The new book celebrates the children’s theatre company and the work it has done in the last 25 years.
Titled Theatre-Rites: Animating Puppets, Objects and Sites, this newly announced book offers a comprehensive history of the company’s work as well as celebrating the importance of collaboration and offers the first in-depth exploration of Artistic Director Sue Buckmaster’s practice.
As part of the 25th anniversary celebrations the company will also be be hosting a launch event in person and via a live stream on the28th July featuring a conversation between Sue Buckmaster and BAFTA-nominated actress Juliet Stevenson (Truly, Madly, Deeply; The Doctor, Almeida; Blindness, Donmar Warehouse). The event will also include rare footage of Houseworks, the production which put Theatre-Rites on the map, and a short film capturing highlights from the last 25 years.
Available to preorder now, Theatre-Rites: Animating Puppets, Objects and Sites reveals on how to incorporate
puppetry and symbolic objects as metaphors in theatrical work and aims to motivate and empower the next
generation of object-led theatre-makers.
Featuring original research ,this is the first comprehensive theorisation of Theatre-Rites’ creative process. It features detailed observations of their theory-informed practice, rooted in psychoanalysis and child development. Also featured are insights from their professional training workshops and in-depth interviews between the authors, Dr Liam Jarvis, Theatre-Rites board member and co-director of the Centre for Theatre Research at University of Essex, and Sue Buckmaster.
Talking about the news, Artistic Director Sue Buckmaster said: “It has been a privilege working with Liam over the last four years; we have talked politically, personally and playfully, and I hope that this rich dialogue speaks through
the book. It has been an honour to reflect on 25 years of Theatre-Rites and the part we have played in transforming people’s understanding of puppetry and challenging, thought-provoking theatre for children. There are still many challenges ahead for all of us in the arts community, but I hope this book provides a moment to celebrate all those who have helped us reach this milestone birthday. I am looking forward to our next chapter.”
Theatre-Rites: Animating Puppets, Objects and Sites will be available to purchase from £34.99 via Routledge.com, Amazon and most general bookshops, both online and in store, across the UK and the US from the 29th July.