Acknowledgment of country

Polyglot acknowledges that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are the Traditional Custodians of the lands on which we live and create, and we pay our respects to Elders past and present. For more than 65,000 years, children and families have created and played here, and we are grateful to make our art on this country too.


Workshop

Shadow Tricks

Shadow play is explored with everyday materials and objects and, of course, light!

A Shadow Tricks workshop photo. Two students stand on one side of a screen in a classroom, their arms raised. Their shadows are visible on the other side of the screen.

Polyglot artists facilitate instinctive choice and a natural desire to make shape, narrative and connection in this playful, popular workshop. 

Using everything from the human form to cardboard cut-outs, students play with scale and colour to investigate the limitless possibilities of the worlds we can create on a screen. They delve into performance styles, shadow puppet design and manipulation, transformation of objects and storytelling.

This workshop requires minimal tech and materials, and the activities can be re-created and examined in the classroom or at home. Polyglot has been delivering Shadow Tricks for over a decade, with many schools booking repeat sessions.  

To maximise our impact and exchange with school communities, Polyglot is moving away from single session workshop bookings. A two-day minimum booking requirement is now in place. To allow us to engage across year levels or with the entire school community, artistic residencies of at least a week are preferred.

Got a question about Shadow Tricks?