My shadow shows

I have been exploring shadow theatre with increasing fascination over 20 years. The first shows were kids puppet shows designed on a table-top screen telling whole stories in black and white with minimal scenery, and a single lamp switched either on or off, or using daylight through a window.

I then moved to a much bigger freestanding screen with a dimmer system for the lights, and started to use colour and texture. The extra useable space was wonderful, but with just one puppeteer, performing and scene changing was problematic, as was making and carrying around huge sheets of scenery.

Recently I have gone in two directions.

Beowulf and The Terrible One's Horse, both made on commission for older children and adults using big screens, are stories with shadow illustrations - like pictures in a book every now and then - but these pictures move.

This works really well for making the story itself central whilst in the background the shadows shadow the story. The storyteller (Michael) is visible, indeed lit, throughout and tells direct to the audience, and song can emerge from behind the screen while my hands are busy with shadows. I use masses of textures from lace, and colours from ribbons and painted silk, along with colour changing lights to portray flickering fires and eerily lit marshes.

More about our Shadow Shows