Duck Whittington is a delightful, quirky twist on the traditional story of how Dick Whittington came to London to seek his fortune.  Produced during the Covid-19 pandemic from a group of friends who are all passionate about theatre and performance, this puppet animal take on a beloved pantomime is set to be released online in 2022, viewable for donations which all go to the Whittington Hospital to help the NHS.  Members of the cast have been trained at organisations such as Chicken Shed, Anna Scher and Yellow Poppy theatres.

      As a joint project, it uses a variety of puppets, ranging from those used in schools for visual communication, to characters specially made by the Cosmute Puppets.  The latter are made from unwanted soft toys that have been rescued, cleaned and modified into performing characters, giving them a new look and a new life, as stars of the show!  Scenes were all built at the Wood Green Chocolate Factory studios, again made on a shoestring budget of recovered artefacts, toy buildings, models from charity shops and so forth, but carefully refitted and arranged with as much care and attention to detail to make them look as good as the sets on any professionally-made film. For the first time, filming is done through the Open Future Teleport Screen system (C) J. Eiseman-Renyard 28.10.2021

    Featuring catchy songs by Daniel Spencer and puppetry by people including Jacob Eiseman-Renyard and Melissa Stanton, this is a thrilling, family-friendly pantomime that will make an amazing piece of entertainment.  It not only uses the arts to support the NHS at a time when help and funding for it are needed more than ever, but mentions and honours the work done day in, day out, by the lifesavers in our hospitals, in the Magical Fairy Owl's vision of the future, when a hospital is built on Highgate Hill in Whittington's name:  a place for heroes named after a hero.