Caroline Astell-Burt trained originally to stage-manage opera but got distracted by puppets while teaching at Harrogate College of Art. She developed a reputation as a puppeteer while working as a residential social worker at Barnardo�s but her interest in special needs work quickly widened as her own work developed. Her interest in music, music theatre opera and dance, has never left her. Her work includes large-scale projects with the London Philharmonic, Britten Sinfonia, London Mozart Players, Royal Opera House and currently the Bournemouth Symphony and Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestras.
She is the author of articles and of two books on puppetry, the most recent being I Am The Story which is about the art of puppetry in education. Currently she is working on an article with Lucy Child from Bournemouth University and is developing some ideas on aesthetics with Nenagh Watson from Doocot.
She also performs her own work when there is time and has appeared on TV many times. Currently she is performing A History of Ms Demeanor - A black comedy parodying three women in our culture - The Virgin, The Maid, and the Good Time Girl are all represented by Ms Demeanor either as a puppet, or human actor throughout three pieces. She first appears in A Ms Demeanor as a supposed 18th century virgin who succumbs to gin and pregnancy� in the 19th century Mistress of Maids dolls, manikins, and cutouts are incorporated, in an action involving lovers, infidelity, breakfast; and the final part Holiday in Babylon is set in the 20th century with only an American GI and war planes for company.
She co-founded the London School of Puppetry with Ronnie Le Drew. While working for her Masters and MPhil at Middlesex University she was able to explore the aesthetics of puppetry and the specific teaching approaches most appropriate for puppetry. Apart from indulging her passion for teaching much of her work in the School at present is to forge new relationships with other institutions- such as the national centre for animation in Bournemouth, and in the future with Trent University where interesting links might be made with both the theatre design and live art performance departments, and with the Drama in Education Department of Warwick University.