The jury has worked as following: Kateřina Dolenská (chair), Lenka Dzadíková, Zoja Mikotová, Karel Czech, and Jan Matásek.
Ladies and gentlemen, dear children,
The 28th edition of the Mateřinka Festival is coming to the end, and so it is time to reflect on what it has been like. A brief answer might be that it was very full—the program brought performances of 18 Czech and 7 international puppet theatre ensembles, and we, as the jury, were tasked to evaluate 17 productions included in the competition. So, what kind of selection did the festival’s dramaturgy offer?
The main key, we felt as a jury, was great diversity. The selected productions didn’t duplicate each other in their approaches, but spoke to the youngest children in a variety of ways. Some relied on illustration, others left a wide space for imagination. Some offered entirely original stories, others adapted well-known books or films, or retold centuries-tested fairy tales, often in refreshed or innovative forms. By the way, the ratio of beloved classics to new original works felt nicely balanced—almost fifty-fifty. Also present were playful productions without a traditional plot structure, carried by a stream of associations, allowing children to experience unbounded, joyful play.
What these competitive productions did have in common, was a strong effort to build a close connection with the audience. Many took place in intimate spaces, in close proximity to the audience, and often involved some level of interaction. In our discussions, this actor-audience connection kept emerging as a crucial element of the theatrical experience—especially for the youngest spectators, who might be encountering theatre for the very first time. It was inspiring to observe the various approaches to communication chosen by the creators—from a motherly gentle and kind manner interaction, through spontaneous friendly teasing, to a more distanced, performative style that still sensitively responded to audience cues. Only in rare cases did the creators build a solid wall between themselves and the audience.
We also observed that puppetry bridges artists through generations. Alongside established theatre artists, the program—both competitive and non-competitive—featured creators just at the beginning of their careers, and it fills us with optimism that they have chosen puppetry as their means of artistic expression. And the festival wasn’t only about theatre experiences—students from the Department of Alternative and Puppet Theatre at DAMU in Prague closely followed and analyzed the entire Mateřinka Festival in the festival newsletter, while their peers from the Department of Scenography gave us a glimpse into the world of student woodcarving in their exhibition.
Our key principle in awarding the prizes—soon to be revealed—was above all to recognize the courage to explore and experiment with ways of engaging today’s children. At the same time, we also aimed to highlight artistically and technically (in the best sense of the word) well-crafted productions, in which all elements come together in harmony to create a rich and complete experience. For that, and for this entire year’s festival, we offer our deepest thanks.
Mateřinka Festival 2025 Awards
Special Recognition by the Jury
Roosa Halme, Ko-Koo-Mo Theatre, Finland
Marek Doubrava for the music in the production MONT ST GUMBOOT, DRAK Theatre, Hradec Králové
Berta Doubková for the set design of the production The Red Balloon, Naive Theatre Liberec
Veronika Svobodová for the set design of the production MONT ST GUMBOOT, DRAK Theatre, Hradec Králové
Mária Danadová for directing the production About the Wolf Who Fell Out of the Book, Odivo, Banská Bystrica
Antonie Formanová for authorship and performing in the production Tall, Broad and Sharpsight, Minor Theatre, Prague
Veronika Khomová, Jakub Müller, Petr Štěpánek, and Pavel Pfeifer for their performances in The Red Balloon, Naive Theatre Liberec
Robert Smolík for writing and directing the production Tall, Broad and Sharpsight, Minor Theatre, Prague
The Statutory City of Liberec Lord Mayor’s Award
Jiří Ondra for directing the production MONT ST GUMBOOT, DRAK Theatre, Hradec Králové
Liberec Region President’s Award
Michaela Homolová for directing the production The Red Balloon, Naive Theatre Liberec
