JP/Ika KrismantariPeople only know two kinds of puppetry in Indonesia. The first, which is usually seen on  television, is purely dedicated to children’s education while the second goes back to ancient traditions only older people seem to appreciate.

But the Papermoon Puppet Theater of Yogyakarta doesn’t fall into either category. It’s a new type of performance art blending fine arts and theater in one show. Using experimental media, Papermoon reaches out to wider audiences, by not only exploring deep and controversial themes but also portraying problems children and adults face in their everyday life. Papermoon is the brainchild of Maria “Ria” Tri Sulistyani, a children book illustrator-cum-writer as well as a former theater actress. It was established in 2006 in Yogyakarta  as an art space to nurture the younger generation’s interest in the art world.It was...