The puppets of Sicilian opera are wooden marionettes with a jointed body, but not all are made the same.
In fact, there are very important differences between the puppets of the area of Palermo, Trapani and Agrigento and the puppets of the provinces of Catania, Messina and Syracuse.
The former are 80 centimetres tall and are moved at the side of the stage by the puppeteer with his or her arm outstretched; the others are between 120-130 centimetres tall and are manoeuvred from the top of a bridge behind the stage.
Stories taken from chivalrous romances were staged, but with a twist that mocked the reality of the present day.
In 2008 the puppet tradition was inscribed in the UNESCO Intangible Heritage List.
