Moving Parts Arts

03/09/2026

A lovely day in Durham a few weeks back! 🐘

26/08/2026

⭐️ Become a Moving Parts Trustee! ⭐️
We are seeking new Trustees to join our Moving Parts Arts Board. Help shape the future of our organisation as we celebrate 10 years of connecting people and places through puppetry in 2027.

Moving Parts Arts brings people and places together through puppetry. Homegrown in Newcastle upon Tyne, our focus, base and roots is the North East of England. At the core of what we do is participatory arts - a belief that everyone can be creative, and that puppetry is a unique way of breaking down barriers.

We produce the award-winning Newcastle Puppetry Festival, alongside dynamic community projects, workshops and events throughout the year, engaging 26,000+ people annually. We bring the best of puppetry from around the world to Newcastle and support local artists to experiment and imagine.

Whilst we welcome interest from people with varying skills and knowledge, we’d particularly like to meet individuals who reflect one or more of the following:
⭐️Are based in the North East of England
⭐️Have a passion for community arts, theatre, visual arts, performance, craft, and/or film. We’re particularly interested in people who have a keen interest in puppetry and outdoor arts.
⭐️Are well connected with local communities in the North East
⭐️Are passionate about making Newcastle a creative and colourful place to live and work

Skills and experience that we are currently looking for in particular on our Board is
⭐️Marketing/strategic press & PR experience
⭐️Financial management experience
⭐️Education experience
⭐️Business management experience

We want our Board of Trustees to represent the marginalised communities we work with and for. We are especially interested in hearing from local people who identify as working class, global majority, disabled, and/or LGBTQIA+, but we would also love to hear from anyone with the commitment, vision and skills to help us move forward into our second decade.

If you do not have any of the above list of desired skills and experience, but are enthusiastic about the work we do, we’d still love to hear from you.

You do not need any prior experience to become a Trustee with us. You’ve just got to love people and puppets!

Key things to know:
👥 Trustee Meetings: Quarterly
📍Meeting online, with every other meeting in person (travel expenses covered by us!)
📅 Application Deadline: Monday 21st September 2026

🔗 Find out more and apply here via the link in the comments below.

📩 Need support with your application or have questions? Email us at [email protected]

11/08/2026

WHIRLING WINDMILL WORKSHOPS IN BLYTH - FREE!
Design and make your very own whirling windmill to go in your garden, window box or plant pot in this fun and interactive workshop from Moving Part Arts.

You will first pick from 7 templates as a starting point, and then you'll design what your windmill will look like and if you want to add any extra bits. Then using waterproof material Tyvek, you will build your windmill ready for it to whirl in the wind!

Free-to-access, book a slot to guarantee a place.
⏰ Sat 22 Aug 2026, 10.30am to 3.30pm (15 min bookable slots)
📍Market Pavilion Blyth
❕Suitable for ages 6+
🎟 Link in comments or from BlythCelebrates / greatnorthumberland website. Tickets are FREE but booking advised in advance.

The workshop lasts approximately 15 minutes where you can then either take it home or add it to our wind sculpture outside. Children attending must be accompanied by responsible adults.

Moving Parts Arts is an award-winning grassroots arts charity based in Newcastle. They use puppetry, outdoor arts and theatre to engage 25,000+ a year in creativity. As well as producing the annual Newcastle Puppetry Festival, they run parades, community projects and events throughout the year.

Part of the 2026/27 Blyth Celebrates programme funded by
Northumberland County Council

Design and make your very own whirling windmill to go in your garden, window box or plant pot in this fun and interactive workshop from Moving Part Arts.You will first pick from 7 templates as a starting point, and then you'll design what your windmill will look like and if you want to add any extra...

04/08/2026

Great to see North East puppet maker Georgia Hill Puppets and Props featured in Living North Magazine⭐️

Play Hard 31st Jul 2026 0 0 minute Meet the Northumberland puppet maker bringing characters to life by Rachael Ellis Georgia Hill makes puppets that make people laugh, gasp and occasionally believe, for a moment, that a 10ft ogre really has walked into the room.Based in Northumberland, the designer....

