Entertainment for Children and Adults

Many of Zagreb’s theater stages, as well as its streets and squares, will again come alive as puppeteers from around the world descend upon the city during the 42nd International Festival of Puppet Theater, which this year is dedicated to the marionette theater.

Zagreb's theaters, squares and streets will serve as venues for the 42nd International Festival of Puppet Theater which takes place between 29 August and 4 September this year. The central theme of this year's festival is the marionette theater (puppets on a string). Although marionettes will take center stage as the main stars of the events, they will not be the only puppets to perform for the citizens of Zagreb and its guests. All of the shows in the festival have been selected based on applications that were sent to the festival’s organizers. The performances will be carefully observed by two juries: the children’s and the international jury of professional judges who will each select the best plays and award them appropriately at the end of the festival.

The first International Festival of Puppet Theater was held in 1968, on the initiative of the Student Esperanto Club of Zagreb. From its very beginnings, it has gained a global reputation among puppeteers. It has always been open to all forms of puppet expression, to all techniques, all genres, and all themes. More than 450 theatres from all the continents have taken part in the festival so far. The plays are performed in numerous theatre halls, not only in Zagreb, but also in other Croatian cities, and some of the shows have traveled even further afield, to the neighboring states of Slovenia and Austria. This year, the puppet theater program will be complemented by different exhibitions, book promotions and films, as well as traditional puppet workshops for children and adults.