Taiwanese Puppetry Culture Month Launched at Waseda University Tsubouchi Memorial Theater Museum

TAIPEI, Taiwan--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Taiwan Cultural Center in Tokyo, in collaboration with Waseda University and its Tsubouchi Memorial Theater Museum, is hosting Taiwanese Puppetry Culture Month from July 3 to Aug. 2. The program features “Le Hua Yuan Colorful Pavilion,” a puppetry stage donated by a Taiwanese alumnus in 1934, which returns to public view for the first time since a 1996 exhibition.

The program traces back to a 2024 tour by the I Wan Jan Puppet Theater in Japan. During the company’s performances at Waseda University, it hoped to visit the Tsubouchi Memorial Theater Museum’s collection of “Le Hua Yuan Colorful Pavilion,” but it was not on public display. Since then, with the joint efforts of the Taiwan Cultural Center, the Tsubouchi Memorial Theater Museum, and I Wan Jan Puppet Theater, the present Taiwanese Puppetry Culture Month have come to fruition.

The Taiwanese Puppetry Exhibition launched through the program is also featured as part of the Tsubouchi Memorial Theater Museum’s 100th anniversary events. The museum is widely regarded as the first theater-dedicated museum, with extensive collections worldwide and leading resources in theater studies, as well as its record of collecting, and exhibiting theatrical works.

Key artifacts featured in this exhibition include “Le Hua Yuan Colorful Pavilion,” donated in 1934 by the Waseda University Taiwanese Alumni Association, as well as puppets and musical instruments. “Le Hua Yuan Colorful Pavilion” blends elements of traditional Taiwanese stages with Western architectural features, and is regarded as one of the oldest surviving stages for Taiwanese puppetry.

During the Culture Month, organizers will also hold special lectures on Taiwanese puppetry, screen the documentary “The Puppetmaster,” and present performances by I Wan Jan Puppet Theater. The Taiwan Cultural Center said it hopes that, by combining exhibitions, films, and performances, Japanese audiences can experience the vitality of Taiwanese puppetry across generations—from stages that have been passed down for over a century to innovative developments today.