The Golden Bird ³⁺

If we wish to enrich a child's inner life, we must continuously spur his or her imagination. There are no bigger riches for a child's soul than what he can draw from magical worlds and events in folk tales.

In the olden days, people would pass the time, cherish their hopes and find solace by inventing magical stories which they would then pass on to others at various occasions. These stories, which we now call fairytales, then spread from mouth to mouth and became a living folk tale whose wisdom and imagination were kept alive up to the present. One such story is certainly the Slovenian folk tale of the Golden Bird.

It is the story of a king and his garden, and of an apple tree that bore golden fruit. The story of his three sons, two evil and one good. The story of a bear who knew all the secrets and could raise the dead. The story of a cave where golden birds lived in golden cages, each more beautiful than the other. The story of spirited steeds, ruthless bandits, and gentle mermaids.

And there is not a stage in the world better suited for such fairytales than a puppet theatre, where this myriad of wonderful worlds can shine in a truly magical splendour.