Heidi Rugg is an interdisciplinary artist with her feet firmly planted in the worlds of both performance and visual arts. In 1997, she founded Barefoot Puppet Theatre, a touring company that performs for youth and family audiences. Born in Hawaii, Heidi learned Hula when most girls were twirling in tutus. She now calls Richmond, Virginia home and has toured throughout the country (and beyond!) presenting to schools, libraries, theatres, museums, and venues including The Center for Puppetry Arts in Atlanta, Puppet Showplace Theater in Boston, The Smithsonian Discovery Theatre, and -- of course! -- The American Theatre.

Heidi specializes in wet-felting applications in puppetry and rod puppet mechanisms. She has a passion for sustainable practices in art-making that promote healthy people and a healthy planet. A teaching artist for over 20 years, Heidi leads master class workshops in puppet building and manipulation; she has extensive expertise in prototyping and creative processes. She works with educational programs to implement arts integration and is on the teaching artists roster for the Virginia Commission for the Arts. 

Heidi’s work has been supported by grants from The Henson Foundation, Puppeteers of America, the Virginia Commission for the Arts, and the Wolf Trap Foundation for the Arts. In 2005, she received an UNIMA-Citation of Excellence, the highest American award for puppetry.

Heidi currently lives with her family on the edge of a swamp in Richmond’s Northside where she maintains her studio practice.

Photo Credits:
Show image by Warren Johnson
Headshot by Randy Davidson Photography