Research residencies

Guiding figures: an investigation into the educational heritage of puppetry at ESNAM
Aurélie Hubeau (France) was  in residence of research from 5 to 9 January, then from 23 to 27 March 2026 to document her teaching. She is interested in the tutelary figures and pedagogical heritage of puppetry at ESNAM.

A study on the dramaturgy of materials in contemporary shadow theatre
Artist, post-doctoral student, research professor, Paulo Balardim (Brazil) will conduct bibliographic and videographic research at the Documentation Center of the Pôle, from February 2 to 20, 2026, as part of the preparation of his thesis ” Between projected shadows, moving screens and the artist of shadow theater, from kinetics to poetics “.

“Potehi in motion”. Transmission, Pedagogy and Contemporary Puppetry
This research residency brings together puppeteer and researcher Hsu Chia-fen  and master puppeteer Yeung Faï, from 6 to 17 July 2026, to explore Potehi as a living system of transmission, pedagogy and artistic creation.
At the centre of the research is Yeung Faï’s pedagogical practice, which emerged from a unique trajectory linking family-based transmission, professional training in China, and more than three decades of artistic work in Europe.

How might the art of puppetry contribute to theatre acting training, given the demands of contemporary theatre production?
Actress, puppeteer, director and teacher, Alexandra Vuillet explores the interplay between the arts, highlighting the positive and inspiring aspects of these connections.
She was in a Research residency at the Documentation center of the Pôle, from 16 to 27 March 2026, to continue her work which questions the links between the training of the puppeteer and that of the actor.

Research residency from 8 to 24 January 2025.

Anastasia Puppis has a dual career as a puppeteer and researcher. Artistic director of the Compagnie Ueueuè, she is developing an innovative research project on the iconography of puppet shows in Europe from the Middle Ages to the 19th century (which will give rise to an exhibition in 2026). In particular, her work explores the figure of Polichinelle and his counterparts, the occupation of public space by travelling puppeteers, the evolution of scenic devices and the relationship with the audience through the ages.

Alice Jäger spent to periods in Research residency, from June 2 to 6, then from June 16 to July 10, 2025, to pursue her thesis research on the representation of minority experiences in contemporary puppet theater.

Alice Jäger is a contract PhD student in the Passages XX-XXI laboratory at the Université Lumière Lyon 2, devoting her thesis to the representation of minority experiences in contemporary puppetry.

Matt Weinstock, a writer and researcher based in New York, was hosted in a Research residency from March 10 to 21, 2025, to explore the personal and professional archives of Yves Joly, a Normandy-born puppeteer whose work radicalized Tillstrom and inspired his 1964 masterpiece, the “Berlin Wall” hand ballet. During his residency, Weinstock hopes to learn about Joly’s lifelong quest for simplicity, the evolution of his “les mains seules” technique, and his cross-lingual friendship with Tillstrom.

Charles Nomwendé Tiendrebéogo was in Research residency from 2 to 13 June 2025.
Researcher and artist, he is preparing a thesis under the supervision of Guy Freixe entitled “Rewriting or adapting a traditional African practice in contemporary theatrical language(s): fiber masks in certain ethnic groups of Burkina Faso”.

Yanna Kor is a researcher and teacher in theatre studies at the University of Lille. Her research focuses on two areas: the theatrical aesthetics of Alfred Jarry and the history of popular French puppetry.

She was in Research residency from 6 to 31 October 2025, to finalise her book on travelling puppet theatres in France between 1850 and 1950 (to be published by Deuxième époque), and in particular to add to the information on puppeteers and companies active between 1920 and 1950.

Research residency from 12 to 28 February, then from 14 to 18 April.2025.

Emeline Rotolo is in charge of the archives relating to music, the performing arts and cinema at the Archives nationales de France. She is also working on a doctoral thesis in history at the École Pratique des Hautes Études on puppet shows in Paris and Bordeaux in the first half of the 19th century, under the supervision of Jean-Claude Yon (PSL/EPHE/SAPRAT).

The research residency is devoted to continuing the writing of this project thanks to access to the specialist resources held by the Centre de Documentation et des Collections du Pôle International de la Marionnette.