On this year's World Puppet Day, we will talk about puppetry with a director, puppeteer and educator. Edi MajaronIn the conversation, we will also touch on topics such as the ritual origin of the puppet, the actor-puppet relationship, puppet techniques, talk about what puppetry and puppet dramaturgy are, about puppet theater in our country, the role of puppets in education, the experiences of the interlocutor, ... The conversation will be led by Mojca Jan Zoran, director of SLOGI.
"Dolls don't hate, they're not envious, they're not evil."
They say everything that needs to be said without hurting us.
They even take responsibility for our failures and defeats.
They return our love, trust, and sincerity when we truly believe in them.”
From the Slovenian message from Edi Majaron on World Puppet Day the year before last
Edi Majaron, born in 1940 in Ljubljana, graduated in cello from the Academy of Music in Ljubljana, where he also completed his postgraduate studies. He completed his postgraduate studies at the Academy of Fine Arts AMU in Prague, where he also worked as an intern at the puppetry department. In 1954, he founded his first theater, which within a few years had gone beyond the local framework and was renamed the Dravlje Puppet Theater. He collaborated with director Jože Pengov, first at the Ljubljana Puppet Theater, and later in Dravlje, where he worked as an artistic director, actor-puppeteer and director. He was the artistic director of the Ljubljana Puppet Theater and also worked as a freelance artist. He also founded and led the independent puppet group Freyer Teater Ljubljana.
He has directed nearly 90 performances in various professional puppet theatres across Slovenia and Europe, based on texts from Aristophanes, Shakespeare to contemporary Slovenian authors Puntar, Dekleva, Makarovičeva, etc. He is also the author of twenty original stage music for his performances. As the author of the script, direction and editing, he has recorded several puppet and musical series for Television Slovenia, including: In the Sign of the Twins, The Tale of Tsar Saltan… He is a retired full professor of puppetry at the Faculty of Education in Ljubljana. He occasionally lectures as a guest professor at other European universities. He publishes articles in the fields of dramaturgy, directing, puppet history and the role of puppets in education, and the articles have been published in domestic and foreign periodicals. He was the initiator, leader and selector of the program for many international professional and scientific meetings; including: International Meeting of Puppetry Colleges and Studies with a Consultation in 1983 and 84, Puppets 88, UNIMA 92, Puppets 95, Puppets 97. His professional work is connected to the International Puppetry Association UNIMA – he was a member of the executive board, president and vice-president of its commissions, and is now its honorary member.
Many of his performances have toured the world's most important puppet festivals and have brought him numerous awards and recognitions. In Slovenia, he has received the Ivy Wreath, the Prešeren Fund Award, and the Republic of Slovenia Award for Lifetime Achievement in Pedagogy.
World Puppet Day. At the 18th Congress of Unima, the international puppeteers' association, in 2000 in Magdeburg, Germany, it was decided that puppeteers should celebrate their holiday. Then, they set March 21 as World Puppet and Puppetry Day, which we have been celebrating since 2003, when the first message was sent. Slovenian puppet theatres also join the celebration every year, and established puppeteers draw attention to the importance of puppetry with their messages. More about the World Puppet Day program
Slovenian and international message on World Puppet Day
