Mayor Jim Watson will be Parade Marshall at this year’s Puppets Up! Festival

Mayor Jim Watson will be Parade Marshall at this year’s Puppets Up! Festival in Almonte, Ontario on August 9th. Acclaimed puppeteer and puppet builder, Noreen Young will be visiting the Mayor in his offices on Wednesday, April 30th at 2pm to capture the Ottawa official in various poses in order to create one of her famous look-a-like caricature puppets! Ottawa born Noreen Young is an Order of Canada recipient (1995), who rose to fame with her production, Under the Umbrella Tree in the mid-1980s. The show ran for almost a decade, and if you ask any young person around the age of 30 whether they remember the show, they are likely to cheer and then name their favourite character (Gloria Gopher, Iggy Iguana, or Jacob Blue Jay). Young has made caricature puppets of numerous Canadian personalities, including former Governor General Adrienne Clarkson, hockey host Don Cherry, local hero Wayne Rostad, and retired TV host, the ever popular Max Keeping. Mayor Watson will ride in a classic car in the parade with his caricature puppet and charm the crowds who line Mill Street in Almonte for the daily parades. The puppet festival attracts over 10 000 visitors who enjoy productions in various styles of puppetry from 11 puppet troupes. This year the festival welcomes troupes from Canada, the United States, Switzerland, and Italy. Mayor Watson will be in good company!