The peak of summer quietly arrives, and the prelude to the summer vacation is about to begin. The 2025 NCPA International Children's Theatre Season will also kick off joyfully to the rhythm of the summer days!From July 18th to August 24th, the 2025 NCPA International Children's Theatre Season will present 7 selected global plays, with a total of 27 exciting performances at the National Centre for the Performing Arts and Beijing Art Center. "See the world, enjoy family happiness" - creating a summer feast of art and beauty for both adults and children. Get a sneak peek at the exciting performances!
Sticks Stones Broken Bones
From Canada, the "Shadow Magician" has ignited a global passion for puppetry and shadow play with ordinary household waste and a "shadow trick" that reveals the entire production process. With just one person, one table, one light, and one screen, the simple stage setup gives rise to a succession of wonderful performances. Old toys, cardboard, brushes, steel wool balls... In the skilled hands of the "Shadow Magician" and with the collaboration of light and shadow, these instantly transform into simple yet vivid characters and set props in the story. Without a single line of dialogue, as the music starts, the shadow puppets immediately convey emotions through their expressions on the screen, immersing the audience in the captivating plot of the "Shadow Kingdom". The show made its stunning debut at the world-renowned Edinburgh International Festival in 2010, winning three major awards, selling out consecutive shows, and receiving continuous global invitations.
Date: July 18, 2025 - July 20, 2025
Venue: Multi-Functional Theatre, NCPA
One Duck Down
The creative inspiration for the play stems from the 1992 Yellow Duck Leak Incident: In 1992, a cargo ship departing from Hong Kong, China, encountered a strong storm in the Pacific Ocean, and tens of thousands of rubber ducks leaked from containers, embarking on a global journey along ocean currents. This incident sparked widespread social attention and re-creations by artists. In 2017, the British FacePlant Theater troupe created One Duck Down, bringing the journey of protagonist Billy searching for 7,000 yellow ducks to the theatrical stage, which won the Annual Family Play Award at the London Vaults Festival in 2018. Under the guidance of co-director Gao Shengyun, the creative team and actor-creators carried out secondary creation and arrangement, integrating clown comedy, puppet theater, original songs, and audience interaction. The theme of marine environmental protection is presented to audiences of all ages through a 90-minute fun-filled theatrical experience.
Date: July 25, 2025 - July 27, 2025
Venue: Multi-Functional Theatre, NCPA
Cool Bug School: The Ultimate Magic
The story unfolds in a mysterious corner of a parallel human world where Cool Bug School hosts the "Most Beautiful Insect" competition. The defeated rhinoceros beetle and bolas spider accidentally obtain a "magic manual" during a new rivalry. Just as they plan to use it for a comeback, a crisis quietly descends. Under pressure, the two insects join forces, leveraging their unique abilities to defuse the crisis and uncover the truth behind the "magic manual".
With its engaging blend of educational themes and theatrical innovation, Cool Bug School: The Ultimate Magic promises a 90-minute immersive experience that entertains and educates audiences of all ages about the wonders of the insect world.
Date: August 1, 2025 - August 3, 2025
Venue: Multi-Functional Theatre, NCPA
Steam Worlds
The story revolves around Mr. Steam, an antique collector obsessed with items from the Steam Age. He opens a portal to a parallel world by activating a set of mysterious steam puppets. Audiences will follow Mr. Steam into a whimsical punk universe, where characters from Steam Worlds make their debut: the haughty yet humorous Mr. Steam, a pilot with a propeller on their head, a diver in an oxygen hood, a mischievous punk blacksmith, dancers in spiral hoop skirts, a singer with a giant horn atop their head, and a 3-meter-tall stilt giant...
The protagonists showcase magical experiments and reveal scientific principles to young viewers through hand tricks, acrobatics, and interactive games. The show also features stunt performances like balance tree routines and giant loop maneuvers, aiming to create a fairy-tale world that blends entertainment with popular science.
Date: August 2, 2025- August 3, 2025
Venue: Theatre, NCPA
Dreaming the Carnival of the Animals
As China and Spain mark the 20th anniversary of establishing a comprehensive strategic partnership, the award-winning Títeres Etcétera—recipient of Spain's National Drama Award for Children and Youth—makes its debut tour to China, presenting its masterpiece Dreaming the Carnival of the Animals, a large-scale musical puppet drama. This also marks the production's first Asian tour.
The show begins with an orchestra's daily rehearsal, when suddenly a puppet from the cellist's case comes to life—a creature representing a Greek mythological animal. As it naps, it dreams of various animals, bringing to life 12-meter-long Tyrannosaurus rex, 3-meter elephants, majestic African lions, adorable Australian kangaroo mother and joey, charming deep-sea fish schools, and all characters from Saint-Saëns' score within its dreams!
Date: August 12, 2025 - August 14, 2025
Venue: Theatre, NCPA
Goldbug
This is a brand-new immersive sound-creation classical music family drama integrated with music, light and shadow, interactive games, and cinematic sound effects technology. Dreamlike light-shadow plays, childlike "open sesame" magic, Hollywood-style live creative dubbing, and the gentle, soft yet simple and mellow Bach melodies performed live intertwine to tell a heartwarming family story between a child and father.
At night, the starry sky sparkles! As the father plays Bach's piano pieces, a drowsy little beetle flies into the night sky. In the depths of space, it meets MAZZY, the "Musical Messenger of Dreams"! MAZZY owns a magical dream telescope that can enter the dreams of every child on Earth. Together, they play beautiful music for these dreams, making children's sweet dreams come true in a magical musical journey where reality and fantasy blur.
Date: August 16, 2025 - August 17, 2025
Venue: Multi-Functional Theatre, NCPA
Mountain Magic: Children's Exercise
The puppet show Mountain Magic: Children's Exercise recounts the fantastical journey of Sun Wukong from his birth to being pressed under the Five-Finger Mountain, using the Monkey King's experiences to inspire children to become unique and excellent individuals.
When the stone monkey bursts out of the rock and leaps into the air, the Water-Curtain Cave is shrouded in green leaves of mountain rocks; a small boat carries the stone monkey across the ocean; tumbling rocks repel the invaders of Huaguo Mountain... Onstage, these scenes blend freehand beauty with modern stage design through light, shadow, and Chinese landscape paintings. Combined with stage designs like string puppets, rod puppets, and large sculptural puppets, they create a fantastical world.
Huaguo Mountain abandons the simple replication of traditional Journey to the West chapters, focusing instead on the unique stories of the "monkey" herd. It is an artistic masterpiece escorted by both intangible cultural heritage and Chinese classic literature.
Date: August 22, 2022 - August 24, 2022
Venue: Multi-Functional Theatre, NCPA
This summer, the stage lights up the child's heart! More than just watching a performance, it's a sweet journey of creation, exploration, and love! During the summer vacation, we have prepared some lovely surprises for parents and children.
Limited Edition Delicacies: Sugar-free artistic lollipops make sweetness burden-free, paired with cute animal-shaped cakes and fresh fruit juice, adding joy to the summer theater experience.
Interactive Experience: Artistic paper plate doodles, plant seed cards, and scratch-and-win fun prizes and other interesting activities make dining time an extension of artistic exploration.
