Papermoon Puppet Theatre

Papermoon Puppet Theatre uncovers Indonesia's troubled history.

Inspired by the harrowing events of the infamous Year of Living Dangerously, a dark period of genocide in Indonesia's history, Mwathirika – a Swahili word for 'victim' – explores themes of identity and society.

Performed by visible puppeteers without dialogue, the production's whispering gestures look at the 'history of loss' as well as the 'loss of history' from the long history of Indonesia.

Founded by Maria Tri Sulistyani (illustrator, writer and a former theatre performer) and Iwan Effendi (visual artist) and based in Yogyakarta, Papermoon's mixed-media productions transform puppetry as graphic novels changed comics. Taking a popular art form that is often dismissed as childish, they mould it into something intellectually challenging, emotive and visually bold.

The company uses a whimsical yet intimate style to explore deep and controversial themes in Indonesia's history and the challenges Indonesians face in their everyday lives. Their style of puppetry stems from two distinct forms –shadow puppetry, a traditional Indonesian art form often found in Java and Bali, and doll puppetry, generally used for children and children's stories.