Featured Artists

Sirikarn Bunjongtad (Jae)

Director, Playwright and Stage Designer

Sirikarn Bunjongtad, is a Thai puppetry artist and puppet maker. In 2017 she founded Puppets by Jae. Her work is known for its inventive and diverse approach, using puppetry to explore important social issues such as diversity, migration, and democracy.

Drawing inspiration from ethnic mythologies as well as contemporary social realities, her creations employ a wide range of forms, including shadow puppets, tabletop puppets, hand puppets, and masks. Her works are frequently invited to international festivals and exchanges. In 2012, she received the Best Director Award at the World Puppet Carnival. In 2018, she was awarded a grant from the Asian Cultural Council (ACC) to participate in a puppetry program at the University of Connecticut, where she also studied with the renowned Bread and Puppet Theater.

Her notable works include the shadow play The Chaotic Neighborhood, the black-light puppetry piece Love Letter, and the hand puppet performance Alien. Since 2023, Jae has served as an artist-in-residence at Puppet & Its Double Theatre, where she has created story-based productions such as Snail and Lost and Found.