Get your tickets to Faustus in Africa! On in Cape Town

Life & Times of Michael K

See more
Tickets

War Horse

2025 UK & Ireland tour

"Still one of British theatre’s most phenomenal creations."

See more
Tickets

The Walk (Little Amal)

Chile 2025

RSGS Livingstone Medal Winner

See more
Behind the scenes

Faustus in Africa!

2025 in Cape Town, Brussels, Hamburg, Edinburgh

See more
Behind the scenes
Tickets
Handspring Puppet company logo
HomeAboutOur workBehind the scenesOur bookContact

Designed and built by

Douglas Knowledge Partners Logo

About

World leaders in the art of puppetry, the Handspring Puppet Company redefines what is possible in contemporary theatre. Since its inception in South Africa in the 1980s, the company has presented acclaimed performances in 30 countries.

Read more

Latest

War Horse

Life & Times of Michael K

The Walk (Little Amal)Faustus In Africa!

2025
United Kingdom & Ireland
‍
War Horse is the most successful play in the history of the National Theatre, having won more than 25 major awards and been seen by over 8.3 million people. This production set off on a major UK tour in September 2024, which will run until November 2025.

Johannesburg, 2025

An adaptation of the Nobel Prize-winning author JM Coetzee’s novel, the Life and Times of Michael K combines performance, cinematic imagery and music. It follows the journey of Michael K through a war-torn South Africa in a quest to return his elderly mother to her ancestral home.

On the 24th of February

Amal and the team behind her were presented with the Livingstone Medal by the Royal Scottish Geographical Society – the first time the award has ever been awarded to a puppet. Other recipients include Sir David Attenborough, Neil Armstrong (the first man on the moon), Scott of the Antarctic, and Ban Ki-moon, the 8th Secretary-General of the United Nations.

Brussels, Hamburg and Edinburgh

An ageless tale, this production explores universal themes of compromise, resonating powerfully with each successive generation. The temptation to betray one’s better judgment for short-term gain affects us all. This is a collaboration between Handspring Puppet Company and William Kentridge.

Tickets

Warhorse

Milton Keyes
22.04–03.05

Nottingham
07.05–18.05

Bristol
03.06–21.06

Birmingham
‍10.06–19.07

Wimbeldon
05.08–16.08

Leeds
19.08–06.09

Newcastle
10.09–20.09

Edinburgh
02.10–11.10

Cardiff
15.10–25.10

Norwich
28.10–08.11

Faustus in Africa!

Brussels
29–31.05

Hamberg
14–15.06

Edinburgh
20–23.08

Reviews

The original magic that made the play the most successful in the National Theatre's history still holds, with its visceral impact perhaps now more relevant than ever. (War Horse 2024)
‍~ The Guardian
ONE of the greatest benefits of Scotland’s capital city hosting the biggest arts showcase on the planet is that our August festivals are able to attract truly outstanding international work. One such is, without question, JM Coetzee’s Life & Times of Michael K.
~ The National Scotland
Poignant. 5 star. (The Life & Times of Michael K)
‍~ The Reviews Hub
There are rare occasions in the theatre when dance, film, music, adaptation, ensemble and puppetry combine to create magic. This is one of them. (Life & Times of Michael K)
‍~ Broadway World
This, of course, is the point of Little Amal—to use the visceral power of puppetry, and of theatre at its most disarming, to make us feel, and cajole us into considering what we owe to the most vulnerable among us. And ultimately, presumably, to act on that moral imperative.
‍~ The New York Times
The puppets, though, achieve an astonishing level of naturalism, and the final scenes, in which Ulisse dies remembering his first embrace with Penelope after more than 20 years, will have you in tears.
‍~ The Guardian
The puppets stole the show. Ulysses, past his hero’s days, was a world-weary bearded figure with a tattered blanket for a robe.
‍~ The New York Times
In the end, I found Little Amal's journey to be more than just an aesthetic spectacle. She changed the narrative of the night, leading us from spectacle to disorientation; from confusion to hope, awe, and potential.
‍~ The independent review crew

See more

Picture captured during the production 'Monteverdi’s Il Ritorno d’Ulisse (The Return of Ulysses)'
Picture captured during the production 'Warhorse'
Picture captured during the production 'Woyzeck on the Highveld'
Picture of one of the puppets used in 'The Chimp project'
Picture captured during the production 'Warhorse'
Puppet from 'Ubu and the Truth Commission'
Picture captured during the production 'Warhorse'
Picture captured during the production 'Starbrites'
Picture captured during the production 'Tall horse'
Picture captured during the production 'Faustus in Africa'
Picture captured during the production 'Midsummer nights dream'
Puppets from 'Monteverdi’s Il Ritorno d’Ulisse (The Return of Ulysses)'
Picture captured during the production 'Monteverdi’s Il Ritorno d’Ulisse (The Return of Ulysses)'
Picture captured during the production 'Starbrites'
Picture captured during the production 'Monteverdi’s Il Ritorno d’Ulisse (The Return of Ulysses)'
Puppet from 'Monteverdi’s Il Ritorno d’Ulisse (The Return of Ulysses)'

Our book

Handspring puppet company book cover

In a spirit of collaboration, we’ve made our book available to use as a resource on the art and history of puppetry.

Handspring Puppet Company is the first book on Handspring to be published in South Africa. It explores their work in puppet theatre, from Episodes of an Easter Rising to War Horse, providing insights into their philosophy of puppetry and their technical innovations. It is richly illustrated with images from the Handspring archive and includes essays by theatre practitioners and writers who have collaborated with the company over the years.

Read the book here
Handspring puppet company logo white
Home
About
Our work
Behind the scenes
Our book
Contact
Copyright © 2023. Handspring Puppet Company. All rights reserved.
Cookies PolicyTerms & ConditionsPrivacy Policy