Il teatro dei burattini in Italia e nel Nord-Est brasiliano: convergenze e divergenze

Abstract

The article presents the initial findings of the research project Italian Puppet Theatre and the Popular Glove-Puppet Theatre of Northeastern Brazil: Convergences and Inspirations, jointly conducted by the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (Brazil) and the University of Bologna.
The art of glove puppetry crosses multiple borders while maintaining features that are similar, if not almost identical. The models considered are glove-puppet theatres with wooden heads, originally conceived and developed by folk artists.
These pages therefore outline the main points of convergence – community identity, dramaturgical structure and themes, a historically recent focus on child audiences, and puppeteers’ efforts to renew their expressive language – as well as the divergences between the models examined. The data collected through bibliographic and field research are analyzed using an ethnographic approach.