To date, Papermoon Puppet Theatre has created more than 30 puppet performances and visual art installations and exhibitions, which we have toured to more than 10 countries. In 2008, we launched Pesta Boneka, an international puppet biennale that welcomes puppeteers from around the world to our home city, where they can share their work in a community setting.
Our Mission
Papermoon Puppet Theatre believes that anything can come alive. Every creature, every object, every single thing in the world holds life somewhere inside of it. With our performances, installations, workshops, collaborations, and festival, we hope to bring those things to life—through the amazing art form of puppetry, as well as by nurturing the good things around and within us.
For more than ten years, Papermoon has shared our work with audiences around the world, everywhere from Japan to The Netherlands, from Australia to the United States. But our home and our hearts are always in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, where we are lucky enough to be part of a vibrant arts community. We are excited for where our next decade will take us—and to meet new friends along the way!
Our Work
Papermoon Puppet Theatre:
- creates original puppet performances on contemporary themes
- makes visual art installations and exhibitions
- engages in collaborative and interdisciplinary projects
- offers workshops and talks for all ages on puppetry and performance making
- produces Pesta Boneka, our international puppet biennale
Press
“Papermoon Puppet Theatre has become a staple of the global arts festival circuit, with enigmatic, modernist puppets that tell stories from myth to the birth of modern Indonesia. … Words are few for these puppets with moon-shaped faces who, like mimes, express everything in evocative, poignant gestures.”
—The New York Times, USA, 2016 (http://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/14/travel/indonesia-yogyakarta-java-island.html)
“The standard of puppetry is extraordinary. The energy and artistic integrity of this company shines through in every scene. This is a magnificent piece of theatre, painting a portrait of the political in the everyday.”
—Glam Adelaide, Australia, 2015 (http://www.glamadelaide.com.au/main/ozasia-review-mwathirika)
“Indonesia’s Papermoon Puppet Theatre has transformed puppets the way graphic novels changed comics: Taking a popular form too often dismissed as child’s play and making it intellectually challenging, emotionally chilling, and visually bold. Think Maus, not Muppets. They are extraordinary!”
—Center Stage, U.S. Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, 2012 (http://centerstageus.org/artists/papermoon_puppet_theatre)
“Drawing on the hip, youthful vibe of Indonesia’s preeminent college town and arts hotspot, Yogyakarta, the company uses the whimsy and seeming innocence of beautiful, simple puppets to create multimedia performance that tackle political persecution and the political side of history, in a way that promises to bring Indonesian history home and spark dialogue among audiences and artists.”
—The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, USA, 2012 (http://www.kennedy-center.org/artist/B87580)
Interviews (Select)
Awards & Honors (Select)
- 2024 Awardee Anugerah Kebudayaan Kemendikbudristek, Pioneer category
- 2024 Theatre Philadelphia’s Barrymore Award, Ramayana Project with EgoPo Classic & Kalanari Theater, Outstanding Outdoor Performance
- 2018 Awardee Anugerah Kebudayaan Gubernur DI Yogyakarta, Performers and Conservationists of the Arts Category
- 2018 Green Room Award – Work for Young Audiences
- 2017 Helpmann Award – Best Presentation for Children
- 2015 Nominee for the Edinburgh Fringe Sustainable Practice Award
- 2010-2011 Empowering Women Artists grant from Yayasan Kelola, HIVOS, the Ford Foundation, and BIYAN
- 2009-2010 Fellowship from the Asian Cultural Council; New York, NY, USA
