Norwich Puppet Theatre

The Norwich Puppet Theatre is a nationally unique venue dedicated to puppetry housed in the Medieval church of Saint James the Less a Grade 1 listed building, in the city of Norwich, England.

It currently houses a 175-seat raked auditorium, 50 seat Octagon Studio, workshops, an exhibition gallery, shop and licensed bar, and is the only theatre in the eastern region of the UK which has a year-round programme of family-centred entertainment. It plays host to a variety of touring companies from Britain and overseas, provides regular educational workshops for children and adults, as well as training opportunities for theatre practitioners.

The Theatre continues to be supported by Norfolk County Council and Norwich City Council along with contributions from foundations including: Garfield Weston Foundation, Geoffrey Watling, Norwich Town Close Estate and the John Jarrold Trust.

Norwich Puppet Theatre was founded in 1979 by Ray and Joan Da Silva as a permanent base for their touring company and was first opened as a public venue on December 1st 1980.

In 2010 the Theatre celebrated its 30th Anniversary with a range of events. An auction of celebrity decorated puppets took place on November 30th, including contributions from Rolf Harris, Heston Blumenthal, Michael Sheen, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Gary Lineker, Quentin Blake, Cath Kidston, Gok Wan, Terry Gilliam, Tony Robinson, Prunella Scales, Bernard Cribbins, Ian McKellen, Richard Briers and Simon Callow.

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