Who We Are
Pupperoos is a mother-daughter studio creating stories through puppetry, art, and words.
Kay Yasugi — Puppeteer, Maker, Educator & Creative Consultant
Kay Yasugi is a Sydney-based puppeteer, maker, illustrator, and educator who has spent her career finding ways to tell stories through puppets — for children, communities, schools, and screens.
Growing up between Korean, Japanese, and Australian culture has shaped everything she makes.
Training & Education
Kay trained at the London School of Puppetry (UK) and holds a Bachelor of Education (Primary) from the University of Sydney, graduating with First Class Honours and a University Medal. She has lectured at the University of Sydney and the University of Technology Sydney, and has been a teaching artist for the Sydney Opera House's Creative Leadership in Learning Program.
Screen & Stage
Her work spans theatre, film, television, and education. She has made and performed puppets for Where is the Green Sheep? (Monkey Baa Theatre), The 13-Storey Treehouse (CDP Theatre Producers, Sydney Opera House), the ABC iView campaign, and the Canva Holiday Magic campaign. She was also commissioned by CommBank x Clown Doctors Australia to create doctor sock puppets for their fundraising campaign — handcrafted from the very socks sold to raise money for the cause.
A particular highlight was making Fluffy the Therapy Dog for Arts Out West's Art Snacks Program — bringing comfort to aged care residents in rural Multi-Purpose Health Services through the emotional connection inspired by pets. She has also collaborated with the Korean Cultural Centre to write Korean folktales read aloud by The Wiggles online.
Kay with the sheep puppets she made for Where is the Green Sheep? (Monkey Baa Theatre)
Schools & Community
Kay has made puppets for numerous school productions including Lion King Jr, Finding Nemo Jr, Into the Woods, Beauty and the Beast, and The Wizard of Oz, and created dragon puppets for Schools Spectacular in 2017. She has appeared on ABC's Play School for their episodes on puppetry.
International
Her passion for puppetry has taken her to international festivals in Italy, Cambodia and the UK, and earlier in her career to the Copenhagen Puppet Festival, Prague Quadrennial, and China Quanzhou International Puppet Festival.
Leadership
Kay serves as General Secretary and Councillor of UNIMA Australia — the official puppetry organisation of Australia — and as Secretary of the UNIMA Asia-Pacific Commission, connecting puppetry practitioners and building community across the region and beyond.
The Vegetable Plot
Kay is also a core member of the award-winning children's music group The Vegetable Plot, performing as Avo Kaydo. The band won Best Show at the Sydney Fringe Festival Kids Fringe, took out Album of the Year and Song of the Year at the 2025 Australian Children's Music Awards, and are ARIA nominees. Their new animated series launched in May 2026, where Kay voices the character of 'Egg' (the Eggplant).
Find me on Instagram: @kay_yasugi · @pupperoos.puppets
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Kay as Avo Kaydo from The Vegetable Plot (Photo by Lyn Taylor)
Youngkyu Kwon (Yong) — Writer, Performer & Collaborator
Yong is a multilingual essayist, community leader, and performer — most recently taking to stages in Australia and internationally alongside her daughter Kay.
She has published essays in Sydney's Korean newspapers including the Hanho Daily, and has held leadership roles in the EWHA Girls High School/University Alumni (Sydney), the Lee Hyojeong Literary Society (aka Sydney Korean Writers Club), the Sydney Korean Women's Choir, and served as president of the Korean Women's International Network (KOWIN) Australia. She has also contributed to MOSAIC Multicultural Centre and the Immigration Women's Speakout Association (IWSA).
Yong has supported Kay's puppetry work for many years, initially behind the scenes and now fully on stage. In 2018, they travelled together to Jeju Island, South Korea, to research the Haenyeo — traditional women divers — which inspired their show Haenyeo: Women of the Sea (funded by the SB&W Foundation). The show premiered at the Figura Offida Festival in Italy in 2019 and has since toured to the Melbourne Festival of Puppetry and the Culture Mix Multicultural Festival in Wollongong.
In 2025, Yong self-published her first book — Snow on a Summer's Day: A Migrant's Life in Sydney, a bilingual collection of literary essays and a short story written over fifteen years, now translated into English and illustrated by Kay. It is a quiet, beautiful record of what it means to build a life between cultures. The book will be available to purchase here soon.
In 2026, Yong made her modelling debut, walking in two fashion shows at the Sydney Korean Festival for celebrated Korean designer and artist Baek Yu Sun — whose collection translates her paintings, originally exhibited at Art Shopping Paris at the Carrousel du Louvre (France), into stunning garments blending traditional and contemporary Korean art.
Also in 2026, Yong was nominated for a Ryde Local Senior of the Year Award as part of the NSW Seniors Festival, recognised by NSW Parliament for her significant contribution to the community through cultural and literary engagement.
Their next show — inspired by Snow on a Summer's Day — is currently in development. Watch this space.
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