Elspeth is a designer, puppeteer and teacher based in Edinburgh. Her background is in performance costume but she also likes to get involved in the devising and performance aspects of making theatre. She is very interested in the way that all the elements of a performance come together: the design, sound, lighting, story, performers and audience. She has a special interest in making performances for children and young people as this age group have such open minds and vast imaginations: there is huge scope for exploration and pushing boundaries. She is also a big puppetry fan as it is a unique form of communication which isn’t always a replacement for human actors but can sometimes be more effective. Currently she works as a freelance designer/maker/puppeteer and recently has been running community workshops which combine mental health and puppetry.
Companies Elspeth has worked with include Tortoise in a Nutshell, Royal Lyceum Theatre, Puppet Animation Scotland, Tragic Carpet, Imaginate, Macrobert Arts, Frozen Charlotte, Asylon Theatre and Red Bridge Arts. She has made some of her own short performances for Manipulate Festival, Edinburgh International Science Festival and has even busked at the Fringe.