Peruvian puppet theatre. Established in 1976 in Huacho under the leadership of Mario Enrique Herrera Asín and with the participation of four puppeteer artists, the Centro de Teatro de Títeres y Cultura “Antarita” (Antarita Centre for Puppet Theatre and Culture) works primarily with glove puppets. The Centre has its own workshop where it builds puppets, sets, develops staging, music, lighting, and dramatic text. It serves also as a teaching space where workshops are run for teachers at different levels, training them in glove puppetry and other techniques.

Antarita is an active participant of national festivals in Peru and it organizes regional meetings within the country for local puppeteers. In addition to Mario Enrique Herrera Asín, other company members include Esther Alvarez and Ronald Herrera Alvarez.

The repertoire includes Historia de un Fantasmita (Story of a Little Ghost, 1976), La Caperucita Roja (Little Red Riding Hood, 1978), El leñador y el rey de las aguas (The Woodcutter and the King of the Waters, 1980), El conejo mocho (The Lop-eared Rabbit, 1981), La ratita presumida (The Pretentious Little Rat, 1983), El zorro y el cuy (The Fox and the Guinea Pig, 1986), El siervo que no perdonó (The Unforgiving Servant, 1986) and, using a mix of several techniques, Los dientes del dragón (The Dragon’s Teeth, 1986) and Basumón, el monstruo del basural (Basumón, The Dump Monster), written by Mario E. Herrera Asín.

(See Peru.)