Finger and Thumb Theatre Founded by Drew Colby

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By merging traditional hand shadow techniques with modern technology, the Finger and Thumb Theatre created a visually engaging mode of storytelling. Founded by Drew Colby, a brilliant hand puppeteer, he created fourteen different shows that toured extensively across the UK as well as internationally. For several years this was the official site for the Finger and Thumb Theatre.
Content is from the site's 2013-2016 archived pages as well as other sources.

Drew Colby is an extraordinary hand shadowgrapher. To learn more about this talented artist, as well as upcoming performances, go to his current website at http://www.shadowgraphy.co.uk/.

 

Finger and Thumb Theatre
23a Pathfield Road
London, SW16 5NZ

 

...theatre at your fingertips

Welcome to Finger and Thumb Theatre! We are a puppet theatre company specialising in the use of hand shadow puppets to create beautiful visual theatre for all ages. We perform at parties, in schools, and in theatres - as long as the space is reasonably dark! In addition to small and large scale productions we provide workshops around the skills of hand shadow puppetry.

"I just wanted to thank you for your excellent performance.
I heard many parents and teachers comment on the
spellbinding quality. You really have a unique talent!”
– Kevin Ross, Teacher, Selwood Middle School, Frome

 "Next up was Finger and Thumb Theatre. Bringing us back to the good old days, this was shadow puppetry at its best. Using only one pair of hands, the performers created birds, wolves, rabbits, turtles, a camel, a very spry crab, and even a pair of talking heads - much to the delighted amazement of the crowd. Regressing to your six year-old self was mandatory, and the audience couldn’t help but clap their hands with delight after each animal left the scene." - Chelsey Stuyt, Bristol Theatre Review

 "I was in London representing a new distributor of wholesale vapor products and accessories when I happened to catch this show. I was blown away and so impressed that I returned several nights later with the retailers - my customers - vape store owners who were equally impressed. This is performance art at a very high level. Incredibly creative use of shadow puppetry - way more than I can put into words!" - Jon Wise, tourist

 

Point of interest: In the summer of 2014, this site started receiving a huge amount of traffic from all around the world according to the ips in the logs. Within few days no one could access the site because the servers were overwhelmed with requests. At first we thought this was a good thing, that we were suddenly famous and our popularity was creating too much demand. But one of our developers was concerned enough that he called his friend who worked at the SEO consultancy TNG/Earthing and got their CEO Bob Sakayama to take a look. Bob wrote this alarming post, "The Risks of Search Dependence" which addresses many of the ways a website can be harmed. Turns out it was a distributed denial of service attack (DDOS), where an attacker has automated a robot army to make an overwhelming number of requests for a website, taking it down. The fix was to install a proxy - we used a free version of CloudFlare - which prevented the attack from taking our site down. It saved the day. But we never discovered who was behind the attack.

 

Drew Colby Hand Shadowgrapher
Short clips of some of Drew's routines accompanied by the laughter of the audience at Dulwich Picture Gallery in June 2014.

 

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...theatre at your fingertips

Finger and Thumb Theatre began life in 2002 as Objects Dart, a puppet company founded by Drew Colby to explore the use of object theatre in conjunction with traditional puppet forms. From 2002 Drew created fourteen different shows, evolving a style of object puppetry that was described by audience members as “instant puppetry”. Drew performed extensively across the UK and internationally in Turkey, Kenya, Uganda, Canada and South Africa. In 2010 Drew began to focus on hand shadow puppetry – and it was time for a new name for the company that best captured the special magic of Drew's theatre of fingers and thumbs – enter Finger and Thumb Theatre!

Finger and Thumb Theatre create visual shows for family and adult audiences using different combinations of hand shadows, video technology, live and recorded music, storytelling and songs.

Finger and Thumb Theatre has exciting plans for the second year of its commission with Junction in Goole, Yorkshire - "The Carnival of the Animals"! The aim of the commission is to develop a new family theatre piece to receive its world premier at Junction in September 2016. The project will involve a number of new animals, animations and some specially composed music to be played alongside the well known classical score.

