Along with his well established musical career, Mr. Shetler tumed — “half a life later,” as he puts it — to the realization of a never-forgotten childhood passion: puppetry. And with accustomed enthusiasm, he soon was achieving international acclaim in this delightful medium as well.
Audiences were immediately won over by his unusual combination of humor and musicality, so that soon the name Shetler was also synonymous with the unique idea of musical puppetry as well. Requests were soon pouring in from venues as varied as Vienna’s Musikverein, Berlin’s State Opera, New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the National Conservatory in Peking, China. It seemed no matter what their language background, audiences took to the charm of puppets who are on intimate terms with Bach, Beethoven, and Mozart (hence the “Salzburg connection”).