PuppetryNEL is a network for puppeteers, and creatives interested in puppetry, based in North East Lincolnshire (including Greater Lincolnshire), created and led by Samuel Pearson.
From November 2025-May 2026 the network was supported and funded by Create North East Lincolnshire. Thanks to Arts Council England, players of the National Lottery and North East Lincolnshire Council. Funded by UK Government.
The network is now taking a short pause over the Summer and returning in the Autumn.
Our First event: Network Launch on World Puppetry Day
The launch of PuppetryNEL, took place on World Puppetry Day at The Living Room, Cleethorpes.
A great session for participants to catch up with those they have worked with before, and an introduction to puppetry to anyone who was new.
On the day, we were joined and supported by Andy Evans of Kazbah Theatre, who brought a huge array of puppets from different productions and works from the past few years.
I (Samuel) also brought along some PuppetBox training puppets, tabletop puppet creatures from Kathleen Yore and a few finger puppets from FurriFingers!
Intro to Tabletop Puppetry
The second network session was an Introduction to Tabletop Puppetry led by Samuel.
The session was based around his work to date so far, and the training he has taken part in the last three years with: Sue Buckmaster, Kathleen Yore, Sophie Powell, Natasha Holmes.
In the session, participants were introduced to Qualities of Movement and principles of puppetry.
The puppets used for this session were the PuppetBox training puppets.
At the session, participants ranged from those who have worked with Kazbah, right to those who joined for the World Puppetry Day with no experience and have returned again.
Online Puppet Makers Session with Kathleen Yore (Odd Doll)
It was a delight to welcome Kathleen to PuppetryNEL in our very first online session. Holding this session meant we could open it up further than North East Lincolnshire and Greater Lincolnshire.
It was a fascinating insight into Kathleen's process as a maker and the journey of puppet making from initial ideas to final builds and creations.
This session was recorded, please get in touch if you missed the session and would love to catch up with the creative and exciting world of puppet making.
Kathleen is a Yorkshire based puppet / mask maker and director. Under 'Odd Doll Puppetry' Kathleen has successfully toured five highly rated ACE funded productions. She has also enjoyed working as a maker for Opera North, Ballet Lorent, Bravewords, Tell Tale Hearts, Tatwood Puppets, Theatre Company Blah Blah Blah, City Varieties and CAST in Doncaster. Materials she works with regular include: Casting from clay into latex or worbla, styrofoam, plasterzote, cardboard and wood.
Intro to Kazbah Theatre with Andy Evans
An introduction to Kazbah Theatre and its work over the past three years. A reflective look over festival shows, music videos, and short films. For those new to Kazbah, it was a great introduction to the company, and the different styles of puppetry employed. For Kazbah puppeteers, an opportunity to reflect on the past three years of work so far!
It was also a fascinating insight to Andy's journey in puppetry - starting from using puppets in his time as a teacher, to stop-motion animation and then the start of puppet making from sheep puppet to the famous Salty the Sea Dog!
Making a one-person show with Barmpot Theatre's Jane Crawshaw
To finish the first series of PuppetryNEL workshops, the network welcomed Jane Crawshaw and Barmpot Theatre for a session all about making a one-person show.
The session opened with a performance of Jane's show "To The Moon and Back" which provided a lens for us to explore how the show worked, how it'd been developed, and the activities and workshops that accompany it - providing wrap-around enjoyment for its audiences.
Jane then ran an exercise to help participants to start thinking about their own ideas and how they might bring them to life through theatre and performance. There were some fantastic ideas shared and some ideas and projects are now in progress.
Thank you to all that have joined the network. I do hope you have enjoyed the sessions you have attended, developed new skills, and met new people. The network will be taking a short pause over the summer and hopefully returning in the Autumn.
See you soon,
Samuel