 

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Finger and Thumb Theatre have six productions suited to different performance environments :-

"Small Fables" is suitable for school and venue performances;

"Shadow Tails" is a performance for schools and parties - a flexible format to suit different spaces, themes and timings;

"Circus Bear" - funded by the Arts Council, this production is suitable for venues and large school performances;

"Cabaret" - a 12 - 30 minute long cabaret piece for adult audiences;

"The Highwayman" - a 12 minute performance based on the poem by Alfred Noyes;

"The Ugly Duckling" - a 50 minute performance based on the well-loved tale by Hans Christian Andersen.

and -

"The Carnival of the Animals" - the new commission for 2016. Full details to be revealed shortly...

“Thank you for coming in to our school last week! We really really really absolutely loved your performance. I personally really enjoyed the way you used your hands as puppets.” – Charlie

 

Drew Colby My Shadow
A gentle journey through fabulous shadow lands with two amazing shadow hands. Specially commissioned by Junction, Goole.
Join Drew Colby - a man who can create almost anything with his hand shadows – for a journey through exotic shadow lands with two amazing shadow hands. With shadow crabs that creep from the sea, a hula-hooping shadow monkey and a shadow man riding across the desert on a troublesome camel, you’ll be amazed by these enchanting shadow creations.

 

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FINGER AND THUMB THEATRE –THE NATIONAL CURRICULUM

Our shows and workshops are designed to support teachers and educators in their teaching of the national curriculum –and offer opportunities to link to elements of various modules in a creative way. 
We've worked in schools and nurseries for over 10 years, and both of our performers/ practitioners have significant experience of working with children, including children with special needs.
Below is a list of just some of the elements of the national curriculum that teachers have linked to performances and workshops.  The list is not exhaustive –in discussion with teachers and educators we can plan workshops that support your school's teaching in other areas as well.
 
KEY STAGE 1 AND KEY STAGE 2 SCIENCE

Our shows and workshops offer many opportunities to link with all 4 units of this subject.  Seeing how we make our shadows and designing their own puppets, children are supported to ask “what will happen if” or “why does this happen” -and to try out techniques themselves to explore the results. 
We demonstrate how our shadows are made, the materials we use, and the different effecteach material produces. Our workprovides an excellent link to “Light and Sound” in unit SC4. 

KEY STAGE 1 AND KEY STAGE 2 DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGY

Our workshops offer many opportunities for lessons and links to all elements of the design and
technology curriculum.   We support pupils to design and perform with simple puppets.  Through the design process, they explore size, shape, and thecharacteristics of the material used, as well as how shadow and shapeinteract –using “measure, mark, and cut” when making their shadow puppets.  By using the puppets, the children see the results of their work and have the opportunity to explore how they can change the shape of the shadow by changing the positioning of their puppet.  
 
KEY STAGE 1 AND KEY STAGE 2 ART AND DESIGN

As with elements from the design and technology modules in the national curriculum, during our workshops children explore the characteristics of the materials they are using, trying their own designs, and creating designs that they may choose to adapt or change as part of the creative process. 

OTHER ELEMENTS OF THE NATIONAL CURRICULUM

Our shows and workshops provide many opportunities to cross reference other elements of the
curriculum, particularly English (EN1) and Mathematics (MA3). 
Though our work can form very direct links to the national curriculum, it can also be used in
creative ways to support almost any other lesson or theme a class is exploring –including stories, ideas, and relationship themes (friendship, etc.).  We believe that the use of puppetry in the classroom is a powerful tool to help children learn and explore creatively and imaginatively.

 

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Read these two newspaper articles about Finger and Thumb's performances in India
Decaan Herald 5th February 2015

Times of India 7th February 2015

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In May 2014 Drew created a short hand shadow sequence for the BBC sitcom "Not going out". The episode aired on BBC1 in October 2014.

