A Giant Popup Book Ghost Story for Kids

Best Children's Event Adelaide Fringe Festival 2019

Prepare for unexpected surprises, scary shadows and shoes that walk themselves, as performer and puppeteer Theresa O’Connor combines pop-up books, puppetry and a ghost story into an exciting adventure. Add to the mix an exhilarating surround sound design by J David Franzke, intriguing video animation, spooky shadow puppetry and you’ve got an experience not to be missed.

The performance includes a Q&A and workshops in shadow puppetry or popup book techniques are available.

Inside the Walls begins where a family moves from the city to an old country home. As the parents unpack, the only child Chief Isabelle of the Secret Adventure Squad explores the house and discovers an old shoe buried under the doorstep, which leads to all manner of spooky mysteries. How does Izzy cope when her biggest fear of being alone, becomes a reality?

Inside the Walls is a cinematic theatre experience designed for children to overcome their fears and further their imagination. The intricate design mixes the age-old art of popup story books with modern technology and trickery. Paper engineering, puppets, projection, videography, electronics, contraptions, shadow puppetry, magic and surround sound; what more could be jam-packed into one little show.

Venue Format
Theatre, Black Box Venue
Technical Rating
C
Touring Party
2
Considerations

Requires a black out venue, ideally with a raked seating bank and a ground level stage.

Salt and Poppet Theatre is a bijou puppetry company based in Melbourne. We create seasoned puppet projects combining the construction and performance of puppets, in order to break down boundaries and peel open the envelope of ordinary life. Our work is daring and different, combining art forms to create new and exciting work for all ages.

Theresa O’Connor, Lead Artist at Salt and Poppet, is a designer, maker and performer of puppet theatre. Her works include Lady Cara Bonita, a hand carved marionette burlesque dancer; The Sleeper and the Spindle, a shadow puppet and stop motion work presented at MONA FOMA with Neil Gaiman; and Remnants presented by Terrapin Puppet Theatre.

Inside the Walls, A Giant Popup Book Ghost Story was created during Theresa's Children’s Literature Fellowship at the State Library of Victoria. It has been performed at the State Library of Victoria, Lemony S Theatre's Melbourne Puppetry Festival, The National Theatre in St Kilda, The Melbourne Fringe and the Adelaide Fringe Festival winning the BankSA Best Children’s Event 2019.

Another component of the company is puppet making and manipulation workshops. Recent projects include Shadow Puppet Workshops with Carclew for Kids Central, Adelaide City Library and Pembroke Primary School in Adelaide.

Company Website
saltandpoppettheatre.com

Unique Selling Point

• Award Winning Show • Popup books and paper engineering • Video animation and shadow puppetry • Cinematic Theatre • The young heroine, Chief Isabelle of the Secret Adventure Squad • Suitable for family audiences • Paper puppets and set design • Performance and workshop package • This show can stand-alone or be a great addition to Book or Children’s Festivals.
• A ghost story based on an old superstition: The storyline is based on a 19th century superstition, originating in the United Kingdom, of hiding a shoe from the family's youngest member underneath the home to keep them safe. Theresa found one such shoe under her home in Tasmania.

Marketing Materials

• Inside the Walls Marketing Pack • Images • One minute promo video • Poster Design in Photoshop format • Postcard Design in Photoshop format • Media Release • 4 Star Reviews • BankSA Best Children's Event 2019 Adelaide Fringe Festival • Previous Interviews • Social Media • Merchandise (by negotiation)

Community Engagement

• Q&A after every show • Workshops in Shadow Puppetry or Popup Book Techniques available • Competitions: Spookiest drawing, or what would you hide inside the walls as a good luck charm.