Simpich puppeteers settle down in Old Colorado City

No more living out of boxes for this active clan of about 250.

David Simpich's family finally has a permanent place to call home ... though there are some strings attached.

The Simpich Showcase - with art, dolls and live theater - opens Friday in the same Old Colorado City building that housed his parents' renowned doll business for nearly three decades.

David Simpich's marionettes will come to life in the 70-seat theater for an eight-week run of "The Hans Christian Andersen Storybook."

The 47-year-old puppeteer and his family spent 16 years touring the nation by RV and van, putting on 16 shows with the 240 marionettes he created.

"We were the roadies," his wife, Debby, said.

It was great when their four kids were younger.

"I kind of had this epiphany that maybe we need to have a museum and stop being on the road so much," David Simpich said. "We could pay tribute to what my parents did."

He spent 18 months renovating the West Colorado Avenue space used until 2007 by his parents, Jan and Bob Simpich, for a business that, at one time, employed 100 people.

Their doll dioramas are displayed in the Simpich Character Doll Museum section. The Simpich Fine Art Gallery has paintings by his dad and other local artists.

There's more than eye candy. The refreshment counter is where you'll find his youngest child, Toby, 10.

"I'll mainly do the concession thing and help clean up," said the boy, who wants to be a policeman.

David Simpich never considered leaving the arts.

"That would be tricky, with the constant creative activity that I grew up with," he said.

"From the time I can remember, people were coming to our house to buy dolls and them constantly making them in the studio in Manitou."

He got hooked at an early age. "I learned how to paint the eyes and sculpt a little, but theater was my first love all growing up," he said. "I kind of kept them in separate boxes: Here was theater and here was what my parents did with the dolls."

Then one day he saw marionettes in a shop window.

"All of a sudden, the two weren't separate any more. I realized that figures could be actors, it made absolute sense to me. I set about to make my own. That upbringing, the fabric and clay and paint, all those things I knew about, helped when I set about to make a marionette show."

His 20-inch puppets require masterful manipulation to avoid entangled messes.

"It's kind of like learning to play a musical instrument. It takes a lot of practice," David Simpich said. "Making them helps to understand how they work."

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Contact the writer at 636-0253.

"The Hans Christian Andersen Storybook"

When: Friday through July 19, 7 p.m. Fridays; 2:30 p.m. Saturdays, Sundays and Wednesdays
Where: The Dave Simpich Showcase, 2413 W. Colorado Ave.
Admission (includes museum): adults $12; seniors $11; children 12 and under $10. All Wednesday tickets are $8. More information at 719-465-2492, or visit simpich.com