PUPPET FESTIVAL
Montemor-o-Novo International Puppet Festival
Puppets, but not in the way you're thinking
For a few days, Montemor-o-Novo is transformed into an unexpected stage.
Streets, theaters, courtyards, improvised rooms, and unlikely spaces welcome national and international companies that use puppets, objects, shadows, and animated forms to tell stories—often far removed from the classic idea of "children's theater."
The International Puppet Festival is one of the oldest and most renowned cultural events in the city. It remains relevant precisely because it has never stood still in time.
A festival that cannot be explained in two sentences
Here there are shows for adults, for children, and for those who don't quite know what they're getting into—but stay anyway.
Some proposals are delicate, others politicized, others absurd, others deeply poetic.
Some shows take place in theaters.
Others appear in the middle of the city, without warning.
And some only make sense in that place, at that moment.
It's not a festival to consume quickly.
It's a festival to take your time enjoying.
Why it's worth the trip from Lisbon
The Puppet Festival does not attempt to compete with large productions or obvious posters.
The strength lies in the curatorship, in the proximity to the artists, and in the feeling that you are seeing something that will not be shown in the usual circuit.
For those coming from Lisbon, it is a rare opportunity to:
• see international companies in intimate settings
• attend premieres and experimental creations
• experience the city at a different pace for a few days
And, of course, think outside the box.
Staying at Gandum during the Festival
During the Puppet Festival, many visitors choose to stay outside the city center—but close enough to enjoy the program at a leisurely pace.
Gandum serves as the perfect counterpoint:
city during the day,
field in the late afternoon,
silence at night.
We often welcome families, artists, technical teams, and audiences who return every year. Some come for the festival. Others end up discovering it this way.
When it happens
The International Puppet Festival is usually held in the spring, with dates varying each year.
The program is announced in phases, and some shows sell out quickly—especially those with smaller capacities.
If you are thinking of coming, it is advisable to plan ahead.
A classic that continues to surprise
It's not nostalgia.
It is not programming "to meet the calendar."
It is a festival that continues to ask questions—and to use puppets as a pretext to talk about everything else.
