Ei! Marionetas / Teatro e Marionetas de Mandrágora

Ei! Marionetas / Teatro e Marionetas de Mandrágora

Ei! Marionetas - Encontro Internacional de Marionetas de Gondomar 2026

Grandma’s Hiding Place [ SHOW ]


3 JUL 21h30 . FRIAuditório Municipal de Gondomar
Grandma’s Hiding PlaceGrandma’s Hiding PlaceGrandma’s Hiding PlaceGrandma’s Hiding PlaceGrandma’s Hiding PlaceGrandma’s Hiding Place

Grandma’s Hiding Place

A puppet theatre show for children based on the ancient Japanese legend ‘Mount Ubasute’. A story about the importance of older people in society and their role as bearers of knowledge and memory.

Through humour, tenderness and the enthusiasm of childhood, this show explores these issues to highlight the importance of continuing to rely on our grandmothers and grandfathers, both socially and within the family: for their greater wisdom, greater patience, greater courage and, above all, our collective memory.

Legend has it that a tyrannical king forced the villagers to abandon all elderly people on a mountain as soon as they turned 70. But some children decide to hide their grandmother so that no one can find her.

Meanwhile, the neighbouring kingdom attacked the village and the invading monarch warned that he would go to war unless the village could solve three riddles. Who will be able to solve the riddle and restore peace to their village?


  • The staging features five different locations: the village, the tower, the hill, the castle, the battlefield and the lair. Some of the sets will be constructed live before the audience’s eyes. Once again, the set design functions as a dynamic element, serving not only to represent the stage space but also as a protagonist in the play. The production draws on the colourfulness of German Expressionism as its main aesthetic reference, featuring puppets with simple, expressive lines inspired by the engravings of this artistic movement. This marks the first time the company has drawn on this influence in its more than 45-year history, a testament to its innovative and experimental spirit, always in search of new forms. As for the puppets, the production features figures of various formats and scales, incorporating diverse techniques such as bunraku and rod puppetry, as well as masks and shadow theatre, thereby creating a rich, unique and diverse visual universe. Furthermore, the show features original music composed by Ana Sánchez-Cano Jimeno and dramaturgical consultancy by Nieves Rodríguez Rodríguez. Through collaborations with other professionals and specialists in various artistic fields, La Tartana Teatro continues to broaden its creative horizons and strengthen its links with different areas of the arts to enrich both the creative process and its outcome.

    • what the festival has to say

    It is with great pleasure that we bring this production from Spain. Through our growing relationship with the Madrid-based company, a direct and concrete dialogue has developed; Teatro Marionetas de Mandrágora was invited to the festival that this same organization hosts in Madrid, “Pendientes de un Hilo,” where it presented several projects and served on the festival’s jury. These connections and exchanges inevitably led us to invite this project—a reflection the artist brings to us, contemplating his career, a work created in a context of isolation. Above all, we also wanted to continue fostering an Iberian connection that enables a shared dialogue of artistic synergies.

    La Tartana Teatro

    La Tartana is a puppet theatre company based in Madrid, founded by Juan Muñoz in 1977, which is characterised by its commitment to children, its constant evolution, and the variety of techniques and styles it employs.

    Over the course of more than four decades, they have premiered over 40 shows and have been honoured with countless awards.

    Their commitment is to continue investing in research within the world of puppetry, continuous work, dedication and creativity – commitments for which a stable team is essential, allowing all creative effort to be focused on the project.

    art

    CONCEPT AND CREATION La Tartana Teatro
    ACTORS-PUPPETEERS Juan Cruz Guerra, Elena Burgos
    DRAMATIC ADAPTATION Nieves Rodríguez Rodríguez
    MUSICAL COMPOSITION AND SOUND DESIGN Ana Sánchez-Cano Jimeno, Alejandro Maciá
    PUPPET DESIGN AND SET DESIGN Inés Maroto, Juan Muñoz
    LIGHTING DESIGN Gonzalo Muñoz
    EXECUTIVE PRODUCTION AND ADMINISTRATION Luis Martínez
    COMMUNICATION Olga de Pereda
    DISTRIBUTION Proversus
    PHOTOGRAPHY Sylvia Cubodeluz
    ASSISTANT DIRECTOR Elena Muñoz
    DIRECTORS Juan Muñoz, Inés Maroto

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