Little Angel Theatre is thrilled announces the line-up for the third Little Angel Children’s Puppet Festival, running from August 8th to 31st, 2025. This beloved festival has become a summer highlight for young audiences, celebrating the art of puppetry in all its forms with a packed schedule of inventive and imaginative performances by award-winning companies.
Festival Highlights
Two inspiring shows will blend music and puppetry: Shoe Baby, featuring music from Tom Gray of Gomez, and Tales From The Lighthouse, with storytelling and original music by BBC Radio 2 Folk Award Nominee Cohen Braithwaite-Kilcoyne.
The festival will celebrate marionette puppetry, recently added to the Red List of Endangered Crafts, with the jazz-inspired musical marionette show The Pigeon and the Peacock. Additionally, the in-house Puppet Design Trainee will present their first show, The Tortoise and the Firefly, a fresh take on African folk tales.
Audiences can expect boundary-breaking puppetry with Escape from the Bubble Tub and laugh-out-loud comedy with The Listies Make You LOL, a 5-star Edinburgh Fringe Festival hit. Classic storytelling will be featured with The Elves and the Shoemaker and the nursery rhyme Hickory Dickory Dock.
Activities and Workshops
Little Angel Theatre will offer a variety of family and adult activities throughout August, including Puppet Playcations (holiday clubs for ages 5-9), Craft Workshops, Puppet Making Courses for adults, and “Hands On” introduction to puppetry sessions. The theatre will also participate in the Open House Festival in September.
Touring Productions
A Squash and a Squeeze will continue its national tour, including a three-week run at The Lowry in Salford in August. The I Want My Hat Back Trilogy will head to the Polka Theatre in Wimbledon for a summer residency.
Oliver Hymans, Associate Director and curator of the festival, said: “The Little Angel Theatre’s Children’s Puppetry Festival is a true celebration of the incredible diversity of puppet theatre. From the delicate artistry of marionettes to the playful inventiveness of object theatre, alongside laugh-out-loud comedy and live music, the festival offers a magical experience for audiences of all ages. This year, we’re especially proud to support a new graduate show from our design trainee, brought to life with the guidance of the LAT creative team – showcasing the next generation of puppet makers and theatre designers.”
Samantha Lane, Artistic Director, and Peta Swindall, Executive Director, added: “Now in its third year, the Children’s Puppet Festival reflects everything we stand for at Little Angel Theatre—playful creativity, artistic excellence, and meaningful connection with families and communities. This year’s programme shines a spotlight on emerging talent, global storytelling traditions, and the sheer joy of puppetry in all its forms. We’re incredibly proud to welcome audiences of all ages to experience the wonder, the laughter, and the craft that makes this festival so special.”
Listings and ticket information can be found here.
