Espinho's Mar Marionetas Festival starts on Saturday with 19 companies from six countries

The 16th edition of the Mar Marionetas festival kicks off in Espinho on Saturday and, until June 1st, will present a series of shows by 19 companies from Portugal, Spain, Brazil, Argentina, Chile and Japan on different stages.

With free entry to most of the proposals and tickets costing 5 euros for the others, the event organized by the aforementioned municipality of the Aveiro district and Porto Metropolitan Area will have its 19th edition in 2025 and will take place in conventional rooms, schools, churches, squares and streets of the city, always under the artistic direction of the local collective Teatro e Marionetas de Mandrágora.

According to the organizers, this year the event will be extended to more stages, spreading across parishes other than Espinho, and will also reinforce the presence of foreign companies “of excellence and recognized merit”, which is the result not only of “partnerships with other major festivals from different countries”, but also of the “support given to the event by the Directorate-General for the Arts”.

“The program includes shows, workshops, entertainment and exhibitions, also reaching schools and kindergartens”, declares the organization of Mar Marionetas, stating that “this edition was designed with a sense of mission, passion and professionalism, to offer the public a rich and memorable experience”.

Among the proposals highlighted in the 19th edition is “Próxima Estação”, in which the company Limite Zero uses actors and animated forms to explore the universe of Fernando Pessoa, his biography, his heteronyms and poems.

The show “Os lobos de pedra” (The Stone Wolves), in turn, is the result of a partnership between the company Trupe Fandanga, Circolando and the artistic residency center Central Elétrica. The synopsis indicates that it is about “a boy’s journey to the labyrinths of his heart, where dark wolves and light wolves live, and everyone wants to be the biggest and strongest in the den”.

As for foreign creations, the one that the festival organizers point out as one of the “highlights” of the 2025 edition is the Japanese show “Samurai - Iwami Jyūtarō”, by the Minomushi studio, of puppeteer Kôichi Iimuro. The story focuses on the figure of Iwami Jyūtarō, who, known for his strength and bravery, “embarks on a dangerous mission” and confronts “a fearsome supernatural creature”.

From the company Teatro de Muñecos Animados El Chonchón, which the Mar Marionetas organization says is from Argentina and Chile, comes the show “The Comedians of the 900”, which consists of a tribute to the comic actors of silent cinema.

“Personified by glove puppets, Charlie Chaplin and Harold Lloyd are some of those who appear playing their roles in the different pantomimes that make up the show”, between characters and settings in the black and white palette characteristic of the period.

The 16th edition of the Mar Marionetas festival kicks off in Espinho on Saturday and, until June 1st, will present a series of shows by 19 companies from Portugal, Spain, Brazil, Argentina, Chile and Japan on different stages.

With free entry to most of the proposals and tickets costing 5 euros for the others, the event organized by the aforementioned municipality of the Aveiro district and Porto Metropolitan Area will have its 19th edition in 2025 and will take place in conventional rooms, schools, churches, squares and streets of the city, always under the artistic direction of the local collective Teatro e Marionetas de Mandrágora.

According to the organizers, this year the event will be extended to more stages, spreading across parishes other than Espinho, and will also reinforce the presence of foreign companies “of excellence and recognized merit”, which is the result not only of “partnerships with other major festivals from different countries”, but also of the “support given to the event by the Directorate-General for the Arts”.

“The program includes shows, workshops, entertainment and exhibitions, also reaching schools and kindergartens”, declares the organization of Mar Marionetas, stating that “this edition was designed with a sense of mission, passion and professionalism, to offer the public a rich and memorable experience”.

Among the proposals highlighted in the 19th edition is “Próxima Estação”, in which the company Limite Zero uses actors and animated forms to explore the universe of Fernando Pessoa, his biography, his heteronyms and poems.

The show “Os lobos de pedra” (The Stone Wolves), in turn, is the result of a partnership between the company Trupe Fandanga, Circolando and the artistic residency center Central Elétrica. The synopsis indicates that it is about “a boy’s journey to the labyrinths of his heart, where dark wolves and light wolves live, and everyone wants to be the biggest and strongest in the den”.

As for foreign creations, the one that the festival organizers point out as one of the “highlights” of the 2025 edition is the Japanese show “Samurai - Iwami Jyūtarō”, by the Minomushi studio, of puppeteer Kôichi Iimuro. The story focuses on the figure of Iwami Jyūtarō, who, known for his strength and bravery, “embarks on a dangerous mission” and confronts “a fearsome supernatural creature”.

From the company Teatro de Muñecos Animados El Chonchón, which the Mar Marionetas organization says is from Argentina and Chile, comes the show “The Comedians of the 900”, which consists of a tribute to the comic actors of silent cinema.

“Personified by glove puppets, Charlie Chaplin and Harold Lloyd are some of those who appear playing their roles in the different pantomimes that make up the show”, between characters and settings in the black and white palette characteristic of the period.

The 16th edition of the Mar Marionetas festival kicks off in Espinho on Saturday and, until June 1st, will present a series of shows by 19 companies from Portugal, Spain, Brazil, Argentina, Chile and Japan on different stages.

With free entry to most of the proposals and tickets costing 5 euros for the others, the event organized by the aforementioned municipality of the Aveiro district and Porto Metropolitan Area will have its 19th edition in 2025 and will take place in conventional rooms, schools, churches, squares and streets of the city, always under the artistic direction of the local collective Teatro e Marionetas de Mandrágora.

According to the organizers, this year the event will be extended to more stages, spreading across parishes other than Espinho, and will also reinforce the presence of foreign companies “of excellence and recognized merit”, which is the result not only of “partnerships with other major festivals from different countries”, but also of the “support given to the event by the Directorate-General for the Arts”.

“The program includes shows, workshops, entertainment and exhibitions, also reaching schools and kindergartens”, declares the organization of Mar Marionetas, stating that “this edition was designed with a sense of mission, passion and professionalism, to offer the public a rich and memorable experience”.

Among the proposals highlighted in the 19th edition is “Próxima Estação”, in which the company Limite Zero uses actors and animated forms to explore the universe of Fernando Pessoa, his biography, his heteronyms and poems.

The show “Os lobos de pedra” (The Stone Wolves), in turn, is the result of a partnership between the company Trupe Fandanga, Circolando and the artistic residency center Central Elétrica. The synopsis indicates that it is about “a boy’s journey to the labyrinths of his heart, where dark wolves and light wolves live, and everyone wants to be the biggest and strongest in the den”.

As for foreign creations, the one that the festival organizers point out as one of the “highlights” of the 2025 edition is the Japanese show “Samurai - Iwami Jyūtarō”, by the Minomushi studio, of puppeteer Kôichi Iimuro. The story focuses on the figure of Iwami Jyūtarō, who, known for his strength and bravery, “embarks on a dangerous mission” and confronts “a fearsome supernatural creature”.

From the company Teatro de Muñecos Animados El Chonchón, which the Mar Marionetas organization says is from Argentina and Chile, comes the show “The Comedians of the 900”, which consists of a tribute to the comic actors of silent cinema.

“Personified by glove puppets, Charlie Chaplin and Harold Lloyd are some of those who appear playing their roles in the different pantomimes that make up the show”, between characters and settings in the black and white palette characteristic of the period.