27/07/2026

Very sad news for the puppetry world today - our thoughts are with Ronnie's family and friends. Ronnie did so much for puppetry on and off stage, and will be missed greatly.

We are saddened to announce the death of our President and friend Ronnie Le Drew, following a short illness. Ronnie has been our President for 10 years, possibly the most active and supportive President we have ever had or will have. Attending nearly every event whether it be online or in person, often performing when asked and always willing to chat, tell stories and entertain in whatever way he could. Ronnie was of course known for Zippy, but his legacy in the puppetry world stretches far more than that and there will be countless puppeteers mourning the loss of our dear friend. He meant so much to so many and the legacy of his life will live on.

25/07/2026

Today! Come down to Hadrian Square in Byker for a free day of activities and performances. We will be bringing Two for Joy - two giant magpie lanterns who sweep and swoop through the crowds 🦅 🦅

🎶 Byker’s turning the volume up this Saturday. ✨

Head to Byker Groove for a full day of live music, street theatre from the likes of Moving Parts Arts, kids rave, hands-on creative activities with artists and brilliant lush local talent taking over Hadrian Square.

It’s going to be a mega colourful and creative day, packed with community spirit and completely FREE.

📍 Hadrian Square, Byker (NE6 1AL)
📅 Saturday 25 July
⏰ 11am–7pm
🎟️ FREE

Byker knows how to throw a party. 💥

15/06/2026

We had a wonderful Sunday at Planet Action Street ARTS ' ABC event at Summerhill Bowling Club Pavilion & Gardens with Delilah the Elephant and Wind Garden. Delilah even got to lead the seed planting parade! The event brought together arts, community and biodiversity education, including planting 350 plants in Summerhill Park 💚

Puppeteers: Delilah was made by for Moving Parts Arts

09/06/2026

Earlier this year, we worked with young people and families at Action for Children in Benwell, Newcastle to create puppet videos inspired by recycling and keeping local streets clean. It was fantastic to see what characters and stories everyone came up with, and how it came together in this short film! This was part of the 'Our Adelaide Terrace' initiative funded by Newcastle City Council.

Credits:
Made with participants from Action for Children
Produced by Moving Parts Arts CIO
Facilitators: Molly Barrett-Manasseh, Courtney Nixon, Roisin Crowley Linton
Videographers: Von Fox Promotions

02/06/2026

Afterlives Festival: Create a Sea Creature with Judith Hope - Puppet Maker and Moving Parts Arts
Where: Redbridge Libraries (Essex)
Sat 6th June, 2pm-4pm
Sun 7th June, 11am-12pm
FREE! but booking required

Join artist Judith Hope in workshops to create a shoal of sea creatures (imaginary or realistic), to act as the guardians, escorting the whale on it's journey into the next life. Participants will design and make their own sea creature using simple metal embossing techniques, as can be seen on the main artwork. The sea creatures will then be added to the art work, becoming an integral part of the finished piece.

Everything contains a story, however big or small. Every object, item and belonging has passed through the hands and lives of others, tales of people, places, lost times and conversations, tightly and silently bound within. But what happens when a custodian dies and those stories are lost?

Silent Stories uses a collection of tiny, seemingly unimportant objects sourced from London's flea markets and rescued from local house clearances. It includes forgotten fragments of London lives, each containing their own lost story. Safely housed within miniature shrines, these precious objects are preserved and transported aboard a whale.

Representing spiritual guardians within some cultures, the whale embodies tranquillity, harmony and peace, a keeper of wisdom and history. Often disorientated by sonar pollution, whales have been known to swim up the River Thames, transient drifting visitors, often losing their own lives in doing so. Within the work, the whale signifies the journey into unchartered territories, navigating a passage towards the unfamiliar world of the afterlife.

Silent Stories explores what we leave behind. The meanings, importance and significance of possessions and memory. It focuses on the preservation and bringing together of tiny objects, the forming of new partnerships and new beginnings, and in turn, the birth of a new story.

No experience necessary. All materials and tools will be provided.

Who it's for: Ages 15+

Session length: 2 hours (or until participants finish their piece).

Spaces are limited and must be pre-booked. Free to attend.