Chile celebrates inaugural National Puppet and Marionette Day

Chile is celebrating its first National Puppet and Marionette Day, officially integrated into the country's cultural calendar by the Ministry of Cultures, Arts and Heritage. The date, August 25, honors the birth of Sergio Guzmán Vallejos, founder of the Candelilla Theater and a recognized Living Human Treasure.

Regional celebrations have taken place across the country. In Talca, the National Service of Cultural Heritage (SERPAT) organized educational workshops at the Escuela Especial Crecer, using recycled materials to teach puppetry techniques. In Punta Arenas, the company La Ventolera performed “Guardianas del Mar Profundo” at the Municipal Library 114, using theater to promote Patagonian marine biodiversity awareness.

In the Aconcagua Valley, puppeteers Nina Legrandy and Hugo Hernández Urtubia were recognized as cultural practitioners through the Intangible Cultural Heritage Management Information System (SIGPA). Experts note that the art form relies on the human psychological tendency to anthropomorphize objects, allowing audiences to form emotional connections with puppets through an implicit agreement of fiction.