Mukamas Puppet Festival Brings International Puppetry, Circus and Dance to Tampere, 16–20 September

The Mukamas puppet theatre festival will run in Tampere from 16 to 20 September, featuring companies from Canada, Iceland and France.

Over five days, Mukamas 2026 mixes modern puppet and object theatre with contemporary circus, dance and visual art. Performances take place at Mukamas Theatre in Pispala, the Hällä stage, Laikku Cultural Centre and Haihara Art Centre. The programme offers family and adult shows and free side events such as a colour light therapy talk, a Children's Sunday yard event and music-filled evening gatherings, Aamulehti reported.

It comes amid a busy late-summer festival calendar in Pirkanmaa, which recently included Blockfest and other theatre events in Tampere.

Standout shows range from Company Portmanteau’s family piece Piste, piste, piste, which blends circus, dance and visual art, to the Canadian collective La ruée vers l'or’s Arctic Tall Tales, an adult work based on Jørn Riel’s Greenland stories. Icelandic creator Aude Busson presents the community project Manndýr, featuring contributions from Finnish children. French company XZART returns with its signature animal characters.

The festival also highlights Finnish work. Grus Grus Theatre brings the adult piece Näkymättömät maat, which turns the human body into a map and has toured more than 20 countries. Domestic companies on the bill include Hevosenkenkä Theatre, Puppet Theatre Sampo, Puppet Theatre Nirunaru, Haihara Puppet Theatre, Anne Välinoro and host Mukamas Theatre.