Dockteaterverkstan
(The Puppet Theatre Workshop)

Dockteaterverkstan in Osby, Sweden, has been in operation since 1977. As the name implies, we build our shows ourselves, from scratch. We devise, script, design, construct, direct and perform. Sometimes, when our own resources aren't sufficient, we get outside help. We work with hand, rod, bunraku, table and shadow puppets; with marionettes, gloves and bits & bobs. We produce shows for children between 2 and 11 years old and tour all over Sweden. Our theatre has taken us on many exciting journeys to festivals and guest performances around the world.

Dockteaterverkstan was formed in protest to the dreary puppet theatre that toured around the district in those days. Our background was in pictorial art, but we also had practical experience of puppet construction and theoretical studies in drama and theatre. This combined knowledge formed the basis for our work, but most important of all was our interest in puppet theatre and our curiosity- two ever-present goads and guides!

The ideas we formulated while working on our first production have been our lodestar through the years. We wanted to tell our own, exciting stories to the audience. We've never thought it gratifying or edifying to rehash famous children's books or well-known fairy stories in the guise of puppet theatre. We believe in the power of images, rather than the script alone, to communicate events and emotions - leading ultimately to the wordless performance. To us, crafting the puppets and set ourselves, while at the same time working on the script, are vital parts of the production process, enhancing our performance. We place the puppet centre-stage, since it is the puppet, in the puppeteer's hands, whose story is enacted.

Puppet theatre is steeped in tradition yet full of untold possibilities. In our work we want to experiment, explore, test ideas and stretch limits, well aware that tradition is our constant companion. Our theatre must be an adventure - a breath-taking experience, full of surprise and humour. We want to sow tiny seeds which confirm what is known and which above all open doors to the unknown. Seeds which can burgeon and grow.