24th International Puppet and Mime Festival of Kilkis

The Kilkis International Puppet Theater and Pantomime Festival, with its 23-year presence in Greece's cultural events, is the only international municipal festival institution that promotes and advances the development of puppet theater in Greece.

Its aim is to serve as a permanent platform for the promotion and advancement of artistic expression in puppet theater and pantomime, combining theater, music, visual arts, dance, to attract Greek and foreign artists, to entertain, to educate, to offer creative opportunities, and to help local development.

This year, 2025, it will take place from October 4 to 13, continuing the operation of the leading institution for the city of Kilkis with the greatest extroversion and at the same time certifying the tradition of Kilkis as a genuine city of Puppet Theater, as defined by the Greek Ministry of Culture in the network of Cultural Cities of the Greek Region.

As the city's major event, it rekindles cultural centers, supports, promotes, and showcases local development, promotes culture, theatrical education, and the intellectual interests of the citizens, contributes significantly to strengthening extroversion, and, above all, fulfills the social purposes of the Municipality in the best possible way.

This year's program includes 83 events, of which forty-four (44) are puppet theater and pantomime performances, which will be presented in venues made available to the festival by the Municipality of Kilkis (Conference Center, Tobacco Warehouse, public squares, and various villages managed by the municipality), 30 guided tours, workshops, 4 master classes for puppeteers, 2 seminars for puppeteers, 1 seminar for teachers, 4 guided tours of the exhibition by artist Ioanna Mamakouka, and 1 artistic residence for young puppeteers

For the exhibition-workshop with intercultural content, aimed primarily at school audiences due to its educational nature. This is an exhibition-workshop of high cultural and anthropological interest that will help young visitors better understand the mosaic of cultures on our planet and their great similarities. This activity will include at least 25 to 30 guided tours, each lasting 45 minutes, with the implementation of an educational creative workshop for public schools in Kilkis.

As part of this exhibition, a 6-hour seminar for adults will be held on the art of storytelling in educational and social spaces (9 & 10/10).

In this edition of the festival, and aware of the abnormal situation of today's times, where war, the violence of the powerful, and lies dominate our daily lives, we wanted to talk about the Culture of Peace.

Play is intertwined with human nature. Through play, from our earliest childhood, we gradually build the adults we will become. What we play and how we play will shape the way we see the world and relate to it.

UNESCO states in its founding document:

The exhibition includes a large collection of old toys from other eras, made of wood, cardboard, and sheet metal. A journey that speaks to us of peace, violence, and children's rights.

Meeting of young Greek puppeteers. In this edition of the festival, we intend to invite a group of young Greek puppeteers who come from training and support workshops for young Greek artists taking their first steps in this form of performing arts.

Fifteen young puppeteers who have completed their training will attend this meeting – "residence". The meeting will be coordinated by the trainers of the various educational workshops. The young participants will be able to present their new artistic works to the audience in Kilkis.

This is an activity of great importance for the dissemination of this art and the recognition of its professional status.

The Meeting gives young artists a platform to present their work in a professional environment, participate in workshops and discussions with experienced colleagues, attend the Festival's performances, and get to know each other.

It is aimed at young puppeteers with little or no professional experience who have "fresh work" (a performance) to present that they wish to develop.

Participants will be guided in appropriating sketches and scene studies they have already created, in order to transform and reinvent them according to their own artistic sensibility.

A unique opportunity to discover the power of creation through the body, objects, and stage transformation, opening up new expressive and human possibilities.