Little Angel Theatre marks 65th anniversary with marionette revival project
Published by The Stage
Little Angel Theatre will mark its 65th anniversary with a new heritage project aimed at reviving marionette puppetry in the UK, an art form placed on the Heritage Crafts Red List of Endangered Crafts in 2023.
Funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, the initiative will include a new marionette production of The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, exhibitions, talks and training programmes designed to preserve the 600-year-old craft for future generations of puppet-makers.
A central part of the project will be the restoration of Little Angel Theatre’s historic double marionette bridge, described by the theatre as a “rare and specialist” piece of performance infrastructure and one of the only facilities of its kind in the UK.
The bridge will be renovated as part of the theatre’s 65th-anniversary celebrations and used for rehearsal and training purposes by future puppetry artists and companies.
The theatre will also launch a new traineeship scheme supporting two emerging puppet-makers and six trainee puppeteers in marionette carving, with funding from the Wolfson Foundation.
As part of the anniversary programme, the Little Angel Children’s Puppet Festival will return from 28th July to 30th August, with the world premiere of The Sorcerer’s Apprentice among the headline productions.
Written, directed and designed by Little Angel associate director Oliver Hymans, the production will use the restored marionette bridge and feature handcrafted puppets created in the theatre’s workshops.
Other productions announced for the festival include Tiny Planet, At Sea, Jack and the Beanstalk (sort of), Club Origami and Puffling Percy.
Little Angel Theatre artistic director Samantha Lane and executive director Peta Swindall said the project was intended to secure the future of marionette puppetry in the UK.
“Marionette puppetry is an endangered craft and without action, it could be lost,” they said. “This project is about securing its future: restoring our unique marionette bridge, creating ambitious new work and giving a new generation the skills to keep this extraordinary art form alive.”
Hymans described the initiative as the culmination of years of advocacy for marionette-making and puppetry training.
Further events and exhibitions celebrating Little Angel Theatre’s history and the heritage of marionette puppetry are due to be announced.