Manipulate Festival

What's on Wed 4 - Tue 10 Feb

About

Manipulate Festival is an annual celebration of excellence in the fields of animated film, puppetry and visual theatre, bringing the very best of international and Scottish work to audiences across Edinburgh and beyond, in February each year.

Creating a platform for creative exchange, debate and discussion alongside staging boundary-pushing new work for audiences, the Festival has gained recognition nationally and internationally for its innovative curation and unique blend of artforms.

Manipulate Festival 2025, runs from Wed 4 - Tue 10 February at venues across Edinburgh. Check out the performances joining us at the Traverse, below!

List of Events, 12 per page.

  1. Manipulate Festival: Coffee With Sugar?

    Manipulate Festival

    Wed 4 - Thu 5 Feb, 6PM

    A visually striking performance delving into the enduring legacies of colonialism.

    Info / Book

  2. Manipulate Festival: Size Matters

    Manipulate Festival by Mamoru Iriguchi and Fergus Dunnet

    Thu 5 - Fri 6 Feb, 6.15PM

    Blending puppetry, science, and surrealist theatre, join in an exploration of how time and perception shift with size.

    Info / Book

  3. Manipulate Festival: Don Quixote (is a Very Big Book)

    Manipulate Festival Created by Emma Williams, Dik Downey and Chris Collier

    Sat 7 - Sun 8 Feb, 6.15PM

    A one-man show retelling Don Quixote with puppets, desperate clowning and surreal, comic misadventures.

    Info / Book

  4. Manipulate Festival: The Rite of Spring

    Manipulate Festival

    Sat 7 - Sun 8 Feb, 8PM

    Reimagining Stravinsky’s revolutionary work with raw, primal energy - and a fresh perspective on the timeless score.

    Info / Book

  5. Manipulate Festival: The Wood Paths

    Manipulate Festival by Andrejs Jarovojs, Rūdolfs Gediņš, Edgars Samītis and Rudolf Bekič

    Mon 9 - Tue 10 Feb, 8PM

    A celebration of humanity’s endless creativity and our desire to find beauty in the mess.

    Info / Book