• Return season of Rules of Summer, an immersive, multi-sensory puppetry experience adapted from Shaun Tan’s award-winning book.
• Directed by Artistic Director Philip Mitchell, fresh from an international season at Hong Kong’s WestK FunFest earlier this year.
• Runs Saturday 4 July – Saturday 18 July at Centenary Pavilion, Claremont Showground, with performances at 10am and 1pm daily.

Fresh from an international season at WestK FunFest in Hong Kong earlier this year, Spare Parts Puppet Theatre invites families into a world where rules are made to be broken with the return of Rules of Summer, this July school holidays at the Centenary Pavilion, Claremont Showground.

Following the sold-out season of Reach for the Sky in January, the company returns to one of its first immersive, multi-sensory theatre experiences for children and families. Adapted from Shaun Tan’s award-winning book, Rules of Summer transforms the theatre into a strange and sensory world. Audiences don’t just watch the story unfold, they’re invited in through secret messages, surprising sensory encounters, and the unmistakable oddness of Shaun Tan’s world made physical.

The show follows two boys and the mysterious, unspoken rules that hold them together and pull them apart — never step on a snail, never leave a red sock on the clothesline, never be late for a parade.

Spare Parts Puppet Theatre Artistic Director Philip Mitchell said the production offers families a theatre experience unlike anything else these school holidays.

“This is a show where the audience is part of the story from the moment they walk in,” he said. “It’s playful and funny and full of surprises, and it engages you in ways you don’t expect. Through what you see, what you hear, what you smell, even what you taste.”

Philip said puppetry is uniquely suited to Shaun Tan’s distinctive style of storytelling.

“The absence of words heightens the visual storytelling and encourages audiences to feel things intuitively,” he said. “At its core, this is a story about the tensions and joys of any close relationship — sibling, friend, partner. Every relationship has its rules, spoken and unspoken, and we all know what it feels like when they get broken.”

First premiering in 2017 to five-star reviews, Rules of Summer returns this July for a new generation of audiences.

Rules of Summer runs from Saturday 4 July to Saturday 18 July, with performances at 10am and 1pm daily (no Sunday performances). The show runs 50 minutes, followed by a 10-minute Q&A. Recommended for ages 5+.

Tickets are on sale now at sppt.com.au.

Tickets for Rules of Summer are available here.

All media enquiries to
Grant Watson   media@sppt.com.au

PERFORMANCE DETAILS
Saturday 4 July – Saturday 18 July 2026
10am & 1pm daily, no Sunday performances
Centenary Pavilion, Claremont Showground, Claremont WA 6010
Tickets: $29 | Suitable for ages 5+

PRODUCTION CREDITS
Performers: Bec Bradley, Harrison Lorenz-Daniel, Luke Joseph Ryan
Director: Philip Mitchell
Adapting Writer: Ian Sinclair
Assistant Director: Bec Bradley
Designer: Leon Hendroff
Composer: Lee Buddle
Original Lighting Design: Graham Walne
Construction: Bryan Woltjen, Jesse Wood, Julie Reeves, Riley Brabin, Sanjiva Margio
Stage Manager: Catherine O’Donoghue