The Very Hungry Caterpillar Show At Lighthouse, Poole Review
DISCLOSURE – TICKETS TO SEE THE SHOW WERE GIFTED TO THE REVIEWER AND GUEST FOR THE PURPOSES OF WRITING THE REVIEW
Reviewed by Helen O
The Very Hungry Caterpillar is my one of my daughter’s favourite books, so I simply couldn’t pass up the opportunity to take her along to watch The Very Hungry Caterpillar Show, as it called by Lighthouse, Poole this weekend.
From our seats we had a brilliant view of the stage and all the action that played out before us.
It’s hard to imagine that you could find anyone who hasn’t been captivated by the timeless charm of The Very Hungry Caterpillar at some point in their life. First published in 1969 by beloved author and artist Eric Carle, this iconic story has sold over 48 million copies worldwide—one of which proudly sits on our shelf. It follows the delightful adventure of a hungry little caterpillar, from its hatching, through a playful munching spree on an array of tasty treats which leads to its magical metamorphosis into a beautiful butterfly.
Not only were we treated to the story of the Very Hungry Caterpillar, but also adaptations of three other popular stories from Carle; Brown Bear, Brown Bear, 10 Little Rubber Ducks and the Very Busy Spider, which we were less familiar with beforehand, but enjoyed immensely.
We were enthralled with the way that these stories were brought to life, with the clever use of a menagerie of 75 magical puppets, which were designed to be exact replicas of the characters from Carle’s stories. It was almost as if they’d stepped straight off of the page, onto the stage.
The whole show was really cleverly engineered, with the four performers giving each puppet their own personality, including different accents and entertaining ways of moving. It was an ingenious way of bringing the stories alive. It’s easy to see how the Very Hungry Caterpillar Show has been dazzling audiences across the world, for the last seven years.
Even the late Eric Carle gave a wonderful endorsement of the show: “I am happy the performances will be enjoyed by many and that the colourful characters will bring comfort and joy to all who see the stories that have been so carefully produced. It is uplifting to see such beautiful and cheerful works inspired by my characters! I hope my books – and this show – will inspire you and your imagination.”
I can confirm that the show absolutely did!
Our favourite part of the show was The Very Hungry Caterpillar, which included an opportunity for the audience to get involved, as after each day of eating, the Caterpillar is still hungry, so the children were encouraged to shout that out.
We loved how the caterpillar was shown to be eating his vast array of foods, popping his head through the holes in his various foods and then all of a sudden appeared as a fat caterpillar! It made the audience laugh.
We also loved the white dog chasing the purple cat in the adaptation of Brown Bear, Brown Bear too. It was really well done.
Tickets started from £16.50, which I think is good value and provides the perfect opportunity to begin a love of theatre, from a very young age. Although the performance is designed to be enjoyed at any age, I think it’s perfect for under fives.
The performance lasted for just shy of 1 hour, which was perfect timing to fully explore each of the four stories being told, but not so long that the young audience found themselves becoming restless. I looked around the auditorium and the children (and adults) were mesmerised by the action on stage.
I would absolutely recommend this show. I know my daughter would happily watch it again!
Rating: 5/5
Ticket prices started from £16.50
Th Very Hungry Caterpillar was showing at Lighthouse, Poole for two days only (4th and 5th October 2025). Full tour dates can be found at: hungrycaterpillarshow.co.uk
Address: Lighthouse, 21 Kingland Road, Poole, Dorset, BH15 1UG