The Sofia Puppet Theater from Bulgaria and the Japanese theater group "PUK" are implementing a large-scale international project, presenting a bilingual puppet performance in Hokkaido Prefecture. Today, on July 27, the artists will perform at the Yambikoza Children's Theater in Sapporo.
The event is part of a large-scale cultural initiative called "Cultural Exchange and Human Resources Exchange", which includes tours in a total of 13 Japanese cities. The tour officially started on June 25, 2025, with a premiere performance in Tokyo, where the Bulgarian Ambassador Marieta Arabadzhieva, embassy staff, and representatives of the Bulgarian community were present.
The performance "A Story of Seagulls and a Cat Gang" has already been performed three times in Sapporo - once on July 25 and twice on July 26. Today's fourth performance is planned for 1:30 PM local time. Two more performances are scheduled for July 28 - in the morning at 10:30 and in the afternoon at 1:30 PM.
The creative team includes established Bulgarian and Japanese performers: director Katya Petrova and set designer Maya Petrova have prepared a production featuring Marieta Petrova, Ivan Raykov, Stoyan Royanov Ya-Ya, Tetsuya Odachi, Ritsuko Ishida, Misa Obara, and Tatsuo Sato.
After completing the Sapporo performances, the theater troupes will continue their joint tour in Fukuoka Prefecture, expanding the cultural dialogue between the two countries.