany illusions, props, music, audience participation and a cast of outrageous puppet characters.
When he isn't out doing live shows, Steve is working on audio and video projects, and as a video editor. His instructional series, Let's Get Visual, is selling to performers all over the world. He is now in demand as a lecturer at conferences for professional performers and has taught workshops on show building, puppet manipulation, character voices and ventriloquism.
PetraPuppets is Steve and his wife Jeanie. Steve performs the shows. Jeanie does the website, database, booking, scheduling, contracts, fliers, teacher's guides, and collaborates on the shows.
Steve has performed at The Vent Haven ConVENTion, The KIDabra Conference, KAX, Puppeteers of America festivals and at Puppet Guild events. He's a member of The International Ventriloquist Society and The Puppeteers of America.
Steve Petra was named 2019 Northeast Ventriloquist of the year by the International Ventriloquist Society
In this Episode we discuss:
- Origin Story
- Transition from Musician to Puppeteer
- Jim Henson Studio
- School Shows
- Pricing
- Becoming a Vent
- Libraries
- Audience Control & Pre-show
- Early Struggles
- Nikon School
- Newbie Advice
- Interest vs Obsession
- Branding
- World of Puppetry
- Social Media
- Continuing Education
- Top 3 Things to be Successful
Explore these Resources:
- "Making Puppets Come Alive"
- The Jim Henson Company
- Carol Fijan
- Barry Mitchell
- Lee Andrews
- KAX
- Ken Scott
- Mark Wade
- David Ginn
- Tim Sonefelt
- Sammy Smith
Follow our Podcast
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
My Favorite Murder with Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark
My Favorite Murder is a true crime comedy podcast hosted by Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark. Each week, Karen and Georgia share compelling true crimes and hometown stories from friends and listeners. Since MFM launched in January of 2016, Karen and Georgia have shared their lifelong interest in true crime and have covered stories of infamous serial killers like the Night Stalker, mysterious cold cases, captivating cults, incredible survivor stories and important events from history like the Tulsa race massacre of 1921. My Favorite Murder is part of the Exactly Right podcast network that provides a platform for bold, creative voices to bring to life provocative, entertaining and relatable stories for audiences everywhere. The Exactly Right roster of podcasts covers a variety of topics including historic true crime, comedic interviews and news, science, pop culture and more. Podcasts on the network include Buried Bones with Kate Winkler Dawson and Paul Holes, That's Messed Up: An SVU Podcast, This Podcast Will Kill You, Bananas and more.
The Joe Rogan Experience
The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.