Malaysia · Puppetry; Puppet making and manipulation; Performing-arts craft
潮州鐵枝木偶 (Teochew iron-rod puppetry; also called 纸影戏, 'paper-shadow theater')
A form of Teochew rod puppetry in which small figures with clay heads, hand-embroidered costumes and bodies of wood or bundled straw are operated by three iron rods: one fixed to the back and one to each hand. Puppeteers sit cross-legged behind an embroidered curtain and perform abridged Teochew opera repertoire to live music. In Penang the tradition is carried by one family-led institution, the Teochew Puppet & Opera House in George Town, which also trains new performers.
Risk level: Endangered · Not listed by UNESCO. Chaozhou iron-stick puppet theater is on China's first national intangible heritage list (2006). In Malaysia a Penang practitioner was honored as a Living Heritage Treasure in 2008; no national inscription was found in the sources consulted.
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