International Institute of Puppetry

The International Institute of Puppetry (Institut International de la Marionnette) is a French puppet-arts institution created in 1981 by Jacques Félix, twenty years after the Festival Mondial des Théâtres de Marionnettes, to provide a permanent home for artists and researchers from around the world interested in the puppet arts. It began by devising a professional training program and then created ESNAM – Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Arts de la Marionnette, complemented by an ambitious research program. On January 1, 2025 it merged with the Petits Comédiens de Chiffons to form the Pôle International de la Marionnette – Jacques Félix, based in Charleville-Mézières.

The Institut International de la Marionnette was created by Jacques Félix in 1981, twenty years after the Festival Mondial des Théâtres de Marionnettes, with the mission of providing a permanent home for artists and researchers from all over the world interested in the puppet arts. The Institute began by devising a professional training program with an international reputation, then created ESNAM – Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Arts de la Marionnette, and an ambitious research program completes its missions. On January 1, 2025, it was born anew as the Pôle International de la Marionnette – Jacques Félix through a merger with the Petits Comédiens de Chiffons, Jacques Félix's artistic company founded in 1948, which from 1961 became the umbrella organization for the Festival Mondial des Théâtres de Marionnettes. The gradual recognition of the puppet arts by public authorities and the structuring of the sector by the French Ministry of Culture in the early 2020s recomposed the landscape, calling into question the cohabitation in Charleville-Mézières of two driving structures of the same sector, sometimes partners but nonetheless distinct despite their unique founder.

A permanent home for artists and researchers from all over the world interested in the puppet arts.

1. 1Pôle International de la Marionnette - Jacques Félixmarionnette.com
2. 2History - Festival Mondial des Théâtres de Marionnettesmarionnette.com
3. 3International Institute of Puppetrywikidata.org