Mission Statement
Moon Shadow Studio is to make a culturally-layered immersive storytelling space for children everywhere.
Blending our personal narratives with the power of shadow puppetry, our work gives children and grown-ups opportunities to share untold stories and start vital conversations across generations.
About
Moon Shadow Studio is a shadow puppetry theatre collective based in Naarm/Melbourne, led by visual artist Youbi Lee and performer-writer Taka Takiguchi.
Drawing on their lived experiences as migrants and ESL speakers, the collective creates intimate and thought-provoking works for children and families that move between time, memory, place, and language.
Blending shadow puppetry and performative storytelling, Moon Shadow Studio crafts layered, visually poetic worlds—often using an overhead projector—where light and shadow become carriers of emotion and story. Their works invite audiences on journeys that swing between tenderness and humour, struggle and achievement, stillness and transformation, evoking both tears and laughter.
At the heart of Moon Shadow Studio’s practice is a belief in storytelling as a shared space for community knowledge and wisdom—one that gently connects generations, cultures, and inner landscapes.
Moon Shadow Studio’s first work, Kiki and Zuki, has toured across Victoria in 2025. Their commissioned work, 20 Years Later, created for Melbourne Museum as part of the Culture Maker Program, will be screened in 2026.
Team
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Youbi Lee is a Korean-heritage, multidisciplinary artist based in Naarm/Melbourne. Her practice encompasses installation, performance, animation, puppetry, and facilitation. Drawing on her diverse skill set and experience, she has created large-scale collaborative arts projects with various communities, councils, and festivals. She works with established organisations like Lemony S Puppet Theatre, Threshold, and Polyglot as a puppeteer, concept designer, and art facilitator.
Youbi has participated in several competitive residency and development programs, including SITUATE Arts in Festival (2018), ArtPlay New Idea Lab (2020), and Lemony S Puppet Lab (2022). Her work has been recognized with nominations for Obang: Theatre for Baby at the Green Room Awards (2024) and Asian Grocery at the Melbourne Fringe Festival’s Best Live Art (2017). She also contributed to the visual design of Best Party Ever by Threshold, a project that won the Innovate Award by NBN (2024). She was also commissioned to create large-scale interactive shadow puppets by the City of Melbourne in 2022 as part of ‘Flash Forward’.
https://ubtopia.net/project/ -
Taka Takiguchi (滝口貴) is a Naarm/Melbourne-based independent artist and producer of Japanese (Hiroshima) heritage.His practice delves into personal stories, places, their historical contexts, and our presence within them today. He explores relational phenomena—between memory, time, and language—bringing them to life through poetry, scriptwriting, and movement-based techniques including the Suzuki Method, Butoh, and shamanic/trance dance.
The recent projects include: "Lost in Place" - Performer at Mona Foma (2022) & Mona Museum (2023) | "Obang – Theatre for babies" - Producer & Performer at Sydney Opera House (2024), Bunjil Place (2023) & Bowery Theatre (2023) | "Humans in between" - Director & Performer at Pavilion Melbourne (2023), “Apologia” - Performer at Malthouse (2024) | "Kiki and Zuki" - Co-creator at Banyule Council
Photo source: Museums Victoria
Photographer: Sarah Pannell
Copyright Museums Victoria 2025
Inspired by the artist’s own migrant journey to Australia and decades of living between two cultures, Kiki and Zuki tells the story of Kiki, a quiet dreamer from the Moon, and Zuki, a curious Earthling.
We created 20 years later with shadow puppets, tracing our journeys and rites of passage as migrants in Australia.
The story begins with the character Matsu, known as Jack, arriving by train at Spencer Street Station, heart pounding, uncertain, yet hopeful.
Premiere
March 2026
Project home page
here
Minu’s Dream is a new work-in-progress shadow puppetry theatre performance by Moon Shadow Studio.
The story follows Minu, a busy mother fish, and her child, Jam, who live in a bustling ocean.
This gentle work beautifully mirrors universal human experiences, sparking meaningful intergenerational conversations about love and loss.
Premiere
currently in Development - work which will be produced and premiered in time for touring during 2027/2028.
Availability
As above
Project home page
here
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Photo: Courtesy of Banyule Council
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![Photo by Lorris Nguan Wee Yong]()
Photo: Lorris Nguan Wee Yong
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Photo: Kien Faye Lee
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Photo: Teo Swee An
