Spare Parts Puppet Theatre

Spare Parts Puppet Theatre
Formation1981 (1981)
Founders
  • Peter Wilson
  • Cathryn Robinson
  • Beverley Campbell-Jackson
Location
  • Australia
Websitesppt.com.au Edit this at Wikidata
Building details
Former namesState Shipping Service Office
Fremantle Art Gallery
General information
LocationAustralia, 1–9 Short Street
Coordinates32°03′11″S 115°44′43″E / 32.05315°S 115.74514°E / -32.05315; 115.74514 (Spare Parts Puppet Theatre)
Current tenantsSpare Parts Puppet Theatre
Completed
1921
LandlordDepartment of Culture and the Arts
Official name
Spare Parts Theatre
TypeState Registered Place
Part ofWest End, Fremantle (25225)
Reference no.995

The Spare Parts Puppet Theatre is located at 1–9 Short Street, Fremantle, Western Australia, in Pioneer Park, opposite the Fremantle railway station.

History

The building was constructed as a commercial building in 1921. It is a two-storey limestone building with a corrugated iron roof, constructed in the Federation Free Classical style of architecture. The building was used as the State Shipping Service Office. In 1975 it was vested in the City of Fremantle and in September 1978 it was officially opened as the Fremantle Art Gallery.[1] In 1988 it was refurbished to specifically accommodate the Spare Parts Puppet Theatre.

Heritage value

The building is listed on the City of Fremantle's Municipal Heritage List.[2]

Current use

Spare Parts Puppet Theatre was founded by Peter Wilson,[3] Cathryn Robinson and Beverley Campbell-Jackson in 1981,[4] as part of an artist-in-residency program initiated by the Western Australian Institute of Technology (WAIT) – now Curtin University of Technology. The company's first project was a puppet adaptation of Christopher Marlowe's Doctor Faustus for the 1981 Festival of Perth.[4] For the first seven years, the company was a touring company, but in 1988 it acquired the Fremantle Art Gallery as a permanent home.[4] From 1997 through to 2001, the company was under the artistic direction of Noriko Nishimoto.[4] In 2001 Philip Mitchell was appointed the company's new artistic director.

In April 2008 the Spare Parts Puppet Theatre hosted the 20th UNIMA (Union Internationals de la Marlonette) World Puppetry Festival and Congress.[5]

In a 2022 collaboration with The Doge NFT,[6] Spare Parts Puppet Theatre produced Australia's first NFT collection[7] for a theatre company.[8] They also built a Doge puppet, which now has its own TikTok.[9]

The NFT collection was photographed by Louise Coghill.[10][11]

Relocation

In October 2025 the Spare Parts Puppet Theatre announced a decision to move from their original venue in Fremantle, committing to a redevelopment of the Ellie Eaton Theatre located in the Claremont Showgrounds as their new home.[12] This move, supported by the Western Australian Government, Lotterywest and the Royal Agricultural Society of WA, followed the decision by the State Government to condemn the original theatre over safety and structural concerns for the aging venue.[13]

Artistic Directors

  • Peter Wilson (1981–1997)[14]
  • Noriko Nishimoto (1997–2001)[15]
  • Philip Mitchell (2001–2026)[16]
  • Iain Grandage (2027–)[17]

