Arts Education Program

For more than three decades, ShadowLight has brought the unique magic of shadow theater to classrooms and communities. Our Arts Education Program provides firsthand experience in this distinctive form through workshops, residencies, and performances led by professional teaching artists.

Shadow theater is a community-centered, deeply collaborative practice that exercises creative problem-solving and embodies hands-on learning via imagination and storytelling. We connect participants by providing the tools and guidance to help them contribute their own voices to the art form's continued evolution.

We currently offer tailored programs for schools, community organizations, colleges, teachers, and performing artists throughout the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond. Contact us for current offerings and availability.

If you are looking for educational resources for your classroom, please visit our Educational Resources page.

Browse through our Arts Education YouTube Playlist showcasing performances and shadow plays made and put on by the students of our ArtsEdu Program over the years.

Our Services

Community Programs

We regularly host and offer shadow play workshops, film screenings, and family-friendly events that invite children and caregivers to experience the art of shadow theater together.

Each event includes a hands-on workshop led by ShadowLight teaching artists. Participants create their own shadow puppets, learn basic performance techniques, and experiment with screens and lights to stage short original plays. Programs are suitable for all ages unless otherwise noted.

These free events are designed to serve youth and families who may have limited access to arts education. By encouraging people to watch, interact, and play, ShadowLight nurtures creative engagement with this rich and imaginative storytelling art form.

Adult Programs

ShadowLight offers hands-on training in shadow theater techniques and storybuilding for theater groups, institutions, and artists. Programming is custom tailored to meet client expected outcomes.

School Programs

ShadowLight Productions offers age-appropriate shadow-theater performances for school assemblies and community settings, led by professional shadow-theater artists. These pre-made works introduce younger students to the art of shadow theater through visually engaging storytelling and live performance.

Programs are designed for students in grades K–12 and are available for schools, libraries, museums, and arts centers. Performances typically run 10–20 minutes and are followed by hands-on workshop activities that allow students to experiment with shadow-making techniques and creative storytelling.

Custom programming is available.

If you’re interested in sponsoring a special program, please fill out our contact form below.

Bring the magic of shadow theater to your community.

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Check out some of our work!

For younger audiences

A children’s shadow play inspired by Mo Williams “Should I Share My Ice Cream?” accompanied by a puppet building workshop.

“The Legend of Nian” - A shadow play exploring the legend behind the Chinese Lunar New Year made for young viewers.

This short film was created during an artist residency at a Berkeley Arts Magnet afterschool program with Teaching Artist Jessica Nguyen and her cohort of students.

Shadow Theater Masterclass

An example of the types of Adult Programs ShadowLight has to offer includes teaching a shadow theater masterclass with flexible structuring.

In Fall 2023, ShadowLight Productions visited HAB Place in Chuncheon, South Korea to teach a masterclass on cinematic shadow theater.

Testimonials

  • Two people standing on a small porch next to a window with a sign that says 'Welcome ShadowLight'. The woman on the left has curly hair and is wearing a red patterned shirt and black pants. The man on the right has curly hair, a beard, and is wearing a grey jacket, a polka dot shirt, jeans, and black shoes with red accents. He is smiling and pointing towards the sign.

    "My favorite part was making puppets and working on the plays. I learned how not to be shy and be open about the play."

    5th Grade Student / Francis Scott Key

  • Shadow of a child with hands held up facing a project of a basket of flowers on a textured wall.

    "I really love your shadow theater activity. It's my favorite activity in school."

    4th Grade Student / Francis Scott Key

  • Group of five people, including a kid holding paper cutouts of animals, smiling in a decorated indoor space with artwork on the walls.

    "Engaging, energetic, positive and experienced! Full experience of light and shadow - hands on with a projector and props."

    3rd Grade Teacher / Leonard Flynn Elementary

  • Classroom with children and adults watching a presentation on a large screen showing a forest scene with trees and birds.

    "The thing I like most about your class is when you have students come up and pretend to be puppets.  In your class, I have learned how to be creative and smart.  You make shadow theater class fun." 

    4th Grade Student / Francis Scott Key

  • “I appreciate your approach to your work, the combination of serious rigor and humor that is both in your process and in the work itself. The students who worked with you, as well as the audience, came away excited and inspired . . .”

    Janie Geiser / California Institute of the Arts

  • A man with curly hair and a patterned shirt is smiling and reading, surrounded by five children and one adult woman, all wearing masks, in an indoor setting with artistic decorations on the wall.

    "My favorite part was doing the warm-ups because I liked that we were able to release our wiggles in class. I feel happy about the performance because I showed the audience the hard work I put into the play and the audience appreciated it."

    5th Grade Student / Francis Scott Key

  • “Larry Reed brought his experience as an artist to the room. This was the first exposure for most of the students to shadow theatre and very quickly he brought the students up to speed on the principles of working with shadows.

    Catherine Ming T'ien Duffly, Assistant Professor / Department of Theatre, Reed College

  • “I learned skills I didn’t have before. I learned about a form of theatre I have never seen before in this city. I was taught by a master in this specific style of theatre…priceless.”

    Robin Bancroft-Wilson, Project Stage Manager / Vancouver Moving Theatre Co.

Teaching Artists

  • A close-up portrait of an Asian woman with short black hair, wearing glasses and earrings, looking directly at the camera with a neutral expression.

    Jessica Nguyen

  • A man with curly hair standing in front of a dark background with a large, shadowed skeleton projection.

    Fred C. Riley III

  • A woman with light skin and brown hair tied up in a bun, smiling, standing in front of three framed artworks of anatomical hearts with colorful artistic designs.

    Caryl Kientz

  • Portrait of a woman with straight, shoulder-length black hair wearing a black V-neck sweater, standing against a plain white background.

    Yawen Chien

  • Portrait of an older man with salt and pepper hair, wearing a navy blue shirt over a green t-shirt, against a plain white background.

    I Made Moja

  • Lydia Greer