PUPPETS, masks and animation will all help tell the story of Chinese boy Guo Yue in Little Leap Forward at the Unity next week.

Theatre company Horse and Bamboo’s second show for family audiences, it follows the boy as he experiences childhood in China during the Cultural Revolution.

Suitable for ages eight and upwards, it is a story about family, friendships and creative expression, but, above all, the overwhelming need for freedom.

Directed by Alison Duddle, with set design by Bob Frith, the story incorporates mask, puppetry, shadows and animation with original music by Loz Kaye.

Little Leap Forward is based on the original story of the same name, co-written by Clare Farrow and Guo Yue himself, now an internationally acclaimed bamboo flute player based in the UK.

His distinctive flute playing is a feature of the show, which follows the success of Rossendale-based Horse and Bamboo’s award-winning In The Shadow of Trees and has been developed as a creative partnership with Barefoot Books Ltd and The Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester.

Formed in 1978 by Bob Frith, the organisation has built a strong reputation for creating visual theatre in which music and story-telling is central.

LITTLE Leap Forward is at Liverpool’s Unity Theatre on Friday, July 10.