Using these printable shadow puppets, you can stage a shadow puppet play, based on the popular fairy-tale The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse!

We are back with a new instalment of shadow puppets. Every year, we make a few more to add into our collection of printable shadow puppets, and this year we decided to add two adorable mice actors.

The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse was one of the original Aesop’s fables, but it has seen many variations over the centuries. The general story revolves around two mice – one living in the city and another living in the countryside. They meet and, after talking, feel envious of each other’s lifestyle. The country mouse wants a taste of the fine city life, while the city mouse think that it would be nice to have more peace and quiet. After switching places, both mice discover that their new lifestyle has its advantages and disadvantages, and after a while decide that they prefer their old familiar lifestyle. In the end, they switch back.

If you would like to read the story with children, I’d recommend Town Mouse, Country Mouse by Jan Brett. It has gorgeous illustrations, too!

Here you can get our Town Mouse and Country Mouse printable shadow puppet set that you can print and cut, and here you can buy the Town Mouse and Country Mouse shadow puppet set that we will cut and mail to you!

In our shadow puppet set, we’ve got two main characters – a boy mouse, who is used to city life, and a girl mouse, who is from the countryside. Two main actors are very easy to manage, even for one puppeteer, so this is a good beginner’s set!

Another advantage of this particular set is that the decorations can be set up for the whole show and don’t have to be changed. We have a cityscape (with a big garbage can full of tempting mouse delicacies) on one side of the screen and a country landscape (with a berry bush and some mushrooms) on the other side.

If you have a piece of blue or purple cellophane or even tissue paper, try putting it over the flashlight to create the dusky-blue light!

The moon is out, and it is nighttime – the mice’s favourite time of day. Unfortunately for them, a cat and an owl are also up and about at that hour… a lady cat who lives in town, and an aviator owl who lives in the countryside.

We love having a good evening of playing with shadow puppets. Why? Here are a just few reasons.

Benefits of Shadow Puppets

First of all, shadow puppets provide a way to introduce children to theatre at home and have dramatic performances, while excluding all the bulky equipment – after all, you can store all the paper actors and decorations in flat envelopes!

Second, shadow puppets encourage an interest in literature and storytelling skills. When staging a shadow play, children can twist the story the way they want!

Third, shadow puppets inspire interest in STEM, letting children experiment with light and shadows. Look at how big this mouse suddenly became, in an episode of free play with shadow puppets! He is about to taste the moon. To his disappointment, it is not made of cheese.

They’re also a great multi-age toy. The toddlers will listen to the story, while preschoolers will participate, and older kids can stage the whole show by themselves. Even babies can be entertained by the high-contrast images and the light play!

How to Make Shadow Puppets

If you want to cut the shadow puppets yourself, there are several ways you could go about it. Read a detailed post with a video about it here.

In short, you can cut the shadow puppet patterns using traditional tools (scissors and a hobby knife) or using silhouette cutting machines (Silhouette or Cricut). The first takes a little longer, but doesn’t require any special tools at all. The second is very easy and fast, but requires an investment in a specialized machine. Our designs for shadow puppets are saved in PNG format, so that they can be used for either method.

Get the Printable Shadow Puppets!

Buy the Shadow Puppets Already Cut!

If you have a shadow puppet show, do share your photos with us! We love seeing them. You can post them on our Facebook page, email me or tag us on Facebook or Instagram – @adventureinabox!