Christmas at Marwell Hall!

Culture Creative / Marwell Zoo 2025

The Brief

We were invited by Marwell Zoo and Culture Creative to help bring their indoor festive experience at Marwell Hall to life with a character-led grotto journey for families. The aim was to create a warm, story-driven encounter with Father Christmas and his elves that felt rooted in the zoo environment, offering something more bespoke than a traditional Santa visit.

What We Did

Working within an environment designed by Culture Creative, our role was to shape and deliver the live performance element of the journey. The narrative and interactive content were scripted by key associate and proud South Coast dweller – Rachel Fullegar. She designed the experience with a strong story arc following the trail of some mischievous penguins and created meaningful moments of engagement with beloved characters for families throughout the visit.

We recruited, cast and managed the team of Father Christmases and Elves, supporting them to deliver consistent, high-quality performances across the run. The interactions – which included story time with the elves and a visit to the post room – were designed to be gentle, inclusive and responsive to different family groups, allowing space for conversation, humour and wonder rather than a rushed meet-and-greet.

The Result

The experience ran across multiple evenings in November and December, forming a key part of Marwell’s wider Christmas programme. The use of penguin characters was praised and encouraged families to look closely, join in with movement and discover what the penguins had been up to — whilst linking the experience directly to Marwell’s identity as a zoo.