Shows, workshops, films, talks and outdoor theatre for adults, teens & children
Welcome to Moving Parts!
Welcome to the sixth edition of Newcastle Puppetry Festival! Eight days of puppetry for adults, teenagers & children. Inside this brochure you’ll find the full programme of shows, workshops, talks, films & outdoor theatre taking place during the Easter Holidays between 19th - 27th April 2025 in Newcastle.
We hope there is something for everyone - whether you’re brand new to puppetry or a returning connoisseur - either way, thank you for picking up this brochure! You may not be 100% sure that puppetry is for you, or you may think that it is just for children. But we’re here to show you that puppetry is for EVERYONE (including adults!). Why not come down to one of the FREE events and see for yourself. We hope you have a great festival!
Venues
Northern Stage, Barras Bridge, NE1 7RH
Great North Museum: Hancock, Barras Bridge, NE2 4PT
Northumberland Street, NE1 7AF
(Outdoor acts begin near Fenwicks)
Key info & Tickets
All tickets for events at Northern Stage should be booked directly through their website or box office: northernstage.com | 0191 230 5151
For the five adult workshops taking place at the Great North Museum: Hancock, tickets should be booked through our website: movingpartsarts.com You do not need tickets for free outdoor events or the drop in family workshops at the museum.
Ticket concessions are for under 18s, students, asylum seekers, refugees, disabled people, over 65s & unwaged people. Accompanying carers go free but please get in touch with Northern Stage before booking.
Access: Please visit movingpartsarts.com/yourvisit for venue info or email Vicky at movingpartsengage@gmail.com
All children must be supervised by parents/guardians. It is not advisable to bring children under the suggested age range to shows. All children require tickets, aside from babes in arms.
The organisers reserve the right to change the programme due to unforeseen circumstances. In the event of bad weather, please check our website and social media accounts for updates to outdoor events. Latecomes may not be allowed entry to performances after the advertised start time. Tickets are non-refundable.
Festival Team Trustees
Margaret Pinder, Alison McGowan, Jonathan Bussell, Eleanor Woolstencroft, Gillian Firth
Artistic Director / Co-Founder
Kerrin Tatman
Education Lead / Co-Founder
William Steele
Technical Manager
Louise Gregory
Engagement & Participation Lead
Vicky Tate
Producers
Kerrin Tatman, Izaak Gledhill
Festival Week Artist Liaison
Matt Wood
Assistant Producer
JonJoe Clennell
Brochure Design
Kerrin Tatman, based on original designs by Rachael Horner.
Printed by Bang On Print.
Photography & videography
Von Fox Promotions and a HUGE thank you to all of our volunteers!
Saturday 19th April 11am-4pm (see individual act timings)
Victorian Time Travellers by Bell & Bullock (of Stanley, Co. Durham)
11.15am, 12.45pm
Eikthynir the Elk by Red Thing Creations (of Stoke-on- Trent)
11.30am, 1pm, 3pm
Delilah the Elephant by Jo Feijó/Moving Parts Arts (of Newcastle)
11am, 12.30pm, 2.30pm
Northumberland Street, NE1 7AF
Acts begin near Fenwicks
The Dragon Tamer by Keep Drawing, Charlie! (of Long Eaton, Derbyshire)
11.45am, 1.15pm, 3.15pm
Jabberwocky! by Rag & Bone (of Huddersfield)
12pm midday, 1.30pm, 3.30pm
Illustration by Becky Musgrove
Lead Parade Artists:
Chloe Rodham, Judith Hope, Rosie Bristow, William Steele
Saturday 19th April, 2pm | FREE! No booking required Northumberland Street, NE1 7AF (parade begins near Fenwicks) ‘toon’ Geordie: ‘town’, specifically Newcastle.
Over 100 local residents and artists will come together to perform ‘Toon Underground’ community parade on Northumberland Street to open the festival. The parade theme explores the unseen and undiscovered places of Newcastle, its hidden nature and ecosystem, and the ways in which we connect.
Expect a menagerie of burrowing woodland creatures, (including a very famous badger), a snaking Metro train, and fantastical beasts inspired by links to the land, all to toe-tapping live music. Don’t miss ‘Beasts on the Street’ also taking place this day 11am-4pm, where wandering puppets will roam Northumberland Street.
