DUSHANBE, April 16, 2010, Asia-Plus — The 2nd International Puppet Theatre Festival, dubbed Chodari Khayol, was inaugurated in Dushanbe on April 16, offering top entertainment for kids and adults.
Ms. Nargis Roziqova, deputy director of the Dushanbe Puppet Theatre, Lukhtak, says puppeteers from the Russian Federation (Khakasiya and Orenburg), Iran, Belarus, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan are participating in the festival, which is initiated and organized by Lukhtak with the support from the Government of Tajikistan and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC).
“Our theatre will show The Thoughts on War and Peace, staged by Zafar Javodov,” Roziqova said, noting that a scientific-practical conference to discuss the aesthetic education problems will be held on sidelines of the festival that runs through April 21.
The Chodari Khayol Festival is held in Tajikistan for the second time; the first one took place here in 2007 and six puppet theatres from foreign countries took part in that festival.
Roziqova added that their theatre was currently making preparations for the summer international festival in Iran. Besides, Lukhtak will also take part in the puppet theatre festival that will take place in Yekaterinburg, Russia in September.
Press release issued by SDC Tajikistan says the Festival is an important event in cultural life of modern Tajikistan, and contributes to strengthening creative and friendly ties between different peoples and countries.
It is worthwhile noting that puppet art of Persian people enjoys a thousand-year old history and has preserved its beauty to our time. Historical sources say that Sogdian and Bactrian people in particular were engaged in puppet art even during the prehistoric period, and this traditional theatrical art was called “chodarkhayol” (puppet art). Moreover, its elements may be observed in the puppet art of Central Asian region, even in China, Japan, Turkey and India nowadays.
The Festival is undoubtedly a logical continuation of those undertakings. The Festival’s principal mission is to strengthen cultural interrelations, and give a better insight into the culture and traditions of Tajik people thereby creating grounds for further development of the puppet art in Tajikistan. It is expected that the Festival will promote cultural, intellectual and esthetic upbringing of the younger generation.
