“I Want the Puppet Theatre to Remain Alive”: An Interview with Dinara Yuldasheva

Uzbekistan's National Puppet Theatre is entering a new chapter. Following the first phase of its renovation, the foyer, stage and public spaces have all been transformed, while several of the building's original architectural features have been carefully restored. At the same time, the renovation has prompted a fundamental question: what should a puppet theatre be today? In conversation with HD Magazine, the theatre's stage director, Dinara Yuldasheva, reflects on audiences of different generations, productions for children, teenagers and adults, working with today's young audiences, the national puppetry tradition, the craft of the puppeteer, and why simply manipulating a puppet is never enough: you have to give it life.

"We're Preparing Audiences for the Wider World of Theatre"

— The Uzbek National Puppet Theatre has existed since 1939. In your view, how has its role in the country's cultural life evolved over the generations?

— The theatre was founded in 1939, and naturally each era brought its own expectations. During the war and the difficult years that followed, it carried not only an artistic mission but a moral one as well. Those were hard times. There were countless homeless and orphaned children who needed care, guidance and emotional support, and the theatre became one of the places where they could find all three. In those days, children were brought to the theatre mainly by nursery teachers and schoolteachers, rather than by their parents.

— Have children as audiences changed since then?

— Dramatically. Years ago, if we invited a child onto the stage, they would be shy or too frightened to come forward. Today, we're sometimes almost reluctant to ask because if one child comes up, everyone wants to follow. Children have become much more confident, open and sociable. They genuinely enjoy taking part in the interactive moments of a performance.

There is another challenge, though. During the Soviet period, puppet theatre gradually came to be regarded as something intended exclusively for children. Historically, that was never the case. Puppet theatre has always been an art form for adults as much as for young audiences. Over the years, however, the perception became firmly established that puppet theatre is only for small children.

Today we're trying to change that. We certainly aren't abandoning our youngest audiences, but we also want to bring teenagers and adults back into the theatre. It isn't easy. For more than thirty years, the theatre rarely created productions with adult audiences in mind. Even when we experimented with evening performances, parents still arrived with young children. That's how deeply ingrained that perception had become.

The façade of the Uzbek National Puppet Theatre

"Renovation Isn't Just About the Building"

— The theatre has completed the first phase of its renovation. What has changed for audiences and for the company itself?

— The first phase of the renovation covered the stage and both floors of the foyer. The auditorium used to seat 350 people, but now it accommodates 270 because the stage has been enlarged.

We also wanted to restore some of the original features that had been part of the theatre from the very beginning. At the same time, the interior has become brighter, more festive and more playful. Colourful murals and decorative patterns have been added, along with a small stage where children can play, take photographs and feel as though they have stepped into a fairy-tale world. The theatre has always resembled a fairy-tale castle, so from the outset it was clear that its outward appearance would not be radically altered. Instead, it has been carefully refreshed. It now looks brighter, cleaner and more welcoming, while retaining its familiar character.

The fairy-tale mosaic depicting beloved storybook characters has also been preserved, along with the magical atmosphere that has always defined the theatre. I'm especially pleased about that, because for many people this is exactly how they remember it.

— Which historic features have been restored?

— We restored the puppet mechanisms in the main hall and on the theatre's façade. There's a sculptural installation called The Round Dance of the Puppets of the World, and it's now working again. Several ceramic features and decorative details on the façade have also been restored. I don't know every technical detail of the renovation, but everything that helps restore the theatre's original atmosphere means a great deal to us.

The renovation has also taken the needs of children with disabilities into account. Ramps have been installed so that wheelchair users can reach the second floor, where the main audience spaces are located. As far as I know, the next phase will include a lift as well, making the theatre even more accessible.

Another important addition is the creation of dedicated family rooms for parents with young children, something we never had before. I hope this will encourage us to develop baby theatre, with performances created specifically for the very youngest audiences. It's a rapidly growing field. These productions introduce children to colours, sounds, objects and toys while helping to develop motor skills, attention and aesthetic awareness. They're also convenient for parents, making it easier for the whole family to come to the theatre together.

"The Puppet Must Always Remain Centre Stage"

— Would you say the renovation has marked the beginning of a new creative chapter?

— I think it has. We're already receiving exciting proposals and welcoming theatre-makers from other countries. One of our recent productions was Caliph Stork, directed by Roman Boklanov, who is originally from St Petersburg but now lives in Germany. It was a truly unusual production, bringing together live actors, striking costumes and huge puppets. Some of the puppets are so large that they take several actors to operate.

Not everyone warms to productions like these straight away, because they put so many live actors on stage alongside the puppets. But this has become a widespread trend in contemporary puppetry: puppets and actors share the stage, yet increasingly it is the actors who take centre stage, while the puppets are relegated to supporting roles. This is often justified using the fashionable word collaboration.