A HUGE thank you to Toon Underground funders & partners!
(of London / Aylesford)
Monday 21st April Beasts and Varmints: 6-day Puppet Making Course with Judith Hope Puppet Maker
21st - 26th April (6 day course), 10am - 5pm at Great North Museum: Hancock, Ages 18+ £360 including materials & all 6 days
A 6-day adult masterclass to create your own beastly puppet character, inspired by gurning gargoyles, creatures from folklore, ancient tales, mythology or your own dreams and imagination. Learn to make and use paper clay from recycled materials, as well as using the thermo material, Worbla. You will construct a head mechanism and articulated body, and work with paint and fabrics to create a decorative finish.
The Heart of Story: Crafting Narrative for Puppetry Course
with William Steele (of Richmond, Yorks.)
Creations made by over 100 local residents and artists as part of Toon Underground Parade. 21st April - 4th May @ Great North Museum: Hancock, during museum opening hours.
What is the heart of your story? In this workshop you will learn how to quickly adapt existing stories, as well as build new narrative structures. You will also start to plot the beginning of your very own piece of puppet theatre and produce preliminary designs for your concept ready to take away and continue developing with confidence!
21st - 22nd April (2 day course), 10am - 5pm | Ages 16+ at Great North Museum: Hancock, £120 including both days
Wednesday 23rd April
The Darker Side of Puppetry 2-day Course with Gavin Glover (of Glasgow)
23rd - 24th April (2 day course), 10am - 5pm | Ages 18+ at Great North Museum: Hancock, £120 includes both days
In this hands-on experimental two-day workshop we will discover some new species of puppet. For example, The Alter Ego, the Imaginary Friend and the DARKER worlds of the Imposter, the Phantom and the Effigy. It is a dangerous and vulnerable place the DARKER side but there is beauty and honesty to be found there in this new approach to contemporary puppetry performance.
Thursday 24th April
Puppet Olympics
24th April, 7pm | Adults & Teens aged 14+ at Northern Stage, FREE! & no need to book with Life & Limb Puppets (of Gateshead)
The Moving Parts Puppet Olympics is back again for the 5th annual ceremony of games and awards. A relaxed social evening of puppet-themed fun - no puppetry experience needed! Life & Limb Puppets will rally teams to create their own puppets from recycling, before putting them to the test in a series of Olympic challenges.
Prizes
to be won!
Meet the Puppeteers Q+A with Chloe Rodham
(of Newcastle)
24th April | 6pm | at Northern Stage Adults & Teens aged 12+ FREE! & no need to book
Friday 25th April
Panta Rhei II
UK Premiere
by t’Magisch Theatertje
(of The Netherlands)
25th April, 4.30pm & 7pm
Adults & Teens aged 14+ at Northern Stage, £12 / £10
Short poetic scenes are united by visual threads in this puppet and mask performance for adults. Through an almost ritualistic game of mystery, the spectator is carried away into a world of magic and dreams.
Manipulating Marionettes Course: A New Approach with Stephen Mottram
(of Oxford)
25th - 26th April (2 day course)
10am - 5pm | Ages 18+ at Great North Museum: Hancock, £120 includes both days
Participants will work with a range of string puppet types to explore and embrace new knowledge about how our brains read information from the movement of others. Stephen Mottram has performed in more than 40 countries worldwide.
Feisty Fox Friends drop in workshops with Pui Lee (of Gateshead) FREE! 11am, 1pm & 3pm at Great North Museum
Moving Parts Puppet Cabaret
Hosted by Headstrung Puppets (of Liverpool)
25th April, 8.30pm | Adults aged 18+ at Northern Stage, £12 / £10
Roll up, roll up for a jam packed line up of puppetbased mayhem - surreal, naughty and downright silly!
Meet the Puppeteers Q+A with William Steele
25th April, 6pm | Adults & Teens aged 12+ at Northern Stage, FREE! & no need to book (of Richmond, Yorks.)
Flotsam
& Jetsam
By Lempen Puppet Theatre
25th April, 11am & 12.30pm at Northern Stage, £8 / £6
A hopeful story about friendship and discovery with delightful puppetry and original music.
