By Grace Hatchell
Now then, magpies, squirrels, a parkkeeper, catchy songs and puppets. Sounds like we’re safely in children’s theatre territory, doesn’t it?
Well, not quite.
Cardboard Box Theatre Company is bringing Seasons to the Edinburgh Fringe, and behind its colourful collection of woodland characters is a subject that family theatre doesn’t often venture towards: miscarriage.
Yes, we’re going there. And actually, perhaps theatre should go there more often.
Welcome to Willow Park, where we meet Mylo and Maggie the magpies. Maggie is dealing with grief following a recent miscarriage, and alongside Mylo she must somehow begin navigating all of the emotions that come with it.
Fortunately, they’re not alone. Roxie and Amelie the squirrels are there, alongside Parker the Parkkeeper, as the inhabitants of Willow Park come together to show that sometimes getting through the difficult bits of life means leaning on the people around you.
And there are squirrels. Personally, I think most situations can be marginally improved by the arrival of a squirrel.
But underneath the puppetry and lively songs is something rather ambitious. Seasons wants to help bridge the gap between adult conversations and children’s understanding of difficult subjects.
Importantly, the company says it has made a deliberate effort not to downplay complicated emotions simply because children are watching.
I rather like that.
Children notice things. They know when adults are upset, when something has changed or when everybody suddenly starts talking in strange whispers in the kitchen. What they don’t necessarily have are the words to understand why.
Perhaps a puppet can help.
The people behind those puppets are Cardboard Box Theatre Company, a group of emerging artists freshly graduated from Chichester Conservatoire.
The company champions sustainable and accessible theatre rooted in community, with previous productions including Dick Whittington, Beauty and the Beast and the rather brilliantly titled improv show As Seen on TV.
Their ambition is to create family theatre that’s fun and impactful while challenging expectations of what children’s theatre can actually talk about.
And Seasons certainly isn’t frightened of challenging those expectations.
There’s also a deeply personal reason behind the production. Several members of the company experienced miscarriage within their families while they were growing up.
The project itself began while the company members were at university, brought together through a shared passion for music and puppetry. Their journey started with a small 15-minute performance called What Could Possibly Go Wrong?
Which, incidentally, sounds like an excellent title for taking any production to the Edinburgh Fringe.
That initial project eventually led to the development of Seasons. The company wanted to create something capable of entertaining an entire family while opening the door to conversations that families can sometimes struggle to begin.
Their director perhaps explains the motivation behind it best:
“We have created the show that we needed to see when we were younger.”
That’s quite a powerful reason to make theatre.
Because children’s theatre doesn’t always have to involve goodies, baddies and someone shouting, “He’s behind you!” Although I remain very fond of all three.
Sometimes it can provide a safe place for children and adults to explore something considerably more difficult.
And puppetry has a rather special ability to do that. A puppet can create just enough distance from reality to make an uncomfortable subject feel approachable, while still allowing the emotions behind it to remain completely real.
That’s the balancing act Seasons is attempting: fun without trivialising, serious without becoming frightening and accessible without pretending difficult emotions are simple.
After previewing the production at university, the company recognised its potential and decided to take it further, particularly as they saw an opportunity for children’s theatre that addresses real-life subjects which are often considered taboo.
And now they’re taking it to Edinburgh for the first time – their Fringe debut. Ah, that wonderful moment when a group of emerging theatre-makers arrives in Edinburgh full of optimism, puppets and absolutely no idea how many hills they’re about to walk up.
Welcome aboard.
Seasons plays at Paradise Green, Paradise in Augustines – The Studio, from 8–15 August 2026, excluding 9 August. Performances begin at 11:15am and run for one hour, with adult tickets at £8, concessions at £6 and family tickets available at £6 each for a family of four.
For me, though, the most interesting thing about Seasons isn’t simply that it’s using puppetry to talk about miscarriage. It’s the philosophy sitting underneath it.
The production ultimately explores the idea that family isn’t necessarily defined purely by biology. Sometimes it’s the people who surround us, recognise when we’re struggling and decide to stay beside us through the difficult seasons.
That’s a pretty big message for a collection of magpies and squirrels.
But then again, this is the Edinburgh Fringe.
Sometimes the smallest puppets get to tackle the biggest subjects.
Grace x
https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/seasons
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