Part Man. Part Tree. 17 feet tall. Meet Arbor.

Follow Arbor as he strides around the streets, vanishing between trees and emerging with his cart full of tree seeds. Arbor tells the story of a tree pushed from his home and his fight to preserve his future. Encouraging the audience to plant and nurture their own trees, Arbor will give each person some seeds to take home, leaving a legacy that will last for generations. Arbor is a visually stunning show with lots of lovable puppets.

It was a really nice touch that they hand out saplings to children at the end, it gives them something sustainable and environmental to think about.” – Derby Telegraph

Cast and Creatives

Cast: Matt Lloyd, George Bellamy, Hattie Thomas, Molly Freeman, Luke Breen & Lydia Markham

Puppet & set design and make: Matt Lloyd and Hattie Thomas
Assistant puppet maker: Lydia Markham
Script: George Bellamy
Music: Jon Ouin

About

Arbor, the puppet, was originally created as a commission for Derby Festé, in 2017.  Striding spectacularly across towns, parks and the countryside, he has become a beloved favourite at outdoor events, across the UK. The original creative idea, for Arbor, came from our associate artist, George Bellamy and it was his love of nature, combined with our common love of puppetry, that inspired the creation of this puppet. Celebrating British and Indian traditions, we have brought together the ancient British, Green Man symbol, the Indian festival, Van Mahostav (Festival of Trees) and the best of British Folklore in this family friendly character.

If you’d like to book Arbor for your event, please contact Matt on matt@smokingapplestheatre.com