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The first quarter of 2014 included 45 performances, 14 workshops and 2 days of filming. The company opened two international theatre / puppet festivals (in Chile and India) and gave performances of Small Fables, Circus Bear, Shadow Tails and The Highwayman in venues and schools around the UK. Below is a composite video of all of the companies / performances involved in Fitich9 in Chile.

 

In the last week of February Drew gave five performances in the three Indian cities of Delhi, Gurgaon and Chandigarh to a total audience of over 2500 people! The performances were part of the 12th Ishara International Puppet Festival - here is an article from Time out Delhi with a write up about the show and the festival. Ishara appropriately means "gesture".

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Here is the advert for Nintendo SUPER MARIO 3D WORLD for which Drew designed and performed hand shadow characters. Video here.

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You can see the Finger and Thumb lion running in this video by Gary Friedman productions. The video includes clips from many of the shows on at SUSPENSE 2013 in London. The lion (and the rest of the menagerie) appeared on the last night of the festival at the Puppet Grinder Cabaret to a riotous response. The video is here; the lion appears around 40 seconds in.

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In 2012 Drew created hand shadows in an advert for Lodotra. The advert was awarded the 2012 Bronze Clio Award for a pharmaceutical video. Detailed backstage footage of the shoot and interviews can be seen here.

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Here is a copy of the article about Drew in the Express and Star, August 2013.

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Here is a copy of the report by Smethwick Libraries on the three performances given in Sandwell during August.

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Here is the article about Drew's hand shadow workshop at the Puppet Centre Trust in London in January 2013 - Drew's Puppet Centre Workshop

Time Out, Delhi Article February 2014

 

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TOUR DATES

 

MAY 2016
3rd - All Day - The Highwayman & Workshop, Blickfang Puppet Festival, Kassel, Germany
4th - All Day - The Highwayman & Workshop, Blickfang Puppet Festival, Kassel, Germany
6th - All Day - Workshop, Blickfang Puppet Festival, Haydau, Germany
7th @ 5PM - The Ugly Duckling, Blickfang Puppet Festival, Haydau, Germany
10th - 12th - Rehearsal and Development, Junction, Goole
14th @ 2.30PM - Small Fables, Private Party, London
22nd @ 10.30AM & 1.30PM - Small Fables, Dulwich Picture Gallery, London
JUNE 2016
2nd @ 2PM - The Ugly Duckling, Harrow Arts Centre, London
20th - 22th - Rehearsal and Development, Junction, Goole
JULY 2016
4th @ 10.30AM - Small Fables, County Bridge Primary School, Walsall
6th @ 9.15AM & 10.45AM - The Carnival of the Animals, Preview, Dulwich Prep, London
7th - 8th - Rehearsal and Development, Junction, Goole
17th @ 3.30PM - The Ugly Duckling, Beverley Puppet Festival, Yorkshire
18th - The Carnival of the Animals, Preview, Junction, Goole
23rd @ 4PM  - The Carnival of the Animals, Midsummer Dreams Festival, Devon
23rd @ 5.15PM - Workshops, Midsummer Dreams Festival, Devon
26th - The Sefita Concert, Holon International Puppet Theatre & Film Festival, Israel
28th @ 5PM The Carnival of the Animals, Holon International Puppet Theatre & Film Festival, Israel
28th - The Sefita Concert, Holon International Puppet Theatre & Film Festival, Israel
30th @ 10.30AM - The Carnival of the Animals, Holon International Puppet Theatre & Film Festival, Israel
30th @ 12.30AM - The Carnival of the Animals, Holon International Puppet Theatre & Film Festival, Israel
31st - Workshops, Holon International Puppet Theatre & Film Festival, Israel
AUGUST 2016
1st & 2nd - Workshops, Holon International Puppet Theatre & Film Festival, Israel
25th - 28th - Shambala, Northamptonshire
SEPTEMBER 2016
3rd - 11th - Finger and Thumb on Holiday!
12th - 16th - Rehearsal and Development, Junction, Goole
17th - The Carnival of the Animals, Premiere, Junction, Goole
25th @ 2.30PM - The Ugly Duckling, The Civic Theatre, Barnsley
OCTOBER 2016
7th @ 9.45AM, 11AM & 1PM - The Ugly Duckling, Ecole Jacques Prévert, London
8th @ 11AM & 1PM - The Ugly Duckling, The Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith
NOVEMBER 2016
27th - TBC, Dulwich Picture Gallery, London

