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Asian Traditional Theatre and Dance
Asian Traditional Theatre & Dance
Sri Lanka
Rukada, the Marionette Theatre

The opening dance of a marionette theatre performance is provided by a Tamil danseuse
JUKKA O. MIETTINEN

The jesters’ dance. The marionettes are operated from above by means of strings
JUKKA O. MIETTINEN

Sri Lanka has its own form of marionette theatre and its puppets are called rukada or “miniature figures”. Like all marionettes, rukadas are also operated from above by means of strings. The golden age of the marionette theatre was in the late 19th century and the early 20th century. Nowadays only a few groups perform on the southern coast of Sri Lanka, mainly in the vicinity of the village of Ambalangoda.