Build a portable kids puppet theatre

This easy-to-build puppet theatre should provide hours of imaginative play for the young kids in your life, and it tucks out of the way between dramatic productions. That's because the unit comes apart in minutes, making it perfect for hiding under a bed or in a closet.

The secret is interlocking slots that allow the walls to go together without the need for tools or mechanical fasteners. A lightweight fabric roof, supported by crossbars, adds to the jovial look without adding much weight.

I made this project using two and a half sheets of 1/2"-thick Baltic birch plywood, but you can substitute hardwood-veneered cabinet ply. The advantage of Baltic birch is it has fewer voids between the all-hardwood layers, plus more than twice as many plies as conventional plywood. It comes in unconventional 5 x 5 sheet sizes, which actually work best for the dimensions of this project. Avoid using veneered particleboard: it's much heavier and not nearly as strong—an important consideration when it comes to all of the playhouse's interlocking slots.

Download the portable puppet theatre plans here!

Frame the house
Begin by cutting out plywood panels for the walls, the roof peaks and the window ledges using a tablesaw or a circular saw guided by a straightedge. Don't cut the angled top edges of the roof peaks just yet, though: leave these parts square for now.

Next, prepare the interlocking slots that connect the panels. I used a dado blade in a tablesaw with a board clamped to the fence to serve as a stop.

Start by setting up your dado blade to form a slot that will receive the plywood without binding or excessive side-to-side play. Finding the right slot size may require experimenting on scrap wood with different combinations of chippers and shims.