w/robe

Last time we did this with a fox hand puppet, we cut a hole with a flap-trap in the front of the stage.

Operator under the stage thrust (essentially a section of Litedeck) pops his hand up through the trap at the right time - hit the fox with a tight spot to highlight him and away you go.

A tethered string on the flap to pull it closed again after her drops down.

Assuming you can get under the stage and that you can cut the hole (and of course properly fill'repair it post show) that's probably the simplest.

 

Otherwise, create an emu-style effect where the operator carries on a box with a false back/base - puppet up through the top pf the box - false arm in the operator's finale jacket fixed around the box and again - very simple option.

I think it is nice if the puppeteer is in the curtain call too.

Could the mouse come through the floor at the top of the treads. Depending on sight-lines and structure you could have a long narrow trap covered in overlapping lycra so he can arrive from the wings. The mouse takes his bow (all done by the ASM) and then the puppeteer comes from the wings, picks him up, while masking what he is doing with his body, and then joins the rest of the cast DS.