Ancient traditions combined with contemporary stories in the great puppet shows on the fairground.
In the second half of the 17th century, puppet and marionette theatres arose. These were very common in Italy. Every fair on the Italian peninsula featured a so-called teatro dei burattini. This kind of public entertainment often presented stories about current events. The main characters are famous all over Europe and in English they are known as Punch and Judy. Their namesakes on the continent also have household names: Janklaassen en Katrijn in Dutch, Kasperl und Gretel in German, Guignol et La Madelon in French and Giuditta e Pulcinella in Italian.
A piper (in Italian beautifully called zampognaro) directing puppets on a string with his right knee.
A puppet show in Rome. The audience enjoys this early predecessor of the television while the kid on the left seems more curious about the puppeteer. As early as 1600 marionettes and puppets were very popular in Italy. The puppeteers used easy to transport theatre boxes.
Street singers Felice and Celina in a so-called Cantastorie. Photo taken at an Italian fair in the 1980s.
A puppet theatre somewhere in the Netherlands (‘marionet’ is Dutch for ‘puppet on a string’).
A puppet theatre somewhere in Italy (‘burattino’ is Italian for ‘marionette’) in the 1990s.
The Chiarelli Theatre of Marionettes performing an opera in 1962.
Puppets and marionettes belong to the great cultural traditions in Italy. They go back to 1600 and are still very popular on streets and squares. They entertain everybody, although the puppet theatres always concentrated on the common herd. They love to criticize the authorities. Marionette theatres on the other hand specialize in ballets, dramas and operas for the upper class.
This Italian glove puppet’s name is Sandrone. Sandrone represents the ignorant, naïve but cheerful farmer. He has a big toothless mouth and wears a nightcap. He specializes in blunders.
Italian poster advertising a Festival of Puppeteers in 1974. Gianduia is a popular puppet character. Turin even had a special Gianduia Theatre.
A Punch-and-Judy.
This Italian glove puppet is called Il Dottor Balanzone. Always dressed in black Balanzone embodies the conceit. He can be an astronomer, a lawyer or a medic. Balanzone often ridicules the upper class.
The Faggiolino character. Faggiolino is the most important puppet and also the oldest in the family. Though he is smart he’s always penniless. He’s generous for the weak, but the powerful must beware of his cudgel. Faggiolino, who always wears a long white beret, was created in Bologna.
An Italian puppeteer carrying his theatre.