This study examines puppeteer training and puppeteer festivals as strategies for the regeneration of Balinese shadow puppetry in the context of the Bali Arts Festival (PKB). The study focuses on training activities at Sanggar Wayang Aringgit and Sanggar Sandhi Swara, including the documented experiences of I Dewa Ketut Wicaksandita, Ni Kadek Budi Arsani and other young puppeteers who participated in PKB. Using a qualitative case study approach, the research combines historical visual documentation of training and festival performances from 2006 with interviews conducted in 2026 with puppeteers and trainers, supported by PKB records and relevant literature. Richard Schechner’s performance theory, particularly the concept of restored behavior, is used to analyze the transmission and transformation of performative practices. The findings show that puppeteer training develops technical competence through repeated practice of musical accompaniment, puppetry techniques, vocal performance, character presentation, and scene enactment. Festival participation subsequently provides opportunities for public performance, intergenerational interaction, exchange of performance practices, and social recognition. The cases further demonstrate that young puppeteers can continue their practice in ritual and cultural performances and, in some cases, become performers and trainers for subsequent generations. Thus, training and festival participation form interconnected performative processes through which Balinese puppetry practices are transmitted, reproduced, and transformed across generations.
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