Terrapin

Feathers

Background image: On a bright blue background we see a giant puppet ferret called Feathers with a puppet cockatoo it's shoulder
Credit: Image: Peter Mathews
By Dan Giovannoni

When and What

  • Now
  • Theatre
  • Incursion

Summary

  • In 2024, we saw 14,676 Tasmanian school children through our schools tour
  • Each performance runs for 1 hour and includes a Q&A
  • Featuring 8 beautifully crafted puppets

Impact

  • Puppets made entirely from reclaimed materials
  • Feathers employed 19 people to design, make, rehearse and tour
Feathers, a giant ferret puppet is poking their head through part of the set, this part looks like grass
Feathers at Landsdowne Crescent Primary School, 2024. Image: Peter Mathew

Description

Feathery-tailed and frustrated, Feathers embarks on a quest for belonging that will take him to every corner of the country. Will the laid-back pink cockatoos welcome him? Or perhaps the charismatic lyrebird is his true kin?

Feathers is trailed by Duck, a scrawny, flightless youngster who he would rather be rid of. But when finding his destiny threatens Duck, Feathers must decide who his true flock is.

Pullout quote

★★★★★ Feathers has everything you could want for intergenerational audiences looking for meaning in relationships and hope for our futures
– Artshub, 2025
Feathers, a feathery-tailed ferret puppet, looks toward Rita the Bee Eater, a brightly coloured small puppet, made from lighting gels, milk cartons, and a knitting needle. With a beehive hanging behind them in Feathers at Theatre Royal Hobart.
Feathers at Theatre Royal. 2025. Image: Peter Mathew

Interested in Feathers?

Get in touch

  • Feathers, a feathery-tailed ferret puppet with textured fur made from hand-cut t-shirts, stands upright on a painted rock ledge against a dark stage background in Feathers at Theatre Royal Hobart.
    Feathers at Theatre Royal. 2025. Image: Peter Mathew
  • Feathers, a feathery-tailed ferret puppet, stands in front of a large owl puppet with wide orange eyes and outstretched wings, the mood is ominous and Feathers the ferret looks a bit scared. They are both on a painted stage set in Feathers at Theatre Royal Hobart.
    Feathers at Theatre Royal. 2025. Image: Peter Mathew
  • Performer Jem Nicholas, narrator of Feathers, wears a bird-watcher costume and speaks into a microphone on stage at Theatre Royal Hobart.
    Feathers at Theatre Royal. 2025. Image: Peter Mathew

More info

A wide view of the painted landscape set for Feathers, with the audience in silhouette in the foreground and Lorenzo the Magnificent Lyrebird puppet centre stage.
Feathers at Theatre Royal. 2025. Image: Peter Mathew

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Terrapin reaches into all corners of Tasmania with innovative performance and impactful programs. We give students their first experience of the performing arts, bring laughter and connection into aged care, and support emerging local creatives to grow and thrive.

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