 

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NOTE: When the domain registration for the Finger and Thumb Theatre expired the site disappeared from the WEB. The new owner of the domain greatly admires Drew Colby's work and wanted to keep some of the original content available for any visitors who inadvertantly ended up here while searching for Drew Colby. Please visit his current website for the most up to date information about this amazing artist. http://www.shadowgraphy.co.uk/.

 

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More Background On FingerAndThumbTheatre.com

 

FingerAndThumbTheatre.com served for many years as the official online home of Finger and Thumb Theatre, a London-based puppetry company founded and led by renowned hand shadowgrapher Drew Colby. While the domain today functions mainly as an archival tribute site, its preserved content provides an unusually complete record of a small but globally impactful performing arts company. The following article synthesizes information from the site’s archived pages together with additional context about Colby, his career, his productions, and the cultural significance of his work.

Finger and Thumb Theatre carved out a unique space within the modern puppetry landscape by reviving and modernizing the ancient art of hand-shadow puppetry. Combining traditional techniques with contemporary technology—including video projection, custom lighting, and original musical scores—the company built a repertoire that was visually rich, technically remarkable, and emotionally resonant for audiences of all ages.

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Founding and Early Development

The roots of Finger and Thumb Theatre trace back to 2002, when puppeteer Drew Colby founded an earlier company called Objects Dart. This original venture focused on object theatre, a form of puppetry in which everyday objects are manipulated to create characters, stories, and illusions. During this period, Colby created fourteen productions and developed a reputation for “instant puppetry”—the ability to turn nothing more than hands or common items into compelling stage figures.

By 2010, Colby’s creative interests had shifted decisively toward hand shadow puppetry, the art of sculpting silhouettes with nothing but fingers, thumbs, palms, and controlled movements. Recognizing the need for a name that truly reflected his evolving artistic identity, Colby rebranded his company as Finger and Thumb Theatre. This rebranding marked a new era, with the company focusing exclusively on hand shadows and the narrative possibilities they unlocked.

The company maintained its base in south London, operating out of Pathfield Road (SW16). From there, it organized tours, workshops, school residencies, new productions, and international festival appearances.

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Artistic Style and Mission

Finger and Thumb Theatre described itself as a group specializing in “beautiful visual theatre,” often using only a pair of hands as the primary puppets. The approach was minimalist in materials but maximalist in imagination. Performances relied on:

• Hand-crafted lighting to create crisp, expressive silhouettes

• Live or recorded music ranging from classical scores to original compositions

• Projection screens or simple white surfaces

• Storytelling and narration—sometimes spoken, sometimes musical

• Audience engagement, especially in school and festival settings

The company’s mission was both artistic and educational. Its artistry aimed to spark a sense of wonder; its educational work aimed to show how easily creativity can arise from the simplest materials.

One of the company’s informal mottos captured this beautifully:

“Theatre at your fingertips.”

This was not just branding—it was the literal truth of Colby’s process.

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Repertoire and Notable Productions

Finger and Thumb Theatre produced a range of shows suitable for diverse venues, from classrooms to cabarets to full theatrical stages. The following were among its most notable works:

Small Fables

A flagship family production frequently performed in schools, festivals, and cultural centers. The show presented short moral tales and visual vignettes using hand shadow animals—rabbits, dogs, birds, elephants, and surreal creatures. It was praised for its simplicity, humor, and gentle environmental themes.

