This open access book presents the results and conclusions of research conducted by Prof. Didier Plassard, and assisted by a team of young researchers brought together in the PuppetPlays project funded by the European Commission (Horizon 2020, ERC Grant Agreement 835193). It is the first international survey to examine Western European puppetry through a systematic study of its repertoires, composed by writers or by the puppeteers themselves.

The analysis of these repertoires sheds new light on the history of theatre and society. When and how did puppet theatre compete with actors’ theatre? When and how did it serve as a laboratory for new dramaturgies? Why do writers and performing artists chose to use them today? These questions can only be answered through a close examination of the many forgotten or unpublished sources collected by the PuppetPlays project.