The beginnings of folk puppetry in our country date back to the second half of the 18th century. At that time, traveling puppeteers belonged to the lowest social classes and were more tolerated by the authorities than supported. The number of puppeteers gradually increased throughout the 19th century, with the most significant growth occurring during the National Revival period, when puppet theater played a unique role as the only form of Czech theater in rural areas. The stage for puppet performances was often the open side of a wagon or an improvised scene in village inns or even in the open air. The stage decorations were painted on canvas and typically designed for specific settings. The curtain was either plain or depicted a popular scene from Czech history, a mythological, or a biblical motif.
Puppets were among the most valuable possessions of a puppeteer’s family, handed down, carefully maintained, and expanded. The vast majority of Czech historical puppets were wooden marionettes on wire with additional controlling strings. Only a few, mostly comedic or variety puppets, such as Kašpárek (also known as Pimprl, Pimprdle), were suspended solely on strings for greater mobility. During the Baroque period, which in puppet theater survived in some areas until the 20th century, puppets were understood as miniature versions of live actors. Their heads were intricately carved, while their bodies were kept simple for practicality, given frequent relocations. The puppets maintained human proportions whenever possible and imitated realistic figures, albeit with some stylization. The costumes and props were usually very meticulously crafted.
The puppet carvers were simple craftsmen, but they mastered their trade perfectly. Many of them were also sculptors of saint statues, a common craft during the Baroque era, which contributed to the high artistic quality of their work. Puppets created in such workshops cannot be called folk puppets as is commonly done. These should be referred to as artisan puppets, though during the 18th and most of the 19th centuries, no other types of puppets existed in our country. Professional artists-sculptors began engaging with puppet theater much later, with a few exceptions.
In the 19th century, the demand for puppets grew, making them a relatively common commodity in carving workshops. The most prominent of these workshops during this period were those of M. Sichrovský, A. Sucharda Sr. and A. Sucharda Jr., F. Nosek and K. Nosek, J. Alessi, J. Chochol, A. and J. Adámek, V. Šedivý, among others.
In addition to artisan puppets, there were also genuinely folk puppets — made by individuals who were not trained carvers and crafted them either for their own amusement or because they could not afford to buy them from professional carvers. Puppeteers themselves often carved some types of puppets, especially those used infrequently. This probably led to the myths about folk puppeteers being sovereign puppet carvers. Undoubtedly, some puppeteers were artistically gifted and created many of their own puppets, though the number was not significant. The legends of folk puppeteers carving hundreds of puppets have no real basis.
The late 19th and early 20th centuries brought great diversity to the concept of puppet theater and puppet-making. Social and cultural conditions caused puppet theater to evolve. On the one hand, traditional traveling puppeteers clung to their established repertoire, making almost no changes to their puppets. On the other hand, home family theaters and community theaters began to emerge, featuring a different format where fairy tales became the primary theatrical form. These developments influenced the transformation and creation of new puppet types. Home family puppet theaters took the form of both industrially and amateur-produced tabletop puppet theaters and puppets, with notable examples being the Alšovy Puppets and Decorations by Czech Artists from 1912 and 1913. In the first half of the 20th century, major productions of puppets, decorations, and theaters were supplied by companies such as A. Münzberg, Modrý & Žanda, JEKA, the Válka Brothers Factory, TOFA, n.p., J. Blanka Factory, and APAS.
The period leading up to World War II was marked by high-quality amateur puppetry, but the development gradually led to the formation of professional Czech puppet theater and the modernization of puppetry in the second half of the 20th century.
Puppet theater remains an essential part of our puppetry tradition, and as a significant element of the intangible cultural heritage of the Czech Republic, it was inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2016.
