Once a popular performing art in the royal courts of the 1800s,marionette theatre fell from favour and almost vanished in Myanmar. The popular Mandalay Marionette Theatre,which gives nighty performances,is widely credited with doing much to save the traditions but it is still seen as a dying art. Manipulated by a troop of puppeteers,performances include several characters in tales of the Buddha’s life and historic legends. Traditonal handmade puppets,old and new,are widely available in torist areas across the country.