The children’s theatre has announced it will be presenting its first children’s puppet festival this August.
The Little Angel Theatre has confirmed that it will be hosting its first children’s puppet festival this year across both of its venues from the from 2nd August – 3rd
September 2023.
The aim of the festival is to showcase a broad range of puppetry by exciting UK and international companies currently making theatre for young audiences, with plenty of opportunities for everyone to get involved with workshops for families, community events, fun days for children and courses for adults to try out the craft of puppetry.
Curated by Little Angel Artistic Associate Oliver Hymans, the final programme embraces a range of styles for different ages, focusing on work where puppetry takes centre-stage or is presented in a new way.
Highlights of the festival are set to include:
● Breathe by Half A String will feature intricate puppetry, ground-breaking live camera work and a thumping drum and bass soundtrack.
● Following a collaboration at the Royal Opera House last year, internationally renowned hand shadow artist Drew Colby and opera singer Rose Stachniewska will create a new opera production of The Fox Poet and the Fisherman.
● Celebrated by audiences around the world, Dutch company Tam Tam will showcase their beautiful style of object puppetry in To Have or Not to Have, whilst
Swallow Wings Puppetry present Anansi and the Lost Sun, an inspiring theatre show with live traditional West African music.
● Little Angel’s very own puppetry design intern Ash Appadu will be debuting their show Where the Water Falls, where a timid monster takes on a journey of self
discovery.
● Garlic Theatre return to Little Angel with their lovingly crafted puppets in Oldilocks and the 3 Bears, plus extraordinarily silly stories will be told by award- winning Roustabout Theatre in the improvised and interactive The Great Big Story Mix Up.
● For the Early Years, two special immersive shows include the playful toooB from Angel Exit Theatre and Lyngo’s Egg and Spoon.
● Two intricate and inventive ‘suitcase shows’ designed to be transported and performed anywhere, include classic tale The Tortoise and the Hare from Kitchen Zoo and the mind boggling Suitcase Circus from Folded Feather.
● The return of two companies and artists who won Offies with Little Angel Theatre last year – Sam Wilde’s (OFFIES 2023 Winner – Theatre for Young Audiences –
Design, ‘I Want my Hat Back’) new company Cardboard Adventures invites you to an interactive-build-your-own-adventure Boxville and Smoking Apples return with their unmissable, immersive show for older children Kinder (OFFIES 2023 Winner – Theatre for Young Audiences – Original Music/Sound and Production;
Etties 2023 Winner – Best Theatre for Young Audiences Production).
● Plus a whole host of family and adult activities will take place throughout August, encouraging everyone to get involved, including Puppet Playcation (a holiday club
for ages 5-9), festival themed craft workshops for the whole family, puppet making courses for adults to expand their skills, a “Hands On” introduction to puppetry
sessions, and Little Angel will also open its doors as part of the Open House Festival.
Talking about the festival, Little Angel Associate Artist and curator of the Children’s Puppet Festival Oliver Hymans said: “The festival is an opportunity to showcase the amazing breadth of this versatile artform. Following on from our work to get marionette making and performance onto the red list of endangered crafts in May we are more impassioned than ever to create a platform where puppetry and theatre for young audiences can thrive and flourish, receiving the recognition they deserve. Going forward the festival will be a key part of our Artist Development Programme, this year it features a show developed as part of our puppetry internship, as well as welcoming back ‘Kinder’, a show developed through our
support programme for artists and companies.”
To find out more about the festival visit: https://www.littleangeltheatre.com/seasons/childrens-puppet-festival-2023/