Panevėžys Puppet Theater, born 37 years ago, is primarily associated with its founder Antans Markucki. In 1986, he gathered a group of puppeteers enthusiasts - this was the beginning of a big and difficult work. Today, the Panevėžys Puppet Carriage Theater is the only such theater in Europe!
The director of the theater, the director Antanas Markuckis, during his creative years, staged many performances in the Puppet Carriage Theater, which are visited by children and young people from all over Lithuania. The theater director's dedication to the theater was recognized with Boris Dauguvietis and H. K. Andersen awards.
About 20,000 spectators visit the Panevėžys Puppet Carriage Theater every year, more than 200 performances and about 50 educational programs are shown.
Every summer, the theater team goes on a traditional summer tour for several weeks or even a month in the villages and towns of Lithuania, where children longing for a never-before-seen fairy tale await. Every year, a different route and a different region of Lithuania are chosen. Whether it's rain, or scorching sun, or bone-chilling cold, a carriage pulled by a colorful steam engine rolls far and wide to visit the remotest places. Every day is unexpected because you never know what might be waiting for you. The theater carriage can hold the entire performance. The carriage becomes a stage, a kitchen, and a bedroom. The documentary film "Magic of Travel" created by Lithuanian director Janina Lapinskaitė perfectly reflects the charm and hardships of annual summer tours.
Every two years, the Panevėžys Puppet Carriage Theater organizes the international puppet theater festival "Lėlė gatvjeje", during which the residents and guests of the city of Panevėžys have the opportunity to see the performances of foreign professional puppet theaters in different non-traditional spaces of the city.
The Puppet Theater is engaged in popularizing puppet theater among amateurs as well. Organizes the festival of puppet theater lovers "Molinuko Teatras", which has become a tradition.
Performances are staged in the theater by professional directors not only from Lithuania, but also from foreign countries. Having presented Lithuanian theatrical culture in Denmark, Estonia, the Netherlands, Russia, Belarus, France, Sweden, Ukraine, Germany, Latvia, Norway, Holland, Belgium, Moldova, the theater has been awarded many awards.
As the founder of the Puppet Carriage Theater, Antanas Markuckis, says: "Everything that is born of goodness and beauty remains good, and the one who creates becomes better himself".