A Living Museum — Not Just to Visit, but to Experience
MUMA – The Mirabassi Family Puppets Museum is the only museum in Umbria entirely dedicated to puppet theatre: hand puppets, marionettes, and puppets of all kinds.
It is housed in municipal spaces assigned to the TIEFFEU – Umbrian Puppet Theatre Association, and also includes the “Teatro di Figura Perugia”, a theatre specifically designed to host this type of performance, as well as a classroom for workshop activities.
The exhibition spaces feature a curated selection of around 300 puppets, created by the Mirabassi family — Mario, his daughter Ada, and his wife Lorenza — which starred in shows by the Tieffeu Company during more than forty-five years of intense artistic activity (1980–2025).
Not a Traditional Museum
MUMA is not a traditional museum focused solely on preservation: it is a dynamic space dedicated to creativity, engagement, and education.
Here, the artistic heritage comes to life through workshops for children and adults, guided tours, performances, training courses, and themed events.
The puppets, while exhibited, are never separated from their original context: the theatre. They remain living testimonies of an art form that continues to create stories — some inspired by classic fairy tales, others born from the imagination and writing of Mario Mirabassi.
Techniques and Materials
The marionettes and hand puppets in the collection are crafted using a variety of techniques, ranging from the simpler Muppet-style figures to more complex constructions featuring innovative mechanics.
Materials include foam rubber, wood paste, fabric, and others, showcasing the artisanal skill and continuous experimentation of the Mirabassi family.
Services Offered
The museum offers a wide range of activities and services:
- Guided tours
- Theatre performances
- Educational workshops for children and adults
- Training courses for professionals in the field
- Themed exhibitions and conferences
The attached educational classroom regularly hosts after-school workshops for children, as well as professional training courses.
Special attention is given to schools, with custom programs for school groups and theory/practice courses for teachers focused on animation and puppetry techniques.
Spaces for Events and Initiatives
The complex also includes a 98-seat theatre, available on request for cultural events, conferences, promotional activities, or social gatherings.
Upon request, Tieffeu provides hospitality services, technical support (audio, video, lighting), and entertainment, including performances, workshops, and guided tours.
A museum-theatre, a theatre-museum.
The close connection between the museum and the theatre means that the exhibition spaces also serve as foyers for performances, making the museum a gathering place before and after shows. All activities interact synergistically, mutually reinforcing one another.
A Model of a Contemporary Museum
MUMA represents an example of a contemporary museum: not merely a container of objects, but a living, dynamic, and stimulating place — especially for children — where tradition meets experimentation and art becomes a shared experience.