Shadow Tails

A flexible-format program ideal for parties and school events. This show introduced younger audiences to the basics of hand-shadow storytelling in a lively, comedic style.

Circus Bear

A larger-scale production funded in part by the Arts Council. The work combined shadow puppetry with narrative storytelling and was known for its distinctive characters and emotionally layered script.

Cabaret

A short (12–30 minute) adult-oriented piece performed at venues such as Puppet Grinder Cabaret during London’s SUSPENSE festival. It showcased high-speed shadow transformations and comedic set pieces.

The Highwayman

A 12-minute interpretation of Alfred Noyes’s poem, using stylized hand shadows and theatrical lighting to evoke the romantic imagery of the classic text.

The Ugly Duckling

A 50-minute family performance based on Hans Christian Andersen’s tale, told entirely through hand shadows, movement, and music. This show toured both schools and major UK theatres.

The Carnival of the Animals

A major commissioned work developed with Junction in Goole, Yorkshire. Incorporating new shadow creatures, animations, and specially composed music, this production premiered in 2016. It represented one of the company’s most ambitious integrations of classical music, shadow imagery, and narrative structure.

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International Touring and Global Reach

One of the most striking aspects of Finger and Thumb Theatre was the global reach it achieved despite being a small, two-performer operation. The company toured extensively across:

• United Kingdom

• Turkey

• Kenya

• Uganda

• Canada

• South Africa

• Germany

• Israel

• India (Delhi, Chandigarh, Gurgaon)

• Chile

• Various puppet festivals across Europe and beyond

At one point, a single quarter-year included 45 performances, 14 workshops, and two days of filming. Finger and Thumb Theatre opened international puppet festivals in both Chile and India and consistently drew large audiences, including 2,500+ viewers in a single week during the 12th Ishara International Puppet Festival.

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Critical Reception and Audience Response

Finger and Thumb Theatre enjoyed strong critical acclaim, both in the UK and internationally. Reviews frequently highlighted the novelty of Colby’s hand shadow technique and the emotional accessibility of his storytelling.

Audience Praise

Teachers, parents, and theatre-goers consistently described the performances as:

• “Spellbinding”

• “Delighted amazement”

• “Mandatory regression to your six-year-old self”

• “Incredibly creative use of shadow puppetry”

• “A unique talent”

Reports often mention audiences clapping spontaneously after each creature disappeared or transformed.

Press Coverage

Professional critics described Colby’s performances as effortless and beautifully simple, while also underscoring the high level of technique required. Reviews emphasized:

• The emotional warmth of the storytelling

• His ability to connect with children’s perspective

• The environmental and nature-centered themes

• The surprising complexity behind seemingly simple silhouettes

This combination of technical excellence and narrative gentleness became hallmarks of the company’s reputation.

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Media Work and Commercial Collaborations

Beyond theatre, Finger and Thumb Theatre and Drew Colby collaborated on several prominent media projects:

Television

Colby created a hand-shadow sequence for the BBC sitcom “Not Going Out”, aired in 2014.

Advertising

He designed shadow creatures for a Nintendo Super Mario 3D World advertisement, earning attention for turning his hand silhouettes into iconic video game characters.

Earlier commercial work included an advert for Lodotra, which won a Bronze Clio Award for pharmaceutical video.

These collaborations introduced shadow puppetry to mainstream audiences and showcased how adaptable the art form could be.

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Educational Impact and Use in Schools

Finger and Thumb Theatre invested heavily in educational outreach, offering workshops closely aligned with the UK national curriculum. Their programming supported learning in multiple subjects:

• Science (Light and Sound) — exploring how shadows form

• Design & Technology — designing and constructing simple puppets

• Art & Design — experimenting with materials, scale, and creative composition

• English — storytelling, narrative sequences

• Mathematics — shapes, proportions, and spatial reasoning

Workshops often included hands-on participation, enabling students to create their own puppets and experiment with shadow-play. Teachers frequently cited the workshops as among the most engaging learning experiences for visual and kinesthetic learners.

