Out the Box Festival - African Puppetry Hit

Having just wrapped up the biggest festival of Puppetry and Visual Theatre on the African continent, Out of the Box continues to inspire and attract new puppeteers. Not only does UNIMA South Africa host the festival but it also ensures there is a developmental aspect - such as ongoing education in the field of puppetry.

At the opening, The Handspring Puppet Company, made the unprecedented announcement that they would be handing out annual awards for productions at Out the Box at the end of the festival.

The festival included an adult and a family programme bursting with local productions and international offerings from Israel, the Netherlands, Mozambique and Belgium.

Highlights included Inua, a production by Jori Snell from Denmark and the Netherlands. Snell's physicality is astounding, as is the production's magical realism in its storytelling and use of music as she looks for the essence, the 'Inua' of things, through creative use of light and shadows. Out the Box 2010 provides an inspiring journey into the rich world of puppetry and visual performance that South Africa has to offer. I'm only sorry I couldn't be there for it this year!