“BIGGER THAN BEN-HUR”

Presented by Mona Foma and Terrapin.

King Ubu: a larger-than-life puppet extravaganza in a natural amphitheatre of rock and water (aka Cataract Gorge). Based on Alfred Jarry’s Ubu Roi, a wild satire of power and greed from nineteenth-century France, King Ubu was wickedly updated for a modern-day Launceston.

It’s a rollicking tale for the times—the story of a raging buffoon and wannabe dictator on a revolutionary rampage. ‘And it’ll be bigger than Ben Hur,’ said Mona Foma Festival Dad Brian Ritchie. But with more puppets and stuff, including performances by the local Launnie community and live music by Ritchie and his musical mates.

Director: Sam Routledge

Musical Director: Brian Ritchie

Sound Artist: Dylan Sheridan

Musical Arrangements: Dean Stevenson

Band: Dean Stevenson, Emily Sanzaro, Spike Mason and Yyan Ng

Puppet Maker: Bryony Anderson

Costume Designer: Sabio Evans

Onesie Designer: Adele Varcoe

Cast: Kris McQuade, John Xintavelonis, Denni Proctor, Marcus McKenzie, Anna Barber, Lucy McDonald and Lauren Neal

Puppeteers: Felicity Horsley, Shannon McGurgan, Rachel Arianne Ogle and Sofie Burgoyne

Props: Denni Proctor and Gabbee Stolp

Producers: Mona Foma and Insite Arts

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Assisted by the Australian Government through the Department of Communications and the Arts’ Festivals Australia program and the City of Launceston Event Sponsorship Program

Images courtesy of MONA FOMA/Jesse Hunniford