Museum of Puppet Arts -A unique puppet centre

In the Old Town of Tallinn there is a place ruled by puppets – although people are merely visitors, they are nevertheless much awaited visitors to the only centre for puppet arts in Estonia.

The Museum of Puppet Arts forms the core of the centre where the history of puppetry in Estonia and the rest of the world is presented to visitors with the aid of puppets, text and pictures. Familiar characters from the stage and television are on display along with exotic puppets that have travelled from many thousands of kilometres away.

The Museum of Puppet Arts  is not a traditional museum. The walk and look concept has been taken a little further. For example, in the cellar there is a device with 160 buttons that when pressed reveals  audiovisual information about famous actors, directors and artists connected with the Estonian Puppet  and YouthTheatre. This is an open and living archive.

Exciting information at your fingertips
The centre has touch-sensitive screens that reveal diverse information about the exhibits and the history of puppetry. For example, on one screen it is possible to take a tour of all the theatres in Estonia. You can peak into the make-up room, go back stage and of course view the auditorium.

For the first time in Estonia you can use the unique QR-code ticket system. At each of the displays a sensor reads your ticket, identifies who you are and displays the information accordingly. This means you only have to introduce yourself to the system once.

According to Meelis Pai, the director of the puppet centre, the aim has been to establish an extensive Centre for Puppet Arts with a theatre, museum and workshop. “We have united playfulness with innovation. Old fashioned puppets hand-in-hand with modern information technology create a unique world to provide many hours of entertainment”, adds Pai. According to Pai, the museum has plans for further expansion and so it is fast becoming one of the few places in the world that focuses on puppetry in such an innovative way.

The centre’s creative approach is already apparent to passers-by from the small window display on the street. This is known as the “steam punk theatre”. Anyone can activate the mechanical display with their mobile telephone and experience some of the adventure, even before entering the building.

The museum opened on 7 March 2010 as a collaborative work between The Museum Construction Foundation and Enterprise Estonia (EAS) and European Regional Development Fund..

Further information www.nuku.ee