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Popularity, Site History, and the DDoS Incident

One of the most unusual stories preserved on FingerAndThumbTheatre.com concerns a major DDoS attack that struck the website in 2014. The sudden flood of traffic initially seemed like a surge in global popularity—until analysis showed it was an automated attack designed to overwhelm the server.

The company responded by implementing a Cloudflare proxy, which restored stability. Although the attacker was never identified, the event became an instructive example of how small arts organizations can be affected by cyber vulnerabilities.

Ironically, the story added an unexpected chapter to the company’s online legacy, illustrating the challenges even niche artistic websites may face on the modern internet.

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Festival Participation and Awards

Finger and Thumb Theatre regularly appeared at major puppet and arts festivals, including:

• Ishara International Puppet Festival (India)

• Holon International Puppet Theatre & Film Festival (Israel)

• Blickfang Puppet Festival (Germany)

• Beverley Puppet Festival (UK)

• SUSPENSE London

These festivals often positioned Colby alongside an international roster of master puppeteers, exposing new audiences to his style and cementing his reputation as a leading shadowgrapher.

Awards included recognition in advertising (e.g., the Clio Award via the Lodotra project) and ongoing support from UK arts bodies, including the Arts Council.

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Cultural and Social Significance

Finger and Thumb Theatre’s importance extends beyond entertainment. Its cultural significance arises from several interwoven factors:

Revival of a Historic Art Form

Hand shadow puppetry is one of the world’s oldest theatrical techniques. Colby helped revive it at a time when digital entertainment dominated children’s storytelling, proving that an art form requiring only light and hands could still captivate modern audiences.

Accessibility

The company’s work emphasized that creativity does not require expensive technology. Small productions could travel easily to schools, nurseries, rural locations, and international festivals.

Environmental Themes

Shows like Small Fables weaved messages about nature, coexistence, and the environment without preaching—appealing both to children’s imaginations and adults’ sensibilities.

Cross-Cultural Appeal

Because shadow imagery transcends language barriers, the shows connected with audiences across continents, from Europe to Africa to Asia.

Educational Value

By integrating directly with school curricula, Finger and Thumb Theatre demonstrated how performing arts can enrich STEM and humanities learning.

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Touring Activity and High Output

The site’s archival tour schedule illustrates the company’s intense work pace. In a typical year, Finger and Thumb Theatre might:

• Visit multiple countries

• Conduct dozens of school performances

• Lead workshops at festivals

• Rehearse and develop new productions

• Premier major commissioned works

This high volume of work is remarkable considering the company’s small size, underscoring both Colby’s dedication and the global demand for his craft.

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Current Status

The original FingerAndThumbTheatre.com eventually lapsed when the domain was not renewed. An admirer of Colby’s work purchased the domain afterward to preserve selected archival content so future visitors could still learn about the company.

Today, Colby continues to perform, teach, and develop new shadow-based productions under his own name. His current work, appearances, and ongoing projects can be found on his active website and through worldwide festival circuits.

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FingerAndThumbTheatre.com stands as a valuable record of one of the most imaginative and distinctive small theatre companies in the UK. Led by master shadowgrapher Drew Colby, Finger and Thumb Theatre blended ancient puppetry traditions with contemporary storytelling to create performances that were visually enchanting, emotionally warm, and globally resonant.

The company’s legacy includes:

• A groundbreaking repertoire of hand-shadow productions

• International touring across more than a dozen countries

• Published reviews praising its artistry and emotional richness

• Collaborations with major media outlets and commercial brands

• Deep engagement with educational institutions and curriculum needs

• A cultural impact far greater than its small size might suggest

Even though the original website has changed hands, its content continues to illuminate the history of a company that brought “theatre at your fingertips” to audiences worldwide.

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