This weekend, Eva Perry Library in Apex is offering a full day of puppet shows and puppet-inspired crafts.

Puppet Palooza goes from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and features five free puppet shows, two of them performed by a professional troupe from Charlotte.

The event grew out of the library staff’s enthusiasm for puppet shows, which are performed at almost every story time there. “It’s just kind of a tradition here,” said Lindsey Dunn, a youth services librarian.

This is the second year they have staged the all-day event.

The staff will perform the first three shows, which are at 10:30, 11:15 and noon. All three are intended for preschoolers and have different themes, such as “Fractured Fairy Tales” and “Splashy Tales.”

The shows are free, but will require a ticket. Tickets will be handed out beginning at 10 a.m. on a first-come first-served basis.

The later shows, at 2 p.m. and 3 p.m., will be performed by Grey Seal Puppets, a professional touring puppet troupe. “Tangle of Tales” features the stories of “The Frog Prince,” “Three Billy Goats Gruff” and “The Three Little Pigs.”

Free tickets should be reserved in advance for these shows. Call 919-387-2100.

Lastly, if your kids are motivated crafters, they can come home with a whole cast of characters for putting on their own puppet shows. They can make five different puppets at craft stations that will be open throughout the day.

• This weekend is also the annual Cary Kite Festival, a perfect way to spend a warm March afternoon.

Beginning at 1 p.m. Saturday, take your kite to Bond Park. There will be stunt kite demonstrations and awards given in a long list of categories including best homemade kite, youngest flyer, best crash and quickest take-off.

Awards are handed out at 2:30 p.m.

• You can also see a live performance of the classic story “Charlotte’s Web” this weekend at the Garner Performing Arts Center.

The show is at 11 a.m. Saturday and lasts about an hour. Tickets are $10.

Go to www.garnerperformingartscenter.com to buy them.

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