Colombian theatre and puppet company created in 1974 in Bogotá. Under the direction of Ciro Gómez Acevedo, the troupe Hilos Mágicos (Magical Strings) has today become a cultural association with diverse activities and is one of the most visible Colombian companies.

Its repertoire consists of more than fifty variety numbers and over seventeen stagings of diverse plays, amongst which are Variedades (Varieties), El ratoncito azul (The Little Blue Mouse), Retablo de Navidad (Christmas/Nativity Puppet Show), Cuentos del Abuelo (Grandfather’s Tales), Llegarón los Marcianos (And the Martians Are Here), La gallina de los huevos de oro (The Hen that Lays Golden Eggs), El Tesoro de El Dorado (The Treasure of El Dorado), Travesuras para un Arco Iris (Tomfoolery for a Rainbow), Las Esmeraldas del Sol (Emeralds of the Sun), Ladrones a domicilio (Thieves at Home). The play, Cuentos y recuentos de Maese Pedro (Tales and Exploits of Master Peter), is the history of puppetry in the world as told by Professor Pedro Maestre using a lively text, around a hundred slides of small theatres and puppet figures from different countries. For each staging, all the techniques are explored: string puppets, shadow theatre, marottes, giant puppets, black (light) theatre, object theatre, actors, and masks.

Within its plan of cultural projects, the company has welcomed and promoted writers, painters, theatre persons, musicians, and puppeteers. It has participated in national and international festivals in Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Brazil, Venezuela, Guyana, Barbados, Ecuador, and Spain.

In 1993, Hilos Mágicos won the Premio Ollantay (Ollantay prize) from the Centro Latinoamericano de Creación e Investigación Teatral (CELCIT, Latin-American Centre for Theatrical Creation and Research), under the aegis of UNESCO’s promotion of the arts. As a cultural association, Hilos Mágicos develops training and teaching programmes through its workshops. It also promotes dissemination and research at its documentation centre and organizes travelling exhibitions of puppets from around the world as well as conferences and tours throughout the country.

(See Colombia.)