Puppets on the beach making a splash in Queensland

“Life is boring without puppets,” says Scruff, a Quiz Worx puppet. He may be right. And Queenslanders are about to find out what they’ve been missing.

Quiz Worx, a children’s ministry that performs puppet shows to tell biblical stories to children in churches, schools and holiday clubs, has traditionally been based in New South Wales. The team of 14 has performed more than 4000 puppet shows and estimates that more than 400,000 people have seen them since the organisation’s inception in 1998.

The concept is simple: “We go and tell people about Jesus, in live shows … with puppets,” says Quiz Worx performer Mike Pickering.

And the organisation is committing to doing more of that in Queensland, opening up an office in January 2018 and seeking to partner with local churches and schools.

After a row over religion in schools in Queensland in the past year, negotiations have left RI (Religious Instruction) in Queensland state schools in a strong position, with about 75 per cent of families opting their children into RI. Quiz Worx works with SRE (Special Religious Education, in NSW) and RI teachers in state schools, Christian schools and churches, and is now looking to open up more opportunities up north.

“There has always been lots of [Quiz Worx] shows in Queensland, lots of opportunities that we’ve had,” says Mike.

“We love to partner with RI teachers, with Christians and pastors, all over the place, but now that we’re going to Queensland, especially there.”