For me, the most important thing is that we don't become so fascinated by form that the puppet disappears altogether. We're not a drama theatre. We're a puppet theatre, and the puppet must always remain at the centre of the audience's attention.

— How do you shape the theatre's repertoire today? Which themes matter most to children, teenagers and adults?

— Today, it is especially important to talk to children about the realities of their own lives. We have a production, for example, about phones and how they can get in the way of real communication. One of the theatre's challenges is to encourage children to put their phones away, even if only for the duration of the performance. If a child stops looking at a screen and turns their attention to the stage, then we know the production has drawn them in.

We have productions about friendship, about learning to communicate with others, breaking free from dependence on phones and thinking for yourself. We also explore our relationship with animals. I directed a production called Dvertsa v Sobachiy Ray (Little Door to Doggy Heaven). We even organised a special initiative around it, inviting representatives from animal shelters to the theatre and putting out a collection box for voluntary donations to help care for their animals. The children became deeply involved in the stories of the characters because each of them had a difficult life and their own complicated relationship with people.

I'm particularly drawn to psychologically nuanced stories and philosophical themes. But it's important not to impose these ideas on children. They need to be conveyed through visual and musical imagery. Then children don't experience them as moral lessons, but as stories that move them, make them feel and encourage them to empathise.

We work with many different forms of puppetry: glove puppets, tabletop puppets, life-size puppets, mechanical puppets and flat puppets. Some productions combine puppets with live actors, some are musical, and others are created specifically for very young children, where everything needs to be short, clear, rhythmic and easy to follow.

Theatre Is the Art of Live Communication”

— Why does theatre remain important for children, even in the digital age?

— Because it is a live art form. A film has already been made, and the audience cannot influence it in any way, however much they laugh or cry.

In the theatre, the audience sits in the auditorium and becomes one of the co-creators of the performance. This is especially true of children. If a child is bored, they will not sit quietly and endure it as an adult might. They will start talking, moving around, even wandering through the auditorium. And the actor feels that immediately.

The audience gives the performers its energy, and the performers begin to experience the production differently. Sometimes it is precisely the audience that makes a performance resonate in a new way.

In puppet theatre, as in drama, interaction is extremely important. Children respond, react and come to the characters' aid. They remember not only the story, but the experience of being part of a live performance. It can be difficult for them to maintain their concentration for long, even when a performance is short. So we have to find ways of holding their attention: through rhythm, music, play and direct interaction.

“National Tradition Must Not Become Didacticism”

— The theatre regularly works with international specialists, directors and production teams. How do you balance this international collaboration with the preservation of national traditions?

— When we invite specialists from other countries, we don't want them simply to bring over a ready-made European story and stage it here unchanged. It is important that the production contain something recognisable, something rooted in Eastern culture, in our folk tales, music, movement and atmosphere.

For example, if a production features music, I ask the performers, musicians and consultants to help weave Uzbek motifs, traditions and recognisable elements into the score. Not crudely or artificially, but naturally, like a fine thread running through the whole performance.

— What, in your view, distinguishes the Uzbek school of puppet theatre?

— In my view, the distinguishing feature of the Uzbek school of puppet theatre lies in preserving the traditions and customs of Uzbek culture, nurturing respect for elders, a sense of patriotism, hospitality and generosity of spirit.

Unfortunately, our national drama sometimes has a strong tendency towards straightforward didacticism, both in dramatic and puppet theatre.The moral is often presented too bluntly: this is right, and that is wrong. I consider this a shortcoming.

I want to move away from moralising. Theatre has a responsibility to contribute to the moral development of children, but it should not lecture them or wag a finger. A child should be able to feel their way towards an issue and arrive at their own conclusion about whatever question matters to them.

I try to interpret folk tales in such a way that recognisable struggles in life and the complexity of choice come through. A hero does not always have to be wholly virtuous or wholly villainous. People can make mistakes, make choices and change. That is more interesting and closer to real life. For example, in our production of the folk tale The Magic Seed, we developed a new interpretation with new characters, contemporary issues and a more deeply developed conflict. The themes of love, respect and friendship were given a fresh resonance.

“A Director Must See Everything in Advance”

— Let us turn now to the work of a puppet-theatre director. In drama, a director works with live actors. In puppet theatre, there are also the puppets themselves and the actors who operate them. How much does this complicate the work?

— It is an enormously complex undertaking. When you set out to stage a production, you understand the concept and what the story is about. But the real challenge lies in finding the right form. If I am working with tragic material, The Little Match Girl, for instance, or The Little Door to Doggy Heaven, I have to determine which type of puppet is best suited to that particular genre. A subtle psychological character cannot be created with just any puppet. You have to choose the right type.

