When renowned artist and puppeteer Tarish “Jeghetto” Pipkins took the stage at BU Central, all eyes weren’t on him. They were on his latest creation, Crush, a puppet made out of cardboard and cloth with two shining green eyes. With the help of his puppet, Pipkins hosted Boston University’s first puppet slam Saturday evening.

Lynne Cooney teetered on a paint-splattered ladder as she reached to hang lights that would shine onto the showcase she had carefully put together. Large images of dry cleaning laundry tags hung throughout...