The annual exhibition, which under the careful organisation of Bežigrad Gallery 1 has been delighting and informing generations of visitors since 1980, a tradition of more than four decades, presents both the art of puppetry and the artists who have devoted their careers to this form of performance for children and others.

From Sketch to Puppet (The Nutcracker, Mini Teater Ljubljana)

Ever since 1980 Bežigrad Gallery has been organising the exhibition From Sketch to Puppet the art of puppetry. This year it features puppets, sketches and photographs of The Nutcracker.
It is broadly divided into three sections. On the left side of the first exhibition space is a stage with nearly seventy puppets and other props from a production of The Nutcracker that was staged by Mini Teater Ljubljana. On display are a number of soldiers (all similar yet different), two versions of Marie, two versions of the Nutcracker, Mother Ginger, the Sugarplum Fairy, two monkeys, horses, a small army of mice and many other characters. At first glance, the puppets seem simple and extremely stylised, but in the right human proportions, with the exception of a few details accentuating certain characteristics. Most of the puppets are made of laminated paper coloured with acrylic paints, but some are crafted out of wood, felt or some other type of fabric, but also rope, wire and so on. The Mouse King steals the show in the middle of the stage, reigning over the rest of the puppets as a magnificent and slightly scary figure.
The second section of the exhibition features sketches lining the wall of the first exhibition space to the right. The sketches are very simple, made with only a few strokes and somewhat similar to children's drawings, but still extremely expressive and vivid. You will recognise some of the characters who ended up on stage, such as the horses, mice and even the Mouse King.
The third section consists of superb photographs of The Nutcracker puppet show, which are displayed in the second exhibition space. They provide insight into the visual appearance of Mini Teater's take on the story and show the puppets in a different light – in action. How many characters can you find in all three media? We invite you to take a closer look and try to find them all!

Author of the text: Naja Mlinar

The Nutcracker
About the performance
The Nutcracker is based on the classic tale The Nutcracker and the Mouse King by Prussian author E.T.A. Hoffman. Godfather Drosselmeyer tells the fairy tale to the girl Marie. Long ago, the wicked Queen Mishilda brought a curse upon the little princess. To free her from the curse, the Nutcracker became the Nutcracker as we know him: a wooden dummy that can do nothing but crack nuts. The girl Marie cannot understand why the royal family has forgotten all about the Nutcracker and has not helped him. She wonders if he might really have something in common with the princess in the fairy tale.
About the director
Alexander Yanuškévič graduated from the Belarusian Academy of Arts in 2001 with a specialisation in "actor in puppet theatre" and in 2011 he specialised in "director in puppet theatre". In 2001 he was accepted as an actor into the acting ensemble of the Belarusian Puppet Theatre, where he has been working as a director since 2010.
Productions 
The History of the City of Glupov by Saltikov Shchedrin; Poročoka by V. Gombrovich; The Brother and the Peck from the Roof by S. Prokofyeva and M. Mikaelyan; The Boy Who Swam with Piranhas by D. Almond at the Belarusian Puppet Theatre; The Arabian Nights by R. Schimmelfennig at the National Theatre by J. Kupala; The Guardians of the Taj Mahal by R. Joseph for the Art Corporation in Minsk; The garden after A. Chekhov at the Karelia Puppet Theatre.
From 2015 to 2016 he worked as artistic director at the Perm Theatre. From 2017 to 2019 he was the main director at the Brest Puppet Theatre. He has participated in theatre laboratories. He is the author of more than 30 performances and the winner of the third National Theatre Award (Belarus) for the best direction of children's performances. School notebook by A. Christopher received the Golden Mask Award (Russia) for the best puppet show.
About the puppet and costume designer
Lyudmila Skitovich was born in 1975 in Minsk, Belarus. She graduated from the Belarusian State Academy of Arts in 2000. She specialised in design in puppet theatre and has designed more than 30 shows in Belarus, Ukraine, Russia and Germany.
About the composer
Andrey Yevdakimav is a musician, composer, sound designer and sound engineer from Minsk (Belarus), now living in Warsaw (Poland). He plays guitar in musical bands, works as a musician and composer in music and theatre projects in Belarus, Russia and European countries. He also works as a sound designer in computer game development projects.

Link to Mini Teater’s website and The Nutcracker: https://www.mini-teater.si/si/articles/3756/hrestac