If I choose a tabletop puppet, that means working in a “black cabinet”, with the actors dressed in black. The set design must therefore be such that they do not stand out as black silhouettes. I have to think through virtually every scene in advance: will an actor obscure part of the set? Will they step out of the light? Where will the puppet be positioned? How should the different levels be arranged? How can I make sure the audience sees the character rather than the technical apparatus?

All of this has to be resolved before work begins. Afterwards, it may already be too late. I have to be able to “see” the production in advance, understand how everything should be arranged, and only then give the designer a clear direction.

— How does a puppeteer differ from an actor in dramatic theatre?

— Puppet theatre occupies a world of its own. In other forms of stage art, the actor’s primary instrument is the body: physicality, facial expression, gesture and voice. In puppet theatre, much of that falls away. If the actor is behind a screen or working inside a “black cabinet”, the audience can barely see them. What remains, for the most part, is the voice.

Yet in place of the body, another instrument emerges, the puppet, and the actor must master that instrument. The puppet already has its own artistic identity, conceived by the director and designer and made by the craftsmen. The actor must find the voice, delivery and manner of movement that belong to that image, so that they feel at one with the puppet.

You can put all your skill into manipulating a puppet. But if you do not put your soul into it, you have not brought the character to life. A puppeteer does not simply operate an object, they have to breathe life into it.

The demands placed on a puppeteer are immense. They must control their voice and breathing, their hands and the puppet’s movements, and sometimes its mechanisms as well: the eyes, mouth, crest and other moving parts. They have to make sure the puppet sits naturally, that its hands do not seem disconnected from its body, and that its legs do not move accidentally.

— Can the same puppet appear in several productions?

— That used to happen. Puppets could move from one production to another. Today, that is no longer really possible. Each production has its own puppets, created in a particular style and designed to work as part of a specific stage environment. If you mix puppets from different productions, the visual style begins to fall apart.

— Why is it so important to preserve the craftsmen’s handiwork?

— Because the makers, too, put their soul into the puppet. It is not merely a technical object. Even if a puppet has mechanisms, even if its eyes or mouth can move, it does not come to life on its own. When a puppet stands motionless and does nothing, we say, “Your puppet is dead.” It comes to life through movement, gesture and the actor’s breath, as well as through the work of the craftsperson who created its form and character.

“There Are Young Actors. What We Lack Are Directors”

— Are there young actors and specialists today who are carrying on the traditions of puppetry?

— There are young actors. The theatre institute graduates actors every year, and they come to the theatre and work actively and enthusiastically. But they need more hands-on experience with different types of puppets and puppetry systems. It would be good if they could experiment with different systems right in the theatre and learn through practice.

With directors, however, there is a serious problem. There is a shortage of directors in both drama and puppet theatres. They are trained, but then they seem to disappear. It is a serious shortage.

I have said many times that directors need to be attracted, retained and given incentives to develop. Actors have a grading system: after graduating from the institute, they enter the profession at one level, then progress to the first and highest grades, eventually becoming masters of the stage. Directors have no such system. They arrive at the theatre, and there is no further progression.

Take my own experience. I’ve been working in the theatre for 35 years, and over that time I’ve grown enormously as a professional. Yet my salary is still the same as that of a young director who has only just joined the theatre. That doesn’t seem right to me. If we want the theatre to develop, we also need to think seriously about the professional status of directors.

I Want to Be Part of the Global Conversation”

— How would ou like to see the National Puppet Theatre develop in the years ahead?

— First and foremost, I want the renovation to be completed so that we can return to full-scale work as soon as possible. I very much hope that our festival programme will continue. Our theatre has travelled to many countries and taken part in international festivals, and that is extremely important.

Festivals teach us a great deal. We encounter the experience of different countries, discover new forms and genres, invite colleagues to visit us and travel to their theatres in turn. A theatre must not stand still. It has to be part of the global development of puppetry.

The theatre itself is changing too. We now sell tickets online; audiences receive them on their phones and arrive with a QR code. This is part of the new reality of theatre as well. Our audience is broadening: children and adults who might never have considered coming to us before are now finding their way here. Productions with audio description are being introduced, and we are creating a more accessible environment.

And, of course, I want the theatre to remain alive. I want children to come here not only as spectators, but also as participants. I want them to get to know the puppets, the workshops and the actors, to try creating things themselves and to take an active part in the life of the theatre. Then the theatre becomes more than just a building or a performance. It becomes an entire world of art for children to discover.

Tags:theater the puppet theater Uzbekistan Interview