shadow play

American  

noun

1. a show in which shadows of puppets, flat figures, or live actors are projected onto a lighted screen.

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shadow play British  

noun

1. a theatrical entertainment using shadows thrown by puppets or actors onto a lighted screen

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Etymology

Origin of shadow play

First recorded in 1890–95

Example Sentences

"You could say that these elections are kind of a shadow play," Kristof Titeca, an expert on Uganda at Antwerp university, told AFP.

From Barron's • Jan. 12, 2026

The earlier film showcases Murnau’s already fluid camerawork, particularly his command of shadow play and low angles that made the 6-foot-3 Schreck seem like a force of otherworldly evil.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 31, 2024

But, at their best, they are thrillingly fabular, giving us the sense that we are witnessing a shadow play, our attention absorbed while elsewhere something fundamental takes place.

From The Guardian • Jul. 13, 2019

Sangmi Yoo also uses incised forms and shadow play, although her multilayered pieces evoke not nature but the suburbia of her Korean childhood and her current home in Texas.

From Washington Post • May 2, 2019

I had no idea of the time, the miles I’d traveled since leaving Julia Bishop’s window and the shadow play.

From "100 Sideways Miles" by Andrew Smith