Awards

Type Organisation Category Show/Event Year
Nomination Helpmann[18] Best Presentation for Children Out of the Blue 2003
Nomination Helpmann Best Visual or Physical Theatre Production H2O - a fantastical voyage 2004
Nomination Helpmann Best Lighting Design Andrew Lake/H2O - a fantastical voyage 2004
Nomination Helpmann Best Presentation for Children H2O - a fantastical voyage 2004
Award PAAWA[19] Best Production The Arrival 2006
Nomination PAAWA Best Supporting Actor (Male) Sanjiva Margio/The Arrival 2006
Nomination PAAWA Best Actor (Male) Giri Mazzella/The Arrival 2006
Nomination PAAWA Best Director Philip Mitchell/The Arrival 2006
Nomination PAAWA Best Design in Any Medium Jiri Zmitko/The Arrival 2006
Nomination PAAWA Best Design in Any Medium Michael Barlow/The Arrival 2006
Nomination Helpmann Best Regional Touring Production The Arrival 2009
Nomination PAAWA Best Newcomer Brian Liau/The Warrior and the Princess 2014
Award Fremantle Business Awards Outstanding Cultural Enterprise 2015
Award Fremantle Business Awards Business of the Year 2015
Nomination PAAWA Best Supporting Actor (Female) Rebecca Bradley/Farm 2015
Nomination PAAWA Best Actor (Female) Chloe Flockhard/Farm 2015
Nomination PAAWA Best Director Philip Mitchell/Farm 2015
Nomination PAAWA Best Production Farm 2015
Nomination PAAWA Best Design in Any Medium Matt McVeigh/Farm 2015
Nomination PAAWA Best Design in Any Medium Graham Walne/Farm 2015
Award Fremantle Business Awards Outsanding Cultural Enterprise 2016
Nomination PAAWA Best Actor (Female) Rebecca Bradley/Blueback 2016
Nomination PAAWA Best Music Lee Buddle/The Little Prince 2017
Nomination PAAWA Best Actor in a Mainstage Production (Male) Sam Longley/Tom Vickers and the Extraordinary Adventure of his Missing Sock 2019
Award PAAWA Best Mainstage Production On Our Beach 2020
Nomination PAAWA Best Actor (Female) Rebecca Bradley/On Our Beach 2020
Nomination PAAWA Best Director of a Mainstage Production Philip Mitchell/On Our Beach 2020
Nomination PAAWA Best Stage Design Cecile Williams/On Our Beach 2020
Nomination PAAWA Best Composition or Arranging Lee Buddle/On Our Beach 2020
Award PAAWA Best Mainstage Production Beanstalk 2022
Award PAAWA Best New Work The One Who Planted Trees 2022
Nomination PAAWA Outstanding Performers in Leading Roles Sam Longley/Beanstalk 2022
Nomination PAAWA Outstanding Direction of a Mainstage Production Philip Mitchell/The One Who Planted Trees 2022
Nomination PAAWA Outstanding Composition or Arranging Melanie Robinson & Carmel Dean/The One Who Planted Trees 2022
Nomination PAAWA Outstanding Stage Design Leon Hendroff & Clare Testoni/The One Who Planted Trees 2022
Nomination PAAWA Outstanding Stage Design Bryan Woltjen/Beanstalk 2022
Nomination PAAWA Best Mainstage Production Wilfred Godon McDonald Partridge 2025
Nomination PAAWA Outstanding Performers in Leading Roles Shane Adamczak/Pillow Fight 2025

References

  1. ↑ Fremantle Art Gallery (1978). "Selection from the City of Fremantle collection, official opening exhibition, September 10 – October 9, 1978". The Gallery. Retrieved 28 December 2011.
  2. ↑ "City of Fremantle Heritage List" (PDF). City of Fremantle. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 March 2012. Retrieved 28 December 2011.
  3. ↑ Rubin, Don (1998). The World Encyclopedia of Contemporary Theatre: Asia. Vol. 5. Taylor & Francis. p. 84. ISBN 978-0-415-05933-6.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Milne, Geoffery (2004). Theatre Australia (un)limited: Australian theatre since the 1950s. Rodopi. p. 358. ISBN 90-420-0930-6.
  5. ↑ Smith, Karen (2008). "The World Comes to Perth". Retrieved 8 May 2026.
  6. ↑ "The Doge NFT".
  7. ↑ "Spare Parts Puppets - Collection".
  8. ↑ "Can NFTS 'do good' for theatre?". 20 July 2022.
  9. ↑ "TikTok".
  10. ↑ "Home". louisecoghill.com.au.
  11. ↑ "Spare Parts Puppet Theatre explores the world of NFTS!". 12 July 2022.
  12. ↑ spptadmin (2 October 2025). "We're building a new home for puppetry at the Claremont Showground". Spare Parts Puppet Theatre. Retrieved 8 May 2026.
  13. ↑ "All shows at iconic WA puppet theatre cancelled after building 'condemned'". ABC News. 9 August 2022. Retrieved 8 May 2026.
  14. ↑ "L. Peter Wilson". World Encyclopedia of Puppetry Arts. 29 July 2016. Retrieved 8 May 2026.
  15. ↑ "Spare Parts Puppet Theatre". World Encyclopedia of Puppetry Arts. 28 July 2016. Retrieved 8 May 2026.
  16. ↑ "Puppetry journey ends while magic lives on". The West Australian. 25 November 2025. Retrieved 8 May 2026.
  17. ↑ spptadmin (5 May 2026). "Iain Grandage Appointed as next Artistic Director". Spare Parts Puppet Theatre. Retrieved 8 May 2026.
  18. ↑ "Past nominees and winners | Helpmann Awards". www.helpmannawards.com.au. Retrieved 25 May 2026.
  19. ↑ "Past Winners". PERFORMING ARTS WA AWARDS. Retrieved 25 May 2026.

Further reading

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