Puppet opera world mourns great artist

Paul Guerra ~ 1944-2007

Each week in a custom theater tucked away inside Rolling Meadows Park District's Park Central building, the magic of puppetry and opera combine to charm audiences, young and old.

Called, "Opera in Focus," the unique entertainment concept has drawn patrons in the suburbs since 1993.

One of the original puppeteers was Paul Guerra of Park Ridge, whom founder William Fosser turned to when developing the theater, to design and make the puppets' elaborate costumes.

Mr. Guerra worked along side Fosser, manipulating the rod puppets from their rolling stools positioned underneath the stage.

Colleagues in the miniature world now are mourning his death. Just one year after the passing of Fosser, Mr. Guerra has passed away. The longtime resident of Park Ridge, was 63.

"The costumes added so much," says Judy Hill of the Rolling Meadows Park District. "Paul was very meticulous, making sure that every sequin was in place and all the wigs were in order. He brought those puppets alive."

Since the company's inception, Mr. Guerra worked as principal puppeteer and costumer, bringing to life everything from Verdi's famous operas to Rodgers and Hammerstein's musical scores.

One of the favorite parts of performances were the backstage tours where audience members could see how the puppeteers worked and see the puppets and their intricate costumes close-up.

"That was such an asset, those backstage tours," Hill adds. "They allowed the audience to see just how much work went into each performance."

In all, park district officials figure Mr. Guerra outfitted more than 100 puppets, and his costumes remain stored for current shows. Formerly, he had worked at the Kungsholm Miniature Opera in Chicago, where Mr. Fosser was artistic director.

Mr. Guerra was born in 1944 in Texas, but he moved to northern Indiana to live with an older sister when his mother died. He eventually studied at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

His first career was in photography. Mr. Guerra started as a photography assistant and eventually found steady demand for his photos as a freelancer. One of his biggest breaks came when Sears Roebuck & Co. chose his studio to be their exclusive photo design studio.

However, when Fosser tapped him to develop the puppet opera, Guerra eagerly joined him, and pursued his photography only as a freelancer.

In recent years, Fosser and Mr. Guerra had trained a new generation of puppeteers to help them produce the shows, consequently despite the passing of the two original founders, the shows will go on.

Mr. Guerra is survived by his older sister, Julia, as well as five nieces and nephews. Services have been held.