Little Wing Puppets presents
SPIKE THE ECHIDNA
Show: 11.00am Thursday 8 January 2026
Workshops: 1pm and 2.15pm Thursday 8 January 2026
The Twyford – Theatre Venue
Follow a baby echidna, through the world of shadow puppetry, on a journey to find out where he belongs.
SHOW DETAILS
- Show Starts: 11.00am Ends: 12.00pm (no interval)
- Foyer Cafe open for refreshments from 1 hour before the show and after the show
- Any remaining tickets not sold online will be available from the Box Office in the Foyer 1 hour before the show
- SHADOW PUPPET MAKING WORKSHOPS:
1.00pm workshop is now FULL
2.15pm workshop still has places available. Children must be accompanied by an adult.
Bookings essential and all materials provided – scroll down for more details. - Twyford Subscribers – check your e-news for your discount promo code
- Twyford Gift Certificates valid for this event
ABOUT THE SHOW
Check out the preview below!
Spike is the story of an echidna who is stolen from his nest by a greedy rat. He hatches from his egg far away from home. A young girl finds him. She is playing alone in the bush because she is being bullied by other children. He has no spikes yet and she doesn’t know what kind of creature he is. She tries to work out where he comes from, but accidently puts him in dangerous situations – in the nest of a crocodile, an emu and a turtle. He feels frightened, rejected, alone. As the story unfolds, she helps him to discover where he belongs, and he helps her to find her own “spikes” and stand up to the bullies.
Told with shadow theatre, Spike is an interactive experience for the audience, with lively original music by Mal Webb. It is entertaining and fun, as well as a catalyst for a discussion about difference and belonging. It also about the unique biology of Australian animals, especially the egg-laying echidna. After the performance there is a demonstration of shadow puppetry techniques, introducing children to an expressive hands-on story-telling medium that is highly accessible to young people.
ABOUT THE SHADOW PUPPET WORKSHOP: PLAYING WITH LIGHT
Watch as your drawings leap to life, off the page and onto the stage!
Come along and explore the world of shadow puppetry with an experienced puppeteer, Jenny Ellis. This hands-on workshop will give children a range of skills to make their own shows and as well as a puppet they can take home. Participants will imagine and design their own unique puppet characters, then they’re guided through the process of making their puppets and bringing them to life. Children will work together in small groups to create their own shows. With a few tricks of the trade, they will finish with a performance of their own stories on a real shadow puppet stage.
Workshop Duration: 1 hour
Maximum participants: 16
Ideal for Ages: 4 – 12 (children need to be accompanied by an adult)
ABOUT LITTLE WING PUPPETS
Since 2006, Little Wing Puppets have performed their shows to thousands of children in every state and territory of Australia, as well as overseas. They’re driven by the love of telling stories that speak to children, make them laugh, and passing on skills so kids can create their own worlds through puppetry.
Artistic Director, Jenny Ellis has been making and performing with puppets for over twenty years. She has a Post-Graduate Diploma in Puppetry from the Victorian College of the Arts and a Bachelor’s degree majoring in Environmental Education. Jenny trained with Master Puppeteer Richard Bradshaw through the national Jump mentoring program in 2011. She also received a Major Fellowship in 2012 from the Mike Walsh Foundation to research puppetry in Europe and graduated from the Heilkos School of International Theatre Creation in Florence, Italy in 2014. Little Wing continues to work with a vibrant team of independent artists; writers, directors, designers and composers, to make exceptional that speaks to young people and is ready to travel.
CREDITS
Starring Jenny Ellis
Written By Jenny Ellis & Anne Brooksbank
Composed By Mal Webb
Directed By Jacob Williams & Clare Batholomew
Designed By Jenny Ellis, with design concepts by Richard Bradshaw and Fabrizio Montecchi
Puppets, Sets and Lights By Jenny Ellis, Lauren Redpath, Freya Pitt and Nick Wollan
