Puppet masters converge on city of Nanchong

Puppeteers from all around the world have gathered in the Nanchong City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, for a week-long puppetry event.

As the event reaches its final days, 46 puppet performance troupes have converged in Nanchong, and one of the major attractions is Zhangzhou puppetry from Fujian province. It has a history of more than 300 years and is a puppet version of Peking Opera. The show tells classic stories from Chinese history in an intricate and engaging fashion.

"The wrists of the puppeteer needs to be flexible, because the movement of different roles in the show are all very different. The performer needs to have a very thorough understanding of the character being portrayed," Zhangzhou Puppet Troupe Director Hong Huijun said.

Chinese puppetry tends to involve great attention to detail. Indian puppetry, however, is very lively and dramatic. At the event, puppeteers from India guide their puppets to fast beats of Indian music.

More than 600 puppeteers will put on more that 120 puppet shows during the puppetry week, which runs until Friday.