Saturday 26th April
UK Premiere
Cantos Animata
by t’Magisch Theatertje
Stop Motion Animation Films
5pm at Northern Stage Ages 18+ | £8 / £6
26th April, 7pm | £15 / £12.50
Adults & Teens aged 14+ at Northern Stage (of The Netherlands)
Cantos Animata combines puppets, masks, music and movement to take the spectator on a journey through a world of mystery. You are invited to reflect on the circles of life, the powers behind it, and the generations of people and creatures infused in the tapestry.
The elves and the Shoemaker
by Grandly Strange Puppet Theatre (of Leeds)
26th April, 11am & 1pm | £8 / £6
Ages 3-7 & families at Northern Stage
The elves and the Shoemaker is a sole-full treat, ideal for children aged 3 to 7 (and people with size 11 shoes will love it too).
‘Whirl-a-Bird’
by Chloe Rodham
(of Newcastle)
Puppet Making Course
No experience needed!
26th - 27th April (2 day course), 10am - 5pm
Adults & Teens aged 12+ | £95 includes both days at Great North Museum: Hancock
Meet the Puppeteers Q+A with t’Magisch Theatertje
(of The Netherlands)
26th April, 4pm | Adults & Teens aged 12+ at Northern Stage, FREE! & no need to book
Freddie Hayes: Magic Lady
by Freddie Hayes
(of Stockport)
26th April, 8.30pm | at Northern Stage
£12 / £10 | Adults & Teens aged 14+
withPuiLee(ofGateshead)
Mole in a Hole dropinworkshops FREE!11am,1pm &3pmatGreat North Museum
“Gleefullysillyfun” BritishTheatreGuide
A haphazard showbiz starlet enters the magic circle after years as a glamorous assistant, stepping out of the shadows of magical greats and into the spotlight. A faux magic comedy show featuring puppetry, camp surprises, absurdism, hip-hop, deluded illusions, singing, and dancing..
Sunday 27th April
A Million Tiny Ants
27th April | £12 / £10
Adults & Teens aged 7+ at Northern Stage, 6.30pm by Matthew Robins (of Newlyn, Cornwall)
Shadow-puppet adventures of Flyboy and Mothboy, as well as some new characters. There will be made-up games, jokes about skeletons, songs about sausages, and (possibly) a million tiny ants.
“Like watching a silent movie in which every aspect has been created by a wayward child genius.” The Guardian includes live music!
ImmersiveThe Carriage of Wonders
by Judith Hope Puppet Maker (of London / Aylesford)
& Tatwood Puppets (of Newcastle) 27th April | £3 / £2
A preserved relic from times past is given new life in this intimate performance for 10 people at a timewhat will you discover behind the bathchair's shrouded window?
Adults & Children aged 5+ at Northern Stage
10-minute bookable slots between 2pm - 5.50pm
WonderPlay
by Kain Penny Playground
(of London)
27th April | Ages 4+ 11am & 1pm | £8 / £6 at Northern Stage
WonderPlay merges beautiful shadow puppetry with colourful animated backgrounds to unfold a surreal captivating tale driven by curiosity and adventure.
The Stuff of Life
(of Leeds) by the OBJECT project
27th April, 8.30pm | £10 / £8
Adults aged 18+ at Northern Stage
Have you ever woken in the middle of the night in a feverish torment, questioning your life choices, other people’s life choices, and the sheer pointlessness of it all? Well, you shall sleep soundly from this day forth. The Object Project is on a mission to interrogate, unpack and dissect the very fabric of existence and lay it before you in simple, often hilarious vignettes, enacted by a miscellany of beleaguered kitchen paraphernalia….mostly.
with Pui Lee (of Gateshead)
Boogie-ing Badgers drop in workshops FREE! 11am, 1pm & 3pm at Great North Museum
Newcastle Puppetry Festival is produced by:
Moving Parts Arts CIO is a registered charity (1194137) based in Newcastle upon Tyne. We use puppetry, theatre & outdoor arts as a way of bringing people together. Moving Parts runs workshops, events and projects year-round, engaging over 20,000 people annually. Support our work: www.movingpartsarts.com/donate
Principle partner: A HUGE thank you to all our funders & partners for making the festival possible!
